Harrison bay 11-26

[flip1up]

Talked to a guy friday below nick. dam that told me he has been killing the crappie in the bay. I went there saturday, got there about 10 a.m. I fished all over looking for the crappie. I talked to alot of people and they all were having about the same luck as me. I ended up with just 3, not enough to keep. The bream kept stealing my minnows, it gets kinda frusterating when they wont leave you alone.

 

[polo-dog]

flipup1, often in the winter, especially late winter, I see people crappie fishing out in Harrison bay and I always wonder if they are fishing some structure, or are the crappies just suspended in the water column? Can you see them with your electronics? I tend to crappie fish on cover near creek channels and seem to do the best with that. I have caught some right off the end of the boat dock at Harrison Bay marina at times in the winter. I know that lots of people love to eat those crappie but my family likes those bluegills better. If you take some worms with you next time maybe you'll catch a mess of them.

 

[flip1up]

I talked to a man with his young son who was fishing off a bank right next to the channel, he said he had been catching alot of crappie up till that day. He had 3 in the livewell. He had been putting the boat in 20 feet of water and dropping the minnows down about 12 feet. He said he went through 6 dozen minnows a few days earlier. I tried this for a long time and only got 1. I went back by and talked to him later, he had not caught any more. The other 2 keepers I caught right in the middle of the bay back to back. I was in about 20 feet and dropping the bait down about 10-14 feet or so. I did not see any kind of structure out there. I did see the fish in schools on my fishfinder every now and then. But had no way to mark them, the wind was blowing me around. I think they are schooled up and if you can stay on them you can get a bunch. The last 2 i caught were just luck, I guess I ran over a school. I need to put a few markers in the boat.

 

[polo-dog]

I would think that it would be hard to stay with a bunch of crappies out over deep water. I was tolk once that if you caught a crappie, and they do tend to be schooling fish, and you put a hook and bobber attached to him at about the depth that he came from with a little slack and put him back in the water that he would find the school and swim with it. Then, all you would have to do is fish by the bobber to stay with the school. I tried that once when I was a kid fishing in a big resivior down in Texas and it worked. I don't know if it would work every time but it's something to try to stay on them.

 

[drc]

I watched some guys on t.v. using that method to stay with a school of white bass.

 

[JerDog]

Very interesting strategy..I think it would work...might have to give that a try tomorrow. I once lost a huge bass on a farm pond while using shinners and a bobber as a kid...The fish broke me off and for days I could see where that bass was hanging out..never did catch him but he was hugging the corner of that pond for days. When I would walk up to the bank, I would watch the bobber take off.

 

[polo-dog]

Wow, that's funny. Poor bobber bass.

 

[ranman]

Thats a great Idea! I'll have to try that.

 

[JC1]

What a great idea! I'll have to try that myself one day. JC1

 

[flip1up]

Hey Polo, me too, I would rather fish in visible cover for them also. That day I put in at Wolftever ramp, went straight across from the ramp fished all that brush, no bites, went up the creek and fished ALOT of lay downs and brush. I didnt catch any crappie in the creek thats how I ended up in the bay. I would have never left the creek if I was getting bit.

 

[polo-dog]

I too like to fish them in the blowdowns but like you said, sometimes they just aren't there and if they are over open water and they move it's hard to stay on them unless you can figure out if they are holding on some structure. If they are just following moving bait pods then you have to figure out a way to stay with the bait or the crappie school.