Crappie: How to Catch Them Fall & Winter

Few successful bank fishermen are without a handful of assorted floats. Casting a cork above a small jig offers the advantage of having exact depth and speed control of your bait. When crappie suspend high in the water column it can be difficult to cast and retrieve a jig without your bait either being below them or moving too fast, unless you employ a float. Experimenting with depth and speed is key to figuring out the bite.

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Fishing live minnows beneath a float is probably the most common tactic used by bank fishermen. Vertical jigging cover from the bank is arguably the most exciting way to crappie fish, but without the right equipment it can be the most frustrating. A long, 10 to foot jig pole is the norm for dipping shallow cover, but bank fishermen have to get the crappie through the brush and to the bank without the help of a net or a boat. While finesse is important while easing up to the water and slipping your bait down through the brush, once the hook is set, poise and grace are out the door.

A strong rod with plenty of backbone is a must, because fighting your way back through the brush with an angry crappie in tow is much more difficult than getting there in the first place. Line weight is no different, it needs to be much heavier than what you might use fishing from a boat. Braided line is the best choice, but if cost or availability is an issue, pound mono will do the trick.

Cover-oriented crappie, especially during the spawn, are much less likely to pay attention to line diameter than suspended fish, but without enough line strength landing those fish can prove very difficult.

When the spawn is on or the crappie are actively feeding, color and scent are less important. Black and chartreuse is always a good starting point, and adding a scented attractant will help when the bite is light. A spinning reel allows for farther casts with lighter baits, and has a drag that can be set and easily adjusted mid-fight. A 5 to 6-foot spinning rod will suffice for this tactic, and ultralight to light rods will be more sensitive and detect lighter bites. A Roadrunner jighead that comes equipped with a blade adds flash and vibration.

Be More Successful Bank Fishing for Crappie

A curly tailed jig pulled at varying speeds, along with the flash and vibration is deadly combination. Color choices are endless, but a blue or green or junebug and chartreuse is a good place to start. Both methods require a rod with decent backbone to get a firm hook-set. Casting a float above a jig or minnow can best be done with a spinning reel and a light to medium-light rod.

The only difference with regards to equipment, between casting with or without a bobber is rod strength and length. Float fishing often leaves some amount of slack in your line, add to that having to see the bite and react as opposed to feeling a bite, and a stiffer, longer rod will increase your hookup ratio. A 6 to 7-foot light, but not flimsy, spinning rod and a small to medium spinning reel will aptly serve both purposes.

A slip float will slide down to the jig and allow for easier casting, especially when fishing over a few feet deep, or when branches are above you. For example Lake of the Ozarks has no standing timber; while Pomme de Terre, Stockton and Truman, all within 50 miles of Lake of the Ozarks, are loaded with trees and stumps.

Despite the difference in cover they are all outstanding crappie fisheries. On Lake of the Ozarks we fish boat docks with a cleaning station and rod holders or we target secondary points with sunken brush piles. On Pomme de Terre, Stockton or Truman the crappie prefer deep standing timber around bluffs or points.

Fall Crappie Fishing — Tips & Techniques

As most of you know and the rest will find out, there are as many types of crappie baits as there are crappie. Another popular and quite effective bait is a Marabou Jig , many old timers call it a Doll Fly, it has been a crappie favorite for decades. Other effective offerings include; shad shaped baits, crappie nibbles, small spinner baits and of course live minnows.

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There are so many effective lures it can be hard to pick one and stick with it. I have discovered what works for me may not be even close to what someone else is using and we will both catch a limit on the same day on the same lake. It all boils down to what you are confident in, if you feel you can catch fish on it use it. If your need help go to your tackle store, get on line or talk to fishing buddies about how they are catching fish.

Most of the time crappie fisherman are pretty honest. Jig heads are available in thousands of color combinations for every conceivable situation but day in and day out I prefer an unpainted jig head. I like unpainted heads for a couple of reasons; first I have never really seen an increase in the number of fish I catch on painted heads and second, unpainted heads are much cheaper.

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There are a couple of options when rigging a tube on a jig head; you can simply slide the tube up on the hook and leave the head exposed or you can insert the head into the tube covering the head. Regardless of which bait you use and how you rig it be prepared to lose several baits each trip and remember, if your not losing jigs your not fishing hard enough.

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When choosing a rod and reel for crappie fishing I prefer to use a four and a half to five and a half foot spinning rod and ultra light spinning reel combo. Remember the lighter the rod the better. Even a small crappie is fun on a light rod. Personally I prefer six pound test line for crappie, while other anglers will use as light as two pound test and as heavy as eight pound test.

As always use whatever you are comfortable with and have confidence in. Loading the Boat A key to catching your limit of crappie is fishing an area thoroughly. Whether it is a series of boat docks, brush piles or standing trees it is important to fish each piece of cover from every angle and at every depth.