Greg B.

Mine is an ultrex as well. In fact I bought it from Wolfe. I’d give em a call and see if they can get you fixed up.

If it’s a minn Kota I’d take it to Wolfe boat works in Rogers. They fixed mine in the spring and did it pretty quickly. They may repair others too but I know for sure they are an authorized minn Kota repair shop. Mine was still under warranty and there was no charge to me. Hope that helps

I’m finding them from 8-12 feet depending on location, time of day, etc. I’m no expert and I’m still learning but that’s what I’m finding. On my sonar I’m mainly looking for shad. Sometimes I catch a bunch and mostly I just catch enough for dinner. Hope that helps

I mostly troll jigs but I see lots of guys out there trolling cranks. I’m actually gonna troll some cranks next time out just to change things up. I fish the southern end. Usually from blue springs to a few miles north. For me things have been hit or miss. When I find the fish I can usually catch quite a few Nice crappie. I’m finding two distinct patterns. Crappie are either on mid lake Humps close to deep water or they are hugging bluff walls. I generally run electronics over these areas before I put baits in the water. Hope that helps.

So far fishing has helped. We are camping on the river this weekend. Losing dad and a tough, but he would have fished every day if he could. I think about him often while I’m out there and I think he’s bringing the fish to me!!! in any event, thanks for all the thoughts. I’m gonna keep fishing.

Well yesterday was a rough day. My dad passed on Sunday and the funeral was at 10:00 am yesterday. When I got home I realized I needed to keep myself busy to keep from thinking of him. Then it hit me that if it had been dad, he probably would have gone fishing. I pulled the boat out of the barn at 5 and was on the water at 5:30. Running electronics I was able to find a few pockets of fish stacked up over deep water, along bluff walls, and in the shade! Trolled 1/8 oz jigs for a few hours and was rewarded am with a few really nice crappie, a few shorts, a channel cat, and several white bass. The crappie and the cat came home for a smorgasbord dinner! all in all it was a nice evening for a night when I just wanted to feel something tugging on the line. Largest crappie was just under 1.5 pounds and three more in the 1.2 range. Made for a good dinner and really helped me out. good luck to you all.

Nice work. Glad you’re able to stay on em. And that’s a super nice smallie too

Nice work. Glad you’re able to stay on em.

Great time of year to run your electronics and learn the lake for sure. I moved to the south end 3 years ago but really didn’t get time to fish until this year due to building our home and work. The main reason I went with long line trolling for crappie this year is it allows me to cover water and watch my electronics. And sometimes I even get to catch fish. Since February I’ve been covering water at 1.2 mph a little at a time. I’ve found drop offs, stumps, brush piles, and a few fish here and there. There’s a 3-4 mile stretch of the White River I now know pretty well. I can now hit a spot and move to the next spot with at least some confidence in the spots. I’ve made that my goal this year. I think that’s what it takes. Stay out there covering water. The crappie and Walleye will follow if you put in the work. Beaver isn’t as easy for me to learn as some other lakes I’ve fished but I can be on the water in 10 minutes so I’m gonna keep trying to learn it.

Rzbker, welcome to the forum. I’m still kinda new on the forum too. Years ago When I was a kid I knew a man who lived near there. In the summer the water was crystal clear and we would go snorkeling around his dock. When we hit standing timber we could usually find a few crappie, but they might be deep. We’d then go back with a boat, slip corks, and minnows. Lotsa fun for a kid back in those days. I suppose the takeaway is to fish the standing timber. I fish the south end so I’m sorry I can’t be more help

I think I was referring to another boat, but I’m sure I’ll see you out there. I’m usually there 1-2x per week but I’m going to start branching out to new locations soon. The last few weeks out there have been tough for me. Lance thanks again for your posts. They are very helpful. I’m trolling jigs rather than cranks at the moment as it’s just what I’ve been trying to learn. Having gained a little confidence I’m going to stick to it a while.

