Slabs with T.H.E. Jig

[crappiekeith]

We all want to catch more fish more often right?
Well let's think about what makes a fisherman successfull on the ice
more often then not.
I believe a plan is needed to start.
Identify your target species for that day.So if crappies are the target for the day.
What are we going to do to catch them?

For starters picking a lake that has them .Seems simple enough ,however this is where some fishermen get lost.During the ice season we will go to the places where fish houses are right?
There's got to crappies there !
It takes more planning then that to score on those slabs.

Making a plan should involve several actions on your part to make the big score.
This can include talking to the locals,baitshops and the area DNR.
Studing lake maps also can shorten your search and dial you into those go to spots that crappies will hold to.

Learning a lake can be a daunting task at 1st.A puzzle just waiting to be put together if you will, but some intial time being spent drilling holes and using locators we can identify depths and maybe we can start to mark some fish.
Reading articles can help in understanding their habitats and what they relate to over the coarse of the year.
This will help pin pointing those certain areas you'll identify on the lake maps you have been studying.

Once we have located those schools it is time to hunker down and catch them.
Trial and error is the most common method.Changing lures,colors of lures.Then lure sizes and should we go with verticle or horizontal prentations?

Most often to hit a new lake you should never just expect to hit the mother load.For me it takes several trips to a body of water to understand it's pattern.
Crappies may bite in the day or at night with a certain hot time in one of those time frames.
The water may be stained or clear which usualy dictates certain color choices.
Different times of the year oxygen will be low or high dictating a better size bait to match the fish's aggresion level.

Then we apply the barometric pressure level with the moon phase to help us in choosing how are
we going to start out for any given trip.
Since we have our flasher buzzing away we then can see how they react to what we are doing.
I believe fish will feed most every day.So if that's true then what do I need to do to trigger that strike sence fish have?

Making a plan and working that plan I believe will help you pattern those fish.
Sometimes we get lucky and fall into what they want .....well we really make our own luck I believe.
This comes from past expierences.Remembering what happened on the last trip that will help you get better on the subsequint fishing trip.
Adding all of these expierences to your bank of fishing history will enable you to dial into that pattern sooner then later.
Sometimes hiring a guide to shorten your learning curve works well for some.

Tossing darts blind folded at the target usually will net you out nadda,however taking aim.Using a good follow through and time practicing will prove out in the end that you hit your target.
Fishing is a puzzle.Puzzles are meant to be put together.
Make a plan and work it,you'll enjoy the outcome way more and those catches will be more often.

[crappiekeith]

So how does a fisherman gain confidence?
I've been thinking about fishing over the last 40 years
and there are so many ways to catch fish.It's funny when to realize
how many differnt styles and patterns that I've used to catch those quality fish.

One of the main ingredients to producing great action is having confidence in the pattern
you are using.I believe once you have determined the forage the fish you are targeting are eating and the structure the fish are holding too you need to have the patients to work that pattern.

It does not matter if your young and just learning how to cast or your an old pro
working a proven pattern .Time spent working a pattern will produce fish and sometimes a fish of a lifetime.
Fishing is really a game of numbers.The more time your baits are wet ,the better your odds are of catching fish.
It's also a game where anything goes...well just about.
Letting those fish tell you want they want is key ,but what's even more important is
remembering how it all went down.

Keeping a log can aide you.Things like wind direction,moon phase,barometer level,water temperature,
storm fronts,time of the day or year all play apart of developing your pattern.
As we find a pattern we should bank that pattern in our memories or the log .
Patterns can change from day to day as they change for diferent species of fish.

My general rule of thumb is to start small and work to bigger baits or visa versa until I find what those fish want.Colors can have an effect as well,so have different sizes and colors in a bait aides me in dialing in to
exactly want that species want on that day.Retrieval speed or trolling speed has to be concidered as well as boat control.
Since I have some expierence already banked I can dial in quicker then I was able to 20 years ago.
For example catching crappies just after the ice melts.
I know that I can go into some of the smaller lakes that warm faster. 3 days after the ice leaves for the open water season is when I can start .
I know that the mud flats and cabbage patches adjacent to deep water will be areas that I'll target looking for those early slabs.
I know that the submerged trees and floating bogs have a tendancy to warm that water a bit faster .
I also know to work those areas with super small baits under a bobber in stealth mode.
A key option here is to work a ton of water until you find that 1st one.Since crappies are a schooling fish
I know that to find the 1st one is everything.Once that happens it's time to set anchor quitely and proceed to
rearing.This is a CPR time of the year for me as these will be spawning fish as soon as the water warms into the 60's.

All fish have patterns,finding one that works for you within your abilities and working that pattern is where that confidence is developed through catching fish.
Make sure you bank that pattern as you fish throughout the year.As the fishing trips come and go your account will grow enabling you to reach into that account to withdraw that go to pattern for those species of fish you are targeting.
Work that pattern.Your confidence will drive you to catch more fish more often.

Have fun and remember what got you there!

[crappiekeith]

It's hard to have confidsence in something that is new to you.
Being a well rounded fisherman requires that you have an adventurous spirit.Trying new tactics to catch those same fish.

Having an open mind and trying to get educated in that new pattern is key.
Fishing with someone else that is succsessful with that other pattern really helps to shorten that learning curve.

As an example I used to fish for walleyes in deep water.I always looked for sand or rocky bottoms and I lindy rigged them with crawlers,leeches or minnows.
A decade ago I met a fellow that was a plastics fisherman and he worked the outside weed edges
just on top of the break.
I have gravitated to that method and have caught a ton of waldos in 6-12 fow.

I would have never believed how easy it would be to catch them and in most cases these areas are over looked by many walleye fishermen.
The same technique can also be used in a eddie on a river.
During the spring just after openers I've hit the river and caught 30 walleyes back to back on every cast and retrieve.

Confidense in different presentations takes time to develope.
Be patient and try those different methods.
The confidense will develope.

[crappiekeith]

Here's a few more in a video.Water temps have been right around 50 degrees.

[crappiekeith]