Fish-Watching

The human eye and brain are as sensitive, in their way, as crappies’ are in their world. If you want to learn more about crappie location, start with the two “fish finders” on the front of your head. Crappie often cooperate in this regard, since they spend much of the early part of the season in shallow water and often remain visible at other times, at least in clear waterways.

As we’ve discussed in the section of this book on seasonal movements, crappies often move to shallow weedy habitats weeks or months before ice leaves northern lakes. This pattern strengthens as March progresses on northern waters and snow melts from lake surfaces, bringing higher light levels and more oxygen to the lake below. Savvy ice anglers make great catches by sight-fishing, stealthily moving from hole to hole to spot slabs slowly moving among submerged plants, and tempting them with small baits.

As in any other sight-fishing, shading the eyes with a hat, coat, or being in a portable fish house (shutter the windows for best viewing) helps greatly. A good pair of polarized sunglasses is essential as well. Finally, keeping a low profile and moving quietly on the ice can help you sneak up on a real monster. Crappies quickly recognize when they’re being pursued, and all their instincts put them on the defensive, not what you want when you’re looking for a bite.

After ice-out, crappies remain shallow in some systems, particularly where pelagic forage isn’t important in the diet. In lakes with abundant minnows, crappies move shallow to feed on them along with invertebrates, while beginning the warming process in sun-baked bays. They’re spooky in this situation too, but stealthful exploration can often reveal big fish among dead vegetation or even telltale sail fins carving across narrow channels.

While sight-fishing under the ice is limited to vertical presentations, long casts often are needed during early spring to tempt bites without scaring fish off. Standing high on the deck or even gaining vantage with a platform or simple wooden crate can help find fish before they find you. As waters warm further, shallow patterns continue to strengthen as more fish push into shallow backwaters, bays, and canals. Spot a couple of crappies, and there may be 100 in an area the size of a dock. They lurk in clumps of lily-pad rhizomes, fallen trees, beaver lodges, and other shallow cover. Approach these spots and areas with stealth, always scanning ahead to spot fish before they detect a disturbance and disappear.

Trolling motors are great inventions and we couldn’t fish without them; but in spring, push-poling gives a quieter approach if the wind doesn’t nag. While a motor tends to churn up silt and slice and dice lily pads, a pole pushes with far less disturbance. When you spot a target, drive the handle into the bottom and hold in place by tying off with a dock rope.

hen you find a major concentration, it’s best to anchor securely. They settle down once quiet resumes and fish will start to move from the thickest cover to edges where you’ll spot and catch them without alarming others.

Underwater Cameras

Of course, crappies spend most of the year at depths beyond what even the keenest-eyed angler can detect. The development of underwater cameras extends our ability to peer into the world of our quarry. Underwater cameras have proven extremely popular with anglers who fish clear lakes and reservoirs, which we might define as those where a crankbait can be seen two feet below the surface, directly down from the side of the boat.

In-Fisherman co-founder Al Lindner has been a fan of underwater cameras since field-testing them in the late 1990s. “After scouting with an Aqua-Vu, my mind is alive with new places to take it,” he states. “I thought I had a pretty good idea of what structures looked like, so I was shocked to see how wrong I’d been about some spots.”

Minnesota fishing pro Ted Capra echoes Lindner’s enthusiasm. “Underwater cameras are one of the most important new tools for anglers since sonar. I’ve wondered why I’ve caught fish on only one side of a bar, and now I know. Does the camera give anglers an unfair advantage? Typically, if I view a spot and see 10 or 20 fish, I may catch a few of them. But at times, schools seem uncatchable. There’s no way to make fish bite. When I first started scouting I caught lots fewer fish, because I spent more time looking and less time fishing.”

Today, underwater viewing systems are available with features like lights for night viewing and enhanced camera positioning systems. Many can be bought for less than the cost of a good sonar or trolling motor, or about the same as a top-of-the line reel.

We’ve found that a camera doesn’t usually spook panfish or bass. Rather, fish often seem curious, swimming up to investigate the apparatus. Closely examining specific cover objects on favorite spots demonstrates that subtle characteristics attract groups of crappie, while other nearly identical areas remain fishless. We’ve discovered that it isn’t odd to spot crappies roaming far above the bottom, sometimes removed from cover objects. We’ve also learned that crappies sometimes do swim downward to chase prey.

Beyond solving mysteries, underwater viewing during fishing trips brings an immediate boost of confidence, whether you’re exploring a new lake or preparing for tournament competition. Accurate visualization spawns this confidence, a mindset that inevitably yields more fish.

While clear water might seem a prerequisite for underwater viewing, many reservoirs and rivers often called “stained” offer potential, too. In rivers, current often washes particles through the upper or mid-sections of the water column. Water near the bottom is much clearer, quite suitable for viewing. Similarly, plankton blooms may cloud surface waters of lakes and reservoirs, while deeper water is clearer. Cameras often prove useful in such waterways, as well as in obviously clear systems.

Underwater cameras also have been great tools to introduce kids and novice anglers to the world of the fishes, which inevitably proves fascinating. Even experienced anglers often find themselves spending more time gazing at the screen than making casts to targets below. Until recently, underwater viewing pretty much precluded angling, so it worked well to have one angler fish while a partner scanned the scene below, pointing out all the slabs the angler running the boat had fished right through. Since staring at a screen for prolonged periods can cause mild seasickness in some people, trading off after a half hour or so works well.

Nature Vision, a pioneer in the industry, has broken through this barrier with the MAV (Motorized Aqua-Vu), a camera secured to the hull and featuring a foot-operated motor that deploys the lens, raising or lowering it to follow bottom contours and scan structure for fish. A large LCD screen mounted at the bow or console displays what lies below, while the angler is free to watch the camera as well as sonar, while casting.

Several manufacturers offer underwater cameras in a variety of configurations suitable for either open-water or ice fishing. Most offer black & white images. While anglers accustomed to color TVs may seek color versions, present technology and requirements for viewing in sunlight mean that black-white units typically provide better detail, particularly in low-light conditions. Larger monitors have advantages for viewing, especially when shaded with a sunscreen.

Some models offer readouts of water temperature, depth, and give the direction the camera is pointing. Monitor size and quality vary, along with cable lengths and storage systems. For most freshwater viewing, a 50-foot cable is sufficient. Many models come with longer cables, since these units often are used by biologists and law enforcement personnel. Some units feature infrared or colored LED lights to provide better viewing in dim light or at night. Rechargeable battery packs and chargers are typically included, although you can run cameras off your boat’s 12-volt system as well. Video recorder jacks allow you to plug in and record what you see, then replay on a TV.