Thread: READ: Biggest Crappie.com contest ever -Eight Driftmaster Crappie Stalkers NEW DESIGN

I took my youngest son to a local pond last year, we were using my hand-tied jigs in 1/32, and 1/64. We were catching big bull blue-gills on virtually every drop. soon after we arrived, I see an elderly gentlemen, with a young kid (prolly 8-9) , and they have some heavy artillery with them that day. They were fishing 3/4 or 1 oz bucktail jigs, that the grandpa had used with good results back in the day. My son, and I continue catching at a good rate, and i could see disappointment in the young kid as he had not got a hit, or caught a fish yet. A few more minutes went by with the same result, i opened my jig box, and took out a few jigs in 1/64, 1/32, and some 1/16 jigs with a # 6 hook. I put the jigs next to them on the bleacher they were sitting on fishing the dock, and told them to try a couple of those jigs to see if they would do any good for them. The elderly man asked how much i wanted for the jigs, and i said ill let ya know shortly. They tied on a couple jigs, and in about 5 minutes his grandson hooked a nice blue-gill, he was smiling ear- to -ear. We had a few conversations over the next 30 minutes, and they were catching pretty good ,by this time my little one was ready to go. As i started to walk away , the older gentlemen said, you never told me what you needed for the jigs. I responded, your conversation, and the smiles were payment enough. We shook hands, and told each other to have a blessed day!

I have looked for them each time we visit that pond, but have not seen them since our first encounter......

Well, it's been some years ago now, but I will share this with everyone. I was out one Summer day with my son. It was my Saturday to have him, and I'd always try to make the best of the little time I got to spend with him as best I could. We didn't have a lot of time, so we grabbed the poles, and headed on over to a public lagoon located smack dab in the center of a city. Not much in the way of keepers of any type come out of this water mind you. But the bites come real steady, which keeps a young boy's interest, and Dad's busy taking fish off hooks. All the while we fished, a young boy sat watching us from a nearby park bench. Before too much longer, he mustered up a conversation with us. Now I'm kind of a burly guy, but this young man's words hit home real hard for me. You see, like me, his Dad used to take him fishing too, and he surely loved going fishing with him. He said that he really missed fishing, and that his Mom loved to eat fish, but they hadn't had any since Daddy had went to Heaven to be with God. Turns out his Dad was a Marine, one of them that didn't make it back home from Iraq to his wife and son. I asked the boy if he'd like to fish with my pole since he didn't have one to fish with? His eyes lit up, and his smile was a county mile wide as he said "Sure mister!" He soon was catching the little gills and crappie just like he was an old timer. My son was smiling up at me, and it made me feel good all over that he was there to share this experience too. But soon it was starting to get dusk out, and though I hated it, I knew we were going to have to leave to head home before too much longer. All of the sudden, the young boy was calling for me frantically with fear in his voice. He'd hooked a monster! He kept trying to get me to take the pole, but I wouldn't and told him it was his whopper to land! I'm glad I had Fire line on that reel, because the boy ended up landing a 6.5lb flathead! He was so proud he could hardly get the words out! It was the biggest fish he'd ever seen! I then asked him what he wanted to do with it? And he said he'd love to bring it home to his Mom, but his Dad never got the chance to teach him how to clean fish, and his Mom didn't know how to either. So the three of us went through the finer points of how one goes about fileting a fish. As I watched to boy ride off on his bike, he took a little bit of my heart with him, and I couldn't help but to tear up. And this is why one of my tag lines reads "Take the time, and take the kids!"

