Tight-line trolling, long-line trolling and shooting docks will solve most prespawn problems for crappie fishermen.
March ushers in what most anglers consider to be prime crappie season, a time when the weather and the fish can have you running for the bank one day, then backing off and fishing deep water the next. Unfortunately, the same tactics and techniques don’t relate very well to those two extremes. The fisherman who can assess the situation and choose the proper approach is more likely to do some “spring cleaning” than one who expects crappie to bite the same way in the same places throughout the month.
To prepare for all that March has in store, make sure you’re versatile in your approach to spring crappie and familiar with these three main approaches.
Tight-line trolling
Crappie pro and tackle manufacturer Ed Duke of Concord has no doubt about his favorite go-to tactic during the transition to prespawn.
“Tight-lining,” said Duke, who fishes all over the Southeast. “People come into my shop and ask ‘What is the best way to catch crappie?’ Without hesitation I say tight-lining. It works all year long because it covers a lot of water and puts multiple baits right in the face of the fish.”
When tight-lining, multiple rods are deployed from the bow of the boat, with baits presented vertically below the rod tip and “pushed” in front of the boat. The advantages of tight-lining are that it allows the angler to present multiple baits — jigs, minnows, or a combination of the two— at multiple depths and allows pinpoint control to put all the baits at a precise level.
“I like to use two different baits about 2 feet apart,” Duke said. “Everything works from the front of the boat, and you fish water that the boat has not crossed, which can help with spooky fish. You can also push fairly fast when fish are aggressive or slow to a crawl or even stop and have the baits hang still.”
Typically long poles, anywhere from 10 to 16 feet, are used to keep the baits spread apart and away from the boat. This also allows the angler to fish depths from 3 to 50 feet if that’s where the fish are holding.
Duke said anglers must commit to the tactic by outfitting their boats with the proper equipment.
“You need to have the proper rods, rod holders, depth finder, trolling motor, baits and rigs,” he said. “It’s all part of an integrated system. Sure, there’s room for some personalization. Not everyone uses the same name-brand products, and not everyone agrees on the exact same baits, but the basic principle is the same and it works, time after time. I would say more crappie tournaments are won across the country using this method than any other.”
Regardless of the body of water, Duke suggests that anglers who tight-line try to work out a pattern of where the fish are located and what depth they are holding, then set one bait at that level and the other just above and begin pushing into the schools.
Long-line trolling
While tight-lining is known as pushing, the tactic of long-line trolling is known as pulling. Stokes McClellan of Huntersville is a puller. He’s well known for both his style and the number of rods he pulls.
“For the majority of the year, I’m going to long-line troll,” McClellan said. “It’s an extremely effective technique almost year-round but especially during prespawn, spawn and post-spawn.”
Like tight-lining, longlining requires the angler’s commitment, using a combined set-up of rods, rod holders and trolling motor to troll baits — typically various weights of jigs, but often tipped with live minnows.
“(My boat) is lined along the stern with trolling bars and rod holders,” said McClellan. “Each rod holder is positioned so that the tip of that specific rod is just a few inches above the surface. The rods I use are graphite jig poles. I use 12 rods at a time unless the lake I’m fishing has a different rod limit. On each side of the boat, beginning from the outboard motor, I position two 9-footers, then two 12-footers, one 14-foot rod and finally a 16-foot rod. Varying lengths allows for a better spread of baits behind the boat and helps prevent tangles.”
Deciding where to long-line troll is equally as important as deciding how deep. Get either variable wrong, and you’ll spend a lot of time just watching the scenery go by.
“Here in North Carolina, our crappie are definitely still prespawn (at) the first of March,” McClellan said. “Two of my favorite local lakes are Lake Wylie on the North Carolina/South Carolina border and High Rock, which is 50 miles northeast of Charlotte. Both of these lakes have long creek tributaries that feed into them, and crappie will be staging about half-way back.”
Many anglers make the mistake of trolling to find fish rather than finding fish first with their sonar and then setting up to troll. McClellan said there’s an additional element to consider as well.
“Before I set down to fish, I’m going to pass over the area and look for bait,” he said. “Finding fish is good, but I’m looking for bait first. The fish will be there if the bait is there and sometimes are not easy to pick out if the bait is thick.”
Fishermen don’t just wander around looking at their depth finders. In March, crappie follow a predictable pattern of moving from deep water to spawning grounds. McClellan’s tactic intercepts them along the way.
“Almost all of my trolling runs will be parallel to or over the top of a channel edge,” he said.
Channel edges, from the time the lakes were built and as they age, encompass prime crappie-holding cover and structure, including stumps, brush and breaks in the terrain. Since structure is almost a given and the presence of fish is a plus, finding bait in proposed trolling run means it’s time to set out the rods.
Shooting docks
Compared to the ying and yang of multiple-rod trolling, fishing boat docks is a method of following crappie from deep water to shallow in a space of often less than 40 yards. Mike Parrott of Charlotte said catching crappie around boat docks is a matter of finding the depth they prefer.
“Everything these fish need can be found around big boat docks: depth, food, and cover,” he said. “I think these fish even spawn under these docks. All they have to do is move from shallower to deeper as the weather dictates.”
In order to target crappie under the boats and floats that make up a large boat dock, Parrott employs the tactic of “shooting,” which refers to holding the bait — typically a small crappie jig — in one hand, while holding the line tight to the spool of an open-face spinning reel with the other.
“You need a sensitive, ultralight rod to shoot a jig way up under boats that are moored at the docks. It takes a bit of practice,” said Parrott. “You bend the rod over and hold the jig between your thumb and forefinger under the reel. Release the jig and simultaneously release the line, which sling-shots the bait forward, parallel to the water, causing it to skip up under the boat or dock or whatever you’re shooting at.”
Prespawn crappie fishing often means a very light bite, so Parrott fishes with 4-pound line and a 1/64-ounce jig. Allowing the jig to free fall after the shot, he intently watches the line for the slightest tick, movement or simply piling up on the surface, indicating a fish has inhaled the jig.
“Using 4-pound test is a must, because the water is usually gin clear because the algae hasn’t come in yet,” Parrott said. “I try to get the jig deep into the corner of a slip and it free-fall back in the deepest corners of the dock stalls. Most of the time I never even feel the bite, because crappie gently suck in the bait and don’t move. My first indication of a bite is either a slight tick in the line or it starts to pile up at the surface.”
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