Finding and catching day time crappies?

[fishingguy]

I have caught crappies along deep weed lines and on the drop off breaks at sun up and sun down many times on a variety of lakes. Many times suspended off the bottom along deep holes and deep weed line. But I can never find them during the day. Can't even mark them on the vex. Where are they during mid day hours?

[Scott Steil]

If I am looking for a mid day crappie bite (mid winter) the first place I head is to real deep water. Try to find the real deep water close to the area you are getting them in the evening. Usually the slabs will be suspended over the deep water, if there is any. It may take a little hole punching but usually they can be found. A common depth on a couple lakes I fish is 42 ft of water, 34 ft down this year. Another lake I found them in 34ft, 24 ft down. Those are not magic depths, just examples of lakes that have good day bites.

Occasionally you can find some nice slabs in the weeds with the gills during the day but this is probably more of an exception then a rule.

Patterns are a little different for shallow lakes and this all changes as we approach late ice. I won't get into that right now.

[united jigsticker]

Great advice Scott.

I just want to add one thing: If the lake you are fishing has very clear water, the pattern you described is very typical and what I would expect for that body of water.

When I look for daytime Crappies I focus on stained and dark water lakes. I find great twighlight and nightime action on clearer lakes (7ft sechi or better)

[Guest]

Crappies have a distinct advantage over prey at night because of the size of the eyes and their eye's capabilities. Crappies have what we would call "night vision" in a sense. The over sized lenses allow them to pan through the water with greater ease at night. Same goes for walleyes. Thats why walleyes and crappies are typically twilight biters (low light periods referring to sunrise, sunset, and dark).

I find almost all of my day time crappies (except for during early and late ice) off of deep structure adjacent to weedlines, shallow holes or structure (just like all of you were saying). On harsh days I find a lot of crappies hugging the bottom like perch. Days where the sun is high and exposed, I find crappies suspended over deep water. Cloudy days tend to bring more roaming crappies then sunny days (storms will often times do the opposite). Look for crappies to relate to the edges of deeper holes during cloudy days as well as the breaks off of deep underwater points and rock piles. In smaller lakes you can find hundreds of crappies piled up over a single deep hole. Most of those fish are probably lookers instead of biters but the fish are there. As you find the edge of the hole and any breaks where underwater points lead into the hole you will find active fish 9 times out of 10. In lakes where I find those deep water crappies piled up over a certain spot I like to move to the mid depth flats (if the deep hole is 30 feet I'll fish the flats in 18-25 feet). I've found that a lot of active fish will roam these flats chasing prey instead of congregating over the deep hole. Might need to punch 20 holes to stay on fish though.

So if I had to lay down a set of guidelines for day time crappie fishing it would be as follows:

1)Look for deep structure relating to twilight feeding areas (unless those twilight feeding areas are the deep structures).

2)If fish are present but not active, find the edge of the deep holes (I typically find the edge of the hole regardless).

3)If the edges don't produce move to the mid depth flats and punch holes like crazy hopping from hole to hole until you find a pattern.

Day time crappie fishing can be hit or miss. A spot can be hot for 5 minutes and cold for an hour. Depending on the composition of the lake, the patterns of fishing can vary. Rocky/sandy lakes call for a different approach then your mucky/weedy lakes. Fish relate to different structure. The size of the lake makes a big difference too. Another important factor that a lot of fishermen neglect is to look and see if the lake they are fishing has a good population of crappies (mainly slab crappies). Larger lakes will often times yield larger crappies because of the abundance of forage and factors that allow crappies to grow. Same goes for perch and most other fish. I've caught a fair share of slab crappies in small 50 acre lakes before but typically you will find your larger fish in the size orientated lakes.

Grab a lake map and look for structure that stands out. Look for your shallow structure and your deep structure and see how they relate. And most of all...have fun out there. I mean after all, WE'RE FISHIN!

Good Fishin, Matt.

MJ5 and Fishing Minnesota...
http://frida.blc.edu/~mjohnson/mj5.html

[Gordon Fothergill]

Keep in mind daytime crappies and larger gills often do not move much during mid-day. This often makes it a little tougher to catch numbers unless your willing to move often and drill numerous holes to follow and relocate them as they "drift". Twilight periods are easier often because the fish will structure relate as they actively forage for food. (A generalization) Although sometimes the opposite is true. Two weeks ago I landed on a 10:30 am bite that was fast and furious and lasted for half an hour.

[Scott Steil]

Good Point Gordon. If you are finding a few, they are there, just not moving. Very common during the day. This is when a lot of drilling helps.

[FI Guide]

go deep and use glow jigs

FI

[Guest]

A few daytime crappies...

Good Fishin, Matt.

MJ5 and Fishing Minnesota...
http://frida.blc.edu/~mjohnson/mj5.html