Very early spring baits and tactics

[Tippecanoe41]

How are you catching crappies in very early spring? Using live bait or lures? Casting, jigging, trolling, etc? If you are trolling or spider rigging, how fast are you moving and what baits?

[JUNGLEJIMJIGS]

I cast from the bank using small hand ties tipped with a live waxworm or piece of Berkley power wiggler. Bait size is 1.5" or smaller this time of year.

[Noodle rod]

I cast from the bank with plastic in the places known from my old logs that they showed up. When I am searching I watch water color,temp, level, weeds, and tree budding. You will need to search very slowly and carefully; you can miss a huge group by making half hearted presentations to non active crappie.

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[RP3]

Live scope heavy presentation. Looking for schools bunched up in deeper staging areas before they move shallow. 1/16 oz Deathgrip jig head, with 6th Sense clobber minnow, slathered in Fish sticks shad scent. Slab crappie Kryptonite!

[happycaster58]

I'll let you know- as soon as I start catching some!

[Markie Boy]

TROUT MAGNET! Smaller presentation is awesome in early season. They have new tungsten matching heads that will help them fish crappie better, and I used them with the Eye Hole jigs and nibbles late last year and it worked awesome.

Last spring I fished a TM under a float while I had a minnow out under a float - the TM out-fished the minnow 3 to 1.

[bugman]

Our fish are schooled up in massive schools toward the backs of creeks/coves suspended fairly shallow over 20 fow or so we stay 35' plus off of them because they are super spooky in the cold clear water we have this time of year some days you can cast a 1/16 0z past them and work it back through them other days they want it even slower those days throw a bobber on and have a ball....i use all my own jigheads and plastics the 1/16 #2 livescope head and monkeytreuse paddle slayer has flat out produced every time out.

[Ketchn]

No clue here , done forgot and have to start all over again….
Been that long for me , just saying
But if I had the chance , I would try deep water cover close to spawn areas and hold a big ole hand tied jig really still in said cover for the big white ones …
I would do something similar in a bit shorter water if the target was black crappie and use something smaller and ORANGE….MAYBE

[NIMROD]

Most here just livescope mostly roaming Crappie . Dropping any jig on their nose with livescope .

[Mud]

I’m in FL fishing shallow lakes 6’-7’ deep longlining 1/16 oz roadrunner pros with CB grubs at .8, baits real close to the boat or jigging pads/grass along the river using a 1/8 oz pops hair jig.