Crappie

[Murdock]

Just keep in mind I am trying to learn about crappie fishing when I ask this question. Do the crappie return to shallow water in the fall and if they do what conditions should I look for?

 

[Guest]

They do not return to shallow as they do in the spring. However crappie can be caught shallower than in the summer and they are more active when the water temp starts dropping. I like to look for structure in 6 to 20 feet of water and fish with soft plastics. You must be a line watcher for sure in the fall and winter as the bite will be subtle.

 

[drumking]

Some of my favorite spawning areas for Crappie have yielded fish for me in the fall as well. Although they are not there to spawn, they will show up shallow at times especially in the evenings and bite like crazy. I don't mean 1 or 2 feet deep, but more like 4 to 10 feet deep. The last hour of daylight will yield fish if you go to a plastic lure with some orange on it.

To avoid confusion, I consider any water 10 feet or less to be shallow in our lakes around here. emoGeezer

 

[BackOnTheWater]

I happened across one last weekend throwing a small rooster-tail in 3-4 ft of water. It was the first one that I had seen since spring.

 

[Murdock]

Thanks everyone for the information. A buddy of mine caught a bunch of small one on Tims Ford this last weekend on minnows. 10 to 15 ft of water.

 

[polo-dog]

In my experience some of the crappies do move into "shallower" water in the fall but I think that it's only because of the masses of threadfin shad that move shallow in the fall. Most of the time in the fall the fish move shallower but I tend to fish some of the same places that I fish during the summer and winter but just not fish as deep. The fish suspend shallower in the fall as the water cools. Right now the fish may be 10-15 feet deep but as the water cools they may stay more in the 4-10 foot range depending on weather/cloud conditions and how deep the bait is holding. I tend to fish cover near channels with good flow with 20 feet of water where I am fishing or at least near by.