By Don Baldwin

If you read fishing articles, which you obviously do or you wouldn't be reading this, you likely agree that most articles in Southern fishing magazines are dedicated to one species of fish - bass. Bass - whether largemouth, smallmouth, hybrid, striped, Coosa or otherwise - do seem to dominate the angling press.

In the process, another popular game fish gets overlooked in Georgia. In this article, we'll focus on that under-reported species - crappie.

Although admittedly less dramatic, crappie fishing can produce excellent angling action for those who know how to approach it. These fish are plentiful, can grow to impressive size, are relatively easy to catch, and provide some pretty good eatin' when introduced to a frying pan, corn meal and some well-heated grease.

Let's take a closer look at the crappie population in some specific lakes around the state, and discover a few pointers on where to fish and how to catch the papermouths. While there are about as many techniques as there are anglers, some have proven to be consistently productive.

Actually, only about 2,000 acres of Weiss are in Georgia, but the Peach State's portion of the fishery can be impressive. Kevin Dallmier, a Georgia Wildlife Resources Division (WRD) fisheries biologist, lives near Weiss and spends a fair amount of his free time fishing the lake. He feels that while the quality of the crappie population on Weiss dropped off for a few years, it is on the rebound, with several good spawns over the past few years.

"I spend most of my time trolling small jigs," Dallmier said.

Photo by Ron Sinfelt

By small, he means 1/16- to 1/24-ounce jigheads with plastic grub trailers.

"The best method in the early spring is to drag the jigs slowly along the ledges of creek channels with six or eight lines behind the boat. Keep the boat moving so the jigs don't settle into the brush on the bottom, but moving very slowly is the key."

Weiss is generally very shallow. It is essentially a series of connected flats with creek channels running through them. The ledges of these creek channels are great ambush points for crappie feeding on bait that comes down the edge.

That shallow water in the reservoir also merits a word of caution. Stumps abound on the flats, so be careful where and how fast you run when moving between fishing locations. If you find a stump with the foot of your outboard while running at high speed, you could be in for a long and expensive day.

When a late cold snap comes in, dropping air and water temperatures, Weiss regulars switch to a bottom-bumping method of angling employing dropper rigs and live minnows. The dropper rig consists of a 1/4-ounce weight on the end of 10-pound- test line. A hook is attached about two feet from the end, using a piece of dropper line. A live minnow is placed on the hook. The rig is dragged slowly across the lake floor, with the weight staying in contact with the bottom but the minnow suspended above.

It is a good idea to attach the weight to the main line with a short leader of lighter-test monofilament. That way it can be broken off on hangups without the angler having to retie the entire rig.

The most important factor in bottom bumping is to move slowly. In fact, the best way to do it on windy days is to face your boat into the wind and make a little headway with the trolling motor. Some locals refer to the technique as "hovering." That is a pretty effective way to describe it.

You want to have the boat and bait just barely moving. The fish are extremely lethargic during cold snaps and won't chase a bait very far. This method suspends the bait in front of their noses. It has proven to be very effective on Weiss and will probably be a good choice on other bodies of water under severely cold conditions.

As the water warms in the spring to 55-degree level, the fish move up onto the flats to spawn. Look for them in 5 to 12 feet of water around brush. A minnow fished under a float can be very productive when the fish are on the beds, but jigs work as well.

As you move into the summer months, the fish tend to move into deeper water and look for shade. Sometimes you find them on the deeper brushpiles by dangling a minnow above them, but as the day moves on and the sun gets high, the many docks along the banks are great places to check out, since the fish seek the shade they provide. The only problem is that a lot of those docks offer little clearance beneath them, making it hard to cast a jig or minnow up underneath.

A method called shooting, flipping or sling-shotting can provide a solution to this problem. In this method of casting, a short spinning rod about 4 1/2 feet long is pulled back, and its recoil in straightening propels the jig well under the shade of the dock to the fish. It requires you to bend down near the water, hold the jig between your thumb and forefinger with the hook pointing away from you (that part is very important), pull an arc in the rod, aim and let the jig fly to the spot. It will require a little practice, and you'll probably stick a few fingers, but the effort will pay off.

Once you have the jig under the dock, let it sink, watch the line carefully, and set the hook at the slightest movement. Often the strike will be nothing more noticeable than a pause in the descent of the line.

This method is extremely effective during late spring and summer months.

If you can find some submerged brush in the early spring on Allatoona in 15 to 20 feet of water, you are likely to find crappie hanging nearby. Drop a minnow down to the brushpile with a small weight and get ready for the hit.

Jim Hakala, the WRD biologist assigned to the lake, has a project under way to plant artificial fish attracters at various locations around the impoundment. These teepee-shaped structures are made of PVC pipe and are designed to attract fish yet be "fisherman friendly." Their smooth surface is less likely to cause hangups than natural brush and thus eliminates the need to tie on new hooks regularly.

Good locations to try in Allatoona include Little River, Stamp Creek, Sweetwater Creek and Illinois Creek.