Cordele Dispatch, Cordele, GA

Local Sports

February 2, 2013

Colder temperatures limit columnist's fishing for crappie

Rusty Parker Cordele Dispatch

Cordele — Usually we would now be having cool to freezing weather and the crappie would not be biting well but then things aren't normal lately.

I realize I can't depend on the weather forecast when it comes to figuring how to dress as I went fishing for crappie early one recent morning wearing only a jacket.

The prediction called for temperatures in the low 50s, but after I got on the water I wished I had worn my insulated coveralls as it felt a lot colder than that. Maybe that was because of these old bones of mine, though.

As far as the fishing went, I ended up keeping 10 really nice slabs and could have caught more but honestly couldn't stand the cold any longer.

I later ran into my good friend Sage Strickland of Fitzgerald and and his friend Jim Dennis. Crappie at the time were biting slow but about an hour after I arrived home Sage called to tell me the weather had gottten much better and so had the crappie biting.

The majority of the few slabs in my catch were caught while I was casting the U.S. 280 bridge pylons. The color the crappie liked best at the time was a R.A.G. Fly jig that has a chartruse head/pink body/chartruse tail which is commonly called the "bubble gum" color.

There, I was fishing in 14 feet of water and the slabs were deep. I then moved to an south of Lincoln Pinch and caught a few in 31 feet of water with the fish suspended at around 15 feet.  I caught those crappie while tight lining minnows.

My plans were to fish yesterday and have my 13-year-old nephew, Zack Parker, with me. He has only been fishing with me twice but is just a natural at crappie fishing. He is catching on really well with dock shooting and casting around structure. I am so proud of him.

My plans were to fish the southern end of the lake as the surface temperatures seems to be slightly higher as you go south. A recent surface temp check showed it was 54 degrees between Lincoln Pinch and Cedar Creek and it was 52-53.6 degrees around the U.S. 280 bridge.

I think we will have an earlier than usual crappie spawn because of the warmer temps.  Yes, I do think the crappie just may start the spawn around the last week of this month. That being the case, please take a kid(s) to the lake and show how much fun crappie fishing can be.

Until next time, may all your catches be large and plentiful and may God bless you all. Also, please remember to thank God for this wonderful sport of fishing. 

 

Rusty Parker is a guest outdoors columnist for this newspaper. He may be written to at P.O. Box 1058, Cordele, Ga., 31010, or contacted by e-mail at ragfly@bellsouth.net

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