South Carolina Crappie Fishing - Where to Go and How to Catch Crappie

The good news is, if you want to go crappie fishing in Sorth Carolina, you have an abundance of Lakes from which to choose. Crappie are very plentiful in North Carolina, and with a little know how and common sense, if you know where to look, you can fish for crappie all year long! Some of the great South Carolina crappie fishing lakes are:

Watertree Lake

Hartwell Lake

Lake J. Strom Thurmond

Lake Keowee

Lake Jocassee

Lake Marion

Lake Murray

Lake Moultrie

Lake Wylie

Richard B Russell Lake

Monticello Reservoir

Lake Greenwood

Lake Moultrie boasts the black crappie state record, and Lake Murray waters produced the state record white crappie, but in addition to these lakes, any stream, creek, river, or pond in South Carolina is also apt to have plenty of crappie as well. If you are looking for strictly black or white crappie, your target locations might vary slightly. Just remember that black crappie like to live in larger, deeper waters, while white prefer backwater areas that don’t see as much action, and tend to be quiet.

You can catch crappie from the bank or a boat while still fishing, drifting, casting or trolling. It is generally agreed that the best time to catch crappie is during the spring spawn, and crappie tend to congregate in schools with cover nearby. Live bait seems to normally work best when fishing for crappie. Choose bait that looks like worms, minnows, insects, etc., and the crappie will tend to find you if you are anywhere near their normal habitat. Early dawn fishermen can usually find crappie close to the surface of the water, but as the sun begins to beam down on the water, the crappie will drop down to about ten feet deep. As the day progresses, and the sun gets higher, they will move even deeper, often twenty-five feet or even more. At sunset, they will again move to more shallow depths, and end the day on the surface. They do tend to return to the deeper water at night, and they sometimes feed during the night as well.

During the spring months, crappie are inhabiting the shallow waters that are suitable for their spawning, their primary food will be small crayfish and minnows, so if you fish the shallows using this type of bait, once you locate their schools, your catch should be plentiful. Remember, crappie move in schools, so if you catch one, there will be others nearby. Consider just drifting along in likely areas with a slow bait until you catch one crappie, marking the spot, and settling in for a productive day catching crappie.

During the summer months, crappie really respond to the heat, so fish start the day fishing shallow in the morning and evening hours, and move into the deeps during the heat of the day. The best baits during the summer months are crappie spoons and jigs and the live bait you find naturally in their waters.

In the fall, use live bait or crappie jigs and spoons, and dish in the more shallow areas, but as the crappie move as the day progresses, just fish a little deeper using spoons and jigs, and seek out structure.

by Daniel Eggertsen

About the Author:

Dan Eggertsen is a fishing researcher and enthusiast who is committed to providing the best crappie fishing information possible. Get more information on South Carolina Crappie Fishing here: http://www.askcrappiefishing.com/