| Matt Johnson Outdoors Locating Early Ice Slabs |
By: Matt Johnson
Crappies are a sophisticated
fish, especially those slabs,
and at times it can be rather
confusing and frustrating for
ice fishermen to pinpoint slab
patterns. Some lakes are
abundant with slab crappies,
while others are more
inclined to hold smaller fish,
and than you have those
lakes where you can catch a
mixed bag. Regardless of the
lake or body of water, location is important when it comes
down to being a successful crappie fisherman during the
winter months. Locating the elusive slab crappie is more than
half the battle, and if you can establish a pattern of where
these fish will be holding, than the rewards will come.
I always pay close attention to fall patterns, especially at late
fall as the water plunges into near freezing temps. Crappies
will begin staging for early ice towards the end of summer, and
as fall approaches they will begin to stake out areas that they
will utilize at early ice. The turn-over period is where I start.
This is when the thermocline diminishes and the cool and
warm water start to mix. The typically deeper water crappie
patterns of the hot summer months will turn into shallower
water patterns. (Keep in mind that rivers will be different and
not every lake will experience the same effects either, every
body of water may be different from the next). When the water
mixes you will typically find the crappies in some sort of
migration stage (in lakes) and they will start to slide to the
initial breaks and suspend off shallow water edges instead of
constantly roaming the deeper depths. The turn-over period
might not last too long (especially with the weather we've
experienced this year). Once the water turns over and the
temps drop more and more, you will begin to find fish staging
in their early ice locations. Summer and late-summer crappies
will stage, often times, suspended in deeper water at the same
level of the top of the initial break line (flat). So if you have the
top of your break at say 10 feet, and you drop into about 25
feet at the basin, you will find crappies suspended 15 feet off
the bottom out on the basin. These fish will roam and you will
often times mistake them for baitfish, or when you try to
pinpoint them they just keep moving (that’s part of the reason
it can be tough to find the big slabs in the hot summer
months). These fish will begin staging for the winter once fall
approaches and will feed on what is in front of them if the
opportunity presents itself, but intercepting these fish can be
tough on lakes with large basins and limited structure.
I don't typically heavily follow the crappie movements during
the hot summer months since they are so sporadic, but once
they begin moving into winter patterns that’s when they get my
attention (I'm an ice fishing geek). Learning the fall (turn-over
period and into early ice) patterns has a lot to do with finding
the slabs at early ice. Smaller crappies will stack up in obvious
shallow(er) spots at early ice, but you will still find some of
your larger fish off the "so called" prime hotspots at early ice.
Early ice crappies will relate to the weeds, at least as long as
they provide oxygen (which may last quite a ways into winter
or even throughout winter in some cases). I personally don't
think that the larger crappies need to relate to those weeds,
I'm not saying that you won't catch slabs in the weeds at early
ice, but I'm just saying that those weed areas tend to draw in
more smaller fish as well as potato chip bluegills and hungry
roaming pike. The larger crappies (concentration of fish) that I
do typically find in the weeds are located in lakes where the
weed line pushes out into deeper water, say 12-15 feet or
even more, and I find the slabs right out on the deeper
portions at early ice. Meanwhile, the smaller fish are holding
shallower.
Once the thermocline does a flip-flop (and disappears) and
you complete the turn-over, you will notice that the crappies
adjusted to a whole new area. During this time you won't find
the crappies suspended over the deeper water 24 hours a
day, or even at all anymore. They will somehow relate to
shallower water, whether it’s off the break, or along the deep
weed edge. Once they move up into the weeds they will relate
to the shallower weeds until they die off (assuming that they
do in a typical lake situation), then they will cling to the oxygen-
rich (slightly deeper) weeds until those are gone. Now, this is
a general crappie pattern, and not true for every lake and not
always true for all the larger fish. This is, how should we call
it... "Crappie intuition"
Here's how I pattern crappies throughout late summer and into
early ice…
Deep Water Patterns
Your summer to late-summer pattern. Crappies will roam
deeper water.
Turn-Over (thermocline dies)
Crappies move from deeper water and stage off shallower
water. Keep an eye on areas where you know the crappies
where at during early ice in the past and move out from there.
(In between this period and the next is where I find my larger
crappies at early ice)
Thermocline is Dead...Full Turn-Over
Crappies are holding off shallow structure, more tight though.
Weeds are dying and fish gradually slide deeper. This can
also be an early ice stage on occasion.
Early Ice
Shallow, oxygen rich weeds and primary breaks. Look for
depths anywhere from 3-15 feet. Weeds will die as ice
thickens and crappies will gradually move deeper. Narrows
can be good too.
