Late Season Crappies

This ice season, as some of you dudes know I’ve lamented about the overall poor crappie bite on the St. Croix. I do have my fingers crossed for a late season break out where its bam bam bam!!! The Bayport area can be like that and big fish as well! So my fingers are crossed and cross yours as well.

Locations. Nothing exotic, just the Bayport area. I like the deep edge in front of the Bayport Beach, as well as the Big Point on the Wisconsin side. the standard techniques work and crappie minnows will suffice.

Good luck gang, I hope to report on a great bite soon…

Keep Catchin’
Turk

Turk,
who are the crazy so and so’s ice-fishing just off the open water in front of Beanie’s?
Yesterday there were people ice-fishing and a boat in the open water. they didn’t look like they were that far apart. must be a good bite going on…. for them to risk their lives.

I saw them out there too… a whole clump of people… in fact from the bridge they were so clumped at first I thought they were geese!… they better HOPE they ARE geese if that ice goes…. gave me the creeps just looking at a disaster waiting to happen.. thin ice, current and warm day… combined with lots of people on the ice? one of these days… there is going to be trouble….. its just too unsafe! as someone who has went cold water swiming twice while ice fishing…. and having a friend almost die from hypothermia from the same thing…. Ive been forced to conclude that even though you will get away with it almost everytime… sooner or later you wont…. and its not worth it…. the worst thing that happens is that the more you get away with it the “dumber” you get!!… and you keep pushing it…. till one day…. *oops*

Steve OOOOOOOOOOOO,

Ya I hear you, it looked like about six fisherman were out and one boat as you said…

The bayport area has been a ghost town making stealth fishing possible.

Yesterday we did well on saugers and caught some nice 16 -17 inch ers from the Croix, and captured some of these keepers on the digital camera. The nice thing is the fish bit in the day as well! Rattle spoons jigged and jig and bobbers both with a fathead in 24 to 32 feet. Sturgeon also are active, and are incidental catches (and out of season).
Keep catchin’
Turk

That’s just Darwinism… The big boss gives his flock opportunities like that and many others – like nightclubs featuring bands using pyrotechnics – just to thin the herd.
Heck, what am I talking about – I ride motorcycles!

A friend of mine was in that club! He made it out though.

I actually know Great White.

Regarding the guys on the river below the bridge, those are a couple wacky buddies of mine. They have been getting saugers and walleyes down there as of late. When I drove across yesterday, one clam was no more than 10′ from the ice edge.

Good crappie bite @ bass for those interested. 12-16′ on the weed edge.

mike T

Mike T, I like that fish you’re holding in your pic! Did your friends/acqauintances happen to mention the thickness of the ice when they were on it? That is such a DANGEROUS SPOT!!! I hope we never have to read about them in the papers.

Mike T. , what’s the best time of day for the Crappies on Bass…? That sounds like a nice tip. Those crappies can be decent size at times..!

Yo Pup~

nice one eh? If your a hudson guy, I think you probably know the guys out there. Last I heard, they were on at least 8″ out that close. Not for me……

On the crappies @ bass, we got some last weekend early, really early. traditionally I like to hit them @ 4pm and stay till at least an hour past dark. Generally @ bass, I try to either find pockets in the weeds in the 12-15′ range or the weed edge itself at the same depths. there are gazillions of 12-16″ pike in there right now so you’ll be re-tying often, they love crappie minnows. State park lake has been fishing good as well, lots of crappies but smaller in size on average.

miket

As an old Harley dude myself, I submit that pyrotechnics may well take a backseat to the motorcycle in its proclivity to thin the herd!:)
Jack