Thread: Cabin Fever Crappie

New crappie enthusiast here who is getting back into the game for the first time in ten years courtesy of uncle Sam. I'll be kayak fishing around central VA in a pretty low tech rig without a fish finder.

Since it's the dead of winter and everything's deep, is it a waste of time to try to target crappie this early? I have a few spots identified that I'm hoping will be easier to fish effectively once they get into a pre spawn mode, but most of the success I see in the depths of winter come from spider rig setups with livescopes versus a guy estimating depth and casting from a yak.

Thanks in advance for any input!

Hey! Minnows aren’t the dark side. They work, but don’t live long going into 45 degree water from the 70 of the tackle shop. I’m not a yak guy so my help is limited. I’d try below the Chick damn again as it’s good most of the year, well except for when I go.

Don’t be dismayed. I took a vacation day last Wednesday. Burned 14 gallons of gas running all over the James river and managed one tiny crappie. On a minnow. They live about a minute.

Diascund resivoir can be good. No gas motors. Since you are a veteran here, I bet someone will be sending you a PM ( private message) with some tips.

But, as a yak fishing guy and fan of catching, you might want to get ready for the upcoming Shad/herring/white perch/striper run that will start in 3 weeks. The James river at Richmond is great. Several places to launch or bank fish. Look up AnCarrow Park.

Little gold spoons or your favorite crappie grub or hair jig. Put some split shot up about 18” or an online weight. Cast parallel to the current, count it down some and retrieve. Shad are a BLAST. and when they are here it can be easy.
catching.

If you don’t do anything else in Richmond, go to AnCarrow Park any day in April. Park and walk out to the Wall where everyone bank fishes. It is a beautiful slice of what our Country should be. People of all shapes, colors, sexes, languages, ages and skills, standing shoulder to shoulder sharing one big fishing spot. So many, that you would swear it would never work. But they share. They take turns casting. Everyone gets along. Everyone smiles. And cheers when someone else catches. Kids play in the dirt. Pick flowers or fish. Some do homework while grandpa fills a bucket with fresh fish. They runaround so close the edge of the rock wall that every parent there has a mental plan of what they would do if a kid goes over the edge and into the chilly water. You can’t fish their with out thinking “okay. When somebody screams, I toss my wallet and cell phone by my backpack and go in feet first while calling for anything that floats”. Yet, thankfully, it doesn’t happen. Last year, the people were still there but they were not shoulder to shoulder. They gave each other space. Out of respect a decency. Not because a podium voice said they had too.

AnCarrow wall is a special place. My son will be 20 this month. When he was 15, we got checked at the wall by the Game Warden. My son is big. The Warden was nice. My son told him he was only 15 and didn't have a license. The Warden looked him up and down, looked at me, then back at him. "Really?' Yes, Sir. Warden says "What do they feed you?". I told him it was true. We laughed. He checked some people down the line and as he passed by, he stopped and ask my son "If you are going to be here next week, would you bring your birth certificate or a note from your mom?". We all laughed. He hung around and talked to my kid. They talked about fishing. Hunting. Guns. Knives. Boy Scouts. And the Warden gave him his business card and told him to contact him when he was ready to do an Eagle Scout project, that the Game Commision had some ideas for stuff he could do for the public parks. Well, he got his Eagle Scout rank, but did a project for Chesterfield Police K-9 unit. When we had a celebration for achieving Eagle, guess who attended. Yep, Officer David Hennaman of the VDGIF. It was a Saturday and Officer Hennaman, had to work a regatta on the river that day. He raced across town to make it to the Eagle Court of Honor. It was very kind. My son has his cell phone number in his phone. He texts when he has a question and Officer Hennaman responds. Don't let the evening news fool you. There is so much good around us. Watch for it, you'll see it.


I’ll post about it when they are here. It’s cming.

Good night.

Dayton