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Slab Heaven
Finally got enough ice on a shoreline lake to chase some true slabs. Found um right where they should be; just off the structure over the main basin. We worked spoons and tube jigs to ice some real quality fish. We released everything under 12" and over 15".
The Vex looked like the strip at Vagas for over 3 hours. We left um biting due to the 2 degree temps freezing everything including the crappie as they came outta the hole. Set back at least 12 fish over 15".
http://www.ctfisherman.com/ubbthread...-19773-024.jpg
18"er
http://www.ctfisherman.com/ubbthread...-19774-017.jpg
Meat shot
http://www.ctfisherman.com/ubbthread...-19775-034.jpg
I don't post here often, but figure you guys would enjoy seeing these.
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NICE fish! Wish we had blacks like that around here... What state are you fishing?
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CT, there is very little pressure on these fish here. Most ice anglers here target perch, trout and bass. Those that do jig mostly fish shallow stunted fish lakes and are content to catch quantity over quality. We have 4 lakes that give up quality fish like these with a 20 mile drive so as long as the is good ice we are on um. Heading out again tonight.
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Thanks for that nice post. Do you do any guideing? Us old retired folks up here in Maine would love to do some of that fine fishing.
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Sorry, only guiding close friends. Tonights' trip made Sunday look like a practice run. We had 23 fish over the 15" mark plus 5 others over 16". I'll try to get another post up in the next few days.
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Paul, dont become a stranger...start posting more with us here on CDC.;) Those are some real quality fish and those pictures have me drooling all over myself.;) Youre on some real hawgs there...stay after 'em an keep those pictures coming.;):)
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yall thru the ice guys are really smoking them out there good post and pictures
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A few pics from last night, it was a whole lot warmer. A lot of the big girls were taken on a Gulp 1" minnow. 14" of snow foretasted tonight, the walk is gonna stink for a while.
[IMG]http://i565.photobucket.com/albums/s...rappie/012.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i565.photobucket.com/albums/s...ppie/017-1.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i565.photobucket.com/albums/s...rappie/007.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i565.photobucket.com/albums/s...rappie/019.jpg[/IMG]
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unbelievable! you are indeed a lucky man!
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Looking at those pictures ...Almost like you died and went to crappie heaven...Big and I mean Big Crappies.....JIM....CL....
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Paul, Awesome pictures of those brutes. I couldn't help but notice you said you were going back out tonight & then happen to notice the pictures appear to be at night. What times of the evening /night do you fish for these & do you have that good of luck in the daylight hours? Don't want you to give any of your favorite secrets. I live in the midwest & always wanted to try the night bite, but wasn't sure if it could work in the cold. Thanks for sharing! Ben
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I guess a cooler is not needed except to keep em from freezing. With those temps, you gotta love it!!
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I am not a morning person (I'm but my bowels are not):(, so I tend to target the evening jigging bite. We usually have the best bite from 1 hour before sunset to 2 hours after sunset. It is usually not worth staying , but the bite will come and go thru out the night as the fish move in an out.
That being said, there is another small group of knowledgeable guys targeting the same school of fish , but they are focused on the am bite before work . They normally do well at false dawn up until about 2 hours after, today the bite held up as they followed the fish, I thing the heavy snow pack helped. This is a fairly clear water body. No secrets other than exact location (water body). Ask away.
If you are looking for pointers, read every thing you can about the cold water habits of big crappie. You will see recurring themes like confined open water, dish pan basins, migration routes and the biggest key is fish on a water body that supports the size class you are looking for. We have one more year here, then it will be another 2 -3 till this lake produces well. Different lake types fish differently; I like to target clear lakes with moderately deep silt covered basins that support a good forage base. We do fish one shallow weed lake because it has some real slabs in it, but it is not as frenzied action wise. The hardest part is finding them, catching them is easy:D. We may get another 14 " of snow on top of the 20 or so already on the ground, it will be tough to get out there this weekend.
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Nice Slabs! Looks like a great Honey Hole!!! Don't Give that up!!!
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Paul D, I`m jealous! And ain`t ashamed to ADMIT it...truely the Mother Lode! Well done! And thanks...
