May is crappie time at Mark Twain Lake

Text and Photo

By MIKE ROUX

I had been fishing for about an hour just at the mouth of Little Indian Creek on Mark Twain Lake. The sun was still low, and the May morning was a bit nippy. I was looking forward to the warmth of the sun. I was also looking forward to catching a dozen or so big crappie.

The spring gobbler season had been very good to me, and I was hoping to get some crappie fillets to top off a perfect spring. Best friend and fellow gourmet Roger Lewis of Park Hills, Mo. showed me years ago how your spring table should be set.

Fried wild turkey breast, crappie fillets with fresh mushrooms and wilted lettuce chased by tart, cold lemonade is an event my taste buds appreciate every time this combination is available. The last pieces needed to achieve this goal were the crappie.

I was using a red and white tube-jig close to standing timber. Quite often this time of year, I find crappie relating closely to structure. While many other anglers are searching the shallows for spawners, I find post-spawn crappie have already moved out to the timber.

But remember, structure does not just mean timber or brush. It could be a steep dropoff or submerged ridge. Any break in the regular look of the water will attract crappie. But as anyone who frequents Indian Creek knows, structure there means standing trees. Combine this structure with a food source, and you have found your crappie.

Fishing Off The Trees

I had yet to touch a crappie that morning, fishing just off the trees themselves. A gust of wind blew my boat just slightly and caused my vertical jigging action to actually come into contact with a tree.

I got bit immediately. A nice 11-inch silver-slab found my live-well. My next attempt went right to the tree on purpose, producing the same result. The crappie had their noses right on the trunk of the tree.

I had seen fish relate to structure hundreds of times in the past. I have seen catfish refuse to leave the shade of a log. I have seen bass, at Lake Huites, Mexico, live in dead cactus.

But I had never seen crappie that would not hit a jig three inches from the tree. If my jig did not hit the tree at the right depth, I caught no fish. However, almost every time I did it right, I caught a crappie. Some were small, but I had definitely set the pattern for that day.

May For Crappie At Mark Twain

In my opinion, May is about the best time of year to nail big crappie on Mark Twain. The fish are spawn oriented and very hungry. Finding the exact depth where the fish are holding is one of the keys to success.

In the pre-spawn, you should focus your search on highly probable nesting spots, even though fish will not

See CRAPPIE page 17