What would you do?

First, a little background;
I've been fishing since I was a kid but this is the first time I've ever targeted a specific species of fish. I've always been happy with whatever takes the hook and, for the most part, still am. But, I'm trying to learn how to be a real fisherman.

My primary lake is a small park district lake near my home. It's convenient and has a good Crappie population. I caught 13"rs this past July so I know there are good fish to be had. I was catching them using minnows on a drop shot rig about 4 ft off the bottom, following the 15 ft contour line, on the north 1/3 of the attached lake chart.

In late July early August, they just stopped biting. Even the others that fish there regularly are saying they haven't been able to catch many crappie.
For the last few weeks I haven't caught a single crappie. I trying to figure out what I need to change to start catching again.

The lake bottom is very uneventful. Mostly about 8 ft., flat with very little structure. One or two submerged stumps in 8 ft. of water. I saw what looks like a row boat not too far from one of the stumps, and a Jeep in 12 ft., the local fire department put there to do under water rescue training every spring.

I've trolled various Bandit's, Bombers, and Rapallas. I've tried jigs with soft plastics and live bait, minnows, worms, and wax worms, with and without a bobber.

My Lowrance Elite 9 Ti is showing me plenty of fish. I just can't seem to figure out how to make them bite. I would appreciate any advice anybody is willing to give.


Attachment 273740

One last note. Please don't tell me to find another lake to fish. I don't believe that will teach me much and I'm trying to learn the art of Crappie fishing.
I figure if I can learn how to consistently catch crappie on this lake I will be able to find and catch them on any lake that has them.

Thank You All for sharing your wisdom with others.

This time of year I would be down by the bighole, ledges/dropoffs are where I am finding fish. Minnows should work as well as crankbaits if you find the right depth.

Don't wast your money on small minnows, go either mediums or large. By now the small ones in lake are bigger.

Most all the state lakes here in TN, have shut down. Water temp is the blame. Your lake is shallow like a bunch of lakes here. Don't worry they will cooldown before long. After water cools and fish start schooling again, during the day, long lining will pay off.

As stated in earlier post, I would look hard at the drops. Then downsize everything. Fish extra small and extra slow. That's what is working for me right now.

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Originally Posted by Snuffy115

First, a little background;
I've been fishing since I was a kid but this is the first time I've ever targeted a specific species of fish. I've always been happy with whatever takes the hook and, for the most part, still am. But, I'm trying to learn how to be a real fisherman.

My primary lake is a small park district lake near my home. It's convenient and has a good Crappie population. I caught 13"rs this past July so I know there are good fish to be had. I was catching them using minnows on a drop shot rig about 4 ft off the bottom, following the 15 ft contour line, on the north 1/3 of the attached lake chart.

In late July early August, they just stopped biting. Even the others that fish there regularly are saying they haven't been able to catch many crappie.
For the last few weeks I haven't caught a single crappie. I trying to figure out what I need to change to start catching again.

The lake bottom is very uneventful. Mostly about 8 ft., flat with very little structure. One or two submerged stumps in 8 ft. of water. I saw what looks like a row boat not too far from one of the stumps, and a Jeep in 12 ft., the local fire department put there to do under water rescue training every spring.

I've trolled various Bandit's, Bombers, and Rapallas. I've tried jigs with soft plastics and live bait, minnows, worms, and wax worms, with and without a bobber.

My Lowrance Elite 9 Ti is showing me plenty of fish. I just can't seem to figure out how to make them bite. I would appreciate any advice anybody is willing to give.


Attachment 273740

One last note. Please don't tell me to find another lake to fish. I don't believe that will teach me much and I'm trying to learn the art of Crappie fishing.
I figure if I can learn how to consistently catch crappie on this lake I will be able to find and catch them on any lake that has them.

Thank You All for sharing your wisdom with others.

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Snuffy, Don't get discouraged. The weather has been less than ideal. Those crappie didn't get to be 13 inches by being stupid. They are still there, they sometimes just won't bite. Just because you see them on the finder, only means that something is down there.... not that they are biting. August is awful slow, water is hot and after asking friends who have been going ..... nobody is catching anything of size. Water will cool down in a few days and old crappie hangouts will again become more active. There is no way you caught all the crappie with a hook. Just be patient . Things will change. Hope things pick up in a few days........crappie1133

Is the lake have a spring or creek? If creek maybe they will come up to feeder creek source with a little current for feeding on surface insects before dark? Try going there at dark and listen for them hitting the surface. What part of the lake do you see bait?
but>>>> My first instinct is go deep in the heat.
TIGHT LINES

As water warm this summer, i found mid depth brushpiles early morning to be the spots. Seems mid day they dont bite as well here, they are also under docks mid day in the heat, but i also know water in south carolina is alot warmer. If i was a betting man, they are under dock, stumps, brishpiles, etc. key if finding all the structure and varying times until you stumble on a pattern.