I saw an article on that last summer. They put out hoop nets and recorded the movement from the area where they were released. It was an interesting study. I can tell you that the channel cat population seems to be getting better based upon my recent crappie fishing trips. I’ve caught a number of them on jigs and don’t really recall catching numbers of them in the past.

Phil, was that you I saw out there a few weeks ago? I was in a green g3 and was wearing a straw hat. I’m just curious cause I met a nice couple of guys trolling cranks out there a while back. Greg

Glad you found em. I struggled yesterday. Caught numbers but couldn’t find many big girls. On my sonar I can just see the start of a thermocline (I think). Keep hammering them!

Lance is certainly the expert. I can’t help you much with that end of the lake but I have been fishing the South end quite a bit. If I can find shad balls I can usually find crappie. On the south end the water is not as clear as it is up north. Most of my fish have been in 13-20 fow. I’m typically fishing at about 10 feet but go up or down depending on what I see on the sonar. I suspect the crappie will be deeper on the North end as Lance has said. Good luck!

Nice fish and thanks for the report. I found a few this afternoon just before dark but didn’t find the numbers I was after. Did manage to catch Walter though! not very big but the first walleye I’ve caught in Beaver.

Good point. Having thought about it I think I may know where those fish might have moved to :). I always say finding and patterning them is half the fun. It’s fun making a plan for next time

I think I may have to agree but I know Lance has put in the time to learn the lake. I’m really making an effort to do that myself but I keep finding myself flabbergasted every time I think I know what I’m doing.

I knew I didn’t have em figured out yet. Two days in a row caught limits of nice crappie. Couldn’t beat em off of me. Went back 48 hours later and they’re gone. All the scanning and trolling I could do in 3 hours and within a half mile of that spot and no luck. Water temps rose 5 degrees and I assumed they went deeper but I couldn’t find them there either. These crappie are sure tough to figure out. One minute they’re all over you and then they’re nowhere to be found. Oh well, the kid and I sure enjoyed being out there. I guess finding them and figuring out the pattern is half the fun.

Went back for more this afternoon. Started at 5:30 and quit at 7:30. Kept 15 crappie and released a few keepers after that. Had my son with me this time and he wouldn’t let me break off the cats (intentionally anyway). Broke off three cats that I just couldn’t handle. Again, fish were very active. Caught most of them from about 7-10 feet down in 13-20 fow. jigs at about 1.4 mph. Close to deep water. Not as many shad on the sonar today but still plenty in the area.

I found the same thing, including the catfish. Big ones. I didn’t even think there were that many catfish in Beaver Lake. Today was the most aggressive I’ve seen the crappie in awhile. Sped up the jigs a lot and they absolutely inhaled it.

Long line trolling jigs this afternoon was crazy. Fish of all species were super aggressive. Trolling around 1.5 mph over 15-30 fow close to channel edges. Caught over 30 crappie and kept my limit. Also caught 7 blue and channel cats between 5-7 pounds and turned em loose. Lots of fun on a 14 foot rod and 6 pound test. Broke 3 more off. Wound up with 5 species! Many many bait balls on the sonar. I was trolling 1/8 oz jigs and color didn’t seem to matter. Watched two guys trolling cranks and I believe they limited as well. Today was pretty unbelievable considering how many days I’ve been after em this year. I believe it was Lance who said the time was right for trolling channel ledges. I appreciate his posts and have learned from them. The time was definitely right this afternoon.

Again, good work. I haven't made it out since last weekend. With all the rain last week and yard work to do, it may take a bit for me to catch up! Once I have all of my work done, maybe I can get out there myself. A week ago Sunday I was finding fish "on the drop" at the edge of the main channel. Had trouble getting them to bite and only managed a few, but they were there. It may also have had something to do with my timing. Didn't start until later in the morning.

I don’t fish the North Half much but I’m not aware of anywhere around here to buy shad. Maybe somebody up that way can chime in with more info but I really don’t think you can get shad (live shad) locally. There are a few places you can get frozen shad for cat fishing but even those places are few and far between.

Nice work again, Lance!