Going Crappie Crazy

By Walter Claxton

Sure most crappie anglers worth their Power grubs can find and catch crappie over the next month or two, but how do those elite freckle anglers find the truly big, saddlebag-sized fish? Is it a well-kept secret of the old timers or a series of subtle insights gained by panfish addicts spending countless days on the water?

Perhaps understanding crappie behavior is a good place to start. Beginning and longtime freckle fishermen should understand that when water temperatures warm into the 45-degree range, the crappie migrate from creek and/or river channels and head for the bait. If shallow structure is present, these fish will begin the spawning process around 55-degrees, selecting a nest site, creating a nest and attracting a female (s). The spawning area must not be silty or soft. Crappie prefer a solid, clean surface to spawn. Logs, roots, rocks and sand are the most common substrates and spawning materials in our region.

At around 58-60 degrees, the largest females will begin visiting the nests and depositing eggs. These truly trophy fish will only be shallow a few days before they move back out into deeper water. Remember, the warmest water of April is usually right up against the bank.Keep that in mind when looking for prime spawning spots. This is also the time of year when hundreds of crappie will use the same spot. You can often catch a limit without moving.

Besides understanding the biological habits, a good way to find out how to catch big crappie is to learn from other anglers. W2 asked some notable regional crappie anglers how they find trophy fish. Here’s what they had to say to W2 about catching big crappie from the area’s top lakes.

Buggs Island/Kerr Reservoir

Bud Haynes lives and guides on Buggs Island Lake on the Virginia/North Carolina border. He loves to crappie fish with clients on the 50,000-acre lake he calls home. He even designed a special lure to catch big crappie: the Bud’s Hellgrammite. While bass anglers might be familiar with the 3” version, the 1.5 and 2.5” sizes are what Haynes relies on for big Buggs Island specks. He even has special jig head for these plastic offerings.

Buggs is a massive impoundment, so it’s easy to get overwhelmed. Traditional big crappie areas on Haynes’ water include the stumpy flats in the backs of major creeks like Bluestone, Buffalo, Butcher’s, Rudd’s and Eastland. Haynes’ tactics are specialized for fishing these flats. In fact, he does a lot of trolling in early spring, mostly March and early April. At this time the fish are foraging in 3-5’ feeding on baitfish.

This guide trolls the Hellgrammite and live minnows not using the outboard, just the trolling motor. The trick to using the Hellgrammite with this tactic is to rig it vertically on the jig head; a 1/64 to 1/16-oz depending on the wind. Haynes will fish minnows on a jig head or tip his Hellgrammite with one. By mind-April Haynes switches to targeting wood in the backs of these same creeks. Casting the Hellgrammite on a jig head or using it under a float and twitching, is Bud’s preferred tactic now. This is also when the fish begin spawning, Haynes likes to use four to six-pound Tralee XL and casts usually with four-pound test.

Hayne’s last tip for catching trophy crappie is not to avoid or concede the thickest structure. Experience has shown him, the tougher it is to present a bait, the bigger the fish. If you find the fish thick in the bushes and wood, you can rig the Hellgrammite Texas style, add a split shot a few inches above it and cast and retrieve it through the heaviest cover. “If you catch a big crappie, in most cases, there’s more around very close. They stay together.

Chickahominy Lake

Captain Art Conway says Chickahominy Lake is his top choice for crappie fishing. This cypress-lined, weed-filled lake backs up from Walker’s Dam and the Chickahominy River some five miles, creating countless hidden sloughs, creeks and coves worthy of exploration. Faced with a lake in which just about every spot looks good, where does Conway start?

“In the spring our crappie run up the creeks as soon as the shallow bays warm up to initially find warm water and then eventually to spawn. During the spawn we can catch numbers around wood cover, but most of them appear to be smaller male fish. The larger ones (probably females) still come from the creek channels around the spawning areas and farther down the creek, and we find those by slow trolling along the channels,” explains the Chickahominy Lake guide.

Since the lake is so weedy and so many areas are inaccessible to both the angler and the fish, Conway targets the crappies in the main channels. He adheres to a policy of staying mobile when searching for big Chick Lake crappie.... by trolling so he can cover water quickly and efficiently.

“Trolling along the creek channels seems to get most of the larger fish. I think we get them as they move around as singles or small loose schools. I like to troll small hard jerkbaits and crankbaits in the major creek channels.”

In a typical year, Conway notes the best creek fishing is in March. However, sometimes due to the chilly conditions he finds the truly good fishing to occur in early April.

Lake Anna

Guide C.C. McCotter has fished Lake Anna for 25 years. While he is known for his striper and largemouth knowledge, he also has just as many, if not more anglers that seek him out for his wealth of information on how to catch Anna’s big crappie. Picking the right time of the year is one of his recommendations when seeking trophy slabs on Anna.

