The screen on my sonar unit indicated the brushpile, located in around 20 feet of water, had at least a few crappies relating to it.

I eased the boat a short distance away from the cover, flipped out a short cast with a light jig, and felt with hope as the jig did its slow descent.

About the time when I expected the jig to be reaching the top of the cover, I saw the line twitch and felt a slight tick. Upon taking in the slack, the line tightened under the weight of a fish. A few moments later, I flipped a nice 13-inch white crappie into the boat. During the next 20 minutes, seven more were taken.

This experience took place recently on Keystone Lake. It’s not unusual for the spot in question to produce crappies. The thing is, they had been absent since early May.

Crappies seem to be constantly on the move, making finding them a challenge. On the plus side, they show up well on common sonar imagery such as traditional 2D, down imaging, and side imaging.

As summer gives way to fall, that movement tends to be to deeper water as the season progresses. In reservoirs, the movement is often from mid-depth submerged wood to deeper wood. In natural lakes, remaining green weeds will often hold fish until crappies eventually move to offshore drop offs and hard bottom ledges.

Don’t overlook suspended fish. Particularly in lakes with open water forage – shad, alewife, emerald shiners, rainbow smelt – a segment of the crappie population will likely roam basins in concert with forage fish movements.

As such, a versatile approach is needed to consistently catch fall crappies.

When water temperatures run from the mid 70s down into the upper 50s, crappies will still likely be in depths where a casting approach (as opposed to vertically jigging) is appropriate. Crappies can be spooky – especially in clear water lakes – so it’s best to stay off the fish if you can. This includes the judicious use of the trolling motor.

I prefer to use a 6.5-to-7-foot light power, moderate fast action rod when casting to mid fall crappies. This is coupled to a 1,000 or 2,000 size spinning reel loaded with ultra-thin braided line like Sufix Nanobraid in eight-pound test. A three to four foot six-pound test Gamma Edge fluorocarbon leader, joined with an Albright knot, completes the setup.

One of the keys to fishing submerged cover is a slow drop speed, one that allows the bait to pendulum over/near the cover at a slow pace. For this, I like a 1/16-ounce jig, 1/8 ounce if it’s breezy. Action tail plastics like Bobby Garland’s Stroll ‘R or Swim ‘R excel here.

Target the top of cover first as the more active fish tend to hold higher up. Then, by allowing the lure to sink farther, work deeper into the cover during subsequent casts. It can be snaggy, but light wire hooks will often bend out, allowing you to salvage the jig. Jigs with hook guards are also an option.

Hits often come simply as a tightening on the line as you retrieve the jig, which should be done with a somewhat steady retrieve, but one with occasional pauses to allow the presentation to momentarily drop.

Jeff Knapp is an outdoors columnist with the Butler Eagle