Page 6 - Crappie NOW - December 2018

HOT ACTION IN COOL WATER

the old river channel drop to more than 70
feet deep. Since water must move faster
outside a turn than inside to cover more
space in the same time, powerful currents
scour holes in river bends. These currents
might also wash logs, branches and
other objects into these holes, creating
additional excellent crappie cover.
“Electronics plays a big part in finding
crappie in cold water,” Dunn said. “People
need to find structure and get down in it.
We catch some of the biggest crappie by
bottom bouncing structure. I like to fish
submerged tops about 16 to 25 feet deep.
I just idle down a bank using my depth
finder to look for stuff before I even start
fishing. When I find something, I throw
out a buoy. If we bounce in structure two
or three times and don’t get a bite, we
move elsewhere.”
Drop a bait all the way down, but big
crappie don’t always hover right near the
bottom. Experiment with different depths.
If nothing bites at the bottom, crank the
reel handle two or three times to try a
different depth. Keep trying different
depths to locate actively feeding fish.
Also, don’t add much action to jigs when
fishing for lethargic fish that might want
more subtle movement. Just the natural
rocking of the boat might provide enough
tantalizing enticement to make a fish bite
a jig.
When water flows through the dam, it Gerald Overstreet shows off a crappie he
creates current. At those times, look for caught on a feather jig while fishing on the
any visible or submerged structures that Alabama River.
break the current, like standing timber
or trees that fall off the banks into the
river. In chilly water, crappie typically technique, or perhaps one in each hand.
hold tight to such structures and face into When using a single pole with a lone
the current to ambush any bait that flows jig, anglers can drop a temptation down
toward them. through the cover with better accuracy
“Big trees that fall into the river can make and less snagging. Drop the jig as close
great places to find crappie,” Overstreet to cover as possible. Always work a bait
recommended. “On Millers Ferry Lake, completely around and through the trees,
Mill Creek is always a good place to fish. It brush or other cover to find fish. For
has some shallow, mid-depth and deeper whatever reason, crappie might stack up
water with some standing timber in it. on one side or the other.
Foster’s Creek is another good creek.” “If a tree is still really bushy, the fish
To probe these crappie lairs, many are tight to the cover or the cover is really
anglers prefer to use a single pole thick, we use a single pole with a jig

6 Crappie NOW December 2018