I have heard talk of this every once in a while about night fishing for panfish and never even bothered trying. I decided 2 nights ago that I was just going to go out and risk not catching anything, just to see if it actually would work. I didn't even catch the first fish until 30 minutes after dark, but all of a sudden it was one after another. Glow tear drops and wax worms were the ticket, and I was fishing in 18 fow. My graph was lit up like no other, and the crappies were all between 9 and 11 inches for the most part. Needless to say, it was a cool experience, and something I plan on trying many more times. The underwater light and lantern was the key to drawing in the bluegill and crappie. I could sight fish them right down the hole. For the fish that were down deeper, I just used my graph to put the bait in front of their noses. Here's the proof that panfishing can be great after dark!
I have done pretty good this year at night. I have found that right before dark the fish feed well, then after dark it takes the fish time to adjust to the darkness and its on! Got my limit on specks last week after 6:30 pm. They simply turned on. GL and happy fishing!! Oh yea, glow really helped me out too!
We fish for crappies alot after dark on the lake i live on. We do better at night than during the day, especially after midnight. Definately a good time, and nice and quiet out there. Nice catch!
Nice Job, seems like it depends on the lake around us in Southern LP. We have a couple of lakes that are sleepers, bad during the day....and hot at night.
I have taken a few gills at night before, but nothing like that. Nice job! Thanks for sharing the report. I caught em the same way, glow jigs. Used the vexilar to put it in their face. Did you say you had a light underwater? How deep?
Were you dead-sticking the waxies or jigging them? Waxies are a lot easier to deal with then minnows (and cheaper too...) your answer will either save me a lot of time and money or confuse the heck out of me. My experience has revealed minnows being the best bet for the night-time bite...
It was the coolest thing ever. The crappie were crowded around my underwater light sucking the plankton off of it. They would take in mouthfuls at a time!
It didn't matter a whole lot how deep it was. I put it 10 feet down and also tried it a foot under the ice. Having the light deeper in the water column did catch a few more fish I suppose.
Were you dead-sticking the waxies or jigging them? Waxies are a lot easier to deal with then minnows (and cheaper too...) your answer will either save me a lot of time and money or confuse the heck out of me. My experience has revealed minnows being the best bet for the night-time bite...
I haven't even tried minnows for the night time thing yet, but I know that they will work for a fact because I normally use minnows for crappie too. I just like to save a few bucks when I can, and since crappie normally bite fine on wax worms through the ice, I figured that there was no need to go through the trouble of getting minnows. It's just another pail I don't need to carry.:lol: I went out again tonight and caught a bunch more. We probably kept 15 or 20, and I gave the ones I caught to my buddy because I figured I had plenty to eat already. I really like the taste of crappie, especially when they are caught through the ice. The meat seems a little firmer in the winter than in the summer. And, holding the rod still triggered all of the strikes. The fish wouldn't go near the bait when it was jigged like they did during first ice.
A BRINKMAN 250,000 cp. It sure gets the job done. It doubles up as a great smelt and splake light. I used it tonight and caught 10 walleye with it with a buddy. Underwater lights bring every kind of fish in imaginable. I brought perch 10 feet under my boat at night in 75 ft of water and limited out on 9 to 12 inchers. Who ever thought perch would suspend, or bite at night for that matter? It was unbelievable. The sky is the limit when it comes to using an underwater light. The only thing I haven't caught with it is pike.
The pike on gull like to cruse around the lights at night. We have caught a number of them. Never had it work anywhere else though. I think they have just adapted to feedding on the smelt there at night because there are people fishing them every night. Prob easier to ambush too.
My brother Kenneth and I used to catch crappie after dark all the time on Lake Cadillac. We just put a lantern next to the hole and caught them about 2-3 feet down in 12 feet of water in the weeds. Was lots of fun. Great job!!!
That's my favorite fishin there!
Love to sit out on ice on a calm night, no shanty, with lantern on. jiggin for crappies.
Even better if a soft gentle snow was falling, couldn't see very far past lantern light, something about it just put you in your own little world!! Awesome peacefullness!!
Minnows always seemed to bring slightly larger crappies for me over waxies!
That's my favorite fishin there!
Love to sit out on ice on a calm night, no shanty, with lantern on. jiggin for crappies.
Even better if a soft gentle snow was falling, couldn't see very far past lantern light, something about it just put you in your own little world!! Awesome peacefullness!!
Minnows always seemed to bring slightly larger crappies for me over waxies!
Will do. Hopefully the ice will hang on into the end of March after pike/walleye season closes, because panfish and smelt will be the only things left to fish for. Ice out panfish has been great for me some years. It's always about the time when you have to put boards down to get onto the ice lol.
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Related Threads
?
?
?
?
?
Ask a question
Ask a question
Michigan Sportsman Forum
8.8M posts
94.9K members
Since 2000
A forum community dedicated to hunting and fishing enthusiasts in the Michigan area. Come join the discussion about safety, gear, tackle, tips, tricks, optics, hunting, gunsmithing, reviews, reports, accessories, classifieds, and more!