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Trophy King
Someone please enlighten me
We put some stake beds out last year in some promising looking spots. We were pleased this spring when we started marking a bunch of fish using them. Over the past couple months I've returned to them in attempt to catch some fish off them with no luck. I can clearly see the fish suspended in and around them, but cannot buy a bite. Most of my attempts have been vertical with a jig, but I've also tried casting to them and counting down. I've also tried a minnow under a float on a couple occasions. What gives? Is it just coincidence that I'm there on the wrong day at the wrong time every time? I know I'm right amongst the beds cause I can feel my jig against the wood stakes. Starting to lose confidence because I don't know how to fix the problem.
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Crappie use some structure only seasonally . I have several spots only good around spawn and others good in hot weather ect . Few of my spots hold Crappie most of the year . I have over 500 marked in my home lake alone and a fair number in others I fish . Trick is knowing which area to look based on time of year , weather
and water levels .
Trophy King
If you can see the fish holding on one of your spots, can you usually catch em? At least most of the time?Originally Posted by NIMROD
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Sounds like my last few crappie trips. Dont have an answer but id love to hear what everyone else says.
Crappiehabits LIKED above post
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You may need to borrow a camera. You fish those things under a few different conditions and winds etc. and don't catch one sounds like it's maybe a non game fish like carp or something. You might try a real small hook rigged on a slip bobber and a small piece of worm set right on them. Not much that swims won't bite that...maybe get some insight.
Usually the only cover that will be productive over a lot of the year are the ones in the very most prime spots that have the,depth temperature stability,oxygen levels,proximity to feeding areas, etc that crappie return regularly to no matter if they wander off occasionally.
Probably 5 or 6 of the lakes I fish regularly developed grass beds in the last 10 to 15 years.And the shad populations have exploded.The result is they spend a lot more time in the grass and following the baitfish then "staying around the house" so to speak. It has changed fishing those lakes considerably.
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Trophy King
this is the only pic I have taken of one of the beds. Most of the time, the fish I'm seeing are related closer to the stakes or right over top of them. I sorta thought this looked more like a school of white bass or something but I know they are usually eager to smack a jig or minnow too and they did not on that day. What kind of fish do y'all think these are?
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They may very well be post spawn crappie that aren't interested in feeding. Try them again in a week or ten days. I crappie fish year around on the north end of Kentucky/Barkley and the middle of May is my absolute least favorite time of year to fish.
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Try casting a jig under a cork. Sometimes brush I fish vertically spooks fish. They dont leave just dont bite. Stay off em 20 yards ad pitch a jig under a cork and see if that helps.
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pretty large mess of fish on that screen shot ......you might try down sizing your bait to really small .
and as posted before sometimes it seems if you don't sit right on top of them it helps as well
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