Prineville Res.

[Don Fischer]

We don't really have that great of crappie fishing here in central Ore I don't think. This year is the start on them for me though. I'm buried under in eight and nine inch fish but. they do eat good! Guy from Bend took m out last fall to Prineville Res and got me going. Gotta say these little bugger's are making fishing a lot of fun again! Got the boat in the water about 3:30, maybe a bit later. Decided to try a place I hadn't been before. One problem came up, There was none of the brush growing out of the water so I was clueless where to fish. Fooled with it maybe 15 min and went back up to where I had some idea of what to do. Pulled the boat out of the water about 5:45 and had 48 8 and 9 inch fish in the cooler. The original plan was to fish for crappie a bit then go look for bill heads, no a clue where to look for them there but gonna find it.

Anyway I started out looking for fish with a beetle spin and a green and chartreuse 1 1/2" jig, little rubber deal like an auger til. Had three rods with me for the crappie, that one, one set up with a sliding bobber and one with a plain jig and a small pink auger tail on it. Poking along the stuff I like wasn't producing much with the slip bobber and then got it out a bit to far and got a fish!. Put down the slip bobber and went to another rod and got the beetle spin going, nothing. So put it up and went to the rod with the jig and pink auger tail and tried it, bingo. Threw in the anchor, I was drifting slow along the bank. In that next hour and a half or so, I tried different colors and didn't seem to make a lot of difference what I used, the fish hit it, got 48! Thinking some day I'm gonna treat myself to a trip to somewhere where there are a lot bigger crappie! Starting to think I should invest in a small camper for the old truck and use it to pull the boat, less expensive to spend the night here and there. These little bugger's are really getting me hooked!

Next obsession is to get away from bull heads and find some channel cats near home, well within 70 mi or so. Columbia and John Day river's I hope. Haven't got to them yet this year because of to much wind up there. The Columbia River Gorge has got to be the windiest place on earth!

[funfishers]

I admire your "perseverance". That number of fish, regardless of size would make me happy any day.
I wish you well.

[Crestliner08]

I agree, you did just fine. Keep at it!

[Jamesdean]

No doubt you had a great day. Don't matter the size as long as they legal...Left unregulated they'll over populate and stay stunt growed...good catchen'

[Don Fischer]

I'm thinking they are over populated. I guess it's been this way for years, small fish. There is no size limit in this state nor bag limit. I har a lot of people throwing back a lot of them, probably doesn't help a lot.

[Jamesdean]

Throwing back the smaller ones and taking the big ones when the lake is already over populated doesn't help at all.

[wannabe fisherman]

Throwing back the smaller ones and taking the big ones when the lake is already over populated doesn't help at all.

nope it doesn't I had Ranger in IN. stop me for a check and he ask how we were doing. When I told him we were catching mostly dinks he said "PUT THEM IN THE LIVE WELL AND THROW THEM OUT ON SHORE IF YOU DON'T WANT TO KEEP THEM"