Finding the Grail

[Fishassin]

Hello all... I just thawed out from a Sunday NIGHT on the ice and was once again hustled .  This is the third time at this lake in the past month i have not caught or marked a crappie.  I go back each time and will continue to due to the size of the crappies.  I am having a problem locating/staying with schools of crappies. Here is a lake map for your viewing enjoyment.

These are all the spots on this part of the lake I've fished this year, only the walleye and Gill spots are paying off.
The crappies are Missing in Action.  Every year around the end of February they gather north of the boat landing at the first two X's.  Its a month early and there isn't any silver cows in the area around it.  Its a soft bottom in 25- 30 FOW with no weeds about 125 yds from shore.  Fishing hours are usually from dark till 2-3am. Me and my FB (Fishing Buddy) have peppered an area the size of 2 football fields on three occasions. Obviously the fish migrate there so where are they now??? up close to shore, the middle of the lake, bottom transitions, weed beds? The portion of the lake shown is roughly 200 acres I stay mobile and drill a lot of holes, Can someone help me find the Fishy Grail?

[toadhunter2]

well if it was me and with the time of year that it is i wold be down past your gill spot on the shore line were it breaks from 5-40 ft i would start out in 15-20ft looking for a weed edge then work deeper or shallower also the 14 ft hump and i believe it was a 5foot hump down buy the deep water i would also try there until the crappie decide to feed in shallow most of the fish you will probably find will be suspended over the deeper water with weeds

[tjsnipehunter]

I agree with toadhunter2. That drop off down past the bluegill spot looks good and the hump looks great. I wouldn't be surprised if there are walleyes there too. I like areas I can drill a line of holes over a wide range of depths in a small area like that if I don't know the lake. 

Tim

[Fishassin]

If I am correct I believe you are referring to the large polygon highlighted and the 14 foot hump in the rectangle.  Where do I wanna start searching for weed edges or a weed bed? On the gradual slopes or on the steep drop offs?  I have a cam and vex so i should be able to see the weeds if I can find them. The 14ft hump looks like a good  spot

How do I wanna approach the 5ft hump?  Should I set tip ups in the 10-15 ft range and jig on the bottom or on the slopes of the hump?  The hump consists of sand, gravel and detritus, what is detritus and is it significant. should I cover as much of the hump as possible or narrow in on a certain side slash depth?

The 31 ft basin looks like a good spot to search for perch.

[tjsnipehunter]

I'd go to the areas I circled in gray, kind of a jagged circle. Maybe a little deeper then I circled on the humps. On humps or even tree piles I always like the side that faces the deepest water. I would expect crappies to be suspended next to steep edges like that. They might be in 25' but only 15' down. I'd move shallower the later it gets. Crappies will often move up as it gets darker. I'm not real great on perch, I usually catch them as a bonus when after crappies or bluegills.

I believe detritus is just organic matter on the bottom, like decaying weeds and wood. Might make it a haven for small bugs and in turn fish.

Good luck, let us know if you find any fish there. Sure looks good but it's hard to tell just from a map.

Tim

[husker]

ur lake is similar to a few ive tried .....id look for the area that the crappie spawn in and then find the closest water that is 15 to 20 ft deep...the best time that ive found to be was about 3 hours befor sunset up untill sunset and the fish are suspended 5 to 7 feet below the ice.....good luck keep us posted