“I see so many anglers wanting to catch that whopper crappie too early. The fishing just doesn’t get consistent until some time in early April. We need a week of warm nights (above 50 degrees), a southerly breeze to warm the shallows, the new or full moon and water around 60 degrees to get the fish shallow.”

Now McCotter admits plenty of crappie can be caught earlier than April on Anna, he just doesn’t have as much historical evidence to back fishing before then for the truly big ones. He also doesn’t linger when the small fish are biting.

“You simply must move off small crappie if you want to catch the bigger ones. They school according to size. Yes, it can be fun to catch a bunch, but when you’re after the big ones, you must be willing to move on.”

McCotter’s top Anna tactic for big crappies is fishing isolated structure with a slip bobber and minnow rig. Isolated structure can come in many forms on Anna, he says. Three of this Anna guide’s favorites include a rock pile laying in a willow grass weedline, a single dock with brush or rocks underneath or a large stump in the back of a cove.

“ I think the truly big crappie on Anna don’t want to be near other smaller fish. They tend to be in smaller schools on isolated structure. I think they actually drive away the smaller fish,” he explains. McCotter also employs an “inside-out” philosophy when targeting big crappies: “Instead of concentrating just on shallow spawning areas, I also backtrack and try and guess where the big females go before and after the spawn. This is usually open water near the spawning areas. These big girls will often suspend in open water, but not more than two or three casts away from the nesting males. When I realized and began practicing this philosophy, I started to catch more big fish with clients.”

Knowing these “staging points” is also helpful when a cold front visits the area and knocks the fish out of the shallows. Remember, crappie do not move to the beds in one night. It takes days, sometimes weeks, depending on the weather. Work hard to find these prespawn spots and track the fish so you can always have some place to fall back on when conditions change,” advise the Lake Anna guide.

Enjoy the next two months because they will offer some of the best big crappie fishing opportunities of the year. Use these experts’ tips and we hope to see your picture in the pages of a future issue.

Crappie Fishing Tips

On shallow, weed lakes, look for crappie to hold prespawn at the deeper edge of vegetation lines. Native weeds or introduced hydrilla and milfoil are good places to start your search. Look for a distinct break between open mid-lake waters and the spawning shallows.

Area reservoirs, especially those with a pronounced main channel, often stack crappie up on channel swings, drops or ledges. Find this situation within a couple hundred yards of a spawning site and get serious. Wood structure is a bonus and sure crappie magnet.

Always keep in mind crappie prefer gathering in wood whenever they are in their pre-spawn or post-spawn phases. A tree lap, a planted brushpile or dock can be a mega-crappie spot along a channel drop.

Since unstable weather can really test spring crappie anglers, it is a must to stay versatile. A willingness to fish minnows, tubes, grubs, dropshot rigs and more over rocks, docks, weeds and brushpiles will help you overcome just about any curve Mother Nature can throw. Don’t get wrapped up waiting for the crappie to bite on your favorite spot. Being open-minded and willing to move is a good asset when fishing for crappie in the spring.

How do savvy crappie anglers know when to use live bait or lures? Freckles like both but choosing the right one can be the reason for an average day versus an epic one. Here’s a good rule of thumb to stick with: artificial lures are usually best when you need to quickly cover shallow areas. When crappie are feeding on shad in shallow, dingy water, a 1/32 or 1/16-ounce Johnson Beetle Spin is an outstanding choice. Relatively weedless, it can cover a lot of water quickly, and few veterans start their search without one rigged on an ultralight rod.

If fish are located over a relatively clean bottom, shifting to a bare jig can often be a better bet, especially in clearer water. Crawled slowly over spawning beds, it's an offering few bedding crappie can resist. In heavier cover, slipping a bare jig onto a cane or long pole under a float is a surprisingly quick way to probe small openings.

Crappie normally strike the jig as it drops after it hits the water. Let it sink and twitch it twice, and if nothing happens hit another opening. If the water is cooler or ultraclear, however, a live minnow is normally a better bet. These can be fished on a small gold hook or tipped onto a jig head. Lastly, keep in mind not all lakes and rivers are good crappie fisheries. You have a much better chance of catching a saddlebag if you take some time to research where the biggest fish are being caught. Visit state Game Commission and Department of Natural Resources websites to find out what waters are producing the most citations and make plans to visit these fisheries. When you arrive at your destination, start your trip with a visit to the local marina or bait shop. Spend a little scratch on bait or lures and you’ll be amazed at how much information the clerk or storeowner is willing to share with you.