Click to View the Full Thread

Author	Message Text
blutofish1	04/13/2020 07:37AM   I was out this past Wednesday and found them suspended over 30 FOW 12' to 15' down. All but 2 out of the 15 we kept were females and appeared to be staging for the spawn with shallower water nearby. Water temp was 59 to 62 degrees. Jig with plastic and minnow
yogi59weedr	03/27/2020 11:09PM   Been out to my local crappie hot spot two times. Caught three crappies one time and two bass the other. The lake is 400 acres and 60 feet deep. Most of it is flooded timber. I do pretty good in summer and fall, but this cold water is getting me. I tried my go-to spots. Minnows on the bottom. Minnows up and down the water column. Warmer small bays. Nuttin... I know this lake is full of 10 inch-plus fish. Do you have more faith in plastics over minnows? What would be your approach?
bobbernumber3	03/28/2020 06:04AM   I suppose hunting for crappies is similar to hunting for bluegills when presented with the "where are they?" problem. Solution 1: Steal someone else's holes (if they are not there). You can tap into their knowledge/luck and maybe learn something about a spot. Solution 2: Drill lots of holes and go into exploration mode. I mean, drill a new hole every 10 minutes or less. And keep moving. I have had good luck on new lakes using this technique. I have a hand auger with small diameter so it's pretty quick. I have drilled up to 16-20 holes before locating fish. Holes are often 50' apart. Good Luck!
Frankie_Paull	04/08/2020 05:23PM   I would first search out the warmest water in the lake and go from there.
cyclones30	03/28/2020 07:20AM   I took it as he's open water fishing, but the water is real cold yet. In those cases, the warmer water the better. And they're in the brush. Suspended over the main basin/channels in winter and now they're slowly heading up. I'd start deep in an ice fishing spot type area and then head shallower and be ready to get right in the brush and lose some jigs.
blutofish1	03/28/2020 07:05AM   If you're talking soft cold water, here's what I do. I use plastics tipped with a minnow. I also utilize my rod holders either in the bow or on the sides. I vary the depths of the baits and troll very slow. Here is the set up of the bow mount rod holder I made a couple years ago. Very cheap to make and, if you don't have a deck, use portable rod holders that can be moved around.
shock	04/13/2020 01:30PM   Yogi , you know i always have my good ear and eye tuned into waconia , right after ice out , many did very good on crappies in waconia bay right out from intowne marina , although the south shore,, still fairly shallow & opens up first thus warms up first , one guy had a hand counter and caught 162 , and my good friend adam caught 20 on a given day and took home like six 11"ers , but as soon as it started it shut off , still a long ways from spawning temps in minnesota , so guessing it can be hit or miss on a given day.