Knapp: Patience pays off in latest crappy hunt on Plum Creek
The day was pleasantly mild, the continuation of a somewhat stable weather pattern, a rarity this spring.
Slowly cruising at little more than a trolling pace, I inspected various brushpiles scattered along the old Plum Creek channel, my eyes glued to the sonar display.
I was looking for crappies, thinking that by early June the fish should have concluded spawning and would be moving back into deeper water.
Creek channels are natural migrations routes, and brushpiles — which in this case were really portions of trees that have become anchored to the lake bottom — often serve as temporary homes. I stress the word temporary as crappies always seem to be on the move.
As my search played out, I saw little on the screen to justify further investigation. Just scattered schools of baitfish and perhaps a larger mark or two that could have been a crappie. Finally, what looked to be a more impressive group of fish appeared on a sunken tree that sits on the channel edge.
Approaching the cover from the downwind side, I eased up to it while fishing a 1/16-ounce jig dressed with a 2-inch soft plastic body. To this I’d added a Berkley Power Nibble. The weight of the light jig was aided by a fair-sized split shot to aid in its descent into the cover, which ran from 22 to 25 feet in depth.
The first 10 to 15 minutes did not produce a bite, but convinced the fish were there, I decided to camp out on the spot, curious to see if something would eventually happen. A few minutes later, the light rod bowed under the subtle take of a crappie. Happily, a minute later a nice 12-inch white crappie was in the boat.
During the next hour or so 10 more crappies were taken, all nice fish that ran from 11 to nearly 14 inches. It wasn’t steady action, but rather brief periods when two or three fish would bite, followed by a spell of inactivity, then another flurry. I’ve experienced this before and always wonder if the fish are turning on and off or is the cover subject to “new” fishing moving in, including some active biters.
By the time the four-hour session was over I’d caught 15 crappies and one yellow perch. Five crappies came from a different brushpile, one that always looked great but up until that outing had not been productive.
A couple days later, my friend Art Hamley joined me. The day was hot, humid, and deadeningly still. Armed with the knowledge of recent success, I headed straight to the deep wood that had produced 10 nice fish.
The sonar still showed fish, but they would not bite. We changed colors, profiles, moved to other nearby spots, but nearly two hours of effort drew a blank.
I kept returning to the original spot, confident crappies were still around, hopeful any environmental change — cloud cover, a bit of breeze — might turn them on. Finally, a big crappie inhaled the 2.5-inch Berkley Gulp Alive minnow Art was fishing. Moments later I had put a good one in the boat on a ¼-ounce blade bait.
The action wasn’t fast, but we managed a few more, all crappies in the 12- to 14-inch slot. It was a case of sticking with it, experimenting with colors, sizes and lure choices, and eventually enjoying some success.
Jeff Knapp is an outdoors columnist for the Butler Eagle
