Night crappies on Chickamauga 6-2-2006

[polo-dog]

I put out a light last night next to my dock. It stands in about 14 feet on the end. I turned it on at about 10:30 and at midnight I saw that I had left it on and went down to see what it had attracted. There was a huge cloud of plankton swarming in the light and there were a large number of 1 inch baitfish eating the plankton. There were bluegills and other fish that were shallow and easily seen coming into view at times but I saw no shallow crappies. I had decided initially not to fish but I met Drumking yesterday while he was out fishing and he had given me one of his strange looking grubbs on a 1/32 oz jig head and we had died the tail chartreuse and was curious if it would work at night. I finally broke down and tied the grubb on and started working the water column. The shallow fish wouldn't bite the grubb but once I got down to the 10 foot range the crappies started biting. I never used the reel on the rod so I could keep the grubb at the same level consistently and the fish were there. All I had to do was let the grubb down to the same depth and hold it still. If I didn't get a hit in a few seconds I would raise it 3 to 6 inches and then hold it still. The fish would load up the rod time and time again. About half of the 20+ crappies that I caught were keepers. The other half were dinks. I only fished for about 30-40 minutes but the Drumking grubb is a crappie killer.
It was great to meet you Drumking and I plan to see a lot of you on the water. Thanks again for the grubb, it's a great crappie getter and they don't get chewed up quickly, I still have that single grubb, intact on my rod/reel.

 

[TennesseeTalker]

Golly Polo ... next time call me when you leave the light on ... I'll be over working the beam! You could give new meaning to the Motel 6 line .. I'll leave the light on for ya!

I'm sitting here trying to decide .. fishing .. or swimming. I took the girls last weekend 2 days in a row. They had a blast. Both of them swam for 1 solid hour without stopping. After that the older one decided to at least get in water that she could stand in to shake her ears out. We are GLAD summer is here!!!

Now .. back to my decision delemia ... fishing or swimming? emoScratch

TT

 

[messier49]

hey mark, that is outstanding. it's good to have that depth off your dock, just right for those summertime crappie.

 

[drumking]

polo-dog - 6/3/2006 9:21 AM

I put out a light last night next to my dock. It stands in about 14 feet on the end. I turned it on at about 10:30 and at midnight I saw that I had left it on and went down to see what it had attracted. There was a huge cloud of plankton swarming in the light and there were a large number of 1 inch baitfish eating the plankton. There were bluegills and other fish that were shallow and easily seen coming into view at times but I saw no shallow crappies. I had decided initially not to fish but I met Drumking yesterday while he was out fishing and he had given me one of his strange looking grubbs on a 1/32 oz jig head and we had died the tail chartreuse and was curious if it would work at night. I finally broke down and tied the grubb on and started working the water column. The shallow fish wouldn't bite the grubb but once I got down to the 10 foot range the crappies started biting. I never used the reel on the rod so I could keep the grubb at the same level consistently and the fish were there. All I had to do was let the grubb down to the same depth and hold it still. If I didn't get a hit in a few seconds I would raise it 3 to 6 inches and then hold it still. The fish would load up the rod time and time again. About half of the 20+ crappies that I caught were keepers. The other half were dinks. I only fished for about 30-40 minutes but the Drumking grubb is a crappie killer.
It was great to meet you Drumking and I plan to see a lot of you on the water. Thanks again for the grubb, it's a great crappie getter and they don't get chewed up quickly, I still have that single grubb, intact on my rod/reel.

Mark, it was great meeting you yesterday. Glad to see that the tiny worm works for you as well. Next time that I'm in Savannah creek, I'll leave a handfull on your dock. Should have left more yesterday, but wasn't thinking about that. I was thinking about how I was going to get the spike-it off my hands.

BTW, folks, if you use spike-it to color your grubs, please be sure to keep the plastic bottle in a cool place instead of out in the open like I did yesterday. The sun created so much heat buildup that the pressure released spike-it all over my hands when I started to open the bottle to show Mark how I dip the grubs. You can tell me by looking at the chartreuse hands and residue around the nails. Dead sticking it is the way to go daytime or night for Crappie with this bait.emoSmile emoGeezer

 

[ranman]

same thing happened to me last week!That smell will get to ya after awhile!

