Curious about proven places

Hey everybody!

I'm pretty new to this site, and I am really enjoying reading all the good info here.

I grew up fishing all over southeast AR. We fished the AR river and the bar pits or oxbows from Pine Bluff down to Dumas. We mainly jig fished around brush and laydowns. If the bite got tough we would troll in the deeper areas.
Usually still with jigs. Occasionally minnows.

Trolling crankbaits is a tactic I would never have thought of being effective for crappie. The Midwest Crappie videos made a believer out of me.

I'm excited about trying this method. Spent this weekend making some rod holders out of 4" PVC and attaching them to my boat.

My questions are:

What lakes in AR have you guys had success with trolling crankbaits.

I know Creekslick is doing good at Greers Ferry. Is anyone else having luck at other places around the state?

I'm thinking about trying it out on Nimrod, Maumelle, and Brewer.

I'm also wondering how long this fall to expect this tactic to continue working.

Any info from Arkies with success with crankbaits is appreciated.

Y'all have a great day.

Tommy

Works Good At Nimrod When Water Levels Are Normal. Way Too High Right Now.:(

Been picking up a few at Beaver on Bandits. They should work until the crappie move into their winter haunts.

What do you all think the water temps need to be before they move into the "winter haunts"?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by LRJoe1

What do you all think the water temps need to be before they move into the "winter haunts"?

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I don't know, someone more expert than me needs to answer that one. But generally you're talking Late November/December timeframe.

The experts across the state line tell me as long as the water temps stay in the 70's they will hit the crankbaits. I am going to keep pulling them until they quit bitting them.:D

According to the COE website, The water temps at Greers Ferry are still above 27 degrees C (or about 81-82 degrees F) down to below 20 feet.

http://www.swl-wc.usace.army.mil/WCD...ofiles/do2.txt

And the level ain't too bad either.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by creekslick

The experts across the state line tell me as long as the water temps stay in the 70's they will hit the crankbaits. I am going to keep pulling them until they quit bitting them.:D

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That's my fishing philosophy in a nutshell - if they're biting what you're pulling - keep pulling!

TreeMyDog - Where are you from? Do you coon hunt?

Lake Nimrod is at least 18 to 20 feet high right now. I don't know that crankbait trolling might not be such a bad idea under these conditions. The only problem might be too much trash in the water to foul your lines or crankbaits.

Crankbaiting on Millwood is one of my favorite methods. In the spring, when the water temps climb above 62, they will start hitting them over the creek channels in the staging areas. We will be heading to Millwood today. I suspect the crankbait bite will be good until early November. I hope they are staging and ready to feed for winter. We actually caught them schooled up last year and hitting topwater plugs in October. We will see.

Michael