Crappie Report 5/17-5/18 -- Tough Day Bite-Great Night!

[motoman]

Got out on the water about 8:00 a.m.(I know, late start :-)Thursday 5/17 and went up the Gravois Arm to fish some brush piles we frequent. They're in about 20 feet of water with the tops in about 10 fow. We were throwing kalins 1.5" curl tail grubs in any light colors, on 1/16 and 1/8 ounce heads. The fish were holding tight to the brush. If we didn't get in the brush, we didn't get bit. We only caught about 10 fish over the course of a couple hours. A few keepers; but not enough to hold our interest.. When the sun started getting high, the bite really fell off for us. So we went back to my buddys condo; by the dam.

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We went and got some minners and fished off the dock in the heat of the day. Caught a few in the 15 foot range......but not enough to hold our interest........all dinks.

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We were hopeful, come sunset things would pick up..............and we were right!

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Once the sun got lower in the sky, we started fishing off the dock (in 30 fow) and were catching them in the 15 foot range in the empty slips. We were throwing a double rig,(spaced about 18 inches apart) with a minnow on each hook. Everything we caught were 10+ inchers. There was(were?) 3 of us fishing and countless times we would all have fish on at once. Many times as we slowly lowered the minners down in the 15 foot range, they would bite in an instant! We fished until midnight, when the bite started to taper off. Simply lost count of how many we caught. But, it was a great night. (caught a small walleye too!)

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I would recommend, sleeping in-in the morning, eating a big breakfast, then just relax, go shopping, watch tv.......or whatever.........then eat a BIG lunch and forego dinner to get on the water in the late afternoon and early evening to start catching them well into the night.

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Water temps were in the mid 70's, and I had little hope of much crappie action at all, with the warm temps. But, that night bite made it all worth while; and I was pleasantly surprised by the action.

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Be sure and post a report if you get on the water!

[FishDreamer]

fished in the little buffalo and another cove around there. Caught two really nice crappie over 14 inches in 12 feet of water on brush under the docks. Caught thiry other keepers over 10 inches all on minnows. Jig fishing was slow and we caught a few little walleye as well! Thats a good sign they are getting more plentiful.