Cold water rigs?

[njones]

What setup do you guys use to catch gills and Crappie in winter, kinda want to see what other options are out there.

I fish alot small ponds and a small lake/large ponds here in KS. I try to go on the warm days (upper 40's to mid 50's) with lows in the 20-30's at knight.

I've been using a slip float set 5ft deep or so, under the float I use a 1/64 oz ball head jig tipped with wax worm. I also have used a 1" Charlie Brewer panfish slider on 1/64 jighead tipped with a crappie nibble.

Nate

[sharphook]

Are you catchin or just fishin?

[deathb4disco]

I fish alot small ponds and a small lake/large ponds ... I try to go on the warm days (upper 40's to mid 50's) with lows in the 20-30's at knight.

So do I. I would fish as light as possible -- 4# line max, and 2# or 3# would be better. Bites can be very light in cold water, so make sure the float is sensitive.

[njones]

I catching em just not as many big ones as I want. I do use 4lb line but tend to miss bites or feel em
till its to late

Nate

[tnpondmanager]

My cold-water rig is the couch. As in, I give the bluegill a break from November to February. I know it's different further north, but where I am (and I've heard other very experienced bluegill anglers make the same observation), bluegill all but shut down in wintertime. I can catch largemouth, crappie, etc., but the bluegill take their toys and go home this time of year down south (in my experience).

[deathb4disco]

I know it's different further north, but where I am (and I've heard other very experienced bluegill anglers make the same observation), bluegill all but shut down in wintertime.

In my experience, the only difference in winter fishing is that the northern guys are drilling holes in the ice to get their bluegills. Bluegills bite year round in the north and the south. I've had 60-70 fish days in January, and I'm farther south than you.

[deathb4disco]

... bluegill all but shut down in wintertime.

This is the second time in a couple of weeks where I've seen something like this posted. (The other time was by a guy in Florida, of all places!)

The fish are there, and they'll bite. If some guy in Minnesota can catch them through a hole in the ice, you can definitely catch them in soft water.

[tnpondmanager]

I may just be a wuss then. I don't like the cold, so that's a big part of why I hang it up in the winter months. I do believe that I could probably catch them if I went, but another reason I take a break, is to give the fish a break. The first trip of the year in late February or early March is always one of the very best of the year; sometimes I'll get bites on practically every cast, in the same pond where the fishing was pretty slow the previous fall. I think a few months without seeing any lures or baits dangled in front of them can make a difference in catchability, and since I fish mainly private ponds that I manage and guide on, I'm a big percentage of the total fishing pressure on those waters. A fish's memory is probably shorter than a human's, so I believe that few months of a break from pressure makes a difference.

[wademaster]

I generally use a lot of the same tactics as I do in warm weather, just slower and smaller.

[Cricketcage]

In the rare times I have access to a boat, I like to skim the bottom (super slow retrieve) in about 10 - 15 feet with 1/32oz. jigs such as black beetles and 1" curly tails on 2lb. test monofilament. I've also had luck jigging a compact spoon like a 1/8oz Kastmaster in deeper waters at 20 - 25 ft.