Crappie fishing is incredibly popular throughout the country, with crappie season being the favorite time of the year for many anglers. There are a few reasons crappie fishing is so popular, including plenty of freshwater locations in most parts of the country and the fact that there are so many methods you can use to catch them!
There are fewer fish more fun to reel in than crappie. You can use any combination of tackle for the job, while crappie can be caught from various locations, from the end of a dock to trolling in the water with a boat.
What Bait Do You Use To Catch Crappie?
The good news is that there are plenty of options for crappie bait, which is another big reason they’re so popular to catch! So, next time you’re preparing for crappie season, be sure to consider using some of the following baits:
Live Bait
Anyone crappie fishing without trying live bait is only shooting themselves in the foot! Live bait is without a doubt the best bait for catching crappie, with all kinds of options available including worms, crustaceans, and inspections – pretty much anything that crappie eat in their natural habitat!
However, there is one type of live bait that is king for crappie fishing – the humble minnow.
Crappie absolutely love minnows, making it easily the best choice for bait. Ask any experienced angler and most will recommend live minnows for catching crappie.
Better still, you can combine the minnow bait with a jig, which can sometimes double the bite rate because jigs are also a great choice of bait on their own!
Jigs
As previously mentioned, many anglers love to combine live minnow with jigs for the ultimate crappie bait, although jigs can do a fine job on their own!
Jigging is a bit more complex to master though, with more precise control over rod movements necessary, so make sure you’ve got plenty of practice before trying to catch crappie with a jig.
In terms of shape and color, there are plenty of options available, so it’s often a case of personal preferences. That said, if you can get a jig shaped like a minnow or a skirted jig that looks like the fish crappie eat then you’re on to a winner.
Skirted jigs one of the tougher jigs to use though, although their resemblance to crappie prey fish makes them very effective bait.
Spinners
Finally, we have spinner baits. These are similar to skirted jigs but also feature a spinner attachment that rotates as you reel in. The shininess of the spinner creates an illusion by reflecting the light, which attracts much fish including crappie, making it a fine choice for catching the popular panfish.
However, bear in mind the challenges of fishing with a spinner bait. For example, they don’t work too well after sunset because there is less light to reflect, so keep it for daytime fishing when possible.
Also, the bait tends to work best on medium rods because they don’t need as much speed as other baits.
