Coupla beasts!

I thought the third picture was going to be Tim in a bikini based on the first two pics...I was afraid to scroll down 🤣

 

Awesome fish Tim, congrats!  Nice to see your hard work pay off.  

2 hours ago, T-Billy said:

And... it's a 44" hat trick. Third one in a row. What are the odds? This girl was the best of the bunch. Super thick for this time of year, and a massive head. 

Followed up about an hour later by this 40" off the same big laydown. 

I think the 40" wanted to be friends. When it kicked out of my hand, it swam in a circle and just sat there looking at me for a minute before taking off. 

Also hauled a couple dozen small LM on a chatterbait before the lights came on. T'was a good morning. 

Dude !

Nicely done.

It's not like you didn't earned those mutants or anything.

😎

Knew it was only a matter of time.

Congrats Brother

A-Jay

 

Thanks fellas. Both fish came on fresh meat. Those fish are still unbelievably locked in on crappie. My buddy that's lived at, and muskie fished the lake for 40 years hasn't raised a fish on an artificial for a week. He hasn't caught one on an artificial in two weeks. He's retired and fishes five or six days a week.

I had two follows on a muskie killer last week, but couldn't get 'em to commit. They completely ignored everything else I've thrown lately. The fish are just cruising the big laydowns eating crappie. I imagine they're getting lots of easy meals from injured dinks that get thrown back. I've seen quite a few dead crappie floating the last couple weeks.

 I think this deal's about over though. The crappie are spawned out, and they've completely left the shallow trees I was catching my bait on last week. Only the big trees on steep banks are still holding fish.

My wife is gonna go with me tomorrow. The lake will be super busy, so we'll get there a little before first light, get a half dozen crappie for bait, and camp out all morning on the point I caught today's fish on. It has several large trees on it, and it's a channel swing bank.

 I'm really happy with my homemade quick strike rigs. I've boated 5 of 6 skis hooked on 'em, and they've all been hooked in the corner of the mouth. Good deal for both me and the fish.

22 minutes ago, T-Billy said:

Good deal for both me and the fish.

Quick strike rigs saved a lot of muskies. Before those things came along, people would basically use a single big hook in the the back of whatever live bait (usually a sucker), wait for the muskie to take, wait 5 minutes until they swallowed it, and then set the hook in the fish’s throat. Whole lotta dead fish doing that and studies proved it.

 

I personally don’t use live bait anymore for them because a big sucker costed me 15 bucks each the last time I did it way back in 2015 (they are probably double that now). You buy 4 or 5 of them and you’re over 50 bucks deep, with only a one time use bait/lure. Crappies, bluegills, perch, etc are not legal to use here either. How big of a crappie are you using? Like a 3 pounder, @Team9nine style? 😂

20 minutes ago, gimruis said:

How big of a crappie are you using?

6"-8" is perfect. Too much room for them to miss the hooks with bigger crappie using my rig. 

 I made my rigs with three pieces of 90# coated 7 strand. Swivel at the top, all three wires connected to a 150# welded ring to form a Y, and a 4x strong 1/0 mustad treble through the nostrils, and a 2/0 version skin hooked just below the dorsal. 3oz egg sinker to keep the crappie down where I want 'em.

I'll be on this deal early next year. As soon as the A-rig bite shuts down, I'll be soaking crappie, while casting baits. It's got to the point here lately where I'm only casting baits occasionally out of boredom. Mostly just sitting in my Bill Dance chair, sipping coffee, keeping the baits close to the trees, and waiting to hear a clicker go off. 😂

 Here in OH it's legal to use any fish that doesn't have a size or creel limit for bait. We don't have  statewide limits on crappie, just lake specific ones, so it's legal to use them on some lakes but not others.

Still finding a few nice crappie here and there. For a post spawn fish, this 1.7 lb. girl was in great looking shape, the best of around 10 or so today.

 

 

27 minutes ago, Team9nine said:

For a post spawn fish, this 1.7 lb. girl

Well, speak of the devil

3 hours ago, T-Billy said:

 Here in OH it's legal to use any fish that doesn't have a size or creel limit for bait. We don't have  statewide limits on crappie, just lake specific ones, so it's legal to use them on some lakes but not others.

For finned bait - all we can use in MN is minnows - no panfish, no cut-up bullheads, no cut-up carp....just minnows.

