Getting Frustrated - Trying to locate / catch Crappie

Hi Everyone,


A couple of years ago I started actively targeting crappie.Before that point, the only crappie I had ever caught had been while bluegillfishing or the incidental catch while bass fishing.


I have several "Good" crappie lakes near me inSouthern Illinois. The most notable of the two being Rend Lake and Lake ofEgypt.


Herein lies my dilemma… When the water warms during latespring, and the crappie move extremely shallow, I can reliably catch them. Iknow this is probably the time of year where anyone can probably catch themusing just about anything as bait.



During the rest of the year, when the crappie are notshallow, I “struggle” to catch them. By struggle I mean I don’t catch them atall, can’t find them, or find them and still can’t get a bite, and I end upgetting frustrated.


I have tried live minnows and jigs both either fishedvertically from the boat or beneath a cork. I just don’t have any success.


For instance, this past Thursday a good friend of mine and Idecided to try out a new-to-us lake just south of town. I had been told byanother friend that his dad had caught a “cooler full” of crappie earlier inthe week. My friend even told me the general location where his dad had caughtthe fish.


My friend and I were all set and ready to catch some crappieon Thursday morning, but when I awoke there was a large area of light tomoderate rain that hadn’t been in the forecast. After waiting for the rain tostop, we drove to the lake and hit the water. The area we were fishing lookedlike a pretty good spot. Riprap shoreline and a fast drop to about 12 feet ofwater. We would reach 12 feet of water within about 15-20 feet from shore. Wemade pass after pass down the riprap bank. We started shallow and continued towhere we were almost fishing the bottom. I started out by using a roadrunner head with2” curly tail grub. As we progressed through passes, I tried different color ofgrub bodies and went to a conventional head. I tried putting the jig under afloat and saw a few bites, but we decided those were probably bluegill sincethey would take the cork under for only a second and would never hook up.


The boat I was fishing from has an older fishfinder that Iam retiring in the next few days. It isn’t the best, but it still isn’t bad. It’sa Humminbird 597ci HD. GPS / 2d sonar. I bought this fishfinder new and amrather comfortable with it. The area we were fishing had a pretty solid bottomand fairly-clear water. If you let your bait hit the bottom, it would come upwith some bright green algae. I nevernoticed anything on the sonar display that would indicate fish or baitfishaside from an occasional “mystery blob” that would be at a random depth betweenthe surface and the bottom.


To salvage what was left of our pride, we chalked thisfailed trip up to the cold rain that fell early in the morning, but this is notan isolated incident. He and I have, so far this year, been skunked twice atEgypt and I have been skunked a couple more times at Crab Orchard and RendLake. As I said, once they go shallow at Rend or even Crab Orchard, I canconsistently catch them.. Until then, my winless streak continues.


I’m open to any suggestions on how to go about garnering alittle success with catching these paper-mouthed fish. I’vebeen reading here on the forum and am wondering if I should try adifferent float, but before I buy any more crappie tackle I want to make surewhat I purchase is actually something that would be beneficial to use.


Thank You All for taking time to read what was intended tobe a short post but ended up being a short novel. Looking forward to gettingsome advice and actually catching some crappie.

The biggest asset to my fishing equipment has been my Humminbird 899ci HD SI unit. This side imaging sonar has completely turned my fishing experience around. Now I don't always catch them when I find fish as sometimes fish just don't bite but it is good to know they are fish where you are fishing. Save your money up and buy newest and the biggest screen side imaging unit that you can afford and learn to use it. I have learned a ton of sonar information right here and still learning:

http://www.crappie.com/crappie/fishi...d-photography/

Youtube has also a lot of videos to help also.

If your not fishing in the lake where the fish are you may as well be fishing in your bathtub at home.

Went legal place some fishing habitat. The fish will appreciate it and you will also. Fish Habitat" build it and they will come".:twocents

Thanks for the reply. I'm actually a step ahead on some of that. I put a helix 7 si GPS on my bass boat last year and just ordered a brand new helix 7 si GPS g2 and some extra transducers. When everything is finished, both boats will share helix units with the g2 being at the drivers console and the gen 1 being bow mounted with a trolling motor transducer.

I couldn't believe the difference the side imager made last year for my bass fishing... and I didn't get it installed until June or July.

On a side note, both of these helix units came from Brian at BBG Marine. He's a great guy to deal with.

I think that it can be a bit misleading to come to a forum like this and see post from people that always catch fish. That is not the norm. Most people do not catch fish every trip.

Recently I went to a pay to fish the dock marina. Most people there were not catching fish but two guys caught dozens. I watched what they were doing different and it was very subtle but the obvious difference was the number of tricks they tried. Crappie are finicky creatures. Most fish can be triggered to bite but pan fish need to be enticed to feed. What entices a fish to feed is much different and more subtle than what makes a bass or other larger predatory strike a lure. I'm never going to be great Crappie fisher because I don't have the patience required doesn't mean I don't have fun trying.

