Crappie anglers love live minnows. Historically minnows have been known as the bait of choice for catching crappie. Minnows have wiggle, they have taste and they have smell. Crappies always have and always will be attracted to those natural senses. Many a slab has come to the dinner table because it could not refuse a minnow.
So, what do you do when there are no minnows available? It may be a rare occasion, but it happens. As crappie-fishing techniques improve and as artificial baits become better, more and more anglers are tying on the imitation versions, which also have wiggle, taste and smell. More and more anglers are discovering that they work!
Crappie fishing pro Dan Dannenmueller pulls out all the stops when it comes to crappie fishing and the fact that he doesn’t have minnows is not going to stop him from catching a mess of slabs. “I love catching crappie on Bobby Garland baits,” says Dannenmueller. “Don’t get me wrong, I use minnows too, but you sure can catch crappie without them.”
Dannenmueller was in Florida for an outdoor writers camp presented by another crappie pro, Whitey Outlaw. The West Volusia Tourism Advertising Authority hosted the event in April of 2015. Base camp for the St. Johns River Writers Camp was the outstanding facilities at Hontoon Landing near Deland. The purpose of the camp was to bring product manufacturers, outdoor writers, TV hosts, Internet bloggers and professional anglers together in support of recreational fishing.
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