Crappie are hot!

[WHARFRAT]

This year on my end was really tough on fish over 13".  I'd catch maybe one or two on occasion.  Normally for me, the best time for crappie over 13" is Feb/early March!  2014 was a phenomenal year for 13-15 7/8" crappie. (in my 58 yrs, I don't recall ever catching one over 16").  For me It will be hard to duplicate a pre-spawn like that year.  But it really fizzled out this year.  If I'm not mistaken, Ameren didn't really mess with the lake level too much in 2013.  I know 2012 was the year it was so hot and dry.  I don't know if that had anything to do with it or not, or then again, my memory isn't the best as far as lake levels go from year to year.  Except this year, It was on the move, up or down, on a weekly basis. 

But Laker is right.  I've talked to people that say they are catching 18" crappie, and the ones I see aren't even close.  So, not sure what they are using to measure.

[fishinwrench]

Well they prolly think their weiner is 10" and they are judging up from there, so a 16" crappie to them is probably a decent 12" in reality.

[Old plug]

The first two I caught between 17-18 were off a bluff hole point on rogues to my total surprise. I had a picture on here sometime back.  I was also on the wall at Osage outdoors a few years ago. They were caught on two cast. Sitting just real shallow in the sun.  Water in  that spot was over 40ft deep. I was shocked. I had been casting the point and was retrieving measured them on the dock and turned them loose.  The one the other  evening was in a stall on my dock and was another surprise. In the spring we have some places in a area that have crappie beds that are popular. People come through there all day  long catching a few small crappie. But if you get down there about a hour befor dark and stand off and cast out into deepwater you might be surprised. We had one year we caught  most were  13 to 14 and a few over 14 inches out of these places.  Since that year we have not caught that quality of fish. Maybe we just  hit something and took the cream of the crop out of it The thing is We were catching the females that set out there all day and come in and feed for just a short time. Have another place that seems to be some kind of staging area. They catch them there in February by casting off a dock over very deep water with a jig and bobber. Next spring wrench try that staging area. I told you where. Just be sure you tie to the dock and cast out. They are very touchy about things running over the top of them. I would say the chances of catching a crappie over 16 will not be good. My neighbor and his buddy been worKing that hole pretty hard the past couple of years. 

[nomolites]

I have caught many big crappie from LOZ but never one over 16" range.  I know there have to be some in there and have seen pics of on caught nearby last year over 3# but those are the exception.

Mike

 

[MOsmallies]

I believe this is the fish you are referring to Mike... Caught by Chad Deaver last March and I believe it was 3.74 lbs on a Megabass 110... Just an unreal crappie from a large lake here in Missouri. That's a farm pond type crappie....

[96 CHAMP]

Nice catch, those are some dandy's

[nomolites]

6 hours ago, MOsmallies said:

I believe this is the fish you are referring to Mike... Caught by Chad Deaver last March and I believe it was 3.74 lbs on a Megabass 110... Just an unreal crappie from a large lake here in Missouri. That's a farm pond type crappie....

That's the one.  He was fishing with Jim Frank, and the 70k fish in the BBB the previous fall(caught by Jamie Eynard) was also caught out of the back of this boat.  No coincidence, good sticks.

Mike

[Old plug]

I will venture to say he caught that crappie in a spot that is just very far out of the normal. The spot I caught my double in way over 40 ft deep devoid of any type brush and I want to say where I  caught them I have never caught another crappie before or after there. It was a pure fluke. I was making a retrieve after casting for bass. This last one was in a place closer to what you might expect.. It was defiantly over 16" That makes 3 big crappie in 25 yrs living out here. All  3 in the wrong  ( unspecting place ) at the wrong time. 

 

[laker67]

When Bernie Norris sold his lunker lure design to I think Bill Norman, back in the 80's, I was using one catching bass from a seawall point. As I am retrieving, fast, it just felt like I had snagged some weeds with not much resistance. That turned out to be a 12 to 13 inch crappie with very little fight. Never caught another crappie with it.

[Old plug]

laker67------- I think there is soooooo much we do not know about suspended fish are the spawning habits of bass he crappie. I know MDC makes a lot of predictions and estimates from shocking surveys. But they shock round the bank in the fall. I have never heard  of them( are think it is possible) shocking 30 or 40 ft deep or deeper. None the less I do see a lot of fish very deep and I am sure the reguler trollers on here must also. Then something happens like that great big striper that wrench and that other guy had that tremendous battle with makes me wonder where did that thing come from to be swimming there in that little tight shallow spot? Where did he live be feed to grow so large? That fish had to be doing something different. I also bet the fish in his diet were mostly about a ft long at least as well.