How do i find crappie without a fish finder, all of the cover is underwater

[YoungApprentice1]

Hey, I'm a young guy trying to get y'alls advise on how to find crappie without a fish finder. The spots I go to has all of its cover submerged in water. What am I supposed to be looking for

[Ljones]

About the only choice your going to have is slow trolling or spider rigging and hope you go over some cover that's holding some fish, i personally would be lost without my 898 humminbird

[Tennessee Trey]

When you snag something mark it and fish

[SeaRay]

All is not lost. Docks and bridge pilings are good spots to try. Depends on the time of the year. When they are spawning in the spring time look for partially submerged brush in shallow water (2 to 7 ft). In the heat of the day they love to hang out under docks and around bridge pilings. If you are casting around pilings you need to count your jig down to get it deep in the water. Arund a foot a sec is a good approximation for sink rate, till you fine tune it through trial and error. And when you think you are reeling too slow, slow down to half speed. Crappie can bite so lightly the only clue you have is your line goes slack. It feels weird to set the hook on nothing, but trust me, if you are reeling slowly by a bridge or dock and all of a sudden your line gets a bow in it set the hook.
Good luck.

[Cmj]

Crappie can bite so lightly the only clue you have is your line goes slack. It feels weird to set the hook on nothing, but trust me, if you are reeling slowly by a bridge or dock and all of a sudden your line gets a bow in it set the hook.
Good luck.

X2 it seems to be overstated around here, but it's just that important. Last week, it seemed the only way to catch them here was casting a RR head with a large body at a fast retrieve. Only problem was, the bite was so light that it almost seemed stupid to set the hook at some of the tics I was feeling. Every time I set the hook I was expecting to come up empty, but he would be there every time. Other people were trying the same thing, right down to the same bait/colors, and not having any luck. They just werent setting the hook. I think people expect the fish to hook themselves while casting, but that's not always the case. When in doubt, set the hook.



C.J.

[crappieseeker]

As already mentioned docks and bridge pilings. Also if you have a dam or any kind of water flowing into the still water this creates eddy water and an ambush area for crappie.

[Greenwood Crapster]

Ok, so I am in the same position. This is also my first year of Crappie fishing. I fish from the banks and no fish finder. I always use a slip bobber. I have been using jigs with minnows, jigs with crappie nibbles and just jigs alone. I have probably put in 100 hours of fishing for them since November. The problem is, I'm not catching them. I've caught a few, but only two over 10". My question is, am I missing the bite? All of the ones that I have caught have made the bobber go under. It was very noticable that I had a bite. Are the other bites so sensitive, that I am not seeing them or are they just not there. It's getting really embarrasing coming home every Saturday and Sunday telling my wife that I didn't catch anything again. Can you guys please help me out. Possibly tell me what I am doing wrong.
Thanks

[sky hawk]

I am going to go out on a limb and say your success rate will jump considerably over the next 3 months. It's much easier to catch them from shore without a sonar when they are shallow. During the spawn they are spread out on visible cover anyways most of the time.

[Bytizawn]

X2- ^
Both you members are "up North" and the spawn is in Texas and the lower states at this time of the year. Wait till the spawn in your area hits in about a month or so, and you will be amazed at what you may find as far as a good day when the bite is on! I am in Missouri and it will be about three weeks yet depending on the water temp. I like around 55 to 65! *A real warm day can warm the water up fast and make all the difference in how shallow the bite might be. Also watch the barometric pressure as it lowers before a storm. The lower the pressure (in my own opinion), and the closer to the front, the better the bite. As soon as the storm hits the bite may go off and "the bite" could be done for that particular day. Other than trying different depths, and different lures, and different speeds of retrieve and bobber/no bobber, you gotta' be where there is crappie, i.e. river or lake or pond,,... and if you know,,... that they are in the water you are fishing, then finding them is the key to your success. Yes you may be missing the bite. Try going early and stay til noon and then going at noon and fishing til dark. That will determine in a couple of times whether there even IS a bite at all ! The length of "the bite" may vary if it comes at all in a certain day. Good luck and have fun finding them and trying new things. You'll soon have a day you will counting them to see and make sure that you are not over your limit because you have caught so many! They are more than likely still out in deep water in your area. Everything comes to he who waits,,...but you gotta keep fishing and reading and asking questions in here,,... til they do! So that is your "homework"! P>S.,,...sometimes I can spot them right around dark hitting the surface of the water. With experience you can tell what at least looks like crappie hitting the top of the water.......that's better done in warmer weather though.
Give 20 minutes for one try/place and then MOVE! Run and hunt them til you are on them! Once you find them; fish, fish, and fish 'em,,... til they quit!
Again, good luck and welcome from MO!

[HLLeonard]

Ok, so I am in the same position. This is also my first year of Crappie fishing. I fish from the banks and no fish finder. I always use a slip bobber. I have been using jigs with minnows, jigs with crappie nibbles and just jigs alone. I have probably put in 100 hours of fishing for them since November. The problem is, I'm not catching them. I've caught a few, but only two over 10". My question is, am I missing the bite? All of the ones that I have caught have made the bobber go under. It was very noticable that I had a bite. Are the other bites so sensitive, that I am not seeing them or are they just not there. It's getting really embarrasing coming home every Saturday and Sunday telling my wife that I didn't catch anything again. Can you guys please help me out. Possibly tell me what I am doing wrong.
Thanks

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Not a bank fisherman here but I do use a slip bobber some and I catch a good many crappie by watching the bobber and if it wiggles in any way that I think it shouldn't I do a hook set, not a yanking the bait out of the water hook set, just enough to see if a fish is there, not always a crappie there but with a slip bobber you are fishing at the depth the crappie are at and they don't always take the bait and go down with it, in the spring when we are fishing a foot or two under a bobber the fish move up and take the bait then go back to where they were, when you are fishing at their depth they might take the bait and stay where they are so if the bobber moves in any unnatural way suspect a fish is the reason it is doing that and do a hook set, occasionally the bobber will just start to sink deeper in the water as if it got heavy all of a sudden, you will get a lot more of these light bites on a minnow than you will get of the bobber disappearing variety if you are fishing deeper ... Hope this helps.