Under Pressure

[Vitreus]

It looks like a high pressure system will be looming over the state for a couple days. I'm just curious if anyone knows how this changes crappie movements. I am looking for articles online and this is just one phase of my research. I'll be out on a lake with a good crappie population tomorrow to test out whatever strategies i can learn. Let me know if you have any tips.

[Jim Uran]

They may be more selective and tighter schooled. Once you locate them they wont move as much and you will have opportunities to throw the kitchen sink at them! Good luck and xant wait to read the report

[Vitreus]

Well, I pulled out all the stops today. A brutal semester spent studying with intermittent dreams of ice adventures finally came to an end and brought me back to the suburbs to visit ma and pa, and my old fishing spots. I drilled so many holes today, I think I actually got high from the fumes. I took my little sis out. She has special needs, and had some trouble walking long distances on the slippery ice, so I had to do it with some haste. What a workout! I initially marked fish in the 15 ft range. Dropped a camera down and saw a few small perch. Learned not to waste time on dinky perch! They hijacked about 10 waxies before I decided to move on in search of panfish schools. By then the young lady was getting tired so I decided to set up in about 11 FOW on the inside of one of the two steep points in the lake, facing a bay that consistently produces in the summer. The new aqua view micro was a very fun addition to my gear collection. Watched a northern and several perch take waxworks on a small glow tungsten jig. When crappie schools finally came onto the screen, they appeared to be in a hurry. I had two schools of nice looking crappies come by, followed by schools of sunfish, right before sunset. Both schools, passing about 30 min apart, appeared to be heading towards shallower water within the bay. They showed absolutely no interest in the rattlin flyer tipped with a crappie minnow that I happened to be imploring during their 30 second visit. The next school was equally unimpressed by a waxworm buffet. The silver lining came by moonlight as the walleyes moved in. We stayed out until about 7:30 and were rewarded handsomely. Learned a lot tonight, and will be out again tomorrow for more.

[slurpie]

When the pressure is high I have gone out and drilled lots of holes deep fish don't seem to move as much and you can really find the spot.

[Slabasaurus]

Well, I pulled out all the stops today. A brutal semester spent studying with intermittent dreams of ice adventures finally came to an end and brought me back to the suburbs to visit ma and pa, and my old fishing spots. I drilled so many holes today, I think I actually got high from the fumes. I took my little sis out. She has special needs, and had some trouble walking long distances on the slippery ice, so I had to do it with some haste. What a workout! I initially marked fish in the 15 ft range. Dropped a camera down and saw a few small perch. Learned not to waste time on dinky perch! They hijacked about 10 waxies before I decided to move on in search of panfish schools. By then the young lady was getting tired so I decided to set up in about 11 FOW on the inside of one of the two steep points in the lake, facing a bay that consistently produces in the summer. The new aqua view micro was a very fun addition to my gear collection. Watched a northern and several perch take waxworks on a small glow tungsten jig. When crappie schools finally came onto the screen, they appeared to be in a hurry. I had two schools of nice looking crappies come by, followed by schools of sunfish, right before sunset. Both schools, passing about 30 min apart, appeared to be heading towards shallower water within the bay. They showed absolutely no interest in the rattlin flyer tipped with a crappie minnow that I happened to be imploring during their 30 second visit. The next school was equally unimpressed by a waxworm buffet. The silver lining came by moonlight as the walleyes moved in. We stayed out until about 7:30 and were rewarded handsomely. Learned a lot tonight, and will be out again tomorrow for more.

Your experiences are what I would have expected from the data I've collected over the years.

For panfish, generally what I found was when pressure was stable and high, fish weren't moving around as much. They also weren't eating what I was presenting as much, or if they were I didn't feel it/see it on the spring bobber.

On the other hand... I have had a lot more luck with toothy critters during these conditions.