How do i find crappie without a fish finder, all of the cover is underwater

[bayoumonster]

From my experience, when I fish with a cork, the darned crappie most of the time just pull it straight down--often it just seems to keep going when it hits the water. But sometimes they will just move it to the side. YOu're not catching because as said, they're not shallow during the winter where your'e fishing from the bank. I catch my winter fish deeper than 20 feet.
I'm a new crappie fisherman, too, and winter is my favorite time of year. They're almost too easy next month and the end of this month.

[slabsrus]

I have been crappie fishing for over 40 years, and not wanting to sound big headed or anything, I consider myself to be a pretty good crappie fisherman, and to this day I have yet to use a fish finder or graph of any kind. I do however use lake maps. They tell me the contour of the lake which gets me started. From there I just search the lake with jigs and crank baits looking for different types of structure,breaks,break lines, etc. . Of course docks, rafts, and bridge pilings are usually holding crappie throughout the year, but there are a lot of other areas in most lakes that will produce crappies with a little bit of homework. Other than the spawn when most anyone can catch specks in shallow water, it takes a bit of research and trial and error to locate crappies. I begin by studying a contour map of the lake I plan to fish. The first things I look for are submerged points, creek/river beds, submerged humps, steep drops, and inside corners on breaks. Then I paddle my kayak to those specific areas and tie on a 1/8 - 1/2 oz jig and begin searching the bottom. I am looking for changes in depths and bottom hardness. When I find the slightest variation in depths, often only 8 inches to a foot and a half, I immediately make a mental note of various points along shore to reference and relocate that spot. The heavier jigs will also work to locate submerged wood and rocks, which both attract crappies. I also use the jig to find 8 - 12 foot flats adjacent to inside corners or submerged points along drops and creek chanels. If I did not snag up on any weeds while searching the depths, I will then start casting and retrieving a crankbait with the intention of hooking weeds. Once I locate weeds, I move closer to them and start seaching the weeds trying to locate the weed edge and pockets within the weed beds. Any weed beds,rocks, or wood near variations in the breaks, or any humps will almost always produce crappies if you present them with the bait that they want. It really isn't hard to find those spots it just takes some time. Once you have done it a few times without a fish finder/graph it will get easier everytime.Once you find the areas most likely to be holding crappie begin offering them a few options of color and bait. I usually present one line with two jigs of different color and tipped with different soft plastic baits about 18 inches to 2 feet apart, either suspended under a float, or hung below the kayak while I drift. On another line I will cast and retrieve various jigs and crank baits throughour the water column. Once I catch a fish I make several more casts/drifts through that same area. If I happen to catch more I will have made a mental note as to which bait I caught each fish on. More times than not you will find that one particular bait and or depth will be more productive than the others, though this might all change several times throughout the day, depending on weather conditions, cloud cover, and boat traffic. I hope this helps you both a bit. Good luck and happy fishing.

[bowhunter012463]

My best advise would be to follow your states forum and ask questions about the waters you're fishing. You'll be surprised the wealth of knowledge people are willing to share if just asked. I know they guys and gals around here are more than helpful. When on the banks fishing, don't be shy, if you see someone fishing either on the banks or in a boat, just say hi and ask how they are doing. Most people like to talk and sometimes it just help to past time when they are not biting. With that being said, When I'm on the bank fishing I look for any trees or branches laying in the water and stand or sit on them and cast out fanning the area and like already said letting it drop to different depths. Picture this, lay on the ground at the base of a tree and look up, and what you see is what it is going to look like under the water when a tree falls in. Sometime I just look out on the water and may only see one little stick barely coming out of the water so hard to see that nobody even thicks about it. It could be just the tip of some big brush pile and try it. And don't get mad if you start getting lots of snags cause if you do than your fishing the right area.

[Hanr3]

Slabsrus has great advice. Start with a contour map. If one doesn't exist make one. Your looking for key areas that typically hold Crappie. Like most creatures Crappie are creatures of habit. They do the same thing from one year to the next.

Start with the obvious locations at your lake. Points/fingers on land are the same under water, they extend into the water. IF you have two fingers with a channel between them, fish it every time you go out. The channel will be deeper than the fingers. Generally what the finger looks like on land is the same it looks like under the water. Look for submerged trees and fish those. Most of the time you will see the root ball next to shore, the crown of the tree will entend into the water, and Crappie will be under it. Fishing trees from the lake can be challenging, fish it from shore has other challenges, but it can be done.

