Thread: Maumelle 10-11-12

We have been catching smaller to medium crappie at Maumelle over the past couple of weeks, an occasional really big fish but never more than 3 fish off a structure. Most crappie in the 15 to 20' debts around and under wood, but largemouth and Kentucky bass everywhere. The Kentuckys are small with some up to a pound but several largemouth in the 3 lb range. Lots of fun on my ultra-lite spinning gear. Using crappie jigs sometimes tipped w/minnows. Water temp yesterday was 77 degrees if I remember right.

Nope not worthless, just helps with a visual. I dont always post pics either.


(C.J.)

This is my standard weigh, measure and ear bone extraction setup.



The larger three fish were 12.25" and just over 1 lb.



Also, this is only half, my partner ran off with some too!!

The place is overrun with spotted bass. Keep all you can stand. I served a bunch the other day and none of the folks I was with could tell the difference btw them and the crappie. Out of that lake they are really tasty.

We been eatin the Kentucky's but I haven't told my wife, she thinks they are crappie. My fishin partner blackened a mess of Kentucky's and said it was great.

On your next Nimrod trip , I'd like to see you age a few.

Here is some footage I took on Maumelle last Tuesday, October 16th, 2012. A few warnings, though. This is the first time I have done underwater video footage. It was done with a GOPRO camera on a headband, and I'm looking around quite a bit. Also, whenever I was exhaling, the bubbles went right in front of the camera. Next time I'll strap it to m wrist, so it stays a lot steadier, and no bubble interference. Another problem is that Maumelle is no Ouachita. The visibility is maybe 4-5 feet at best. Because of this, I'm constantly looking back and forth at my dive partner to be sure I don't lose him.

Now for the good. about 0:50 seconds in , after watching a bluegill, then a spotted bass, black crappie just start fading in like ghosts. There were as many as 10 or more around us, and all of them were probably on average 11-12" fish. It was neat to see them like that. They were curious, and kept coming to check us out. I could see how fish grouped together like this appear to be "stacked up" when viewed on a depth finder.

Unfortunately, it's the end of the season for diving due to the limitations of my gear and cold tolerance. I will definitely be out there next year, trying to document fish usage of the artificial habitat we placed. Stay tuned.

Maumelle Dive 2012 10 16 - YouTube

Haha, i'd like to see you try that in Conway. Lol, you wouldnt even be able to see the bubbles. Pretty cool vid.


(C.J.)

That video is cool Ben!