Page 8 - Mid America Boating - August 2022 issue

bridges on other tributaries and casts small shape and continue fishing.
1/16 ounce jigs with twistertails, hopefully in Some of the biggest crappies in the state
wrinkles and excess stress.
Nothing wrong with an white, chartreuse, or pink is going to catch at are found in Lake Erie. I’ve caught them there
up to 15 inches. Use a red and white jig with
least some of those moving through.
outing like that.
But if you like to catch Here are a few final tactics. One is to fish a grub body, and this MUST be baited with
a LOT of crappies and are with at least 12-pound test line or even 15 if it’s a waxworm. And a final tip is to remember
willing to work a little, the ultra-thin type, and avoid minnows, stick- that crappie often move deeper as the day
progresses. They might be holding near shore
ing strictly to very small jigs. With this combi-
there are some tactics
guaranteed to improve nation, you’ll spend no time chasing minnows in just three feet or so of water early on, but
move out along the limbs into four, five, even
around a bucket, dropping them, and finally
your catch. For example,
I stopped at East Harbor hooking up. And the jigs can be fished tight six feet as time goes by. If you’re suddenly 7 [ MID-AMERICA BOATING ] AUGUST 2022
not catching anything at the depth they hit
among the limbs of a tree or brushpile. If you
and donated half an hour
to watching a man try snag up, which will happen often, the heavier before, try raising your bobber or working
line will let you straighten and free the thin
the jig deeper. Often enough, you’ll find them
his luck. He was using a biting again. MAB
graphite “crappie pole” wire jig hook. Then instantly bend it back into
at least 12 feet long with
the usual thin pencil float,
splitshot, No. 6 hook and
flathead minnow, but
instead of sitting there
watching his bobber, he
moved almost constantly.
Every bit of cover near
the bank was covered, every half-submerged and the remainder will either move elsewhere
twig, half drowned willow, tree limb, and or go off their feed, stimulated by cousins
more, and he obviously knew that any fish suddenly thrashing skyward. So, fish one
there would bite quickly (they do), because prime spot for 20 minutes or so, then move to
each spot got only 30-45 seconds before he another, and another. Boat fishermen should
moved the bait elsewhere. And with monoto- do the same, and will have even better luck
nous regularity his float sank or moved away because some likely near shore spots will be
and he landed another silvery morsel. When I inaccessible to land anglers.
left, he had over two dozen fish, while others Since crappie often move up rivers and
around had four or five. There’s an obvious streams to do their spawning, I’ve had good
moral to this story. luck more than once seeking out bottlenecks
In fact, one of the great secrets of crappie and fishing them hard. One favorite spot is
fishing is simply to move occasionally. Any under a bridge on a river not far from my home.
bit of good structure is likely to have some Fish are forced into a narrow strip of water, and
fish, but in short order you’ll skim the cream, any angler who spends time here or beneath