Opening Cast – Sept 2026

Opening Cast: Crappie Fishing in the Heat of Summer

Crappie fishing in the heat of summer? Most avid anglers think this is a bad time to be fishing for these tasty treats. Think again!

In the Mid and Deep South, most fishermen and women pursue crappie in the early mornings, late evenings, some at night and most not at all. In the North, most fish crappie through the ice in the winter, and some just after ice-out.

Of course, the heat and humidity play a major role in these fishing schedules. While many of you feel that crappie are just not as catchable in this heat, even at night, I believe one of the biggest assumed deterrents to fishing in the heat is that we must fish DEEP to catch crappie in the summertime.

I believed it, too, even though some lakes (especially Truman Lake in Missouri) didn’t support this “accepted” fact. That is what we read about and sometimes experienced when we did venture out in the heat to fish. Little did we know that this is NOT true most of the time.

Live forward-facing sonar has taught us a lesson on crappie habits and tendencies. We have found that, just like humans, these fish will go where there is food, oxygen and security. This may not pertain to creek intersections or leaving creeks for the main lake. The one major thing that changed our thinking was how much fish relate to the bottom and the mud.

I just fished this morning to prepare some content for September. The flooded creek of the river does not have a depth beyond 10.5 feet. The water temperature in the morning is a whopping 86 degrees; midday, 90s. The water each day is moved by generation schedules that push new water in and existing water out regularly.

Based on my experiences before I used live forward-facing sonar, I thought the fish left that creek, except for small fish, during the summer, only to return in early, early spring for spawning. Turns out, they live there all year. The big fish do like to “home” near the deeper holes or areas with the most structure.

The way they survive is by sinking into the mud during the heat of the day and rising during cooler times, such as the early morning, night, and when there is cloud cover or rain. The type of mud? I’m not sure yet of any specific types, but it is not hard clay.

During a couple of trips in July and August, I saw this action and caught all sizes of crappie, both black and white crappie. The really big fish find zones or areas that have cover and all the things I mentioned and live with only a few around their size.

When fishing for them in these conditions, stick with slow vertical presentations versus pitches, swings back to them or horizontal presentations. You will be more successful.

Let me know your experiences by sharing them on the CrappieNOW, Crappie Dan or Crappie Mates social media pages.

Good luck and good fishing,

Dan Dannenmueller – PUBLISHER