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Beautiful Fish.....Man, I'm sooo envious....I may get a couple that size in a YEAR:)
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Not to rock the boat, but we only specifically target crappie thru the ice with a few scouting missions just before ice up. Once the warmer weather arrives, my saltwater addiction kicks in. 14 inches of new snow on the lake as predicted (a little over 16 here at the house:(). I have a list of 5 trusted fishing partners that have offered to break trail and pull gear. Stay tuned here for more in the next few days.
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Paul, Thanks for answering back. Very interesting information. At what depth do these big ones hangout at? Do you catch any smaller fish in the area or are they all about this size? Thanks!!
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Depth, here in CT the clear lakes we primarily fish have basins that bottom out in the 18-30 ft range. We have the best results in depth of 20-25 ft with the fish being worked up to maybe half the actual depth.
The shallower dark water lakes max out at about 15 ft with most of the fish being found at or just inside the weed line (pockets are prime). It is much harder to mark these fish , and there is only a few feet to work them up , so it can be frustrating.
Sizes, there is a mix. The 7" thru 12" year classes are well represented, then there seem to be a void of 12 -14" fish with a strong year class of 15 "ers. Lake #2 has a very strong 10-13" year class and we do most of our harvesting outta there.
This stringer went just north of 17 lbs for 8 fish (2lb average):
http://i565.photobucket.com/albums/s...ppie/017-1.jpg
Gonna trudge thru the snow again tomorrow the is 30 " plus on the ground here now :(. The lake should only have around 16 or 18.
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Thank you for sharing with us.
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very nice quality fish, good job finding them
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Paul, you are a true fishing gentleman taking the time to share your knowledge. We all enjoy it tremendously. I do have one more question. When you fish the evening bite after dark do you use a submersible light? Thanks for all your info. Ben
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A yes ,the old submersible light debate. The simple answer would be none of these fish were taken with a submersible.
My opinion on um; simple again , they rarely hurt the bite, sometimes appear to help, but in the conditions I am fishing they seem to make no difference at all.
There is one other slightly stained lake we fish that the green sub. does seem to help, that particular lake has a limited forage base for what it is worth.
We always use gas lanterns to help see what we are doing , but with the ice and snow cover there is little light penetration at the depths we are fishing.
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Paul, Man those are nice fish. We are going to venture out this Sat. night to try the night bite in our area. We have heard of some guys doing it, so we thought we would give it a go. I'm curious as to what weight line & size of jigs if that's what you use? Just curious! Thanks for showing your catch we really enjoy!!
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I am currently using 4 lb mono and fireline on my crappie jigging set ups. One is rigged with a plain fatboy jig that is used for live shiners when required. My main stays are a 1/16th Forage Minnow Spoon, 1" Gulp minnow, and a Gitzit tipped with micro plastics. I switch up often to match the mood of the fish. .Some evenings they definitely prefer one over the others. Base what you are using on the preferred forage of the water body you are fishing; then begin experimenting from there.
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1 of the BEST posts have read in a LONG time, sir! If by definition, pornography is looking at pictures of something you`d RATHER be actually DOING, then this is 1 of the BEST cover shots of "fins and flesh" have seen in a while...drooling as type this, just thinking about those golden brown fillets stacking up on a platter, piping hot, hush puppies still sizzling...you GOT it made, sir... Thanks for sharing...
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Very nice catch Paul. I hope you guys hit some eyes.
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WHHHOOOOOAAAA.........that is some serious fish.....many thanks for letting us southerners see how its done on the ice......I always wondered and now I know thanks to you....
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Let me know if you guys get board with these pics.. A few more tonight; should be good for first and second in the IceShanty.com Tourney......till my next trip:D.
The bite is starting to slow, but marking plenty of fish.
http://i565.photobucket.com/albums/s...crappie010.jpg
http://i565.photobucket.com/albums/s...crappie007.jpg
http://i565.photobucket.com/albums/s...crappie001.jpg
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Never get bored of looking at those pics. Jealous yes, bored no.
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I know it's an old topic, but had to say WOW!!
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Beauties! Some real dinner plates there.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by
Crappie 1
Mighty darn nice fish...
Hey crappie1, you got any place up ur way with fish like that? I got one lake that's got em down this way