This is my view of a typical crappie movement from late
summer to early ice for your typical lake. I have some lakes
where the pattern is very different, and some lakes where you
catch your early ice crappies in deeper holes. Keep in mind
that these crappies that are found in the deeper holes at early
ice might have already migrated shallow and already moved
back out into deeper water (crappies will move back out as ice
thickens, oxygen diminishes and light penetration gets
worse…).
So, with that being said, where are the crappies at early
ice?
Well, for one, we have the weeds, an obvious option for a
good number of crappies at early ice. Shallow bays on large
bodies of water are good early ice locations. Any depressions
in the bays should be marked on a map and checked out as
well. These are “pockets” in the weeds. I also like to find the
weed edge and punch a line of holes across that as well.
Breaks just off the weed edge will also hold crappies at early
ice, both suspending and bottom hugging. Some of these
areas will have no weeds on the actual slope, but once it
flattens out again you will see more weeds, this is a prime
example of an early ice slab spot. Work those deeper weeds
and stay moving until you locate a school of fish. Depths of 10-
15 feet are not uncommon. Also check out humps and saddles
too. Weeds are good, but don’t only judge early ice spots by
where the weeds are, stay open minded. Wooded areas can
also hold a good number of crappies at early ice, same with
rocks and muddy areas.
I also like to find spots where there is a narrow area between
different portions of the lake, like “bottlenecks” and deeper
channels (deep could only mean 6-7 feet). These channel
areas often times freeze first and the crappies fishing can be
excellent during first ice. These spots are short lived though,
and the bite might only last a week or so. If you find the
crappies holding in these areas at first ice, than there’s a good
chance that those fish will relate to adjacent deeper water
once they move towards the main lake basin.
Mouths of shallow bays are good areas to target too. Crappies
will relate to the transition areas in these mouths, and once
they move out from the bay these areas might be the new hot
spot.
Early ice crappie locations are going to be different from body
of water to body of water, but the general principles still
apply…
- Look for shallow green weeds
- Focus on “structure” in the weeds (pockets, humps,
edges, etc…)
- Search the primary breaks just off the shallow weeds
(deeper weed lines)
- Look for any flats just off the weed line, as well as off the
first break
- Narrows
- Also check deeper holes in the lakes where the average
depth is shallow
Location is number one for most of the winter when it comes
to crappies. Locate the aggressive school of fish and than
figuring what they want is the easy part. If you find fish but
there are negative than move, there typically are some active
fish somewhere, and often times they won’t be far.
Early ice can produce some nice catches, and hopefully some
of this will help you ice more slabs this winter.
Crappies are a sophisticated
fish, especially those slabs,
and at times it can be rather
confusing and frustrating for
ice fishermen to pinpoint slab
patterns. Some lakes are
abundant with slab crappies,
while others are more
inclined to hold smaller fish,
and than you have those
lakes where you can catch a
mixed bag. Regardless of the
lake or body of water, location is important when it comes
down to being a successful crappie fisherman during the
winter months. Locating the elusive slab crappie is more than
half the battle, and if you can establish a pattern of where
these fish will be holding, than the rewards will come.
I always pay close attention to fall patterns, especially at late
fall as the water plunges into near freezing temps. Crappies
will begin staging for early ice towards the end of summer, and
as fall approaches they will begin to stake out areas that they
will utilize at early ice. The turn-over period is where I start.
This is when the thermocline diminishes and the cool and
warm water start to mix. The typically deeper water crappie
patterns of the hot summer months will turn into shallower
water patterns. (Keep in mind that rivers will be different and
not every lake will experience the same effects either, every
body of water may be different from the next). When the water
mixes you will typically find the crappies in some sort of
migration stage (in lakes) and they will start to slide to the
initial breaks and suspend off shallow water edges instead of
constantly roaming the deeper depths. The turn-over period
might not last too long (especially with the weather we've
experienced this year). Once the water turns over and the
temps drop more and more, you will begin to find fish staging
in their early ice locations. Summer and late-summer crappies
will stage, often times, suspended in deeper water at the same
level of the top of the initial break line (flat). So if you have the
top of your break at say 10 feet, and you drop into about 25
feet at the basin, you will find crappies suspended 15 feet off
the bottom out on the basin. These fish will roam and you will
often times mistake them for baitfish, or when you try to
pinpoint them they just keep moving (that’s part of the reason
it can be tough to find the big slabs in the hot summer
months). These fish will begin staging for the winter once fall
approaches and will feed on what is in front of them if the
opportunity presents itself, but intercepting these fish can be
tough on lakes with large basins and limited structure.
I don't typically heavily follow the crappie movements during
the hot summer months since they are so sporadic, but once
they begin moving into winter patterns that’s when they get my
attention (I'm an ice fishing geek). Learning the fall (turn-over
period and into early ice) patterns has a lot to do with finding
the slabs at early ice. Smaller crappies will stack up in obvious
shallow(er) spots at early ice, but you will still find some of
your larger fish off the "so called" prime hotspots at early ice.
