Summer Crappie Fishing on Lake Martin

           One of our local guides reported to me this week that he has had his best luck from daylight until the sun is up real good.  He is fishing humps closest to the river channel using crank baits and primarily a Chug Bug.  He reports that the bait fish are moving up into the creeks.  So as the morning progressed, he moved up into the main river run and into the mouths of the creeks.  He is also having luck fishing finesse worms on brush piles. 

            I also got a report from Ricky Albright who was doing some fishing with Mac Barnes this past weekend.  Just chunking a finesse worm, Dr. Barnes caught a nice spotted bass on his second cast.  Ricky said that was a good start on breakfast!  They also enjoyed some night fishing using Spot Tail minnows.  Ricky and I were both rooting for Dr. Barnes to catch a good one.   I’d just like to say Dr. Barnes is “almost” as good a fisherman as he is a doctor, and that’s saying a lot!

            Just a word on summer crappie fishing on Lake Martin.  Crappie are school fish, and can really be caught in any number of ways, still fishing, casting, trolling or drifting.  They love cover, so locate brush, stumps or artificial cover at appropriate depths and you are likely to find crappie.  At dawn you may find them close to the surface.  As the sun hits the water they drop to 10 or 15 feet depending on our Lake Martin clear water.  As the sun gets higher in the sky they may retreat to deeper water, 25 feet or more.  As the sun goes down they will move back up to the shallows and finish the day at the surface.  Typically they return to deeper water to feed during the night. They tend to live around bridge pilings so a good way to catch a big mess of crappie is to tie up at a bridge and hang out a light.  This will draw minnows and it’s like a neon light advertising food to a hungry traveler.  Also, if you are lucky enough to have a dock with deep water (definitely a luxury on this lake right now) and a light that comes on every night, they are standing by ready and waiting.  Fish with live minnows at about 15 to 20 feet and you are sure to catch your fill of crappie.

            You can contact me by email at dduck821@windstream.net with your latest best fishing story or any hints you would like to pass along.  I would also love to get photos of your biggest catches.  You can also call me at 334-857-3733 or 334-391-7885.  Together we’ll fish Lake Martin bringing in those big catches and telling even bigger stories! 

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