A year in review

Gentlemen and Women, here we are soon to be closing out yet another year of our lives. As I sit here in the dark, standing watch over my ship, I am allowed ample time to contemplate and reflect. Tonight finds me reflecting on fishing over the past year. Looking back through all my log entries in my fishing journal, specifically thinking about things I have done differently from years past. What I have done new, what has worked, and what has not. So I pose this question to y'all, what have you done this year that has upped your success rate? What have you tried that hasn't?

For me, this was a year of homework and studying. Putting in some dues, if you will.

Charts: I have spent a quite a bit more time studying charts while off the lake. Having grown up locally in the area around Ross Barnett, when I moved back home and decided to begin seriously targeting crappie, I thought I already knew the lake. What I knew was a handful of spots and I ran them like a paper route. If I didn't catch fish, well then they just weren't biting that day. I would read articles and reports, and apply the info to my spots never willing to venture outside of my comfort zone. And judging by the amount of boats around me, none of my spots were very secret. Also, say one spot was a ledge falling from 6' on top to 12' on the bottom, I realized I had no idea what the ledge was actually part of. Was it an old lake bed? Old Pearl River channel? A creek? No clue! So I spent hours and hours finding different bathymetric charts and studies. I located my old holes and studied what they actually were. Then I spent time finding new areas that were the same as my old ones around the lake. I tried to look at my lake as if I have never fished it before and I promised myself I would not spent ten minutes in any of my old spots. The Navionics app on my phone has been indispensable but I am also anxious to try the new Humminbird lake master app too. Navionics is great but not entirely accurate in a few places. I rarely fish in a crowd now.

Electronics: I actually finally read the manuals. I stopped using them as depth sounders and began using them as fish finders. I watched videos and studied pictures bent on learning how to interpret what I was seeing as it pertains to crappie fishing. I have not had a unit set on auto all year. I set days where all I do is ride around and study my graph.

Reading: I have spent days looking for and reading every article I can find about Ross Barnett. I'm not going to say I have read every one of them but I'll buy you a drink if you find a new one for me. I even saved and categorized each article by content for later review. I actually did this for all the major lakes in MS. As it stands I have 18 pages of links saved and split into groups such as pre-spawn, spawn, spring, summer, fall, and winter as well as methods; casting, single poling, spider rigging, power trolling, cranking, long lining, and dock shooting. For each lake nonetheless. I even linked my favorite videos to each corresponding article. Crappie.com has been another indispensable tool as well. The reports and advice contained on here is invaluable. I dare you to find another site that has so much information, over so large an area, all contained in one place. That little search bar in the corner is a game changer if you sit down and use it. Also, if you are reading this and you don't actively post on the site, I encourage you to. You will be shocked at how helpful people become when you begin and continue to contribute.

Staying mobile: I now move around more than ever. I used to be bad about spending hours in one small area trying to make fish bite. I now move after 30min and no action. There are active fish somewhere!

Lures: Well, I am a bit of a sucker for a new lure. My tackle consumption has paid many salaries and I'm not even ashamed. But this year has found me going large. As we used to say in college. Go big or go home! I haven't bought a 1.5" bait in quite some time aside from restocking some Southern Pro crappie craws for some wintertime bottom bouncing. I have been pushing 2"+ almost exclusively and lately I have been trying more 2.5"-3" lures in my spread. The Southern Pro Umbrella and Magnum tubes have been HOT for me. As well as their 2" hustlers and 2.5" walleye tubes. 2" Arkie tubes are great as well. The Slab Slanger by Mr. Crappie was new to me this year and has become a fast favorite as well as the Bobby Garland Slab Slay'r as I can get it in 3". I would love to see the Slab Slanger come out with a 3". Jokers, BG Swimmer Shads, and Stroll'r's have all been producers as well, with the first two being an integral part of my single pole arsenal along with the Slay'r and Slanger and some Crappielogic hair jigs. Charlie Brewer sliders have been an old stand by and have held their own as well. I'm looking at the 2.5" and 3" Crappie Kickers by Fle Fly too. Looks like it could be a good one. Gnats by Crappielogic and Arkie Minner Teasers are consistent fish killers when I'm going for a live approach. Though I do tend to leave a lot of those behind in brush piles. I am constantly surprised that though I caught more big fish, the smaller 9-11" crappie haven't been phased by the bigger baits as their catch ratio only fell by a few percent. I own most colors under the sun one way or another but I own every bait in at least black and chartreuse.

Rods: Nothing new here, B'n'M's have been in my boat for decades! And I'm only three decades old. I have heard great things about the Southern Crappie rods and may have to give a few a try.

So after a bit of review and number crunching, I was 37% more successful this year than last based on the amount of fish caught compared to the total days fished. I went all year with out getting skunked once, caught an average of 19.5 keepers per trip, and limited out 38% of the time which is 30 fish on Barnett and I fished solo all year.

Oh, and things that didn't work? Sitting at home wondering about the conditions. The best time to fish is now and you can't catch 'em from the couch!










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