When it comes to fish that are easy to catch, fun to find and plentiful, there is nothing quite like crappie and bluegill. Normally found together in lakes, you can use a lot of similar techniques to land them. In fact, with the right tips, you can even bring in as many as ten or more an hour. Let’s get started!

1. Pick the right temperature.

Crappie and bluegill tend to like weather that is a little cooler. In California, you’ll have your best results during the winter months, or whenever the temperature drops to around 55 degrees. Any colder than that and they’ll be a little harder to find, but we’ll cover where to look for them later in this article. If you are fishing on a very hot day, your luck may not be as good with crappie or bluegill, unless you know where to look.

2. Use the right bait.

By far, the best bait to use to land crappie or bluegill is live bait. Many people prefer to use live minnows since they are just about the right size for these smaller fish, and they have a lot of movement. You may also want to consider the use of lures, and jigs to further entire crappie and bluegill to take the bait. Anything lively will work, and even some spinner baits will work well in some situations.

3. Wait for spawning season.

If you really want to increase your take, wait for the spawning season when you’ll literally be tripping over crappie and bluegill. Lake management and park management officials can help you gauge when this season occurs, since it is temperature dependent instead of date based. Keep an eye on conditions and when the temps are just right, you’ll be able to catch a ton of these fish.

4. Look in the right places.

During the day, crappie and bluegill will commonly be found underneath docks, especially if it is hot out that day. These are usually shallow water fish, so if you’re in water that is deeper than eight feet, you may not have as much luck catching them. In spawning season, the crappie and bluegill will be in the shallows, and you can even see them right from shore since they will typically be in water that is only two feet deep or less.

5. Use the right gear.

These are smaller fish, so you can leave the heavy equipment at home. Forget about heavy weight test line and super duty rods, all you need is a basic line, and a rod and reel. In fact, that’s what makes fishing for crappie and bluegill so much fun. Anyone can do it, and there is very little expensive equipment to buy.

6. Have fun.

Fishing for crappie and bluegill should be fun. These little fish can be pretty feisty and even though they may not be as big as a King Salmon, you can still have plenty of fun testing your skills.

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Originally posted 2008-09-17 05:57:50. Republished by Old Post Promoter

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Bait, Bluegill, Fishing, Tips and Tricks, crappie

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