Northwest Bay Crappies

[dcfwc]

Fantastic Forum! I wish I would have found this years ago. I'll be hunting down crappies in NW bay the last week in Sept. Did fairly well around Three Sisters 2 years ago on 'em, but the fish we found were near the bottom in 30 ft of water and we had a tough time feeling the bite. I need some help fine tuning my technique. How big of a jighead can I get away with? Should I use braided line with a leader to decrease stretch? Would a short med. action walleye jigging rod fair well, or should I go with a light or ultra light action? Also, anyone catch crappies in NE Bay or Ash that time of year? I'd like to find an area where I can catch 'em up high so I can catch and release. Sounds like the walleye fishing is fantastic again this year, can't wait to get on some of those. Any new smallie baits been lighten 'em up? Any tips are much appreciated.

[fishmeister_86]

HI D.W.,

WELCOME TO FISHING MN., THE RAINY SITE. I HAVE ALWAYS DONE BEST ON CRAPPIES IN OCT., IN N.W. BAY. I LIKE ULTRA LIGHT EQUIPMENT WITH 4 LB. MONO. CRAPPIES ALWAYS(ALWAYS) FEED UPWARD, SO WHEN YOUR FISHING FOR THEM, WATCH FOR A TWITCH IN THE LINE, MANY TIMES YOU DO NOT FEEL THEM HIT, BECAUSE THEY SWIM UP WITH THE BAIT...THAT IS WHY YOU WATCH YOUR LINE. WHEN THEY ARE HITTING GOOD, YOU DO NOT NEED BAIT, JUST A TUBE & 32ND OZ. JIG., THE SLOWER YOUR BAIT DROPS THE BETTER, THAT DRIVES CRAPPIES CRAZY. IF YOU HAVE A VEXLAIR..BRING IT., WORKS GREAT IN CALM WATER. GOOD LUCK.

SINCERELY,

FISHMEISTER

[Berng]

DC

My Uncle Bill is about 78 years old and his claim to fame is that he has fished any lake in Minnesota or Canada that you can name. If you’ve been there, so has he. His favorite fish is crappie.

Bill took me to Obabikon Bay and Miles Bay on Lake of the Woods one September to fish crappies. They were all on the bottom in 30 feet of water. His secret was to add a small split shot 18 inches above the jig. The jigs were 1/32 ounce tubes. He would just let the jig and the split shot drag on the bottom, keeping his index finger on the line to feel for the pick-up. He used 4 pound test on light spinning equipment. The split shot provided the extra weight necessary to keep the jig on the bottom. Using this technique would get him at least 50 fish per day. However, many of those 30 foot fish were difficult to release since their air bladders were expanded by the time they reached the surface.

Have fun,

Berng

[dcfwc]

Hey Fishmeister,

Thanks for the tips. I now have a 4'6" UL with 4lb mono. The short rod should be perfect with the vexilar. Have you heard if the crappie are schooling up over deep basins yet? Do you know the water temp around that area?

Godspeed, dcfwc

[wcoyote]

Spent last week in NW Bay. Water temp was 66-68.

[dcfwc]

Hey WCoyote,

How'd you do fishing on NW? I've heard the smelt are dying off. Usually makes for a good bite.

dcfwc