What's your strategy/tip?

[Hoosier Crappie]

Hope everyone is doing great this cold day. In central IN we just got up to above zero! Brrr

Ok, maybe this will be something that helps each of us!

What provenstrategy/tip/trick helps you catch crappie?

Wished I had a real good one. Something I do is use two different baits about two feet apart to efficiently search the water column for crappie and what bait they like.

Please no hi-jacking with jokes/comedy- there's another forum for that stuff!
Can hardly wait to read everyones' contributions!

[CatFan]

Fish smaller spots. Not just around a brush pile, but in it, on the shady side, over it or wherever the fish are holding that day. When I'm fishing something like a brushpile or a ledge, I make an effort to fish small spots around the size of a basketball. Crappie can be finicky, and even 3 or 4 inches away from the magic spot can cut way down on what you catch. Up your boat control and casting so you are putting your bait not just next to something, but right next to it and on the side you want.


I outfished a guy 10-1 or worse one time. The fish were on the shady side of standing trees, and you almost had to have the bait touching the tree to get bit. He was flinging it out there close to the tree, but I was putting it on the tree.

Also, wash your hands with soap after you put sunscreen or bug spray on or handle gas or oil. Seen this burn a lot of folks over the years. The real tip though is to carry the disposable nitrile gloves in the boat so if you have to put sunscreen or bug spray on or mess with gas or oil on the water you don't get the smell on your hands. No need to wash because you don't get it on your hands to start with.

[Scrapper]

Great post Hossier. Anxious to see all the responses also.

[CrappiePappy]

Horizontal cover is better than vertical cover, as it provides more shade over a greater expanse of the same depth of water.
Shade is a key factor in finding "where" Crappie are likely to be.
Shade can be from the interruption of light by a solid obstacle, or simply the depth at which light penetration has stopped.

... cp

[Slow Retrieve]

This is just the kind of thread a beginner as myself can really learn something from. Don't hold back guys I need all the tips I can get.

[Micropterus salmoides]

Patience.

[Wade2131]

I always start off with two items... a lake map (or hot-spot digital map in my Lowrance) and current water temps. These two items really help my eliminate unproductive water and target the areas that hopefully hold crappie. Great topics......

[deathb4disco]

Don't obsess over tackle. Rod, reel, line, etc. are just tools and are entirely a matter of personal preference.

Fish are caught by what's between your ears.

[Phishman]

Start shallow in the morning then move deeper. When using jigs try to use a scent on it like juiced up baits or crappie nibblets or tippin with a minnow. Go slow as possible. Don't give up, keep tryin new things just in the last three years I've learned a lot. Learn different techniques such as pushing or pulling or one pole jigging. Find out what works best for the body of water you fish. Learn water temps and what the crappie should be doing in them that has helped me a lot.

[Ranger690]

Use 20 lb braid and #6 light wire gold hook. Toss a minnow into stuff no one else will. The braid will straighten the hook and get it back for you.