Hey Ken,
The fishing up here can be great but you'll have to put in some time to find the big ones....just like anyplace else I guess. Not many people fish for crappie up here so when you find them you'll find a bunch of them. Just have to weed through them to find the bigger fish or figure out which lakes have the most big fish in them. The best lakes close to Tacoma are (in the order of biggest/most fish) Alder, Kapowsin, Harts, Tanwax, and Clear Lake. As for lakes that just have a ton of fish and kick out a few slabs: Ohop, Rapjon and St. Clair would be my top picks.

The best lakes/rivers in the whole state for monster crappies are Moses Lake, Potholes, Snake River, Lake Union/Washington, Long Lake (spokane county), Soda Lake, Upper Goose Lake, Crab Creek, Mesa lake and Potholes Canal. There a lot more but those are all places that will put out big ones without much work.

By the way, you'll staying right down the road from me (about 3 miles or so :D). Anytime you want to head out fishing give me a buzz. In July the bass fishing should be on fire when you get here. On the east side of the state the crappies will be just starting their hot summer bite day and night.