February 2020 Issue

Crappie Dan shares a new revelation in the Valor Downtube, allowing Garmin LiveScope users to control their transducer independent of the trolling motor

Corn Covered Crappie   A great many recipes for frying fish include cornmeal or corn flour. While cornmeal and corn flour are both made from milled, dried corn, they differ in texture. Cornmeal feels gritty, and corn flour is fine, much like wheat flour. The degree of milling determines their texture. Corn flour is finely […]

It’s easy to put life back into perspective after enjoying the freedom of being in a boat. Nate, Geremy & Scott (Photo courtesy Healing Patriots)   Waypoints: Learning to Teach Learning to fish and live life by Geremy Olson   WayPoint: If you leave every place you visit better than you found it, the world […]

Check out the perks Ranger is offering.  Retail incentives are available until March 31, 2020 to buyers of qualified models of Ranger boats.  Ranger Boats Announces 2020 Retail Sales Programs   Flippin, Ark. – Ranger Boats is providing additional incentives for potential boat buyers this year with the announcement of its 2020 retail sales promotions. […]

Missouri is well-known for a lot of things but crappie fishing probably isn’t at the top of the list. Take a trip with Tandem Fly Outfitters, however, and you might change your mind.   Making Memories in Missouri Missouri is well kept crappie fishing secret by Larry Whiteley   When you think of great places […]

Reagan Smith enjoys guiding for three kinds of crappie in central Illinois.     Destination: Springfield, Illinois by John E. Phillips   Twenty-seven-year-old Reagan Smith of Reag’s Guide Service in Tremont, Illinois, has been crappie fishing much of his life and guiding crappie fishermen for four years. “All the lakes I fish are power-plant lakes […]

In the Spotlight: Barry Morrow by Tim Huffman Barry Morrow is a respected guide and fisherman. During the past few years, he and partner Chad Maupin have made an impact on tournament fishing. Barry was born in 1963 in Marshall, Missouri, where he grew up and then spent 15 years teaching and coaching. He worked […]

Cold Weather Crappie by Ed Mashburn A fishing guide who makes his living putting anglers on crappie can’t pick the kind of weather. His knowledge of the fish and the waters makes cold weather success possible. Even though I’m fishing on a sunny January morning in Alabama, I am freezing. Last night a serious cold […]

Taking time to organize and re-order needed tackle right now means you will be fully prepared to start fishing as soon as the ice goes off northern lakes. (Photo: Darl Black)   Get Organized Now Inventory and restock baits and accessories. by Darl Black Some folks avoid the lake during the bitter February weather. If […]

Grand Rapids is in the heart of Minnesota. Folks willing to fish the hard water can fill a freezer right outside the city limits. by Mike Gnatkowski February finds Minnesota ice-anglers ensconced smack dab in the middle of a long, cold winter and close to the end of the ice-fishing season for pike and walleye. […]

Years ago most crappie fishermen ONLY fished in the Spring. But nowadays more and more anglers are learning that there are crappie to be caught even when the snow flies. (Photo: Richard Simms) Understandably many, if not most anglers stay home by the fireplace when the weather turns bitter. But you never know what you’re […]

Sometimes the decision to use planer boards trolling for crappie is simply “personal preference.” But in other situations, planer boards can be essential. (Photo: Richard Simms) Planer boards are a mystery to many crappie anglers but sometimes there are important reasons to use them. By Richard Simms Folks who enjoy trolling for crappie have a […]