Early sunfish and crappie tips and tricks.

[Slyster]

This is a repeat question.. since the first time I posted this was WAY too early! Turned into an ice fishing discussion.. so I think it's high time to ask these questions again! There were some good tips on the first thread.. but maybe to get them all in one thread.

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I know there's no 'recipe' for fishing other than experience.. but I thought with the upcoming open water season.. (here now!) it would be fun to discuss techniques for getting out just after the ice leaves.

It's almost February! This means we can pop in the boats in just a 10-12 weeks! I would love to be more successful and knowledgeable concerning early season Panfishing- either sunfish or crappies.

(Assuming the species technique is similar?)

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Questions: Early season Panfishing in April and May:

1- Where to catch early pans? (Shallow.. deep... drop-offs etc...)

2- Best early bait to use? (Live bait? Small lures? Plastics?)

3- Do most use bobbers or just drop the line over the side?

4- What depths to fish? (Top water? Bottom? Mid)

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I remember trying last spring in April/May and we had little success. We saw SO many suspended fish in deep water one time.. but never managed to bring up any! I remember we tried minnows for the most part- I hadn't 'discovered' plastics at that point. I hope to have more success this spring.

[harvey lee]

This is what has worked for me in the past years.

1- I usually start my search for crappies on a breakline very close to the shallows where they will spawn when the water temps rise.

2-The bait that I personally use is either Rat-tails or Stub-grubs on a very small(1/32) collarless jig.I have also in the past used my Ratsos and Shrimpos from Custom Jigs and Spins.All these jigs are without any live bait.

3-I do not use a bobber in the deeper water until the pannies are into the shallow water and then I will just cast it out and slowly jerk it back.

At the beginning of ice-out,I will go to the breakline by the shallows and troll around until I find a school of fish and then drop my bait to approx 1 ft above the fish.To do this,I tie bobber stops on my line every 5 ft. very,very tight and trim the loose ends so they wont move on the line.That way say your fishing in 25ft of water and the fish are suspended at 18ft,you know when your line is dropped down exactly where your bait is.

4-As far as depths,the early ice out time I have always started in a little deeper water for my first search.Then as the water warms,I will move in shallower with those crappies.

I hope I didnt get to long winded,but I have had very good luck in fishing crappies in cooler water temps

[eyepatrol]

Harvey Lee...

How do those schools of crappies show up on your locator....I mean, what does it look like? Do they show up as individual arcs, a grey cloud/mass in the middle of the water column, or do you have a fish-id feature that shows fish symbols? Just curious because I don't believe I've ever been able to graph a school of crappies suspended on a graph yet (flasher...yes!).

Thanks.

[harvey lee]

They show up on Fish ID symbols on the finder.I just troll around until many show up and start to fish.Only problem is staying on top of them as they seem to be always moving around.I will almost always use the trolling motor to try and follow them and alot of times lose them and then find them again.

[federline]

I get consistent results in the spring for pannies by finesse-fishing fallen timber almost exclusively. Only if I get zilch there, will I start hunting the breaklines out from shore weedbeds.

The best are tall, really "limb-y" trees that fall in from shore - I call 'em natural cribs. You can find them pretty easy with a graph if they are there, and there is usually other woodfall visible onshore. The best are the ones down deep enough that you can see how deep they are on the sonar by running over top of them.

Once you find some, just anchor upwind 8 yards or so, and cast into the cribs or right in front of them. I like to use a pencil bobber in springtime with a small horizontal jig and a Gulp maggot - tune the rig so only the thin top of the pencil is above the surface. I will hang the jig, using the bobber, all over the side edges of the limbs and branches, just like you would with a cane pole. They will be in the branches, or huddled up against or under large trunks or limbs - never on top, really.

My spring pannie rod is a Berkeley Cherrywood ultra-lite 5.5 ft with a Shimano 500 series spinning reel that does double-duty on one of my ice rods. It is a bit noodly on the tip, but has the right amount of backbone for reliable hooksets with both sunfish and crappies. I set the drag down low enough that it buzzes a half-second when I set the hook even on a quarter pound sunnie. When the pencil-top disappears for a full 1-2 seconds, thats yer cue!

[lars0926]

I fish the fallen timber first and foremost too. My busiest times of the day are right at sun up and sun down. The heaviest congregation of fish and most active bite seems to be around those hours in the timber. I actually go deeper and off the timber in the daytime as I have less success around that time, especially sneaking the crappies out.

Federline, I see you said you fish a 5.5. That's amazing! I use a 7.6 from Thorne Bros. for all of my timber fishing and I think I get the best action and set on this length. It caught me off guard seeing you reference the "reliable hookset" on that 5.5.

[Matt Johnson]

If I'm vertically jigging I'll use a shorter rod, like maybe a 5.5 footer. But when pitching or casting I'll use a longer rod, usually in that 6.6 foot range...

The shorter rod can give you more control when vertical jigging over deep water. If holding over a piece of structure, like timber, you can get away with a shorter rod.

Longer rods do help with pitching small jigs though, as well as more absorption when setting the hook into a paper-mouth.

There is a time and place for every rod (well almost)...

[federline]

lars, I get that a lot about that rod. It's not for everyone. It is almost noodly on the top 8 inches or so, but this inexpensive ($20) graphite rod builds backbone nicely down to the cork handle. Come to think of it, it may be a 5 footer actually. It fits in my Silverado side-to-side horizontal perfectly.

If it isn't set up right - 500 series spinning reel, 2-4 pound line, minimal jig, small aerodynamic slip bobber - it's a nightmare. It's taken me a few seasons to get it right, so that the jig plus bobber turn into a unified, weighted missile when casted. Now, I can cast this little ultralite like most do with a 6 or 6.5 footer.

The short length plus the teeny reel make spring pannies a fun sport. Setting the hook feels like a cross between ice jigging and open water bass fishing - very finesse-y. I never miss a hookset with this guy, and I do minimal mouth damage. I always use the sharpest-hooked jigs I can find.

[delmuts]

i had the exact same setup, a few years ago. once mastered it worked well, but was very whimpy! i loaned it to a buddy for an afternoon. it now sit in roberds lake! i now use a st croix and love it.

[GAF]

Matt,

I noticed you said that you use a shorter rod when vertical jigging. My question to you is what do you think of say a 9ft'er?

thinking about getting a long crappie pole here for shore and dock fishing.

[Matt Johnson]

GAF,

The longer rod will definitely have its advantages. Fishing lilypads and thick cover is made easy with a longer rod because you can reach out further and actually drop the jig right into the pockets without spooking fish. You can also whip a small jig a long-ways with a long rod. You might lose a little hook-setting power depending on the rod, but a longer rod can definitely help a panfish anglers's arsenal, especially if you do a lot of trolling or fishing weeds/docks like you mentioned. However, sometimes a longer rod will load with more power because it'll have a medium or even heavy action backbone, but a sensitive tip.

Quantum makes a line of crappie rods called the Xtralite XP Todd Huckabee Crappie Series. These rods range anywhere from 9 to 11 feet in length and would work very well in your situation. Definitely worth a look if you're planning to buy a longer crappie rod.

If you spend a lot of time fishing from a dock then a longer rod might be a huge advantage. Especially if you can reach out and drop the jig into a weed pocket without spooking the fish like you would if you casted into it.

When I referred to vertical jigging with a shorter rod I meant out of a boat, but that's just my personal preference. I will vertical jig with a 6.5 footer as well...