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Crappie.com 2K Star General
CrappieCrazed (Robin) had a couple questions, anyone else is more than welcome to jump in!
Crappie do not always feed up...they will also root out worms, crawdads, whatever else off the bottom, if a golden opportunity to feed presents itself, they will not pass up a free, easy, meal...fish are OPPORTUNISTIC!
Besides not all Crappie just rest in tree-tops, some are constantly on the move looking for their favorite schools of baitfish...some have routes from feeding grounds back to their home base of cover, and some are in lake with no cover and just rocks.
Crappie also lay right on drop-offs...so if you are fishing drops, you can cast past the drop-off and bottom bounce your lure back to you and it will follow the drop down to where the Slabs are. If the Crappie are just packed up on the bottom under a school of Shad or just resting, you can bottom bounce it right to them.
Not all fish are in cover, especially in Ohio...our lakes are WAAAAY different than in the South.
To fish a lure Ohio, you should know and be able to control your lure in any part of the water column. You do that with weight, drop, and pace....you can vary that by twitches, stops and starts, etc.
River Crappie are just like Crappie anywhere else, they have basic patterns just like any other....right now with water in the 30's, they are in backwater areas where the temps may be 39 degrees, or in deeper drop-offs at a main channel....they are looking for a couple extra degrees of warmth and any kind of micro-organism to sustain them....most of the time they will suspend to reduce the need to feed...but they will eat if they do not have to expend vital energy. Studies have been done that show Crappies start to lose their ability to swim properly when the water starts into the lower 30's...same with Blugills, Bass, etc. Cats, Gators, and Perch, seem to be immune to the cold and feed and swim normally...testing was only done to 29 degrees and all of those fish were fine...Crappies died well before that. Any highly oxygenated warmer area is an even better benefit, so if the quiet drop-off is close to an old creekbed with flow, or the river has a backwater slue, then that offers almost everything. But one thing for sure, they won't be in a heavy flow that is cold, they just can't take in enough calories to fight off the cold and a current.
Crappie chasing lures.....I started Crappie fishing again, almost by accident....everytime I was out at CJ Bass fishing, a Crappie would Smash my lures...Hey Hey, "lightbulbs" started going off again in my head....so why did I have to fish for Crappie and be bored with a bobber or vertical jig, etc....I didn't.
A BIG Crappie eats SMALLER fish....most SMALLER fish swim away from a BIG Crappie, and the BIG Crappie trys to go get it, catch it, so it gets to eat a BIG, HIGH PROTEIN, FILLING, MEAL....simple! You don't have to fish slow all of the time, or bobber fish, or jig, or spider rig or troll...you can cast to a Crappie just like anything else MOST OF THE YEAR!
more later!
Keitech USA Pro Staff
Slabmaster II
Took a stroll out to the lake today nobody on the water the air temp at 31° may have had something to do with it, saw that there is some structure exposed at Whiskey Island east side towards the beach hoping I can get out next week I'm off from 22-28th the air craft carrier is ready for launching and so am I...........Doc
Crappie.com 2K Star General
Yep...I'm sure "The Powers" are not happy with that area...someone boo boo'd.Originally Posted by Lange
If the weather is good, let me know...I'm off from Dec 20th until Jan 5th.
Keitech USA Pro Staff
Slabmaster II
Fully rigged and ready to go got some new LED lights for the bow just waiting for the weather to warm up before I put them on, the others lasted 6 years of hard abuse the sun reflecting off the water really burns them up but I really like the LED,s for navigating in the dark, I don't night fish that often but when I do I really like to have the boat lit up......Doc
Crappie.com 2K Star General
I see the Aircraft Carrier fits nicely in the New Dri-Dock that you built....Does Lynn get any of that EXTRA space??
Fully rigged and ready to go got some new LED lights for the bow just waiting for the weather to warm up before I put them on, the others lasted 6 years of hard abuse the sun reflecting off the water really burns them up but I really like the LED,s for navigating in the dark, I don't night fish that often but when I do I really like to have the boat lit up......Doc
Keitech USA Pro Staff
Crappie.com 1K Star General
Tim!!!! By the way, this is robin wash!!!! Can't believe they converted you t a bait fisherman!!!!!! I've made the switch from the "dark side" as there calling it..... Bought a bass boat but I've got the monster rod holders Mounted so no worries!!! We can get her done in a 20ft bass boat to!!
Slabmaster II
Robin,
Hey good to hear from you my Man, been a long time I'm still on the dark side but have enjoyed fishing for the "Baitfish" never going to be able to get that out of me but I did catch some real nice Crappie this past year dragging for Catfish, I kind of thought that was you when I seen the CrappieCrazed and not CatCrazed good to here from you we will get together in 2015 Oh by the way the "Moons are still rising in July" nobody but me and Lynn out there this year went thru 1000 mags too, the freezer is full thanks again Buddy..........Doc
Slabmaster II
No she does not that is all mine, still work in progress, she is real happy to get her garage at the house back along with the basementI see the Aircraft Carrier fits nicely in the New Dri-Dock that you built....Does Lynn get any of that EXTRA space??
Crappie.com 1K Star General
Good!!! Glad to hear that man!!!!!!!! Yeah let's get together sometime man!! Catfishing, crappie fishing, I'm more of a rounded fisherman now!! Lol
Trophy King II
I see room for my motorcycle. we are all getting rounder....
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