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Cold-Weather Crappie

by Nicole Stone
LIVE

Fall is the best time to bring home a mess of slab crappies.  Winter feeding preparation has the crappies thinking about food more often.  Dress warm, and get out there to take advantage of it.

The following 5 tips will help you make the most of your days on the water.

  1. Do your homework. Before heading out to fish, use your state’s online resources to locate water that is managed for, or simply has a good population of crappies.  This will eliminate a lot of trial and error, wasted gas money, and allow you to budget your vacation time.
  2. Find transition zones. As we move from warm weather into cold weather, fish are set up in transition zones.  Transition zones exist between different types and densities of cover and different depths.  The edge of a weed bed near a drop-off would be ideal.
  3. Use and trust your electronics. When you have found a spot that is likely to hold fish, deploy your electronics to verify and mark them.
  4. Use the right gear. Crappies are not large fish, and their bites may be light. An ultra-light rod with 2-4 pound line allows you to detect those strikes and make a quick hook set.
  5. Move when necessary. Fall schools of crappie move often.  If the bite suddenly dies, verify with the electronics that fish have moved, and find another location.

These tips will help you to enjoy your time spent fishing.  You will spend more time catching crappie with less downtime if you have a plan of attack.