Finally! I got to go crappie fishing. Normally by now I’d have hit the crappie four to six times. It’s not that I’ve been sitting around mowing the grass, etc., but as alluded to in an earlier article, there’s just too many outdoor activities offered in the spring. We’re overly blessed here. Speaking of, I need to run back up sometime and hit the mushrooms again … probably this week.

But, back to crappie fishing. Sunday at church, Nancy, a buddy of ours, ran up and grabbed me and told me that I had to meet a buddy of hers, Don Reid, that he loved fishing and that we’d get along good. So surprise, surprise, as soon as church let out we had a fishing trip lined up for the next day.

I had a newspaper article that I had to get in first thing Monday morning and then at least get started on a pressing magazine article before I could head out, so we were scheduled to meet at 1:30. We loaded the truck and the Black Pearl and were soon on the way.

For a Monday it surprised me as to how many people were there but most of them were doodlers so they didn’t hold up progress. The weather report said there’d be 10-12 mph winds and gusts of up to 25 mph and maybe even 30 mph.

Since this was Don’s maiden voyage on the Black Pearl (aka The Edmond Fitz Terror), I didn’t want to swamp him first time out and spend the night on the other side of the lake (which is always a very possible danger). But luckily I don’t think we ever saw anything over 5-6 mph winds, so we were golden.

Like everyone, I have some sweet spots that I try out first. The real honey holes were dry so after a couple of my favorite spots didn’t pan out, I got a little concerned. We had only hung a few. Then Don asked to pull into a little cove that is never any good but we caught a few there. Good.

I usually always have everyone start out with different colored jigs so we can determine which color is hot. It didn’t take long to determine that the white and blue/white plastics were the most productive. Anymore, my go-to jig is a Lake Fork Trophy Lures Magic Minnow. They’re about 2¼ inches long. They have a slotted body and consequently have a lot of action. I’ve never seen them for sale around here, so you’ll probably have to order them.

I like to use an 1/8 oz. jig. If it is super windy you can justify using a heavier jig, but I still use an 1/8 oz. and just slap on a small split shot or two if need be to get it to sink. With a lighter 1/8 oz. jig it drops more naturally than zipping straight down with a heavier jig.

On a side note, Mom used to mail me the outdoor page out of my old hometown paper. I was just cleaning out my hunting truck and saw one on of those old articles that had gotten stuck under the seat. It was an article written by a guide which rang a bell of truth with me.

He pointed out that he catches more fish because he watches his line. Even with a sensitive tip rod he said that he noticed when a jig was dropping and if it stopped momentarily that would be a crappie that stopped it. That’s your clue to start reeling. He went on to say that nine out of 10 times he could tell the difference between when a fish had mouthed it and when it had hit some brush.

I’ll throw out my jig and right before it hits bottom, I’ll gently lift my tip and then semi-slowly do a couple of cranks and repeat. If you feel any resistance reel at a moderate speed. That will set the hook. On crappie you don’t have to set the hook like on a largemouth. In fact, if you do you will likely rip their lips off. That is why they are nicknamed papermouths. In fact, on larger crappie I will net them instead of lifting them in or one-third of the fish will rip off. On this trip Don and I only caught about 50 crappie, but 43 of them were nice and yet we only netted a couple. It seemed on this trip that most of them took a deep hook.

By the time that you’re reading this article they should be up close to the bank spawning. So now is the primo time to get out.

Man, this was a peaceful, relaxing fishing trip. Sometimes when you have a million irons in the fire and are swamped, a crappie fishing trip is just what the doctor ordered. It was a nice sunny day, no wind and peaceful, plus the fish were biting! You better get out there.