Caught a couple rock bass the other day while picnicing alongside the river with the wife and kid. Putting them here because @gimruis thinks they aren't worthy of the regular latest catch pics thread. (I guess I kinda agree.) Also caught a bluegill today. 

 

 

 

42 minutes ago, IcatchDinks said:

Putting them here because @gimruis thinks they aren't worthy of the regular latest catch pics thread. (I guess I kinda agree.)

Lets put it this way. If I catch one, no chance I’m taking a photo unless it’s a new state record.

Night fishin off the dock. Scored a green sunfish for catfish bait, hopefully post a catfish tonight or in the morning 

5 hours ago, MN Fisher said:

For finned bait - all we can use in MN is minnows - no panfish, no cut-up bullheads, no cut-up carp....just minnows.

That's ridiculous given the rate at which panfish reproduce, and carp are invasive. 

Went to the lake with my bride this morning, and she showed me how it's done. She went four for four putting them in the net with the quick strike rig. She was on a roll, 35, 38.5, 36, 37. Right at the top of each hour. It was impressive watching her pull that off. I have no idea how she did it, but each bite was within 5 min of the top of the hour. Atta girl Tammy!!! 😂

Best fishing buddy I could ever ask for. ❤️

 

 

                                                

I guess it was take your wife fishing day , she got a 30” carp that weighed 12.6 lbs with her 5 wt fly rod and a popping bug. They are still cruising around slurping cicadas 

then we took a long boat ride up toward the next dam and saw a domestic duck of all things, pretty backdrop. 

 

Then on our way back home we stopped to eat at the marina and a band was playing, they were pretty awesome 

 

Then, when we pulled back up to the dock, the Catfish line was bent and I got a decent little blue cat with a bluegill for bait. Fillets in the fridge!!!

 

@TnRiver46 those carp on a fly rod sounds like a bunch of fun. When I was a kid. we had a cicada hatch, and a couple friends and I had a ball catching them with our zebco combos by hooking the bugs on an unweighted hook and drifting the shallows in my gramps canoe.

I (Bass) fished from 2 to 6 last night.  I saw a big fish chasing Bluegill on sonar.  To bad it was a 15 pound Flathead, instead of a 15 pound Bass.   I enjoy Flatheads.  They're fighters.  Blues give up and just let you drag them to the boat.  

 

 

 

9 minutes ago, Woody B said:

Blues give up and just let you drag them to the boat.  

 

That's not true at all where I fish. I've had some fight as good or better than bass their size.

 

I think the shape of lure and how they're hooked have a lot to do with how they fight, or how much resistance you feel. I very rarely fish for catfish, but I've caught quite a few fishing for bass. A lot of the ones I've caught recently have done that spinning thing when reeling them in, and I thought that was just something they do, but now I'm starting to think that's related to the lure too. I think they spin when a lure is long enough that they get hooked on both sides of the mouth. The line tie is then off to one side of the mouth, causing them to spin.

Caught my first ever crappie. I think this is black crappie? I did not know this pond held crappie, so even though it's little, it was a fun surprise. 

 

I'm coming for your crown, @Team9nine

 

 

9 minutes ago, IcatchDinks said:

I think this is black crappie?

Yep - that's a black crappie...nice catch.

5 hours ago, T-Billy said:

@TnRiver46 those carp on a fly rod sounds like a bunch of fun. When I was a kid. we had a cicada hatch, and a couple friends and I had a ball catching them with our zebco combos by hooking the bugs on an unweighted hook and drifting the shallows in my gramps canoe.

I got a nice LM doing they when they first started hatching, minus the zebco. I cast them sometimes and they just fly with my hook 😂 

8 hours ago, IcatchDinks said:

Caught my first ever crappie. I think this is black crappie? I did not know this pond held crappie, so even though it's little, it was a fun surprise. 

 

I'm coming for your crown, @Team9nine

 

 

 

Congrats on the first!   Here's a White for comparison -- notice the vertical barring of spots on the sides, while your Black Crappie's spots are evenly scattered:

 

Not a foolproof distinction, but pretty reliable as a rule-of-thumb.  Dorsal fin spines should be counted to be sure -- blacks have 7-8, whites have 5-6.  I tend to find more white crappies in the river systems here and more black crappies in the lakes and ponds.

@MIbassyaker, thanks! I counted the dorsal spines but wasn't sure I was doing it right. 

Forgot to add my catfish video