Thread: What water temp = same areas as spawn?

Don't do much crappie fishing in the fall as I'm ate up w/ bowhunting, but I was wondering at roughly what water temp the crappie will be in the brush in the backs of the bays like in the spring on Kentucky Lake? For instance.... I know exactly what areas and brushpiles to fish when the water hits around 60degrees in the spring..... will the fish be in the same areas as they are in the spring when the water temp is the same? Just curious.......

Originally Posted by caseydrew

Don't do much crappie fishing in the fall as I'm ate up w/ bowhunting, but I was wondering at roughly what water temp the crappie will be in the brush in the backs of the bays like in the spring on Kentucky Lake? For instance.... I know exactly what areas and brushpiles to fish when the water hits around 60degrees in the spring..... will the fish be in the same areas as they are in the spring when the water temp is the same? Just curious.......

I don't think so. At least, the White Crappie probably won't be ... they're usually out along the channels, in the Fall, moving out to the main lake river channel come Winter. The Black Crappie will come quite a bit shallower, following baitfish back into the creeks, but will usually still be in the first half of the creek (from the mouth, back) and around deep water ... they just won't be as deep, themselves, as the White Crappie tend to stay.
I don't pay much attention to water temps, myself ... but, as I understand it, once the water temps get back into the 60's in the Fall, they start getting active. The two different species just react a little different, as far as where they stage in the Fall. I think they are still going to be around the spawning areas ... just not in the spawning shallows. They'll be in close proximity, but in deeper water ... out away from the spawning banks. Channel edges, brushpiles, deep water docks, bridges in deep water, and points/mouths of creeks should be where you'll find them.
Black Crappie are the first into the shallower depths, Spring or Fall ... followed by the White Crappie in the Spring. But, the White Crappie don't seem to come as shallow, in the Fall. At least that's been my observation, on my local lakes ... and Watts Bar Lake, in East Tenn ... and Weiss Lake, in NE Ala.

... cp