Best Way to locate crappie

[Wolfman29]

On a lake you’ve never fished for crappie, what are some things to look for? I will be in a boat but looking for some advice. I also have electronics that I’m not real good with yet!


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[silverside]

Find crappie food and you will find crappie! Check points, deep to shallow looking for schools of shad. Crappie love to hang near some kind of structure. Look for above water and below water trees. But then I haven't caught a fish in 6 months so what do I know

[Jman5626]

My approach is to look for schools of baitfish. I also long line troll the biggest creeks I can find. Usually gives me a good starting point


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[S10CHEVY]

SK's Fishing Adventures, who is a member here, has a 4 part series on youtube, that would be a great place, for you to get answers from.

https://www.crappie.com/crappie/main...appie-fishing/

You can watch this one, but look for the 4 part series SK did, about a month or so back.

[ezgoing]

SK definately knows how to catch crappie.

I am still struggling to learn everything about my gear but the more you learn the better you will come at consistently catching crappie.

Spend some time studying the lake using a lake map and Google before you go to the lake. The more you know before you hit the water the easier it will be once you are on the water.

[CrappiePappy]

I fish a "new" lake the same way I'd fish a "familiar" lake ... and I don't try to fish the whole lake, just small sections that are similar to the areas I'd be fishing on my home lakes. Now that is, of course, depending on the "new" lake being somewhat similar to home lakes I'm familiar with.

So to answer your question more directly ... I'd check the water level fluctuations, current water temps, and go by the seasonal patterns of fish movement to determine an area to start in & method to start with. I'd also take into account what the reports are saying about that particular lake & what phase the target fish are in at the time ... as in pre-spawn, spawn, post spawn, etc.

If you're not all that good or proficient in your use & interpretation of your electronics ... use them to find depth, depth changes, and submerged cover (especially cover that's in the depth range the fish should be in accordance with their current phase & movement.

[Ketchn]

mushroom clouds of polka dots/popcorn/fishee symbols on top off sunken cover is typically crappie and the larger spots in the group on the lower levels of said mushroom cloud are likely the ones you want to ketch in said mushroom cloud .
if there are steep banks or ledges with any kind of abnormalities along the edges there are likely crappie near those locations . sometimes crappie are very difficult to see even with the best technology , they can get extra tight to cover and remain non existent even to the highly trained eye with state of the art sonar units.
so as Sk and I often say when we chat ,just because you cant "see" them don't always mean they are not there .
try to find cover on the bottom and look close at the image if you do .
a lake topo map if you have never been there and are going in without guidance is also a tool that is highly favorable to find them

[chaunc]

CrappiePappy and I do it exactly the same. When given a depth they’re holing at, from asking at the baitshop, I’ll slow troll that depth until I find some kind of cover in it. Lots of good crappie guys will drop some brush in 12 to 15 feet near drop offs or creek channels. Fish will use them all year. A good map will help you find them quicker.