Cold Weather Crappie

Cold weather doesn't mean the end to great crappie fishing. With a little effort and some secret tactics, you can find those crappie even in cold water.

Well, maybe not so secret. But certainly over looked tactics and tricks. One key to success is finding the crappie. In colder months the fish are likely to be found in fairly deep water. Try to find promising structure near or in creek channels or large drop-offs. The fish are normally suspended in winter. Not in really in deep water, but not shallow either. The cold water crappie will be near drop-offs, sometimes moving in to feed near the stumps and brush.These suspended crappie will maintain the same depth for most of the day in key locations on the lake or pond.

Stick to 4lb test if the water is cold and clear, and 6lb test if the water is stained or murky. Try a small spoon and set a depth, then drop your spoon to that depth and raise and lower the spoon by lifting and lowering your rod without cranking the reel. I fish like this over or near structure and I've often found this method to be deadly on cold weather crappie.

Also equally productive at times are jigs. Try a 1/8 ounce jig head and a small curly tail grub. Chartreuse, cream, yellow and white seem to be productive colors to use for cold water crappie. Fish the white or cream if the water is clear, and chartreuse or yellow if the water is murky. Tie the hook on with an improved clinch knot and make sure the knot is on the eye so that the jig and grub float parallel to the waters surface. When fished it should mimic a minnow hanging in the water.

Try to find the depth that the crappie are suspended, and fish just a hair above that depth. If the fish are suspended at 12 feet, fish between 11 and 11.5 feet. One secret of cold weather crappie fishing is that crappie, for the most part, will move up to take the bait, but rarely move down.

Usually the best time to fish for crappie in cold water is mid day, between 11am and 4pm. There are times that you can catch them till dark, but this is rare. Another secret is that crappie do not bite too well when there is no wind. A gentle breeze is good, but a strong wind makes it difficult to fish a jig.