Page 4 - Crappie NOW | April 2016

Y ou can catch crappie on any boat
that floats. However, only a pontoon let’s
you enjoy crappie fishing to the maximum
with it’s open space and amenities. Truth
is a pontoon when rigged right can be the
ultimate crappie fishing boat.
Of course when anglers think of
pontoon boats they regard them as a
boat for weekend crappie fishermen
with astro turf floors and coozie holders
rigged on the railings. They are right
when it comes to fishing from pontoons in
crappie tournaments where how fast and
far you travel plays a significant part in
tournament success, however, they can’t
be overlooked when it comes to crappie
fishing for fun. Truth is several successful
crappie guides take charter groups out in
pontoons because of the advantages of
fishing from them.
“I started out guiding for crappie in a
bass boat, but quickly learned that clients
wanted to bring more than a couple people
on the guide trips. My bass boat didn’t
have enough room so to accommodate
them the only answer was to use a
pontoon boat. That was twenty years ago
and I have never regretted switching over
to a pontoon boat,” said Jerry Thompson,
Living the Dream Guide Service (www.
ltdguideservice.com) on Toledo Bend.
Thompson pointed out there are
advantages and disadvantages to fishing
for crappie out of a pontoon boat. “I love the rigged with a 115 HP outboard engine to
4 Crappie NOW April 2016
By Brad Wiegmann
fact; I have enough room for large groups
all out in just one boat. It’s not unusual for
a family or corporate trip where they don’t
want to be in two boats and fishing from a
large pontoon allows me to take them all
at one time,” said Thompson.
Other advantages Thompson
revealed was pontoons have a better, more
stable ride since they are bigger. He went
on to explain on his pontoon they bring
lots more equipment like an extra cooler
with ice to keep crappie in for cleaning. At
times, Thomson will even bring a deckhand
along to help with catering to the clients
on the boat.
Even keeping live bait becomes
easier in a pontoon. Thompson’s pontoon
has one built-in livewell with an aeration
system that keeps bait alive even in the
summer months. He also utilizes a bucket
style livewell when necessary.
On the other hand, Thompson
revealed there was really only one
disadvantage. “During the spawn on
Toledo Bend it can be hard to get into
some of the places that are stumpy and
crappie are spawning there, but not all
crappie spawn at once. So, we can still
fish for the pre- and post spawn crappie in
deep water and have very successful trips
during that time of year.”
Thompson has his 25’ pontoon
power him to different locations on the
lake. Once Thompson gets to where he