Went last Wednesday, only saw two other boats. Water temp 43-44 and muddy, @ 6 inch visibility. Fished from about 11-3. Caught 14 nice fish. Largest 13.5 most 11-12. All were white痴 Attachment 389995except one.
Printable View
Went last Wednesday, only saw two other boats. Water temp 43-44 and muddy, @ 6 inch visibility. Fished from about 11-3. Caught 14 nice fish. Largest 13.5 most 11-12. All were white痴 Attachment 389995except one.
Congratulations, thanks for sharing...
Attachment 390400Attachment 390401Attachment 390402
Quote:
Originally Posted by Whiskey
Great catch in the shallow water brushpiles. I was doing the same before I put my boat away.
Not tryin to horn in on your spot but what part of river were you in ? Don't want any specifics, just been thinking about gettin the boat out a couple more times . I usually put in at Whg Island or Powhattan . Nice lookin fish .
Right now I知 fishing the creeks in the Markland pool. The bite slowed a little, by that I mean quantity, but the quality has been pretty nice. One of the 13 was closer to 13.75. Nice and fat too. The shad were stacked up in the main channel from the bottom to about two feet below the surface. The last two weeks pattern was find wood that lay across zero to 12 feet.Quote:
Originally Posted by WVSkip
I hear people say they catch them shallow all year, not been my experience but I知 gonna keep trying
Quote:
Originally Posted by Whiskey
I'm headed out tomorrow... First time in 6 weeks. I couldn't pull away and missed November which is my favorite time to fish.
I'm a little dismayed to see the 38 degree water temps on your finder. Fishing definitely slows down for me once it dips below 40, but the quality fish are still there! Hoping to catch a few nice ones. May be the last time til spring with temps getting colder.
Thanks for the reply. Gonna shoot for Sat. Start at Pike Island (Dam) and work south. Hate it when I put the boat away early .
Went today - to favorite creek in Markland pool. Water temps were about 40.3. Weather was NICE. Low 60s. But some real wind at times. Lots more fisherman than you typically see in mid-December.
We did ok for most of the afternoon. Some keeper crappie here and there. Then, about an hour before nightfall, bite went crazy.
Every cast - we'd catch fish. Aside from a few (very) small hybrids, all fish were white crappie. Some dinks, but vast majority in the 10" range. No giants like you sometimes get this time of year but can't complain!
All fish were caught vertical jigging brush in 8 - 12' feet of water. As day went on, they were higher in the water, with the sun having warmed things up...
Hope to get out at least one more time this year but weather not looking favorable.
Sounds like you had an enjoyable day. Congrats.Quote:
Originally Posted by mbk
MBK
Happy to see that 40 degree temp, and Covid seems to have put more boats in the water. I知 gonna keep at it this winter till ice or bad/high water stops me. I致e always wondered where they go in the winter and I知 gonna try to find out this year. Maybe next week again.
Glad to see some activity on the boards again, seemed sparse for southwest Ohio.
WVskip.
Hope you got out Saturday and got on em
Last post this year. Went to the river today. Water still at 38.83 to 40.09 and clear, visibility was 3’. Caught 39 today. Largest was 13.25 with several 10,11,12 whites and blacks. Some small ones mixed in too. They were a little deeper than 2 weeks ago, maybe the water clarity?
Some of them seemed to have a gold or motor oil tint to them, I’ve never seen that color on crappie before, anybody know why? It was a good day. Let’s see if they’re still there in January.
Nice! I actually went day before yesterday as I wanted to avoid the wind. Did good as well. Some bigger fish this time. A bit deeper, as you said also. But in the same places...
I'll keep fishing if the weather lets me. May be some thin ice on the creek after the next couple of days though.
Try jig & bobber 2'
Ok... Last post of the year for me... Couldn't resist the urge to make one more trip. Water has risen about 5' in the last few days but despite some debris, the water was in pretty good shape.
Water temp has dropped 2-3 degrees in the last few days and I had to break some thin ice at the ramp.
Otherwise... Another great day on the water. I only fished from 3-6pm and probably caught 30.
My go-to rig the last few times has been a Charlie Brewer slider - junebug/chartreuse with a nibblet. And the crappie have been killing it. Only difference is the fish were slower. They'd only bite when the bait was still between turn of the reel.
No giants but lots of nice fish... All caught and released. Biggest was about 13.5"
Attachment 391676
MBK
Look at that fat belly! Even the small ones I caught last week were feeding heavy and were really plump. If the rain holds off long enough Wednesday, I’m going to head out. Maybe get that 14” before the year is over.
Yates
l’ll give that bobber/jig a try and let you know how it went if I go.
Got out this afternoon for a few hours. 1st trip of 2021. Same spots in the same creek off the Ohio.
I had checked out the ramp yesterday and there wasn't much ice. But it froze up a bit over night and there was a decent bit of ice to break through at the ramp to get to open water.
Was not as much sun today like I was hoping for, but it was warmer.
Really not much to report other than fishing was pretty darn good. Fished jigs very slow/still and the bite was pretty consistent. Fished about 11-13' feet deep and they were about 3-5' off the bottom in thick cover.
Caught 30-40 - a drum and a few hybrids in that mix, but the rest were crappie. Biggest was 12' but most were on the smaller side than is typical - most were about 9"-9.5", caught and released so no pics.
Anyway - really good trip. I'm amazed all the years I used to put the boat away in mid November. Winter is the best!
You’re an inspiration MBK. Went out today and caught 22, had a battery issue and had to leave early. The ramp was fine but there was a lot of ice where there was no wind and still water, limited the places I could fish. You were spot on, it was the same creek and in the same places 12 to 15 feet deep and just off the bottom. It was thick with shad from the top to the bottom. Largest was a 12 1/2 inch black and the smallest wasAttachment 392680 I’m guessing 3 inches. Attachment 392679
Attachment 392681
Attachment 392682
I live in Eastern Ohio and fish the Ohio River a good bit(New Cumberland to Hannibal) and never really thought about fishing it for crappie. I fish a lot of the tribs too, but mainly for white bass, hybrids, walleye, and smallmouth. Guess I am going to have to start taking some crappie stuff next time I take the kayak to Captina or Sunfish creek.
Gonna try Fish Creek
Better water conditions yesterday - no ice whatsoever. Lots of wind at times. Fished 3-6. Bite was very good. Used heavier jigs and Bobby Garland Baby Shad with nibblets - white/pin, white/chartreuse.
Probably caught 30. Largest just over 13". Very similar to previous outings this winter. Typically fishing has ended by now for me - either due to ice or high water so I'm thankful to have these opportunities. Talked to a guy who caught 11 blue cats just out in the main river, off ledges. That sounded like fun but I'll stick with what I know.
Attachment 393124Attachment 393125Attachment 393126
Nuts how good the fishing is this winter! I went Thursday and landed 27. I’m hoping the rain doesn’t make the creeks too high and muddy, but the weather reports don’t look encouraging. https://waterdata.usgs.gov has water gauge reports for area streams and spillways. Maybe the spillway at Paint creek lake would be a good diversion for saugeye if the local creeks are un-fishable.