WINTERTIME
CRAPPIE FISHING AT WEISS LAKE
The Blow Hole
EDITOR’S NOTE: Jason Tucker, who guides out of
J.R.’s Marina on Weiss Lake near Cedar Bluff,
Alabama, has guided and fished on Lake Weiss, known
as the Crappie Capital of the World, for 18 years. He
guides more than 200 days a year for crappie during
the fall, winter and spring and for striped bass during
the hot summer months. Tucker’s also a member
of the Weiss Lake Improvement Association and Crappie
Unlimited, and you’ll learn more about both these
organizations. Crappie Unlimited has the most-unique
inshore artificial-reef-building program ever that’s
funded by crappie fishermen, for crappie fishermen,
and improves the habitat for all the fish in the lake.
During the winter months, one of the most-reliable
crappie hot spots on Lake Weiss is the area known as
the Blow Hole, a discharge pipe where the water that’s
been through the town of Cedar Bluff’s waste-treatment
plant is discharged into the lake. The water coming
out of the Blow Hole is much warmer than the water in
the lake, and it’s heavily loaded with nutrients.
The Blow Hole draws in concentrations of baitfish, which
attract crappie. To catch these crappie, my customers
and I use a technique called cork and fly or floating
fly fishing. I tie two, 1/16-ounce Spike-It Superflys
(Spike-It crappie jigs) to 10-pound-test Mossy Oak Fishing
Line. One of the jigs is tied with a loop knot onto
the end of the line, and the second jig is 12 inches
above the first jig and attached to the line with a
loop knot. The best colors are chartreuse, blue, some
combinations of these two colors or red-and-chartreuse.
Seven-feet up the line from the first jig, I attach
a round bobber that’s painted chartreuse on the
top and red on the bottom. I run the line through the
bottom of the bobber, where it’s clipped on the
line, around the bobber and then clipped on the line
at the top. Then when the jigs reach the end of the
line, the bobber sits up straight, and you can only
see the chartreuse top of the bobber.
We use a 9-foot B’n’M poles to cast out
either Spike-It Superflys or the Spike-It rubber jigs
to the center of the river. We like the 9-foot B’n’M
poles because they’re so light we -can cast them
all day with spinning tackle without getting worn out.
Yet, they’re strong enough to lift big crappie
into the boat. We can use those 9-foot poles with our
style of fishing to fish from 3- to 12-feet deep. These
poles also have also very-sensitive tips, which allow
us to work our jigs. But the tips are strong enough
that we can set the hooks
hard. I’ve been fishing with B’n’M
poles for over 10 years, and they’re very durable
and dependable.
We anchor on the old riverbank and fish the deep side
of the river. Most of the crappie we’ll catch
will be 7- to 9-feet deep. When the jig reaches the
bottom, and the cork stands up, I use my pole to twitch
the line to make the bobber shake and the jig to move
slightly. Then I stop the action, and that’s usually
when the crappie will bite. If the crappie don’t
take the bait, I’ll drag the cork about 8 inches,
twitch it and let it sit still again. Most of the time
the crappie will take a jig when the cork is still.
Many times a crappie will hit the jig when the crappie
is coming up, which causes the cork to roll over. Then
you’ll see the red side of the cork instead of
the chartreuse, and that’s when you know you’ve
had a bite. Often when you cast your cork and fly rig
out, the cork won’t stand up as fast as you think,
which means the crappie has taken the jig on the fall,
and you need to set the hook. At other times, if a crappie
strikes the jig as the jig swims down, the fish will
sink the cork. During the winter months, when the bite
is often very light, any time I see that bobber move
when it’s supposed to be still, I’ll set
the hook. Generally I’ll catch a crappie then.
Much of Weiss will be stained in the wintertime, and
don’t forget during the winter months, stained
water holds more heat than clear water. That’s
why I search for stained water in colder weather. At
this time of the year, the crappie don’t really
want to bite, but when moving jigs stop right in front
of their faces, they have to eat. If you’re at
a party, and the most-beautiful woman at the party walks
up to you with a piece of cake in her hand and says
for you to take a little bite, no matter how much you’ve
had to eat and even if your girlfriend or wife is standing
next to you, you’ll probably open your mouth and
take a bite. The same thing happens during the winter
months when my customers and I stop our moving jigs
in front of a crappie’s mouth.
To learn more about Jason Tucker, J.R.’s Marina
and the fishing at Weiss Lake call (256) 779-6461 or
visit www.jrsmarina.com.
TOMORROW: HERE THEY COME
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