Ice Out Conditions

Ok, by now everyone is ready for the ice to melt off and start catching crappie. Since these conditions will be here before we know it, how about a thread for ice out conditions? What to target, depths, colors, strategies, times of day, baits, structure, bottom consistency, rigs, etc. for when the ice has recently melted off and then there's open water.

I'm so looking forward to reading everyone's posts!

Have a SUPER day!


P.S. (I believe I'm stating the conditions correctly as "ice out". If not, let me know; afterall, it's a Monday.) :)

I fish shallow pockets or flats that have the warmest water. I cast jigs and cover water until I come in contact with fish. if I find warm water with schools of shad its good, if there are not many shad then I will not spend a hole lot of time in an area. the afternoon bite is always better early in the year because the shallows have had more time to warm during the day. I will head to the lake about 2-3 hours before dark. the fish will fire up the last hour before dark and then slow down at dark. I am usually fishing off the bank this time of year but if you were in a boat you could follow the fish movement back out to deeper water after dark. this is where I fish that time of year but I know others that target deeper fish. I like the shallow bite because it is a more aggressive bite. start deep early in the day and shallow later in the day.

Dragging some minnow and jigs at a snails pace on deep brush is usually my go to....But if you can get some warmer water, usually on the North end of the body of water, as already mentioned, its very possible to find some shallow fish, I which case I like a small jig and an ice float.

I am soooooo ready for Winter to disappear...Spring ice-out crappies around here are usually found in the channels and/or black bottom areas because they warm up the fastest...my freezer's empty and I definitely need some crappies to warm my soul.

I'm still looking for them to be suspended on main lake points or ledges. I'll look at flats adjacent to defined creek channels on more stable or warmer days. Black crappie are known to slide into the shallows earlier than whites, so if you've had a couple warm nights, you may find them shallower than one would think. If water is less than 45 degrees, I need the pole in my hand in order to feel the lite biters. I'm going to move a lot slower, but sometimes the fish will let you know if you can speed up the process. Incoming water is generally warmer, unless you've had a large amount of snow melt.

i catch them from shore at ice out.(ramp channel frozen still) they are so far up the creeks i couldn't even get my boat there. warm sunny day with no wind and a little runoff.