Early ice crappies will relate to the weeds, at least as long as
they provide oxygen (which may last quite a ways into winter
or even throughout winter in some cases). I personally don't
think that the larger crappies need to relate to those weeds,
I'm not saying that you won't catch slabs in the weeds at early
ice, but I'm just saying that those weed areas tend to draw in
more smaller fish as well as potato chip bluegills and hungry
roaming pike. The larger crappies (concentration of fish) that I
do typically find in the weeds are located in lakes where the
weed line pushes out into deeper water, say 12-15 feet or
even more, and I find the slabs right out on the deeper
portions at early ice. Meanwhile, the smaller fish are holding
shallower.
Once the thermocline does a flip-flop (and disappears) and
you complete the turn-over, you will notice that the crappies
adjusted to a whole new area. During this time you won't find
the crappies suspended over the deeper water 24 hours a
day, or even at all anymore. They will somehow relate to
shallower water, whether it’s off the break, or along the deep
weed edge. Once they move up into the weeds they will relate
to the shallower weeds until they die off (assuming that they
do in a typical lake situation), then they will cling to the oxygen-
rich (slightly deeper) weeds until those are gone. Now, this is
a general crappie pattern, and not true for every lake and not
always true for all the larger fish. This is, how should we call
it... "Crappie intuition"
Here's how I pattern crappies throughout late summer and into
early ice…
Deep Water Patterns
Your summer to late-summer pattern. Crappies will roam
deeper water.
Turn-Over (thermocline dies)
Crappies move from deeper water and stage off shallower
water. Keep an eye on areas where you know the crappies
where at during early ice in the past and move out from there.
(In between this period and the next is where I find my larger
crappies at early ice)
Thermocline is Dead...Full Turn-Over
Crappies are holding off shallow structure, more tight though.
Weeds are dying and fish gradually slide deeper. This can
also be an early ice stage on occasion.
Early Ice
Shallow, oxygen rich weeds and primary breaks. Look for
depths anywhere from 3-15 feet. Weeds will die as ice
thickens and crappies will gradually move deeper. Narrows
can be good too.
This is my view of a typical crappie movement from late
summer to early ice for your typical lake. I have some lakes
where the pattern is very different, and some lakes where you
catch your early ice crappies in deeper holes. Keep in mind
that these crappies that are found in the deeper holes at early
ice might have already migrated shallow and already moved
back out into deeper water (crappies will move back out as ice
thickens, oxygen diminishes and light penetration gets
worse…).
So, with that being said, where are the crappies at early
ice?
Well, for one, we have the weeds, an obvious option for a
good number of crappies at early ice. Shallow bays on large
bodies of water are good early ice locations. Any depressions
in the bays should be marked on a map and checked out as
well. These are “pockets” in the weeds. I also like to find the
weed edge and punch a line of holes across that as well.
Breaks just off the weed edge will also hold crappies at early
ice, both suspending and bottom hugging. Some of these
areas will have no weeds on the actual slope, but once it
flattens out again you will see more weeds, this is a prime
example of an early ice slab spot. Work those deeper weeds
and stay moving until you locate a school of fish. Depths of 10-
15 feet are not uncommon. Also check out humps and saddles
too. Weeds are good, but don’t only judge early ice spots by
where the weeds are, stay open minded. Wooded areas can
also hold a good number of crappies at early ice, same with
rocks and muddy areas.
I also like to find spots where there is a narrow area between
different portions of the lake, like “bottlenecks” and deeper
channels (deep could only mean 6-7 feet). These channel
areas often times freeze first and the crappies fishing can be
excellent during first ice. These spots are short lived though,
and the bite might only last a week or so. If you find the
crappies holding in these areas at first ice, than there’s a good
chance that those fish will relate to adjacent deeper water
once they move towards the main lake basin.
Mouths of shallow bays are good areas to target too. Crappies
will relate to the transition areas in these mouths, and once
they move out from the bay these areas might be the new hot
spot.
Early ice crappie locations are going to be different from body
of water to body of water, but the general principles still
apply…
- Look for shallow green weeds
- Focus on “structure” in the weeds (pockets, humps,
edges, etc…)
- Search the primary breaks just off the shallow weeds
(deeper weed lines)
- Look for any flats just off the weed line, as well as off the
first break
- Narrows
- Also check deeper holes in the lakes where the average
depth is shallow
Location is number one for most of the winter when it comes
to crappies. Locate the aggressive school of fish and than
figuring what they want is the easy part. If you find fish but
there are negative than move, there typically are some active
fish somewhere, and often times they won’t be far.
Early ice can produce some nice catches, and hopefully some
of this will help you ice more slabs this winter.
| Matt Johnson Outdoors |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |