I had a sweet fishing vacation planned for last week but my plans suddenly changed at the last minute. Instead I had to stay close to home but was still able to get out for a few hours fishing 3 out of the past 4 days. I decided to hit a nearby reservoir that needed more exploration.

Day 1 was a bit slow. Fortunately I ran into another Crappie.com member (Defiant) who clued me in to the pattern of the day. He was spot on and the bite improved dramatically. Together we put a hurting on on some beaver huts until I had to leave. I probably pulled in 30 or so almost-keeper crappie which made those few hours feel worthwhile.

The bite on day 2 started early and continued non-stop for the half-day that I was out. The fish were on the small side although a few decent ones were caught. By the time I left 102 of them fell for my jigs which made for a fun day. I love that thump or tick when they hit that jig! I take it the spawn is owner as the fish were no longer along the bank and instead out suspended in 5 to 8 feet of water.

Day 3 was like day 2 - fast and furious. Cast, tick! and set the hook. Most the 65 fish from today came from a bridge I targeted. They were stacked up underneath it and displayed a definite preference for a pink Bobby Garland jig. They showed up great on my new Lowrance Elite-4 HDI sonar too.



This golden mudcat fought like a crappie and had me wondering if I was about to set a state record crappie. I usually know a catfish by the head shakes but he had me fooled until I was able to bring it in



Big crappie of the day was this 14" white crappie. A bit thin, maybe she dropped her eggs and was just starting to eat again? Just wish I could find some more like this! Maybe that will happen tomorrow.