12-27-2011, 05:27 PM
According to my fish finder, strike and brownlee both, were loaded with crappie (panfish at least). I was regularly seeing massive schools of fish but just could not get them to bite. Didn't matter what I tried, or how I fished. I am pretty sure they were crappie, based upon past experience on how they show on my fish finder, and the fact that I did pick up some one or two fish out of these regular and massive schools I saw.
Also based solely upon my past 20 years of crappie fishing experience, I do not believe the numbers are down. I was still catching a lot of small crappie, and generally when the numbers are down, the crappie are larger, heavier, and there are less of them.
I had a few days on the hump where I caught 50 - 60 crappie in a few hours in September and October.
I think what is screwing up the fishing is the crazy weather we have been having. Last few years, we haven't had any spring. We go straight from winter to summer, and then right back to winter.
I've been fishing CJ for crappie for almost 40 years. It has always been hot and cold. One time I didn't fish it for 5 years. Seems every year I catch the crappie in different spots.
Two years ago, we were having days where 4 of us caught well over 1500 crappie week after week. Many years I caught hundreds each trip. But they always seem to run in cycles. And this appears to be a low cycle. I'm guessing that 2012 or 2013 will be another good year for crappie at CJ.
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Also based solely upon my past 20 years of crappie fishing experience, I do not believe the numbers are down. I was still catching a lot of small crappie, and generally when the numbers are down, the crappie are larger, heavier, and there are less of them.
I had a few days on the hump where I caught 50 - 60 crappie in a few hours in September and October.
I think what is screwing up the fishing is the crazy weather we have been having. Last few years, we haven't had any spring. We go straight from winter to summer, and then right back to winter.
I've been fishing CJ for crappie for almost 40 years. It has always been hot and cold. One time I didn't fish it for 5 years. Seems every year I catch the crappie in different spots.
Two years ago, we were having days where 4 of us caught well over 1500 crappie week after week. Many years I caught hundreds each trip. But they always seem to run in cycles. And this appears to be a low cycle. I'm guessing that 2012 or 2013 will be another good year for crappie at CJ.
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