Lake O’ the Pines Record Crappie?
After a wet and flooded year last year, Lake O’ the Pine near Jefferson, TX promises to have an outstanding Crappie season this fall and winter. The lake was flooded from January of 2015 until July 4th weekend in 2016, making it almost impossible to get on the lake, much less fish for Crappie. Now that the lake has dried out and cooler temperature have arrived, the Crappie bite is picking up. The deep water fishing this winter should be very good.
As of this writing, Crappie are transitioning from 18 to 20 foot to 10 to 12. Lots of fish are being caught on brush piles in 18 foot of water on jigs and minnows. Chartreuse Roadrunners with Chartreuse Bobby Garland jug bodies are getting the most bites. Fish are also being caught under the bridges at a depth of 12 to 14 feet. There have been some reports of Crappie being caught in open water off the points as well.
Bass are biting in shallow water on plastic worms and on medium diving crank baits. Smaller bass are in the shallows right before sunset feeding on shad. Catfish are still on a good bite almost everywhere on the lake. Worms seem to be their favorite food. Sand Bass are biting in the evening close to shore as well.
Winter Crappie fishing should be good this year. They should move to 30 to 40 feet of water in late November and stay there until March. My experience is that the bite is the best in December and January but tails off some in February because of the heave fishing pressure. Texas Parks and Wildlife require that you keep every fish in December, January and February. The fish are so deep that when they are brought to the surface, they will not survive. A small Crappie scaled and fried is pretty good eating. During the winter the best time to fish in during the week. On the weekends and Holidays there will be a lot of boats on the water. On December 26th 2014, I counted 96 boats fishing for Crappie. If you love Crappie then winter is the time of year to go. It may be cold, but on almost any day, you can catch a limit.
If you want to stay on Lake O’ the Pines, contact us here at Pine Cove Cabin. Located just a few minutes from the prime Crappie holes, you can be in your boat and fishing in less than 10 minutes.
