It’s no secret that being quiet is very important. The longer the pole, the better the chance of not spooking
a crappie before the bait gets to him. A 14-foot pole is a good all-around slow-trolling pole.
Great Tips for the New Year
by Tim Huffman
Where many used to avoid winter fishing for crappie, more and more crappie fishermen are discovering they can catch fish year-round. But if you are one of those who is just beginning to explore cold weather crappie fishing, here are some great tips from experts to put in your arsenal.
Look deep
Guide Todd Huckabee from Oklahoma, says, “Don’t be afraid to look deep in cold water. For years we’ve missed out on some really good fish. We can see them now with good electronics. I’m talking 35 to 40 feet deep. Even if you don’t catch a lot of fish, if you can learn to present a bait to a fish at 35 feet deep, it will improve your presentation when you go back to 12 feet.”
Hold your jig still
“I use Beaver Bottom Baits and I’ve learned it’s very important not to overwork it,” said Huckabee. “And it’s the same with any jig a fisherman uses. I see fishermen drop a jig down and just start jigging it all the time. It’s usually better to hold it still. Fish a jig like you would a minnow.”
Reduce noise
Huckabee’s last tip is to be quiet.
“LiveScope has taught us fish are even more spooky than we once thought. A livewell kicking on and off is the worst so that’s why the bass pros keep theirs running on constant. On and off noise spooks them worse than constant ones, so a trolling motor is the same thing. We see now why guys like Ronnie Capps were so successful by being stealthy and keeping baits way out in front of the boat, especially in shallow water. The big fish are really spooky.”
Be ready
Paul Alpers from Missouri won the first Crappiethon Classic held in the 1980’s and the 2017 Crappie Masters Classic.
“It’s a good habit to make sure everything is ready, especially fishing when it’s cold. Get all your tackle ready. Have the boat and everything in working order because even a little problem is more difficult to take care of when it’s really cold.”
Time on the water and learning electronics
“You have to put in a lot of time and effort to be good and consistent,” says Alpers. “A fisherman learns from mistakes and those come from being on the water. My tip is to go with someone who is willing to teach you fishing and how to use electronics. Finding fish it the most difficult part of fishing. Electronics, along with strategies and techniques, will allow a fisherman to be consistent and successful anywhere.”
Deep creeks
Tournament fisherman, Steve Brown from Alabama says, “I go straight from duck hunting to winter crappie fishing. Crappie are usually in the deep creeks chasing shad. They’ll be deep until the water temperatures rise to 55 degrees, they they’ll start moving further back and getting progressively shallower until the spawn. When the spawn happens, start looking for baitfish and cover.”
Jig tips
Brown says, “I have been using some Bobby Garland Minnow Mind’Rs in Love Bug color (blue body with chartreuse tail with dark flakes). It’s a great color on the Alabama River and other places I fish. This bait is good for tipping with a minnow. A very small minnow does the job and it doesn’t prevent hookups by crowding the hook. I like a plain, red jighead and I like the Road Runner 2.0 because of the flash and thump.”
Fewer jigs, more convenient
“Fish can change preference on the colors they want,” says Brown. “When we find what the fish like on the lake we’re fishing, we will get a couple of jig packs and put the box up. It’s easier to have a package of bodies than keep up with a box full of jigs.”
“When the line jumps or goes slack, you know you have a fish.” ~ Eric Cagle, Professional Crappie Angler
Seeing and feeling bites when casting
“Before LiveScope, we used to watch our line to see bites or sometimes feel them,” says national champ and guide, Eric Cagle, Alabama. “When the line jumps or goes slack you know you have a fish. That still works for those without the new electronics. However, with LiveScope, we’ve learned that fish will sometimes come up to a bait, suck it in and we never see or feel it. A good spinning rod with a limber tip and strong backbone will help feel more of the light bites.”
Seating a reel on a Tennessee handle
Cagle has two signature series shooting/casting rods by HH Rods & Reels.
“I grew up fishing with Tennessee handle rods and like the way they feel. They allow a reel to be placed where a fisherman wants it. A lot of people don’t like those handles because they don’t know how to put the reels on so they stay in place. The rings can’t be slid on at the same time or it will never work. Put the first ring where you want it and jam the reel all the way into the seat. The pressure of the ring will hold it in place. Press the reel all the way down and press the second ring onto the reel. If done correctly, you’ll never need tape or anything to keep the rings in place.”
Learn to slow troll
“LiveScope is big but slow trolling still works and a fisherman can do it without LiveScope,” says Dan Dannemueller, CrappieNow Publisher, tournament fisherman and seminar speaker. “A beginner should start with 12-foot rods. They get baits away from the boat and are much easier to use than 14- or 16-footers. The next thing is to not set the hook like you’re bass fishing. The longer rods have leverage and it doesn’t take a hard hookset to hook a crappie, but it has to be hard enough to get the hook point through the tough upper portion of a big crappie’s mouth. Three, start with two rods spaced out on the rack. You’ll have more room to set the hook and bring the fish in without getting tangled lines. Use more rods after gaining experience.”