 

[Fat Albert]

DRUMKING, you of all people should know better.... I can hardly believe you got your hand all painted up and such. Nowwww, you should see my finger nails. they are beautifully painted with nail polish. I have a 4 yr old that says "hey, Al father, you need a make over". yes, they are pretty. emoThumbsup emoGeezer

 

[drumking]

Fat Albert - 6/3/2006 12:54 PM

DRUMKING, you of all people should know better.... I can hardly believe you got your hand all painted up and such. Nowwww, you should see my finger nails. they are beautifully painted with nail polish. I have a 4 yr old that says "hey, Al father, you need a make over". yes, they are pretty. emoThumbsup emoGeezer

I left all my scientific thinking behind when I walked out the door at DuPont on July 31, 2002. Turned that page in my life and decided to become a kid again. So far it's working or so my wife says. emoUpsmile

I thought you were a little "funny" when you were at DuPont as well. Just kidding. I did take on some late growth in life. I have grown out of my hair.emoGeezer

 

[polo-dog]

Drumking, you and F.Albert crack me up. You guys must have worked together for a while huh?

 

[fischnrod]

you should leave the light on all the time for us blind night fishers, i love to fish the docks where people leave the lights on........

 

[polo-dog]

I would but my wife gets on me about it. I just bought one of those cheap clamp on lights from Wally World. If I were you I would get one of those floating lights that works off of 12 volts and float it next to the boat anchored next to a brushpile or right over it. If the pile is next to the creek or river channel it has a much better chance of drawing bigger and more crappies. Once you leave the light on for an hour or so the fish are thick below it in my experience. Has anyone had any experience with using lights at night? I know that they must be effective, either that or those guys who live under the Wolftever creek bridge some summers(in their boats) are crazy. The great thing about the light being on the surface of the water is that it really concentrates the fish but it doesn't attract the bugs from above the water, a definite plus. When I turn on the dock lights and leave them on the bugs are so thick I can hardly breath without inhaling one and the spiders are making webs so bad that I am constantly getting a face full. A light right at the surface is the way to go.

 

[drumking]

polo-dog - 6/3/2006 7:27 PM

Drumking, you and F.Albert crack me up. You guys must have worked together for a while huh?

Yeah, Fat Albert and I go back to 1963 or thereabouts. He used to be the manager of the softball team that I played on called the Ramblers. He couldn't play a lick because of a broken ankle, but he was a pretty good manager.

I took him fishing one time, but he couldn't catch anything, so I quit taking him.emoUpsmile

 

[polo-dog]

Sorry to hear about his fishing ability, but he sounds like a really nice guy. You wouldn't be pulling my leg now would you?

 

[Fat Albert]

polo-dog - 6/3/2006 11:17 PM

Sorry to hear about his fishing ability, but he sounds like a really nice guy. You wouldn't be pulling my leg now would you?

Oh me,,, I think I am being sexually harass. maybe mentally too. Yes, we go back a long time.. DK is a great guy. I could hit the ball further than he could and run faster. so, there you are. He looks older than me. if that makes a difference...emoAngel emoGeezer

 

[MrWiskers]

When I lived on Watt Bar we would use the floating lights to catch stripe at night. Usually we would anchor on the main lake channel in about 45 feet and put out 2 or 3 lights. By midnight the bite was on and catching 100+ stripe was not uncommon.

 

[drumking]

Fat Albert - 6/4/2006 8:27 AM

polo-dog - 6/3/2006 11:17 PM

Sorry to hear about his fishing ability, but he sounds like a really nice guy. You wouldn't be pulling my leg now would you?

Oh me,,, I think I am being sexually harass. maybe mentally too. Yes, we go back a long time.. DK is a great guy. I could hit the ball further than he could and run faster. so, there you are. He looks older than me. if that makes a difference...emoAngel emoGeezer

My, it is amazing what a little finger nail polish and makeup can do for a guy's looks, huh, FA?! You know that I love ya.emoBigsmile emoGeezer

 

[fisherpal2k]

Great post info Polo-dog. I think you even got a couple of die hard fishers stirred up there. emoLaugh Glad you had a good time and yes if you gonna leave the light on you shoul;d also start the grill and your dock would be full. emoLaugh That way you could cook the fish as they are caught and have fresh fish samiches for everyone.emoThumbsup

 

[polo-dog]

That sounds like a fun idea. I wish that the wife was a little more interested in dock fishing parties but you never know, maybe we'll do that some night.