Several years ago my wife and I were in Michigan on vacation. A friend named Harvey came to the house to see us and we started talking fishing. He said he had a small boat at Fletcher's Floodwaters and that he really wanted to go fishing. Because he was in his late 80's he did not fish alone and wanted us to go with him. We agreed and set it up for the next day. Harvey was a very fit man for his age and even in his 80's I would not have wanted to tangle with him. If he liked you he would do anything for you but if he did not like you he would tell you and tell you to stay clear of him. He was a man who cussed like a sailor no matter who was around. That was just the way he was. He picked us up and we made the 35 minute trip to the lake. It was a hot day and there was no air conditioning in his truck. Harvey did not like to ride with the windows down so it was like a sauna all the way to the lake. His driving scared my wife. He rode right at the edge of the road almost going in the ditch. Limbs on trees were hitting the widshield and he never batted an eye. My wife and I were SO relieved when we finnally made it to the boat. He and my wife did not know each other well but got to know each other on this trip. He gave her the nickname noisy because she did not talk very much. We caught several fish and the day was over so we went home and cleaned the fish. My wife had a blast. She said it was one of the best days of fishing she had ever had and she loved Harvey. The day before we left to come home we went to say goodbye to Harvey. As we were leaving we went over to his chair and we both gave him a hug. I told him we would see him next year and do it again. He said no this is last time you will see me. I will not be here this time next year. I laughed it off and said goodbye. Harvey passed away before we got back up the following year. We made his day by going fishing with him and he made our day by giving us one of the best days we have had. If you mention the name Harvey my wife will smile and start talking about that day. It is the small things in life that mean the most. We do miss old Harvey. He was a great friend.

I was the recipient of a good deed. Not only myself, but countless other fishermen, too. Last fall I went crappie fishing out of Sportsman’s Park on the Elk. Fishing by yourself is always a bit complicated what with getting the boat off and then later back onto the trailer. I had the boat straps off and my safety rope tied to the cleat when an older gentleman approached and asked if I would like him to back me in and park my truck. I started to say no, but there was something trustworthy about him. I just had this feeling he was honest and serious about his offer, so I accepted. With no hesitation and a whole lot of practice under his belt, he backed me in, waited for the boat to float off the trailer, drove up the lot and parked my truck. I nudged up to the dock and in a moment or so he walked down to me passing my keys and said the truck was all locked up. Profusely, I thanked him and asked if he’d done this before. He surprised me by answering that he did it all the time. His idea of paying it forward was offering to put in or take out for single fishermen. He isn’t always at Sportsman’s Park, doesn’t do too much fishing himself, and likes the idea of helping others. My biggest regret of that day is I don’t remember his name, and I didn’t take him fishing with me or make plans for another day. I’ve seen him once more at Sportsman’s but I was fishing with my neighbor and wasn’t alone.
One thing’s for sure, his kindness and helpful attitude sure made a lasting impression on me. Oh, the attached pic was my big crappie of the day, too.

Here's a short story:

I took my boy fishing last year on his 1st trip...My buddy let me use his private lake... We had fun... We caught fish... I posted it on Crappie.com

Why Crappie.com has been good to me.......................................


As an avid crappie angler and once diehard tournament fisherman, I needed an out to express and share my fishing adventures. I’m a middle aged divorced man, children grown, night and weekend worker, due to this, I’m left with a lot of alone time. I have always found solace in fishing; I’m not your everyday kick back and relax fishermen, I’m a search and destroy guy who relishes every opportunity, every minute I have when on the water. I pride myself as being a well-rounded crappie angler able to use most techniques that are favored by today’s anglers. One evening while searching the web, I stumbled upon Crappie.com, I entered the site not knowing what to expect. My eyes were glued to the screen as I was engulfed by the reports and stories from anglers just like myself. I read report after report, scanned the many quality pictures of the great, and not so great catches and knew that this was exactly what I had been looking for. I signed up that night, and have been a nightly visitor ever since. I enjoy sharing in all my glory when things go right, but I also enjoy posting those humbling trips that remind you that some days your fishing, whiles others you are catching. The one thing that this sight offers that few speak of is the camaraderie. I have made many, many online friends. Some of these have turned into personal friendships. Not having children that are real interested in fishing, this sight gives me an opportunity to share my many years experience, to express upon others knowledge or information they may find valuable to making them understand this beloved species of fish we all chase relentlessly. Thank you Crappie.com for giving me this outlet that has become an important part of my life.

I have to give a little back story before I explain why I love this site... Sorry ahead of time for the book...

