Locations in spring

[Crappie Wisdom]

More times then not in my part oy the country in spring crappie are holding tight to the brush in water less then 7 feet. This pattern worked for years until the last 2. Which brings me to my questions.



I fish a res, thats has 3 sections a lower end which is the deepest, middle, and upper sections. The upper sections gets fished the most u would think the crappie would be here but no. Could not find any slabs in this area last season. Only cauget small males very few females. What happened? Did i miss the bite, or did the crappie spawn in a hole diffrent area where no one was fishing? Do crappie spawn in deep water? In the fall found them easy compared to spring. U would think spring be best.:rolleyes:



Looking for thoughts on diffrent locations to hit in spring that might not be getting a close look. Beisides the usual shallow brush pattern.

[Jeff Schiller]

First thing I would do is check your same locations, but pull out to a little deeper. Crappie will spawn deep(er) also.

Then I would start checking other locations of the lake....lower and middle.

There was a good article a while back in Crappie magazine about a guy (can't remember who - but one of the pros) who mainly fishes deeper around spawning areas to avoid fish that get hammered in the shallows. He used a jig & bobber combination at times with two rods (one in each hand) and basically just slow trolled those deeper areas just out from shallow spawning areas.

Hope this helps.

[chaunc]

Okay CW. I see you're in the c-bus area. I have to ask you this question to possibly give you the right answer. Do the guys who fish that lake, fish lake erie too? If so, there may be a zebra mussel population started in your lake. Have you noticed the water being clearer or weeds growing in areas that had none in years past? That will cause the crappies to spawn deeper as light will penetrate deeper into the water. They may even move to a steeper shoreline than before. If you know the lake well, look for a shallow area with a short dropoff, maybe two feet or less, on the north or east shorelines. If there's weeds or brush on it, the crappies will use it. They will also use pea gravel rocky areas too. Take your time and search these areas thoroghly. May take a few hours or a few days. Take your time. Once you find them, they may use the new area for a few years. As the water gets clearer, just move out a little deeper. Now you're armed, get dangerous.:D

[Darryl Morris]

Great question. In order to answer the question these factors in relations to prior years must be considered and compared -- overall lake level, fluctuations in lake level due to rain or flow release, water temperature, water clarity, and other weather conditions. Basically, what was different the year they weren't there from the years they were there. I am currently working on an article that hopefully will address this issue. I will post it when it's complete. Crappie can and do spawn in deeper water all dependent upon the conditions mentioned above. Either way, the male will make the bed and the female will stage out in deeper water waiting to be courted to the bed. Another thing to consider is the water will warm the quickest in the northwest portions of the lake as a whole and spawning flats and coves because it receives more sunlight the longest during late winter and early spring.

[Darryl Morris]

Oh yeah, something else to consider is the difference in black and white crappie. It has been my experience that the blacks prefer clearer water, usually spawn earlier and shallower than whites. The whites will move in later, spawn deeper and longer than the blacks.

[Crappie Wisdom]

Thanks for the ideas the one about fishing the east shore is very interesting. Because i never fish that side of the lake. Iam always on the west. Mostly because i dont have a boat yet and there not much bank access on that side. Why is the east side better then the west?


Noticed a few mussels last year but they have not had a affect on the water color yet.

[chaunc]

On my home lake, the east side has a lot of very tall trees close to the water line. Lots of deadfalls that have tops broken off and drifted away from the rest of the tree. Some are out in deeper water and the fish use them to stage on. They will stay on these tops until the water temps get where they want, then move up to the shorelines to spawn. The west shoreline will heat up sooner but we dont have a lot of blowdowns along that shore. So i fish where i know they are.