Rouse Outdoors
Check out our social media
  • Home
  • Videos
  • News
  • Resources
    • Heated docks in Kansas
  • Contact Us
  • Partner Sites
  • Chatroom
  • Photos
    • Hunting Photos
    • Fishing Photos
    • Weather Photos
    • Scenery Photos

Crankbaits can be hot for crappie fishing in June

6/15/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
Photographs by Brendan Handy, Josh Rouse
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON CJONLINE
With the mercury expected to rise into the triple digits this weekend and hover in the upper 90s for some time, fishing at this time of the year isn’t for the faint of heart.
​
However, for those who can stand the heat, it can be a productive time of the year for crappie and bass.
Picture
With the mercury expected to rise into the triple digits this weekend and hover in the upper 90s for some time, fishing at this time of the year isn’t for the faint of heart.
​
However, for those who can stand the heat, it can be a productive time of the year for crappie and bass.
In the early summer, one method of crappie angling that can work particularly well is throwing or trolling crankbaits. Crappie and bass are predatory fish and become more aggressive as the temperature rises.

During the spring months, crappie can be found bunched tightly together near brush piles and other structure that they can relate to. But during the summer, they spread out more, so slow-trolling small cranks in 10-20 feet of water can help anglers cover a lot of water from the boat. Crappie will typically be suspending near dropoffs rather than sitting on the bottom, which also makes crankbaits efficient as they come in different running depths that can make targeting suspending fish easier.

Another plus to crankbaits is that you don’t need a hard hookset to hook a fish, which is good as crappie are notorious for having paper-thin mouths. Most of the time, the hook will set during the strike while you’re retrieving and you can just keep reeling while keeping pressure on the fish.

It can be effective for bank anglers, as well, as my fishing buddy Brendan Handy and I noted during a recent fishing trip on a hot, humid day that had us both drenched in sweat. Brendan got to the spot about 45 minutes before me, and when I arrived he’d already caught three crappie on a small Rapala BX Brat crankbait tossed from the dock — one of which was an absolute bruiser.

I started the day throwing soft plastics for bass and transitioned to live worms under a bobber as a bunch of nice channel cats and bluegills came in to surface feed, but I put a Storm Arashi Square crankbait with a 3-foot running depth on my baitcaster as it got dark and tossed it out while watching my bobber on the other pole. My thought was that I might get a bite from one of the big catfish by slowly retrieving it, and after about 10 casts I felt a solid hit on the line.

At first, I thought it was a largemouth by the way it hit the bait, but as I fought it through the shallows I saw the light reflecting off its side and knew it was a nice crappie.

I pulled the 12-inch slab onto the dock and threw it on the stringer with some good-sized bull bluegills I had caught for dinner. They were a nice little treat, but paled in comparison to the delicious saugeye I had cooked a few days prior. I had caught that fish, a mix between a walleye and sauger, back in September and froze it in a Ziploc bag filled halfway with water. To my surprise, the nine-month-old frozen saugeye tasted 10 times better than the fresh crappie and bluegill. They say cold-water fish tastes better, and now I believe it.

As a side note, be sure to stay hydrated and wear light-colored clothing if you’re out fishing in this heat, and pay attention to the heat index. It may only be 87 degrees out in the morning, but the humidity and direct sunlight can make it feel like 97. Wear sunscreen and sunglasses, as well, as the sunshine coming off the water only intensifies the amount of UV light hitting your skin and eyes.
Picture
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Picture

    Author

    Josh Rouse is an outdoor enthusiast from Topeka, Kansas. He is the Outdoors Editor for The Topeka Capital-Journal.

    View my profile on LinkedIn

    Archives

    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    August 2016
    May 2016
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    March 2015
    October 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    February 2014
    August 2013
    April 2012
    January 2012
    November 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011