When I was very young, my grandfather used to take me fishing a couple of times a week (we lived at Lake of the Ozarks, in Central MO). We were always fishing for crappie off of his dock (right where he would sink the Christmas tree every winter). He must have had 10 years worth of Christmas trees at the edge of his dock! We would get up at 5am, eat some breakfast (his favorite was oatmeal and raisins, which to this day, still conjures up pleasant memories for me), and then we would walk down the road to his dock and sit there for hours. He taught me how to load minnows, we fished, the sun came up, and he taught me things the way that only a grandpa can - patience, kindness, humility, etc... I cherish every moment of those trips - they are among my fondest childhood memories... The times when we would go fishing faded as I got older. Unknown to me at the time, he had developed cancer from asbestos at work and was in poor health, so we didn't go much. I was somewhere around 6-8 yrs old, so I didn't really understand what was going on - I just knew we weren't fishing too much any more (even though I was always bugging him to go)... Looking back, I can now see that whenever he could get the energy together and tolerate the pain, he would take me. He passed in 1978, when I was 8 years old, which was also the same year my parents divorced. That was also the last year I went crappie fishing. I can't say for sure if it is all related or not (I'm a computer guy, not a psychiatrist), but I do know that's when I stopped fishing for crappie...

Fast forward 30+ years - I'm now in my 40's, have a great family and 2 wonderful kids. I have taken my family fishing many times - and we love the peaceful time together on the lake, even if we catch absolutely nothing. But, we have never gone crappie fishing - we have always fished for catfish because it was easier to teach. So my wife and I were out fishing a few weeks ago, and I had a brief flash of my childhood - something about the lake triggered a memory. Remembering "back in the day", what fun I had fishing for crappie with my grandpa, and how much those memories still mean to me today as a grown man. That's when I decided that I wanted to get back into crappie fishing...

Enter crappie.com - considering how long it had been since I fished for crappie, I was (putting it mildly), rusty... I looked around on the web and found this site. I have looked through many of the forums, looking for things to spark an old memory or technique, and have found a wealth of information that has brought back my desire for fishing where there is a bit more action (catfish are good to eat, but kinda slow and lumbering with regards to "action"). I also appreciate that this site is family friendly, and that all of the veterans on here are so willing to share their tips and tricks. It has already helped me unlock a few things that were somewhere in the back of my mind... Thanks for hosting and maintaining this site!

That's my story - sorry for the mush at the beginning, but there it is...

I believe it was 2 years ago myself and a friend fished a striper tournament on a chilly March day. To my knowledge the water temp was in the mid/upper 50's. I was extremely confident that we would do very well as i was killing BIG fish (to this lakes standards) at a certain portion of the lake very steady and havent told a soul. The tournament started at 7am and ended at 3. We were the only boat making a long 15 +/- run to the fishing grounds on this large lake. I dont have the fastest boat in the world, but she still scooted at a good clip with 2 large guys and a 30 gal bait tank full. About 3/4 of the way there, in the slight fog i saw a skiff with rods in the water fishin and a black lab constantly barking. Couldnt see anyone in the boat. i kept easing up and looking and still see no one in the boat. As i passed it, something told me to turn around and check it out. As we get closer to the boat i see this dog get our attention and divert it towards the other side of the boat. as we ease to the other side of the boat we see an old man hanging on to the side of the boat (with a inflated life jacket) trying his best to crawl back into the boat. as we approached it, you can tell he was winded and out of energy just holding on for dear life. we quickly tie off, jump into his boat and pull him in. he was extremely exhausted but completely alert and in good shape/spirit. come to find out he was only in the water for just a few minutes but apparently slipped and fell off the front deck and possibly broke his wrist. Lucky for us, he lived on the lake and within sight of the incident so my buddy drove the boat to his dock while i followed in mine. we get to his house, tie the boat off and meet what im assuming was his wife. explained what had happened, and she thanked us and quickly proceeded to take him to the hospital.

Wow we though what a morning this has been already. As luck would have it, good Karma paid off. we were fishing at my spot by 930, and i was extremely confident that by 1130 we had smoked the field of 15ish boats. went a perfect 10 for 10 live baiting...kept 6 to include a pair of 8-9 lbers (usually a pair weighing 12-13 lbs always wins the tournament as this lake isnt known for large fish). we were back at the landing by 1 and enjoyed a few victory beers (with confidence) at the marina prior to weigh in. Yes we won the tourney by several pounds.

I dont fish that part of the lake much at all, but the few times ive been that was i stopped by the dock to say hey but everytime, no one has been around

The pic included is the pair of the fish from that day that won it all for us....perhaps the fish gods were watching!