Crappie Tom... are you there??

[sami0115]

Tom... or anyone else with good ideas... i will be fishing Wally's on Potato Lake in Hubbard Co. (Park Rapids area) this weekend.... i will be arriving early Fri A.M. and will be itching to get on the water... could i get some ideas as to where to look for crappies this time of the year..

------------------
YIPPPPEEEEEEEE

[united jigsticker]

Well, it seems like you have the perfect lake picked for Walleyes as there is a huge population of decent sized fish in there.

Given the lakes characteristics (2,200 acres, 95 foot max. depth, 9 foot sechi disc) and it's geographical location being north where there's been limited warm weather, I would suggest targeting the Crappies in pre-spawn transition areas.

Weed growth goes all the way out to 24 feet of water, but for this weekend, 14 feet of water and less would be my target.

If I was hitting Potato, the first area I'd check out is the weedy flat area immediatly west of the public access on the northwest wing of the lake. There is plenty of adjacent deep water there, so we can assume the Crappies were hanging there this winter and have moved up for pre-spawn.

If the wind is blowing into that end and the weather has warmed some, try the deeper areas of the shallow emergent weeds along that shoreline.

The Potato River connects right west of the access, and it's a marshy area, so I would put some pretty heavy effort right around the mouth of the crick in about the 3-6 foot depths as well.

If you have some good plastics, give them a try, otherwise, 1/32 oz feather jigs, maybe a white on white pattern, or black, due to the clear water, tipped with small Crappie minnows under a light float is a good bet.

Potato is noted for very quality sized Panfish, but populations are not huge by any means, so you are favorably in for a good challenge

I wish you luck.

------------------
Good fishing,
UJ
[email protected]

[This message has been edited by united jigsticker (edited 05-13-2004).]

[sami0115]

thanks guys !!! i am leaving now to go up north... i hope both weather and fishing cooperate...
i really do appreciate the time you took to respond... good fishing to all...

andy

------------------
YIPPPPEEEEEEEE

[CrappieJohn]

Sam....You are going to be in the exact opposite end of the state from me and you don't tell much about the lake. If you have weeds, try to find where the weeds and deeper water meet. If there is limitedweed cover, but rocks and points and drop-offs abound, try fishing around rocks found on flats or just off the breaklines between deep and shallow water. This will help eliminate much of your hunting. If the weather is consistant for a couple days try snooping on the shallower side of things, under five feet. If the lake has some good wooded areas,start looking in a bit deeper water around it and slowly work your way into the shallows. If the water is clear, you will not want to fish directly over the fish...stay outside of your target area and cast into it. The lake I normally fish is generally fairly well stained, but this year the water is clear and the fish are very spooky....if you can see them they can see you and most likely will not hit. Should you find fish and the sun gets strong, fish areas of shade during the mid-day periods. If the weather pukes on you and things get nasty, head for some deeper water near to where they spawn and work deep and SLOWWWWW. And down-size what you are fishing with. Don't be afraid to change colors often, crappies change their preferences about as fast and sometimes throwing a hitch in their get-a-long will get you better fish. Now is when you need to pay attention to whether the tails and pectoral fins of the fish are frayed and worn. If they are, the fish are spawning, or have done so and that will almost always mean you need to look shallower....even in open water. I hope you find some help in this and enjoy your opener!

------------------
Plastics...making better fishermen without bait! Good Fishing Guys! CrappieTom
muckbootsonline.com Pro Staff
Culprit Tackle Crappie Pro Staff
[email protected]

[sami0115]

thanks Tom... the lake is very clear(at least 6 ft secchi sp?) and fairly large (2100 acres) the weed line (mostly cabbage) starts at about 14ft on the deep side.... there are quite a few sunken islands (rocks/boulders) that go from 3ft to 20ft with a fairly steep dropoff.. if the weather is anything like last year the surface temps will be lucky to be in the low 40's... it has a very healthy population of both largemouth/smallmouth, wally's/pike and panfish... we have caught some big crappies in the summer but i have never fished them this early in the year... any other ideas you may have would be appreciated... i do appreciate the help you have already given
thank you
andy

------------------
YIPPPPEEEEEEEE

[united jigsticker]

Be sure to tell us all about it when you get back!!!!

------------------
Good fishing,
UJ
[email protected]

[sami0115]

no crappies this weekend... but thanks for the info... i will try again on Memorial Day weekend... we did catch some pike and one wally while trying for crappies... that was fun on light tackle... i managed to make i thru the whole weekend with no live bait... first time fishing for wallys with only artificials...

------------------
YIPPPPEEEEEEEE

[CrappieJohn]

I forced myself to fish with nothing but plastic for a year. My thinking was that I had always started out using the stuff, but if it got tough the bait would be brought out and the plastics got put away...never really gave them a chance and never devloped any confidence in them. What a difference that year made. Glad to hear you did not get skunked. Keep it up and you will see the difference plastics can make in your fishing!

------------------
Plastics...making better fishermen without bait! Good Fishing Guys! CrappieTom
muckbootsonline.com Pro Staff
Culprit Tackle Crappie Pro Staff
[email protected]

[Matt Johnson]

sami0115,

Your confidence with plastics will only get better, and you will catch more fish as you get more confident. You will be a master of the plastics in no time Artificial baits are a dangerous weapon to have, and it can make it easier on the hands on those cold days Glad to hear you caught some fish, the crappies will come...but I bet you had fun reeling in those pike, got a chance to test out the drag Good luck on Memorial Day weekend!

Good Fishin,
Matt Johnson

------------------
Matt Johnson Outdoors
Metro Area Ice Fishing, Team Catch-N, and more...

[email protected]
Iceleaders
Catch-N Tackle and Bio Bait
MarCum
Stone Legacy
JR's Tackle

[united jigsticker]

I fish with minnows from ice-out until about mid to late June. I just can't get away from it.

Then it's plain jane artificials for me too.

I use to outfish even plain feather jigs, etc, with simple small twister tail style jigs. For some reason, I have gotten away from them lately, but with all the raving Tom does, it has jogged my memory, and gotten me itching to get back to my old ways.

THANKS GUYS!!!!!

------------------
Good fishing,
UJ
[email protected]

[sami0115]

memorial day weekend (the real opener) i hope to hit the bass fishing hard... i am determined to try to keep the spinnerbaits in the tackle box and try some new stuff for bass... this is a fantastic bass lake.. both large and smallmouth... my goal this summer is to really learn to fish plastics for bass...

------------------
YIPPPPEEEEEEEE

[sami0115]

have you tried a Blakemore Roadrunner? this is possibly one of the most versitile lures i have ever used... the one that i use most has feathers on it, but i think they also make it with plastic twister tail... in one outing on the lake a few years ago we caught 6 species of fish with it (smallies, wallys, pike, crappie, largemouth & rockbass)

------------------
YIPPPPEEEEEEEE

[delmuts]

hey folks ! how is the water quality in your area ? the little lake i fish here in N.E. iowa looks like mud( we are in the area that has had 8 + inches of rain !) .i am catching a few bass, but the panfish bite is poor. at the boat ramp, the one dock that is still in place has more than a foot of water over it. the other has floated over against the other one. it's a mess. del

[CrappieJohn]

Del....We're pretty tall here around Rochester,too. The lake I fish has "no wake" restrictions on it, the secchi disc simply disappears at the surface and the garbage floating thru is unreal. Water temps have taken a dive too....6 degrees between Sat and Sunday. I have not been back on the water since Sunday and have no idea where the temps are at but it could affect the hatch of the crappie eggs along with the silt that will come with this high water.

------------------
Plastics...making better fishermen without bait! Good Fishing Guys! CrappieTom
muckbootsonline.com Pro Staff
Culprit Tackle Crappie Pro Staff
[email protected]