I'm a bass guy, but lately i've been wanting to give crappie fishing a try. I know abosoltely nothing about crappie so could some tell some baits and things i need to know. what are some good affordable crappie rods and reels.
Thanks, Kansasfisher89
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crack fishing
First of all, the cracks to which I refer are not found when someone's pants ride a little low on the hip but are simply the spaces between the wood flooring on the docks. Any space wide enough to pull a crappie through is fair game. It could be the space between the walkway and the dock, a missing board, an attached swimming dock or a trap door. It only needs to be near whatever is keeping the dock afloat, and be 1 ½ to 2 inches wide. You'd be surprised at how big a crappie can fit through such a small space!
The best Crack Fishing occurs in the Fall. As the temperature starts to drop, crappie leave their summertime hangouts and move to shallower water, such as mainlake flats, points, coves and creeks. If the lake you fish has docks in these areas, those will be good candidates for Crack Fishing. When water temperatures drop into the 70's Crack Fishing starts to get really good. Peak activity occurs as the temperature drops into the mid 60's which, incidentally, coincides with the same temperature at which the crappie spawn in the spring. Although they do not spawn in the Fall, you will be able to find crappie in a lot of the same places you do in the Spring. Crack Fishing will remain good even on shallow docks (5 feet deep or less) as water temperature drops through the 50s. In Missouri, I have caught crappie in the cracks from September through mid-December.
Not all docks are created equal, and some produce better than others, however, when it comes to fishing, there are very few absolutes so any dock can produce good Crack Fishing at any time.
What makes Crack Fishing successful, is the algae that grows under the float material on the docks. Shad and other baitfish feed on small organisms in and around the algae. For this reason, and contrary to popular belief, brush is not necessary for good crappie fishing. At times, however, crappie tend to show a preference for one float material over another. Plastic may outproduce foam, or vice versa. White foam may be better than blue or orange, etc. Just make sure you fish all types at first. If a pattern develops, then you can concentrate your efforts. If you're fishing during a period of stable weather, shallow docks well away from deep water will produce the best results. During adverse weather and times of change, concentrate on docks that are closer to deep water or that sit over creek or river channels.
Fishing the cracks is simple. As you approach a dock, use slip bobbers set 6 inches to 1 foot deep to cast the outside of the dock as close to the foam or plastic floats as you can. Crappie hang out just under the foam and quite often you can see the crappie dart out from underneath to grab your bait (an occurrence that will give any fisherperson a heart attack).
My dad taught me at an early age that when a fish bites your lure, you should try to pull its lips free from its face. This is a technique which is a little bit of overkill when it comes to the tender mouthed Crappie. Under a dock, hooksets like that can lead to missed fish, a broken rod, and a good deal of language that the kids just shouldn't hear. Use shorter rods and set the hook gently.
Artificial baits are my favorite choice this time of year although minnows are also good especially when the fish aren't very active. I like tube baits when vertical fishing. In murky water, I white or chartreuse but always experiment and let the fish tell you what they like. In clear waters, use darker colors like purples, blues, clear with metal flake.
Always keep in mind that docks are private property and some folks don't take kindly to others fishing around crappie beds they worked hard to put in. Be courteous and thoughtful of others, after all, we fish to get away from some of the troubles that a busy life creates, we don't need to cause any additional troubles for others.
Crack Fishing is very simple, you need only to look down at your feet to find your next fishing opportunity. So next time you think of "cracks", I hope you don't think of the ones found behind a construction worker or plumber…now I hope you think of crappie fishing instead!
Crappie can see colors well and many anglers like to use colorful lures to fish for them. However, like all fish, their ability to see is influenced by water depth, light levels, water clarity and water temperature. Also, a crappie's willingness to attack lures of different colors and presentations depends upon the fish's activity level.
Water filters colors out of light and certain colors disappear first. Think of a rainbow that has red hues on one side and gradually fades to blue colors on the other side. The colors on the red side are filtered out first and the colors on the blue side are filtered out last. Consequently, as water begins to get deep it looks green, but really deep water looks blue. Because of this natural law, red lures are visible only in shallow water, orange a little deeper, yellow even deeper, green deeper still and blue lures are visible in the deepest water. Black is also a good deep-water lure color. White is visible at many depths, because it reflects any available light. But the other vision factors should be considered before a lure is selected.
The effects of water clarity and light levels are not always obvious. The simplest way to remember this concept is that richer versions of any color are most visible in clear water and bright light, while lighter, pastel versions of each color are most visible in stained or murky water and/or low light levels. In other words, red, orange, white, rich green and deeper blue are most visible in clear water with bright light. As light levels fade and/or the water becomes murkier, the best colors become pink, yellow, chartreuse, lighter blue, and black. When the fish seem to lose interest in a lure than was working well earlier in the day, it may be due to changes in light or water clarity. If changes in wind or current have let the water calm down and become more clear, or if clouds have cleared away to allow brighter light, change to richer lure colors or white. If the wind has churned up the water and decreased visibility or if clouds have moved in or the sun is going down, switch to pastel colors or black.
In some recent studies, water temperature was determined to have a dramatic effect on fish vision. Since crappie rely heavily on vision for hunting, this information is important for crappie anglers to understand. The concept is very simple: the colder the water, the better a fish can see. This is because the lower temperatures help the cells in a fish's eye to function better. This means that crappie, like other fish, may be able to see smaller lures at deeper levels in cold water than they can in warm water. It also means that they will be better able to see fishing line, so an angler may need to use lighter monafilament or fluorocarbon line in cold water.
Finally, a crappie's activity level will determine how it reacts to lures of different colors and presentations. The most substantial difference in lure color is the contrast between lure and background color. Active fish are more likely to attack lures that contrast with the color of the water and structure in the area. Think of red, orange, yellow, white, and sometimes black if the background is light. Inactive fish are more likely to attack lures that blend with the surrounding background colors, like a baitfish would. Try green, chartreuse, blue, neutral colors, and occasionally black if the background is dark. For lure presentation, active fish are more likely to attack a lure with more movement, while inactive fish are more likely to attack lures with less movement. There needs to be some lure movement, though, even if it is followed by a pause, because movement is what tells the fish that the lure may be food, rather than part of the background. Always consider water depth, water clarity, light levels, and water temperatures to help decide which colors to try first. And always be ready to try something different if the first choice doesn't work. When fishing regulations allow multiple poles and/or multiple lures, it's easier to determine what will work best. Contact Grizzly jig company located in Caruthersville Missouri. They handle several brands of crappie poles. My personal favorite is the "Grizzly Elite". It is light and very sensitve. They have just introduced a stiffer verson of this pole. It is called a brush pole. I would strongly urge you to buy "Sren Solar XT" line to be able to detect a bite better. I like to put a Daiwa underspin reel on the poles I use.
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GET YOU AN ULTRALITE A COUPLE AF RAPALAS AND SOME MINNOWS THE CRAPPIE ARE GETTING READY TO SPAWN IN KANSAS. THE BOSS PLANS THE COMPANY FISHING TRIP THE WEEK AFTER MEMORIAL DAY. THERE IS NO ONE AT THE LAKE AND THE CRAPPIE MOVE INTO THE SHALLOWS. BUT AS HOT AS IT'S BEEN IT MAY COME ALITTLE EARLY THIS YEAR.
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