Fall is prime time to catch big numbers of slab crappies and prepare for ice fishing in the process. It’s easy, too. Armed with a few basic tenets of autumn fish location and behavior, you can score great catches now while laying a solid foundation for hard-water success. Crappie Location: In many northern systems, crappies often keep to their summer ways throughout September. But the first cold fronts of October typically push the fish away from near-shore weedlines into deeper water. “On small lakes, look for the deepest water available,” says legendary iceman and longtime Lindy pro Dave Genz. “Other areas that can hold fish include narrows between sunken islands and shore, and inside turns where deep water cuts into a flat.”
On large lakes, Genz often targets north-end bays, where the water tends to be warmest. “Cold northwest winds pile cool surface water on the south and southeast sides of the lake, while warm undercurrents circulate back to the north,” he explains.
I’ll add that on some of my home waters in central-Minnesota, the October bite starts along points tapering off from weedlines into deep water. Fifteen to 25 feet is a good range to search. As fall progresses, the fish school in deeper water, gravitating to depths of 30 feet or deeper about 200 yards from the point. However, in one particularly shallow, bathtub-like basin lake that produces monster catches at first and last ice, “deep” is relative and I’ve enjoyed fantastic fishing in 6 feet of water. Keep in mind the lake maxes out at 7. The key in shallow featureless waters like this is often finding areas where large crappies waylay baitfish migrating out of shallower marshes. Read the rest of the informative article at Lindy here…..
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