Temperatures have been extremely hot this year leading to hot water. Crappie take refuge wherever possible. There is no one secret way to find and catch fish on all waters, but using a drop-shot rig can help when fish get on open, mid-depth and deep water structures.
Where To Drop-Shot
Fish look for the most comfortable places they can find. They also need reduced light penetration, good oxygen levels and food to eat. Put these combinations together and you have a potential crappie hotspot.
Open water crappie beds are often small trees, stumps, stakebeds or PVC beds. Some are natural and others are placed by fishermen. No matter how they originated, when you find one at the right depth you’ll likely find crappie.
Use your electronics to look for crappie and cover. In stained water lakes, start searching at around 12 feet and look as deep as 30 feet. You’re looking for drop-offs, cover and fish. Once you learn the depth of the fish you can restrict your scanning to that depth zone.
Mark spots with a GPS unit or buoys. Mark a few spots relatively close together then fish them. You’re goal is to learn a pattern of the right depths for cover and the fish. Read more….