When I fish wood I use a light hook, #6 and heavier line, say 10 pound mono, or you could use one of those braided lines. The reason for that set up is to save some tackle. When you get hung up, and you will get hung up, try snapping the line, steady pull from one side or the other, if your still hung up. A strong steady pull, with your hand on the line, not the reel, pull to straighten the hook. You can bend it back into shape with a pair of needle nose pliers, same ones you use to unhook fish hooked deep.

To find what hte bottom "looks like". Tie on a lead weigth, no hook, and cast if out there. Let is sink to bottom. If your bobber stands up, you need to go deeper, if the bobber lays flat your on bottom. Slide the slip not up or down until you knwo how deep it is. Tie on your hook, and slide the bobber stop a couple of feet towards the hook. This moves the hook off the bottom a couple of feet. Crappie feed up, in other words they look up to eat. IF your bait is eye level, they will hold it in there mouth and you may never know. Some call it a light bite. When that happens to me, I raise the bait higher. I want them to come up, grab the bait and take if back to where they were. This pulls the bobber down and I set the hook. Speaking of hook set, swing the rod to the side to set the hook. Dont pull up over your head, swing it over your shoulder, or better yet under your arm pit. Watch your neighbor.

I higly recommend you find a local Crappie fisherman you can tag along with on a trip or two. Keep reading the threads. I'd write more, however the wfie is due back any minute and it'll be time to eat.

[Greenwood Crapster]

Man, you guys are awsome. I was ready to give up but reading these post's have giving me encouragement. I will keep at it. I do love it. Thanks, and if anyone else as anything to add, I will be reading.

[Dave and Lynn]

Wow this is some great advice. Bank fishing is different then boat fishing. Some areas you just cant get to. The areas you normally can fish will be boat ramps and riprap. If your lake level changes, a good time to go and check things out is when the lake is down. Look for structure close to where you can fish. Bowhunter had it right on when he talked about a single stick in the water. I have found there is usually a tree under that stick. Find a good tree and in the spring there will be fish by it. Riprap is also a good morning spot when the water warms. Crappie get close to shore looking for food in the rocks. Have caught fish at my feet before. Main thing in bank fishing is keep a low profile and stay as quit as possible. You never now when that next big fish is within casting distance. Biggest crappie ever caught 18.5 inchs caught bank fishing with slip bobber and minnow 6 ft down in 8ft of water on a transition from riprap to sand flat with a log on it. Structure is the key. Find it and you will find fish. Good luck guys.

[bowhunter012463]

One thing I might add is that bank fishermen sometimes mark their spots on the bank with a big rock or maybe something handing in a tree, If you see something out of the ordinary like this and at the edge of the water you see a pair of footprints faceing the water and or a bucket impression in the sand or mud, stop and throw out in that area. It never hurts to try.

[Hanr3]

There are affordable fish finder units you can use for bank fishing. Humminbird sells a castable unit. You tie the transducer to your line and cast it out. Reel it back and watch the sonar unit to see what is out there. You can eliminate a lot of water quickly with a unit like that. While its not a Side Imagine unit, it is better than guessing.
RF25 :: Humminbird

They sell 4 varieties of the castable sonar unit $80-$200.

[sportsman223]

Papa was the best crappie fisherman I ever seen, could pull a crappie out of a toilet. He used to troll around holding anchor just above bottom, he would get depth and tell if he was caught on tree or other structure. Been 40 some years since I have seen this done, but it worked then and I think it would work again.

[HLLeonard]

Papa was the best crappie fisherman I ever seen, could pull a crappie out of a toilet. He used to troll around holding anchor just above bottom, he would get depth and tell if he was caught on tree or other structure. Been 40 some years since I have seen this done, but it worked then and I think it would work again.

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I suspect there have been a good many fishermen over the years that had their own little tricks that they relied on.... I was a bass fisherman for 30 or so and can't say a depth finder was ever that much value to me, I have been a crappie fisherman for just a few years and am amazed at how much a depth finder, even the cheapest model you can find, adds to my fishing success, I don't have a high dollar unit, a two hundred dollar black and white humminbird, but I would be absolutely lost without it.