Crappie time

[Big Mike]

OK - I wasn't in a kayak and fishing from shore, but this time of year I prefer the safety of land since I don't have a dry suit and don't trust waders and a belt. One of my favorite winter things to do is to fish a slip bobber for crappie in our local community pond. Went out before the rains this morning, set up my folding chair, lit the cigar and then had a blast catching 8-10" crappies with a few small bass in the mix. Ended up catching a releasing a half dozen in about an hour, which this time of year is a really good bite rate. I enjoy guessing what is on the end of the line before I see it based on the bobber bite. You can always tell a crappie bite from a bluegill - a crappie has a slow gentle pull and the bobber slowly sinks where a bluegill pecks and the bobber darts under. Where it gets tricky is a bass will bit like a crappie when the water gets cold and they throw me off my game. Best part of this type of fishing is it will last the rest of the winter to satisfy my fishing bug until the spring. crappie.jpg

[Pc4sun]

Thanks for the primer on Crappie. I hear they are good to eat. Do you think I could catch them in the middle Patuxent River? What kind of bait do I use to catch them, fresh or lures? Thanks.

[Big Mike]

Peggy, I fish for them using a small, 1" grub body and I add a Crappie Chunk with some Smelly Jelly. By far the most effective is a live minnow but that's way more hassle than I'm willing to do for my shore excursions. I'm lucky to have the pond that only has a depth of perhaps 15' which makes the crappie accessible to me. I'm set the bobber at around 8' above the jig and that works for this pond. I think they would hang out deeper if they could and you would need a boat to get over those spots to jig on them. I've never fished the middle Pax, but I imagine it has a robust crappie population and good cat fishing.

Today looks good with the wind, it imparts a nice bounce to the jig under the bobber.

[Pc4sun]

Thanks Mike,

[Turk_on_a_Tarpon]

Crappie are coming in to Occoquan. Fished last Sunday. Caught 6 or 7 in 3 hours, on high tide. 3 or 4 fish got a quick release boat side, because my hooks were not sharp at all. I probably caught at least 50 crappie on that single hook last year. I was too lazy to stop by tackle shop for new hooks. Average size was 11 to 12 inches (I am not exaggerating). LIVE MINNOWS is the ticket. Pics will follow soon, once I download them off of my phone.