I do well when the water temp is hot with ultra light cranks, my go to is the ulc 3 rapala with 6lb nanofil at 1.5-3.0 mph, I just keep speeding up till I start getting reaction bites.

I'm like bowmender. I'd find the deepest hole and fish on the steepest drop off this time of year. And as others said slow down a little. Your drop shot with minnow or with jig should work out some for you.. Just be patent you will figure them out.

There are about 6 or more different questions I would ask before I would attempt this answer with any hope of getting the right answer , predominant bait fish ? Predominant species of crappie ? Bottom composition ? Average bait size ? Are the fish under open water bait ? Water vegetation ? And the list goes on .....but if it were me going in blind this time of year i would drop a tandem 1/32 on clear line in several different colors until I hit what got bit . I would also try very shallow very early in the day around any flats close to deep water and hit those deep water ledges later in the day as a start ......
And never give up , it is just a matter of time before you get dialed up on them ....

Thank you all for you advice. I appreciate it very much.

To answer the questions that were asked;
This is a man made lake. When they were building the expressway into Chicago, they were digging this area to use as fill dirt when they hit a spring. A few days later it filled with water so they mad a park out of it. The western shore line is a small golf coarse that's not accessible for shore fishing. There are 3 floating docks on the northwest protrusion of the lake. water depth at the end of the dock is 7'
The lake doesn't have a large variety of fish. Bass, Crappie, catfish, carp, and bluegill are the predominate species. I've heard reports of perch but haven't seen any. They also put some stripper in there recently but they are very small, about 4" or 5". There are also rock bass, bull head, cray fish, turtles ducks and geese that call it home.
The bottom is basically clay. It's fairly soft.

A couple years ago they treated the lake to kill off the vegetation. It was so thick you could almost walk across the lake. The sail boats were having difficulties. They have sail boat races there twice a week.

The deepest part of the lake is about 22'. It's the dark blue area in the map and is only accessible by boat. The rest of it is about 8' - 9', flat and uneventful, not much more that a sump or two.
The south west corner drops to about 18' within 20' to 30' from shore.

The entire shoreline is riprap.

You can only see a few feet into the water, which looks like it has a lot of suspended algae in it. The lake looks green but if you fill a bucket with water it looks fairly clear.

The crappie that I've been catching have been suspended in open water about 10' 12' feed down in 15'- 16'. They usually hang out in spots around the deep section but have been known to travel to the shallower water but usually only the small ones. The ones you catch from the docks or the east or southeast shore are typically smaller than 8".

It looks like they are still in the usual spots, I just haven't been able to figure out how to pique their interest in anything I'm offering.

The highest surface temp I have recorded was 80.6 about 3 weeks ago. This past Saturday it was 71.6

Are there black crappies in this lake? They will stay shallow all season. Find a series of brushpiles, maybe four or more, in a small area, four to ten foot of water over them, and you will find some fish using them. If not feeding, for shade. Keep changing bait colors, size, shape, and weights until you find the few they will hit. Add some form of scent to help them become more aware your bait is down there. They may smell it before they even see it and come looking. Change depths and don't be afraid to lose some baits to the brush. Sometimes it takes a little shaking of it to get those crappies active. Many days I've had to bump the stump or brush to get them started biting my jigs. I've used well over twenty different baits some days, searching to see what they'll hit. Don't hesitate to change. Change when you feel you've given that bait a fair chance. Always, always start with your most confident bait but don't hesitate to change it if it isn't producing. For me, this is why I can continue to catch fish when so many other guys put their gear away until the water cools. The proof is in the pictures I post all summer long.

Try some bigger and smaller baits. 3"+ or 1.25" jigs. They should be more active mornings and late evenings and be more aggressive and shallower. They will hang on those steep contour lines in the middle of the day, but that is not typically a hot time for feeding.

Keep changing jig size and style until something clicks. Scent/nibbles is also a good thing to try.