Monday, November 5, 2012

Fall Pond Hoppin for Crappie


 Well as much as I would like to ignore it, winter is on its way. I turn my sights to crappie often this time of year because they are active and closer to shore then the summer months in our local small ponds and lakes.
I call Bob (aka Brim on Dupage Angler.com) and we meet just as the sun is popping up. It is cold now so we are both bundled. Funny thing is 2 months from now we will think of this as a warm day. Not a good day for me to forget my dip net for my minnows. At our first pond the water is freezing in the minnow bucket, I bait as fast I can, dry my hand, back in to my gloves, and into my pocket were a warm hand warmer is waiting. (LOVE HAND WARMERS). My Thill disappears and after a short fight the first of what would be several nice gills appears.

 Brim sets his hook and has a funny look on his face. I look down and think he has a nice crappie but what I see is a beautiful dinner plate gill on the end of his line!! He said it may be one of the biggest he has ever caught.

We catch a some nice gills and some bonus bass in a flash. The bite died and the crappies are just not around here today. So we decide to move to another pond.







The second location was a small spillway that connects two ponds. The problem was that its had no flow. Bummer. No flow means no crappies here. Off to pond number 3. Pond number 3 is not the honey hole it use to be, poachers made sure of that. (Don't keep pond fish people. The damage caused by keeping fish is easy to do and takes years to reverse.) This pond is known for its summer weeds, the problem is the weeds didn't know to leave yet. Off to pond number 4. JACK POT!! Our floats disappear every minute or so crappies and gills are reeled in left and right. I am using Thill waggler floats, one rod with a ice jig/minnow combo and the other with a hook/minnow combo. Brim is using a small thill mini stealth float, ice jigs, and waxies. We must of caught 30 each. I even got a bonus carp that thought he was a gill to end a great day of fall pond hopping for crappie.

















1 comment:

  1. Keep looking at Bob's(Brim) huge gill we should have taken more pics of it.this one does not do it justice.

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