Bummed its winter

[GRIZZ]

Went to the lake last night and though we are going to have a warmer than normal spell its still going to be cloudy and just above freezing most of the time. Last night I fished a little and it was dead so I got out my spotlight and went to the spots where I catch walleye and almost always see eyes in the water and didn't see one reflection. Looks like the walleyes are starting winter patterns.

Last year there were very positive signs about the crappies coming back to Chautauqua. The sizes were finally getting above 9 inches. Lots of crappies in the canals in the fall while I was walleye fishing so I could throw some jigs and catch a few when the walleyes were not hitting, but this year I didn't see one run of fall crappies, and caught maybe 10 all fall on chautauqua and none at all on allegany. Very disappointing. I didn't do any boat fishing this fall and if I did I may have been able to target them better, but normally I don't need to beacuase the canal and shoer fishing is so pleantiful.

As I've hit my 40's the western NY winters have lost thier charm for me. I just get sick of the gloomy days and miss going outside in the sun and fishing. I have a 76 yr old mom here and am always a bit reluctant to run off for the winter and leave her alone, but sometimes I just have to for my mental health in the winter. I feel like going to sleep till spring. ARG. Maybe I am a bear.

So cheer me up with some southern sun and crappie pics you guys who live down there and are still gettin em.

[Marc]

Hope to have ya some pics by Friday morning, gonna hit RC in S/E Texas Thursday. Winds out of the South at 9 gust up to 15, high mid 70's. Can't wait. Cheer up Grizz

Marc

[bugman]

Dang i'm gonna miss those big ole eye pics....spring will be here before we know it.

[crappiekid24]

I feel your pain. I got out mabye 3 times this fall and the weather isnt cooperating for ice to form on the lakes that is safe enough to fish on. When I did get out the crappies were not in there normal spots, the fall trout stocking was a bust only 1 fish. The big gills are not to be caught because there is too many small ones. I cant get out because I cant drive yet. So grizz you are not alone.

[Glowgood Jigster]

We don't have many places to put in the boat nowadays, where we'd want to keep the fish we catch, and the weather has sucked lately with bad rain and wind. Our favorite lake and fishing spot is nearly empty for the winter, this picture shows where we were fishing a couple months ago about 15' or so up the bank. You can see at the top of the picture about the center, all those stumps. Well, the roots are all exposed and fanned out and when they're under water the crappie and bluegill hold in around them and hit the jigs like crazy.

So now we're doing more geocacheing and waiting for some decent weather to try a couple lakes that might be worthwhile. We're having crappie fillets for dinner tomorrow, tho! That's some small consolation, I guess... :o

[Jerry Blake]

Hey GRIZZ:

I too feel your pain. I grew up in Minnesota until the summer after my 7th grade year and we had a lot of fun in the winter - ice skating, sledding, building snow forts, etc. but I couldn't take that much "fun" nowdays.

It felt like spring here yesterday after a few cold and wet days last week. It's supposed to be nice for the next several days so just slip on down when you get a chance and get warmed up!

http://www.weather.com/outlook/recre...s/tenday/71964

[TapOut64]

I grew up in western Pennsylvania, lakes there feeze over in the winter. Joined the Coast Guard, got out after four years and settled in Virginia Beach, VA where I've made camp for the last 19 years. Best part, the lakes here don't feeze over. Water only gets down to around 40 degrees. Maybe you can schedule a fishing trip down south at one of the better crappie lakes. That would be a great vacation.

[GRIZZ]

Glow, I bet if you climbed down onto one of those pipes that there are crappies swimmin around down there. I have a spot just like that around here in the oxbows of conawango creek. That reminds me I need to run down there and see if they are in there and to see if the water is high enough. Its a major hike into that spot, but I could use the exersize.

Tap, I'm a stones throw from Sugargrove PA up by erie. Where about was that you grew up in PA?

Jerry, I'm sorely tempted to come pitch a tent down there for the winter and harrass your crappies. Once when I was in TN for longer than I originally planned I decided to stop imposing on my friend down there and moved into a room in a log barn for 7 weeks in the middle of winter. It was a very interesting experience. I was warm and cozy though very seriously technologically deprived. lol I did manage a dial up account and sat in my lazyboy and communicated with friends in the evening. I should have taken a picture of it when I was there, but didn't have a camera with me at the time. It was out in the foothills of the smokeys, and I sat out on the porch in the morning and watched deer feeding on a closeby ridge. I'm glad I did that, but I don't think a long term pioneer existence is in my future. Here is rough idea of what it looked like.

http://www.fitzgeraldtimberframes.com/images/log-7.jpg

http://www.fitzgeraldtimberframes.com/images/log-8.jpg

[fishindaddyo]

Grizz- When I get on some of the VA slabs I'll post the pix for ya. I've lost the touch as of late and have not felt a good thud since the weather went wacky. One week it's like South Haven Michigan down here then the next it's like Atlanta Ga where I grew up inb the fall. The fish are as backwards as I am with this funky weather pattern. hope that hole you mentioned with the hike in pans out. I'm going to one of my fave hike-in holes Friday. In Feb. I caught a 15" there. like i said before I'll post pics when I land some, until then just gettin the gear ready to go.

[NIMROD]

Grizz ,I did'nt take any pictures ,but it was great out on Nimrod today. I caught a few crappie. The air temps were close to 70 ,but water was 47 in the river and low 50's in the lake. Nimrod is in west-central Arkansas ,it's a flood control lake of the COE.