| Most people put their fishing gear away as the | | | | Midwinter is the time of year when the weeds die |
| cold weather of winter approaches. This is really | | | | off and the crappie will move to deeper water, |
| too bad since winter can be a great time to get | | | | generally, out in the main basin or river channel of |
| out there on your favorite body of water and | | | | the lake or body of water that you will be fishing |
| catch those "slabs." | | | | on. Locating crappie during the midwinter months |
| During early and late winter look shallow for | | | | can be a bit more difficult. A good depth finder is |
| crappie. Target the shallow bays, coves, and | | | | essential and will make locating crappie much |
| channels with cover such as weeds, brush piles, | | | | easier. Look for breaks, drop offs, ledges, and |
| stumps, etc, in 3 to 8 feet of water using small | | | | humps over a soft bottom. Crappie tend to hold |
| jigs tipped with minnows or waxworms on light | | | | over soft bottom areas. Target depths of 12 to |
| line in the 2 to 4 pound test range. If you don't | | | | 20 feet in these areas. Use jigs tipped with |
| catch a fish within 15 to 30 minutes move to a | | | | minnows or waxworms on light line and fish along |
| different location. Keep moving until you catch a | | | | the edges of the breaks and drop offs and just |
| fish. If you catch one, more than likely there will | | | | above the humps. Once again keep moving and |
| be more crappie hanging out in the same area. | | | | trying different locations until you catch fish. |