Just a few miles from my town there is a pay lake that is very heavily fished over the past few years. But last year sometime the owner went and cleared almost all of the structure from the banks. 

It was easy to target crappie during the spawn before this. A lot of people have just quit going over this which i think is crazy. How would you approach fishing this lake? The fish are there but the structure has been removed. 

He probably pulled the structure because people were complaining about getting snagged!

I'd drift fish across the lake with minnows before they spawn and find some shallow vegetation to fish during the spawn.Here in Florida they usually bed in lily pads or along grass beds.And you can actually smell them when they bed.It smells somewhat like a dead fish but not as strong.

Maybe some drop shotting?

The fact that fewer people are going seems like a good thing.

I'd drag along the bottom and mid-range.We used to do that in winter before the spawn.Probably caught more dragging the bottom but they suspend sometimes also.Also we fish brushpiles with roostertails and do well.

the fact is i know this location has a lot of fish. Me and my dad were there during the spawn a couple years ago and caught 55 crappie in a few hours. No doubt that the fish are there. and the fact that people have stopped fishing it solely just on that structure reasoning blows my mind. 

10 minutes ago, LittlePineyAngler said:

the fact is i know this location has a lot of fish. Me and my dad were there during the spawn a couple years ago and caught 55 crappie in a few hours. No doubt that the fish are there. and the fact that people have stopped fishing it solely just on that structure reasoning blows my mind. 

I'm not sure why it blows your mind. It's pretty common for people to fish what they know, and avoid the rest. Meaning if you walk up to a pond and notice structure (wood, lily pads, tires etc) you are probably going to fish that first. If you take that away, you are fishing blind and having to basically fan cast and move around to locate what the fish are relating too. On a crowded pay lake that can be difficult. 

Look at it as less people in your way and new learning opportunities for you.

Well, you can´t pull up STRUCTURE, you can pull out cover but structure, nah, I don´t think you can.

4 minutes ago, Raul said:

Well, you can´t pull up STRUCTURE, you can pull out cover but structure, nah, I don´t think you can.

sorry you couldnt read between the lines. "COVER" guys.. cover is what i was referring to. 

12 minutes ago, gardnerjigman said:

I'm not sure why it blows your mind. It's pretty common for people to fish what they know, and avoid the rest. Meaning if you walk up to a pond and notice structure (wood, lily pads, tires etc) you are probably going to fish that first. If you take that away, you are fishing blind and having to basically fan cast and move around to locate what the fish are relating too. On a crowded pay lake that can be difficult. 

Look at it as less people in your way and new learning opportunities for you.

I have a few buddies who also fish this place an they are more who im referring to. knowing fish are there thats why it blows my mind they are done with the place

but definitely good for me 

When the owner isn't looking you can find a dead log along the shoreline and create your own cover/structure by tossing that into the water.

What did the owner do with the cover?  Did he pile it off to the side on the shore, or move it out farther into the lake?

they pulled it out and got rid of it completely 

If I understand your question correctly, the cover has been removed which makes it difficult for bank anglers to pick out locations to fish based on what they see above the water.  You mention that it was easy to target crappie during the spawn when the cover was there.  The crappie should still move shallow during the spawn so that eliminates some water for you. Maybe their ability to hide from predators has been compromised but they should still be there.  

I don't know how big this lake is, but it is possible that the removal of the cover in that area has made another structure in the lake more desirable to the fish and you may have to find that new structure.  As Raul stated, the structure used by the fish is still there.  And you stated that the fish are still there, so you just need to locate the structure they are using.  Casting a carolina rig, counting it down, and dragging it along the bottom is a tried and true method for getting an idea of what structure lies under the water.  It takes time but you can learn the bottom fairly well using that method.  There are portable and castable fish/depth finders that can be used as well.  Once you know the bottom, apply your knowledge of bass behavior and movements during the different seasons to determine likely holding places for fish.  

A pay lake in central MO?  Which one are you talking about.  Go ahead and name it, most of use don't feel like driving that far.  

You pay to fish for spawning crappie?

Whoa, thought I logged into www.crappieresource.com for a minute 

On February 2, 2016 at 0:41 PM, LittlePineyAngler said:

But last year sometime the owner went and cleared almost all of the structure from the banks. 

The fish are there but the structure has been removed. 

Uh! Excuse me but unless he took a bulldozer & leveled the bank he did not remove "structure"!

He removed "cover", structure is the shape of the bottom of a body of water.

its cardins lake in dixon missouri. You pay 3 dollars per vehicle. 

This is a bit off the subject, but Dixon is just a few miles north of the 20 mile special smallmouth management area on the Gasconade River.  If I were in that area I know where I would be spending most of my fishing time. 

On 2/4/2016 at 0:24 PM, LittlePineyAngler said:

its cardins lake in dixon missouri. You pay 3 dollars per vehicle. 

That makes way more sense. $3 is cheaper than most ramp fees haha. We might have to start calling everything a pay lake.

 

I bet you can find someplace with more crappie than that. Just do some exploring when they are on the beds.