    Categories

    All
    Abu Garcia
    Alabama
    Alaska
    All American Catfish Tournaments
    All-American Catfish Tournaments
    Angler Feature
    Apps
    Aqua Vu
    Aqua-Vu
    Arbogast
    Archery
    Arkansas
    ATVs
    Audubon Society
    Backlashers Bass Club
    Badger
    Bald Eagles
    Barbel
    Bass
    Bassmaster
    Bass Pro Shops
    Bear
    Benelli
    Berkley
    Big Bucks
    Big Cats
    Big Game
    Big Horned Sheep
    Big-horned Sheep
    Bird Watching
    Bison
    Boar
    Boating
    Books
    Booyah
    Bosnia
    Bow Fishing
    Bow Hunting
    B&P Jighead
    Brandon Palaniuk
    Browning
    Bullfrogs
    Burbot
    Business
    Buzzbaits
    Cabela's
    Calendar
    California
    Camping
    Canada
    CarbonTV
    Carp
    Catfish
    Catfish Chasers
    Catfish Weekly
    Chubs
    College Fishing
    Colorado
    Connecticut
    Conservation
    Cougars
    Country Stampede
    Coyotes
    Cranes
    Crankbaits
    Crappie
    Crappie Masters
    Creeks
    Critters
    Culprit
    Cycling
    Daiwa
    Deer
    Dogs
    Doug Vahrenberg
    Doves
    Drum
    Ducks
    Ducks Unlimited
    Eagle Claw
    Education
    Elk
    Environment
    Europe
    Fall
    Fireworks
    Fishing
    Fishing's Future
    Fish Stories
    FleFly
    Fle Fly
    Fle-Fly
    Flint Hills Bass Association
    Florida
    FLW
    Fly Fishing
    Frogs
    Fur Harvesting
    Gander Mountain
    Gar
    Geese
    Georgia
    Government
    Great Plains Nature Center
    Grilling
    Gulf Of Mexico
    Guns
    Hawaii
    Health
    Heartland Bowhunter
    Heddon
    Henry Repeating Arms
    Heroes On The Water
    Hiking
    Humminbird
    Humor
    Hunters For Life
    Hunting
    Hunting Shows
    ICAST
    Ice Fishing
    Idaho
    Illinois
    In Fisherman
    In-Fisherman
    Insects
    Instagram
    Invasive Species
    Iowa
    Jackson Kayaks
    Joey Nania
    Kansas
    Kansas Crappie Club
    Kansas Crappie Trail
    Kansas Herpetological Society
    Kansas Wetlands Education Center
    Kayaking
    Kentucky Lake
    K State
    K-State
    Lake Of The Ozarks
    Lakes
    Lake Trout
    Lake Wheeler
    Lazy Ikes
    Lightning Photos
    Little Cleos
    Louisiana
    Lure Lock
    Lures
    Mackerel
    Mahi Mahi
    Mahi-Mahi
    Marcum
    Maryland
    Melvern Reservoir
    Memories
    Michigan
    Micro Fishing
    Micro-fishing
    Midwest Finesse
    Milford Nature Center
    Milford Reservoir
    Mille Lacs
    Minnesota
    Mississippi
    Missouri
    Montana
    Moose
    Mountain Lions
    Mr. Crappie
    Mushrooms
    Music
    Muskie
    Muzzleloaders
    Nace
    National Park Service
    Nature
    Nebraska
    Ned Kehde
    Ned Rig
    Neko Rig
    Nevada
    New Jersey
    News
    Newspapers
    New York
    Night Fishing
    Noodling
    North Carolina
    North Dakota
    Northern Pike
    NRA
    NWTF
    Ohio
    Oklahoma
    Old Reel Collectors Association
    Oregon
    Paddlefish
    Panfish
    Pennsylvania
    Pflueger
    Pheasants
    Pheasants Forever
    Pond Management
    Ponds
    Prairie Chickens
    Predators
    Pro Cure
    Pro-Cure
    Published
    Q&A
    Quail
    Quail Forever
    QUWF
    Rage Tail
    Ranger
    Rapala
    Reading
    Rebel Lures
    Records
    Redfish
    Reviews
    Rivers
    Roach
    Rose Kuli
    Safaris
    Safety
    Salmon
    Saltwater Fishing
    Sauger
    Saugeye
    Sharks
    Shimano
    Shotguns
    Slovenia
    Smallmouth Buffalo
    Smelt
    Snakes
    Snapper
    South Africa
    South America
    South Carolina
    South Dakota
    Species Feature
    Spiderwire
    Spring
    Spring Turkey
    SPRO
    Storm Lures
    Storms
    Sturgeon
    Sufix
    Summer
    Summertime
    Sutherlands
    Sweetwater TV
    Table Rock Lake
    Tackle
    Taxidermy
    Tennessee
    Terminator
    Texas
    Tightlines UV
    Toledo Bend
    Topeka
    Top Secret Jig Co.
    Topwater
    Tornado
    Tournament Fishing
    Trail Camera
    Trapping
    Trapshooting
    Trent Siegle
    Trilene
    Trout
    TTG Lures
    Turkey
    United States
    Upland Birds
    Varmint
    Veterans
    Vibe Kayaks
    Vibric
    Video Games
    Vintage Lures
    Virginia
    VMC
    Walleye
    Washburn
    Washburn Review
    Washington State
    Waterfowl
    Weather
    Westar Energy
    Westin Fishing
    West Virginia
    Wetlands
    White Bass
    Wild Game
    WILD Kansas
    Wilson Lake
    Winter
    Wiper
    Wisconsin
    Wyoming
    Yakima
    Youth
    YouTube
    YO ZURI
    YO-ZURI
    Zebco
    Z Man
    Z-Man
    Zoom

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly