I can see them, but they will not bite!

[radke22]

Our lake has a crick between two bodies of water and their is current and a light pole. At night i see the crappies but they will not hit jigs or minnows on a plain hook. What should i be using? fly or waxies? there stacked up like cord wood but seem to be in a very negative mood.

[Matt Johnson]

Try tossing out a small popper, or float jig. Or try downsizing your minnow. Waxies might not be a bad idea either. Are those fish feeding at all, or just hanging out? Do you see them poppin at the surface?

------------------
Good Fishin,
Matt Johnson
Pro Staff Coordinator
FishingMN Sponsors

Matt Johnson Outdoors
[email protected]
Guided Ice Fishing and More...

[huskiesplayer15]

Go light and try drifting the lure through, I guess I think that if they ar ein a negative mood, if you see them, chances are they see you. I would go really small stuff though. Just my idea.
Best Fishes
chris

[united jigsticker]

Do they spook when your float hits the water?

Do they seem to detect your presence? (move or react at all to your movement)

How much current is there? How clear is the water? How deep is the crick? What is the bottom content of the crick? Where is this crick (ok, just kidding on that one...maybe )

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

[The Grebe]

If you can get it to them, try a small minnow, lip hooked, no heavier then 4# test and a small wire hook...a Crappie would have to be mental not to hit that!

[The Grebe]

I forgot to include, "No sinker!"

[Corey Bechtold]

I was reading in-fisherman this month and there is an interesting article for this kind of fishing. Toward the front of the magazine there is a picture of a guy in waders holding a shotgun blasting some fish out of the water. LOL! Your post just painted a picture in my head and I had to laugh.

Corey Bechtold

[CrappieJohn]

Instead of casting straight out in ront of you, try casting at about a 45 degree angle, either right or left of your position. If possible, get to the upstream run to the shadow from the light and float your jig thru with the current until it is past the light and back into shadow again. Then do a very slow retrieve back. Be sure to tip your jig with a waxie. Crappies have a very sensitive lateral line and can feel ground vibrations just from your walking. With these fish are wary after dark, the trick will be to target those at the middle of that creek. By casting at an angle you not only can access those fish with a longer retrieve, you are targeting fish that are well away from you minimizing your chances of having already them spooked. You may want to try floating a very small wire hook with nothing but a waxie on it through these fish.

------------------
Plastics...making better fishermen without bait! Good Fishing Guys! CrappieTom

muckbootsonline.com Pro Staff
Culprit Tackle Crappie Pro Staff
Catch-n Tackle Pro Staff
[email protected]

[radke22]

The crick is sand bottom, 3' deep, clear, flowing around 1/2-1 mph. They are not spooked at all, i can acutally hit them with my rod tip. they seem to be staging, for what i don't know. They don't seem to be feding at all, small crappie minnow and tiny #6 hook and they don't even look at it.

[The Grebe]

If you can poke them with the rod and they don't hit the little minnow....they are definately mental!

[pikehunter]

I think I'd go with a landing net.
(Just kidding!)
I've had similar instances and it's very frustrating ... not much worse than SEEING fish and not being able to make them bite.
I get the rage just thinking about it.

[united jigsticker]

Strange. I'd expect them to be somewhat spooky.

Are they there every night? Or just in certain weather conditions?

I can't figure what they'd be "staging" for, other then a migration to the other like you described.

Is there a difference in depth, clarity, bottom composition, etc in the neighboring lake that this crick flows to?

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

[radke22]

the place the water flows into is 7,000 acres and weedy, the place the water comes from in 10' max and very weedy. Yes they are there every night, and like i said, i can literaly poke them with my pole.

[united jigsticker]

Is this lake in Wisconsin?

7,000 acre swamp is basically what it flows into, but the water is clear.

Throw some maggots (eurolarva) on a glowing jigging spoon with a green back, and suspend it under a float.

Vary the depths, even just so its hardly below the surface, to get the fish's curiosity.

Did you try the popper idea as Matt suggested?

I am thinking you are going to need to try to get the fish to come for the bait. They won't hit stationary when its right there for them to inhale, the only other thing is to make em' come for it.

Are these large fish?

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

[This message has been edited by united jigsticker (edited 09-29-2004).]

[radke22]

Its lake Minnewaska south of Alexandria. 7,110 acre lake but i have a place on a pond that dumps into it and their's always fish there.