Help on tactics

I'm fairly new to crappie fishing. Two years ago I bought the stuff to start spider rigging and I've been out with that gear maybe 15 to 20 times since I purchased it. So far i've not had much success. My best day spider rigging was 9 crappie. I'm fishing good lakes too...last year I fished mostly Sardis Lake in MS, and this year Pickwick Lake in MS and TN. From a technical perspective I know I have my rigging correct. I did my research, and then went out with a guide to validate what I thought I had learned. I know i've got the right gear and presentation. What I clearly lack is knowledge on the fish. I don't know if I'm not fishing the right areas, or at the right speeds, etc.

Last week I fished for six hours and I caught a single crappie. Conditions were tough on the day I went...it was a really windy post-front day...but I figured I'd have caught more than a single crappie! I trolled around some likely looking spawning flats in about 6 to 10 feet of water and caught nothing. After that I just cruised around with my sonar until I located what looked like good fish. I dropped a marker on them, then trolled back and forth through them with minnows and jigs deployed at depths a foot or so above where they marked on the screen...and I caught one fish. That was it.

There have been plenty of other times when I'd go out for 4 or 6 hours and catch one...maybe two fish with 6 rods in the water.

How long do you fish an area before you decide to move on to a new one? Will you burn an hour? Two hours? Three hours trolling a spot? I usually only get to fish a half day per week if I'm lucky...if I burn too much time on a bad spot it just kills any chance of success...but packing up the rods and moving to a new spot takes time too. What are your thoughts?

What am I doing wrong?

I started the spider rigging thing as a way to get the kids excited about fishing...but when I keep getting skunked it kind of ruins things. It's not much fun asking a kid to watch a rod do nothing for six hours.

Well, so far this year you have had as much success as I have. It has just been a really tough year so far. Weather has played a big roll in that. Guys who fish a lot will tell you they have not had very many good days. Just stay after it. It will get better. Just read as much as you can about patterning fish certain times of year but you have to consider the water levels we are having and constant weather pattern changes.

The rain has been crazy this year. Flat crazy.

Been slow for me this spring, looking forward to summer and low water.

What size jig and colors are you using?? During early spring season, water is still cold and the fish are slow to bite. If the spawn is over go to deeper water. Deep brush piles an trees. Also go slow- .2 or less. I would say more, but, this site does not work good.It's a shame. To slow!!!

I'm using small jigs..maybe 1 to 1.5 inch. I try different colors based on recent fishing reports. If the water is dark i try to use dark colors, and light colors in clearer water. I honestly don't have any clue if the spawn is over or not. i don't get out enough to have any feel for what the fish are doing. i talked to a guy the other day who said he's still catching fish with eggs in them...so I'm guessing some are still spawning.

The water levels have been up and down a bunch due to heavy weekly rains for the past month. They might be three feet higher or lower from week to week it seems like.

The water is warm...mid 60s now.

all I can say is fishin/not catchin is very expensive this year.... glad fuel prices are reasonable. stay after it,and it will come around.

If you can afford it, I would go out with a guide again. Same guy or another one, but this time sit down with him and a map of the lake. Point out places you might want to go rigging and see what he says about your choices. He will know current locations of fish and will be able to tell you why, or why not to go to those spots. Go to the lake that may be easiest to learn....more stable? Bigger/better/more numbers of fish? Let him know you are more interested in learning how to find the fish first, and catch them secondly.
I tried to talk to a local guide about learning to find fish....all he wanted to do was drive me out to a spot and point. Not interested in my business at all.

Thanks y'all. I might see if I can get out a few afternoons over the next week and just grind it out.

Fishinhunter; When all else fails try small corks and jigs or minnows on your rods while spider rigging. I have been able to catch quite a few doing this. I set the corks at different depths(this time of year corks at 3', 31/2', and 4' deep and fishing in 5'-8' water depth has worked good) till I find the depth they bite best at then change all to that depth. I just slow troll very slow and even slower just hitting the trolling motor and letting it coast or letting the wind ease me along but go as slow as you can. I use 1/16 black/chartreuse tubes when the water is dark and stained after rains. If that doesn't work try different colors such as orange/chartreuse worked good last week when fishing and minnows are good anytime as well. When I catch a fish say in 5 or 6 foot water then I try to just troll that depth to see if I catch more of them at that depth before moving deeper or shallower. Most of the time they all will be biting in just about same depth or close to it. Now I know that corks are taboo for a lot of fishermen but people have been catching fish with them for as far back as anyone can remember. Well anyway this is what has work for for me and it may work for you also. :twocents

It was tough last Sunday with water temp in the low 50s, but today with the temp up to 61, phenomenal! It will get even better in the next week as temps rise to 70.

Location: tried super shallow - fish aren't there yet;
Moved into water 4-5 ' and cast around the boat to find which direction higher concentrations of prespawn fish were (shallow, schooled fish are generally totally nuts and fall all over themselves to bite lures).

If a location started to fizzle (after catching 15-20 crappie and other fish, I pulled anchor and move 15' parallel to the shore/ same depth, anchored and cast some more.

Lure size and color varied (as usual for spring), staying with lures 2-2.5" in length, some curl tail, some straight flat tail (see photo) rigged on 1/16 oz jig heads (never colored).

http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j3...s.jpg~original

Light braid line or light mono (Trilene or Suffix) handled the light lure and strike detection good as usual.
Retrieve: slow and steady mid-depth with slight rod twitches if needed. Fish sometimes followed the lures and struck at the boat.

Some shores are worthless!!! But this time of year, shallow is key and the easiest time to catch shallow species. It's just a matter of which shore lines (usually those with vegetation adjacent to wetlands or mid lake humps). Fish don't all spawn at the same time (Thank GOD) and you can return to the same areas sometimes up to week or more.

Scout out good water using slow moving lures - JMO

Hunter I am like the others....the smallest bait I normally use is beavertails 2in.....usually use two quarter oz jigheads and 2.5 in minnow mindr and 3 in slabslayer.....almost always use larger baits and troll sloooooow....unless i am trying to cover ground and find hotspots, then i set jigs deeper and speed up until i locate them....right now they seem to be on breaklines where it starts to drop off....once i find the depth i set them all there and slow down....Good luck and keep after it.

Also, I have started double dipping (use two rods in hand with the same bait setup as rigging) alot because it is easier to move from place to place while searching....once you get them patterned then you can take the kids rigging

Andy