Paddling to slab town

Go to Slab Town for big crappie

On nearly every body of water across the Carolinas, April ushers in what many anglers refer to as simply “Crappie Season.” In truth, crappie can be caught from a kayak year-round, but there’s something about angling for a fish that invades the shallows in droves to spawn using a boat that excels above all else in navigating shallow water that resonates with a lot of people.

The basics of crappie fishing boil down to males moving into spawning areas to find places to rear their young. This means an area with lots of cover, preferably woody structure, and suitable sand or soft clay bottom. Females will deposit eggs in several different nest areas and males will fertilize them. Water depths are typically between a foot to 10 feet deep although in clear water lakes, the fish tend to spawn deeper.

The males are nest guarders, which is why many dark colored males show up in the creels of anglers working the bank. Females will stage over deeper water and move in and out over the course of several days to deposit more eggs.

Kayak anglers are in the minority when it comes to spring crappie fishing. It seems that every boat owner from pontoons to bass boats to john boats wants a piece of the action, which is why kayaking anglers would do well to avoid the norms when crappie fishing, and concentrate on the strengths the boat offers.

Using a long jig pole to catch spawning crappie is a standard for fishing in heavy cover areas. A kayaking angler can use an 8- to 12-foot jig pole and scull around in thick backwater coves and drainages and nearly have an area to themselves due to the difficulty of access by larger watercraft.

Using the jig pole in cane pole fashion, slip up on standing and submerged timber and dip a 1/32- or 1/16-ounce crappie jig around the base of the timber. Bites are normally pretty aggressive as the nest guarders will attack the jig to get it away from their nesting area.

Follow the creek channel as far back as possible and look for ditches and intersections, the secondary routes that crappie use to traverse to the bank. Any tree, stick up, stump, or other cover on these secondary corridors should hold spawning fish.

Slow troll

The trolling motor craze that has settled over the kayaking world can also be put to good use for crappie fishing. During the pre-spawn, spawn, and even post spawn periods, anglers on major waterways across the Carolinas will see plenty of powerboats slow trolling the same 1/32- and 1/16-ounce crappie jigs along shallow water spawning grounds.

Instead of competing with powerboats on major waterways, focus on using the trolling technique on smaller, hard-to-access waters like oxbows, smaller reservoirs, and large ponds. Kayak trollers can use a rod in each hand or secure two or three rod holders on each side of the kayak, staggering lengths of rods so lines don’t cross. Trolling out the back while facing forward takes a bit of practice, but can be a great way to target larger numbers of crappie.

Forward Facing Sonar has infiltrated the entire fishing community and is even finding it’s place on plastic paddle boats. If you have made accommodations for the battery and processing unit of a forward-facing, real-time sonar unit, then by all means put it to use.

One of the emerging challenges of using forward facing sonar is larger fish getting accustomed to being individually targeted. Due to it’s smaller profile and footprint in the water, fish tend to be less spooky around kayaks, meaning kayak anglers can slip up on slab crappie, target them on the sonar screen, and entice them into the boat.

If standing to flip or cast to targeted fish, most forward facing sonar kayak anglers prefer to use a transducer pole extension so the transducer can be rotated easily without excessive stooping over and upsetting your balance.

With the tremendous amount of growth and development taking place on waterways in both Carolinas, much of the traditional spawning cover for crappie has been replaced with manmade cover, specifically boat docks.

Check boat docks

Targeting boat docks for spawning crappie from a kayak can be accomplished by simply casting or using a jig pole to dangle a bait around corners and under walkways. To get back to the most secluded areas where the majority of crappie spawn, the technique of shooting docks works well.

Shooting is a casting technique that utilizes the action of the rod to slingshot the bait beneath overhead structure. It lends itself well to the kayak. In this case, a water-level perch is an advantage. Start with a fast action spinning rod and reel suitable for the quarry you’re seeking. Shooters typically choose small, compact crappie jigs to skip across the water’s surface to reach the far recesses of the target structure.

The skipping bait closely mimics fleeing prey, and many bites will come as soon as the bait starts to sink. Leave the bail open and allow the bait to freefall through the structure, watching closely for any twitch in the line signaling a bite.

Boat positioning is critical to getting off good shots at docks or other structure. Kayaks outfitted with anchor trolleys or anchor poles can anchor upwind or upcurrent, position the kayak, and fire away.

If you are down for a more simplistic approach to crappie fishing from a kayak, preferably in a remote body of water that doesn’t have a lot of public access, working the shoreline while casting a crappie jig works well. Aggressive crappie will see the jig as it swims through the fish’s territory and nail it.

In some instances, a stop-and-go presentation works better, which is when the float and fly tactic is a good idea. To fish the float and fly, attach a small plastic bobber 18 to 20 inches above the bait. Hair jigs work well, hence the name fly, but tube jigs, stinger tails, or anything other than paddletails or curly tails work best for stop-and-go fishing.

Because the bait and float are several inches apart, anglers may find it awkward to cast the rig overhand for fear of it bolo-ing around a limb and hanging up. Try using a side arm lob cast to get the bait out there.

Retrieve the rig by making 1- to 2-foot pulls on the line, which will cause the jig to pendulum and then stop. Both actions can entice crappie to grab the bait and pull the cork under, signaling a bite.

In muddy or stained water situations, some anglers opt for floats with built in rattles. If you can’t find one of these, you can make your own by drilling a 3/16-inch hole in the cork, cutting open a No. 7 birdshot shotgun shell, and dropping a dozen or so tiny pellets into the hole. Use a drop of silicone to secure the hole and you’ve added additional attraction to your bait, as the float will rattle when pulled through the water.

Crappie may not be the most popular fish species to target from a kayak, but when these feisty and tasty fish invade the shallows, it’s hard not to go with the flow.