Page 14 - Crappie NOW | April 2016

Planer Board Tactics

with 5500 line counter Abu-Garcia
reels, and Gamma 10-pound line,”
says Dannemueller. “Heavier rods
are important because there is a lot
of resistance when using a board.
Pole sensitivity is not an issue.”
“So the process,” says Steele,
“is to have the bait about three feet
behind the Tadpole sinker, set the
depth we want and clip the line to
the board. We determine how far
the boards will be then let them
out. They will run in-line like little
soldiers marching along. It’s not as
difficult as it sounds.”
Steele says, “The Cat rod’s
stiffness is an advantage because
when you reel a fish the board turns
over and goes behind the boat.
There can be a significant amount
of pressure on the line. The key is
to clear the other lines and boards
but that is a matter of experience
but it’s easy to learn.”
The team works the area when
fish are found. Additional trolling
runs will continue in the same path if
necessary. However, once the right
depth and general area is found,
the team usually find fish scattered
and they are not restricted to one
specific spot.

Early Summer/ Summer
As the water warms fish may
move to deeper flats and along
deeper channels. A percentage
of crappie will get tight to cover
but many will suspend up over cover, a
drop or other structure/cover. Move out A planer board showing the clips for the
to deeper water until the right areas are board and flag. High-Vis line helps keep
found where crappie are suspended and track of line even at long distances from the
trolling runs can be made.
boat.

“The great thing about the boards,” switch to crankbaits. We use Johnson
says Dannenmueller, “is that they can be Crappie Buster Shad Cranks. The Shad
fished at any depth. A board can be in 5 Cranks have an excellent action and
feet of water with baits at 2 feet, or, they come in a variety of good crappie colors.”
can be run in water 40 or 50 feet deep A new wildcard bait the team uses is the
with baits at 20 feet. They are versatile Johnson ThinFisher. The blade bait has
and give trollers a big edge.” been extremely successful drawing bites
“In the summer the best bite will likely

14 Crappie NOW April 2016