The only way I have ever consistently caught Crappie post spawn is very slow trolling on one specific reservoir. The lake I fish now it seems you have to fish deep into brush piles. I'm probably not going to live long enough to figure out why the same species acts differently in different lakes. The point is that again Crappie are harder to understand than other fish. Don't feel bad that they can be frustrating.

Have you tried hiring a guide? I am certain many of the lakes mentioned have guide services. This can cut down a mountain of trial and error and errant purchases. Be honest with the guide too when you book. Some guides are great at just catching fish and some are better at teaching anglers. Let him know you are learning and that you are looking for a learning opportunity as much as catching. Think of it as spending money to save money!


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I've actually been considering doing that, MidMsAngler. We have a lot of great guide services in this area... Some are even active members here on the forums. It might be the best way to go instead of chasing my tail.

[QUOTE=wolfhnd;3395047]I think that it can be a bit misleading to come to a forum like this and see post from people that always catch fish. That is not the norm. Most people do not catch fish every trip.

Recently I went to a pay to fish the dock marina. Most people there were not catching fish but two guys caught dozens. I watched what they were doing different and it was very subtle but the obvious difference was the number of tricks they tried. Crappie are finicky creatures. Most fish can be triggered to bite but pan fish need to be enticed to feed. What entices a fish to feed is much different and more subtle than what makes a bass or other larger predatory strike a lure. I'm never going to be great Crappie fisher because I don't have the patience required doesn't mean I don't have fun trying [QUOTE]

The only way I have ever consistently caught Crappie post spawn is very slow trolling on one specific reservoir. The lake I fish now it seems you have to fish deep into brush piles. I'm probably not going to live long enough to figure out why the same species acts differently in different lakes. The point is that again Crappie are harder to understand than other fish. Don't feel bad that they can be frustrating.

I agree with Scrat, I just put a Humminbird 9 G2N SI and a 898 DI up front along with 2 Precision GPS Antennas, then took a class on how to use them, they network to each other. I mark fish on a waypoints while I'm idling Side Scanning. Then get on my trolling motor and go to the same exact spot I marked. I was going to get a new boat this year, but decided to upgrade my electronics instead. I spent about $3000 for everything. That would have been about 5 or 6 boat payments. So I'm ahead of the game. :fingerdance

Hillbilly , if you know how to use them good electronics are priceless . I have fished for over 50 years . I upgraded to a Humminbird 11999 ci hd si and a Helix 10 si linked together. I think it has helped me alot when hunting cover and fish . :twocents:fish

The class was well worth the money.

Been told Bass Pro shops have free classes :fish

I have to agree with every one about good electronics and LEARN HOW TO USE THEM. I have found more Crappies suspended out in the middle of nowhere with them relating to absolutely nothing using SI. Or checking cribs or structure these fish are on the move one day on a crib totally gone the next day or even hours later.

To many times I have seen guys fishing cribs and catching nothing using my Electronics I found them about 50 yards off the cribs and slowly just moving around, pounded the crap out of them. I had to keep moving around trying to stay on them using SI to refind them.

Nimrod, the majority of the 4 hour class was on the water in my boat with the new stuff, so I actually got to play around with it ,if I forgot a step or had a question the instructor was right there to answer it

Hillbilly did you take your class at HiTec outdoors? I had them install my Helix 7 SI on my bass boat last year. I have to get back down there to have the transducer adjusted, but they're great people. I've been wanting to take his class.

Yes I did , Matt Quinn knows his stuff, well worth the money

I forgot to mention, if you go the guide route, you can usually find a guide who will take you out in your own boat if you explain your situation. I have done this before and it really helps if you're still trying to get your bearings on it. Sometimes you can even get a deal since they aren't incurring the same overhead using their gear, boat, and fuel.


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A couple years back I hired a guide to go with me on my boat. I was totaly devoid of any knowledge regarding Crappie fishing, and like you, to a very large degree still am. He was very good at showing me how to fish with jigs for shallow water Crappies in and around the weeds. But frankly that's about all he knows, and he isn't interested in doing anything else.
So don't be afraid to ask questions about trying different methods before you agree to go.
Also, if you think you might want to try a different method like say spider rigging, pay someone to take you rather than invest in the equiptment first.
Different strokes for different folks still applies when Crappie fishing.

Here is my .02 worth and its just that .02 worth of information. Early in the year, I jig fish but once it warms up the fish will go deep and you are right they are hard to find and catch. In the warmer months I pull Crank baits, its alot of fun and you cover alot of water. Here are a couple of videos to help you learn about pulling cranks and using planer boards is a good idea.
Tellico Feb. 19, 2017 - YouTube

Crankbaiting For Crappie - YouTube