Winter Time Crappies.
- Darren Mudge
- Jan 5
- 2 min read
Now that we are into the first full months of spring with most northern states have ice and southern states being open, you might ask yourself where do i fish? where are the fish?what do i fish with? winter fishing can mean moving around alot on the ice or in a boat. even bank fisherman will have to move around as once fish move thru they will tend to move.Alot of this is from mine my time living in the north fishing Iowa, Minnesota,Illinois and Nebraska and here in the South fishing Mississippi, Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee.
1) Where to fish- winter time for crappies and bass will find schools of fish bunched up on points, steep banks, trees, bridge pilings, or any abnormal cover in medium to deeper water. Any thing that will absorb heat is a good place to start( wood,pillars,trees) since they gather heat from above the water line and transmit it below which could be 3-5 degrees on a good sunny day.Flats in water they stays at a constant depth with cover nearby is also a good place to fish.Any of the above places will also hold bait fish looking for a small change in temperature. Where the bait is so are the game fish.
2) Baits- during the winter time you will need to down size and presentation will be slowed down as fish become lethargic during these times. They will still eat but more movement in a fish will expend more heat and energy causing them to look for more bait. Baits for crappies must downsize whether live or artificial. Small grubs,wax worms, meal worms,minnows,fish bites should be in your arsenal. Small artificial rubber tails, small spoons(swedish pimples), hair jigs and jigging lures( rapalas) and such in sizes from 1/16 on down to 1/64. Hooks in the #1-#4 will work for live minnows along with jig heads in similar sizes.
3) Equipment- This is were the North and South fishing goes different. North- Fishing ice with small jigging or deadstick rods in medium to light action are a must with a possible of bite indicators to catch lite biting fish. fishing line can be 2#-6# mono in clear or even fluorocarbon. in staind or dark water you may be able to get away with braid.South- alot of the same but regular rods in medium to light, #4-#10 mono clear or high vis, flouro carbon, braid. waters at this time of year in the south can be murky to muddy with alot of rain in the winter. Good luck this winter.
