Best Crappie Fishing in Florida Tips and Techniques
Crappie are one of the most sought after freshwater fish species in North America. The Black Crappie that we catch here in Florida are also known as Speckled Perch and Specks and the article below will teach you the best tips, techniques and tackle to use to maximize your catch.
Speckled Perch are delicious and extremely fun to catch. Keep reading this article that I wrote and you will learn the best crappie fishing in Florida tips, techniques, tackle, baits, lures, lakes and much, much more.
The best crappie fishing in Florida is definitely from Lake Okeechobee and lakes to the North. There are specks in the lakes and streams further South but the best lakes and streams are more northerly.
I am a kayak fishing guide on the Treasure Coast of Florida and have been fishing the lakes and ponds all over Florida for more than 40 years. I have caught crappie in lakes and deep canals all over Florida.
The article below will teach you the best crappie fishing lures, techniques, tips, baits and seasons for catching tons of specks.
Watch the video below and catch more crappie fishing Florida.
Crappie are one of the most sought after freshwater fish species in North America. The Black Crappie that we catch here in Florida are also known as Speckled Perch and Specks and the article below will teach you the best tips, techniques and tackle to use to maximize your catch.
Speckled Perch are delicious and extremely fun to catch. Keep reading this article that I wrote and you will learn the best crappie fishing in Florida tips, techniques, tackle, baits, lures, lakes and much, much more.
The best crappie fishing in Florida is definitely from Lake Okeechobee and lakes to the North. There are specks in the lakes and streams further South but the best lakes and streams are more northerly.
I am a kayak fishing guide on the Treasure Coast of Florida and have been fishing the lakes and ponds all over Florida for more than 40 years. I have caught crappie in lakes and deep canals all over Florida.
The article below will teach you the best crappie fishing lures, techniques, tips, baits and seasons for catching tons of specks.
Watch the video below and catch more crappie fishing Florida.
Best Crappie Fishing Florida--Tips and Techniques
Black Crappie are one of the most popular fish that are being targeted by fishermen in freshwater Florida lakes and rivers. This is probably because they are so much fun to catch and they fillet and release into the grease very well too.
Crappie feed in large groups so when you find one you will often find more. BUT they do move around a lot too. This makes them hard to find in large lakes even when you have a fish finder. You might find them in the upper part of the water column. You can see them feeding on minnows on the surface of the water. They are easily discernible from feeding bass. Their strikes are much less intense.
The thing is that they might be feeding on a small school of minnows and once those are gone the crappie will move to another part of the water column to find more forage items. Many speckled perch fishermen will troll large lakes with Missouri minnows at different levels of the water column.
You might want to use the same technique to find the crappie. Rig a Missouri minnow with a #6 hook and a split shot a foot or so above the bait and a cork at the desired water depth. You might want to have two or three of these rigs set at varying water depths if the lake is shallow enough.
If the lake is deep you can lose the floats and slow troll the minnows at varying depths and accomplish the same water column coverage in deep water. You might want to stagger the baits by 5 feet or so. For instance, you might troll them at 5, 10 and 15 feet in the water column.
Deep water docks, piers and bridges all have pilings beneath them. This is excellent structure for crappie to be attracted to. They will hang out in all parts of the water column depending upon where the minnows or shrimp that they are feeding upon are congregating.
Another way to troll for crappie is with lures. You can use a beetle spin, tube jigs, feather jigs, soft plastic jigs and small spoons to find crappie schools. You can set these lures to various depths to search the entire water column to find the fish. You will only be trolling about as fast as a slow walk. You want just enough speed to make your lures perform like they were designed to perform.
Best Crappie Fishing Florida--Baits and Lures
I like to use lures to catch crappie. Most of the crappie and other panfish that I catch are with beetle spins. Beetle spins are like mini bass spinner baits. They are very small because crappies have very small mouths.
I like to reel just fast enough to make the blade wiggle back and forth. The blade puts out the low frequency vibrations that attract many predatory fish. Beetle spins are also a great lure to find out where all of the crappies are. You can cover a lot of water with a beetle spin.
Another great type of lure for crappie fishing is a jig of some sort. You can use a tube jig; a feather jig; a curly tail jig or even a small paddle tail swim type of jig. All of these lures are great for vertical jigging in all different depths of the water column.
The best bait for crappie fishing is the Missouri minnow. The Missouri minnow is hands down the undisputed champion of crappie fishing baits. Many successful crappie fishermen will troll Missouri minnows at varying water depths as they drift or slow troll across lakes and ponds. You will want to use the techniques mentioned above when trolling Missouri minnows.
Watch the video below and catch more crappie with lures.
I like to use lures to catch crappie. Most of the crappie and other panfish that I catch are with beetle spins. Beetle spins are like mini bass spinner baits. They are very small because crappies have very small mouths.
I like to reel just fast enough to make the blade wiggle back and forth. The blade puts out the low frequency vibrations that attract many predatory fish. Beetle spins are also a great lure to find out where all of the crappies are. You can cover a lot of water with a beetle spin.
Another great type of lure for crappie fishing is a jig of some sort. You can use a tube jig; a feather jig; a curly tail jig or even a small paddle tail swim type of jig. All of these lures are great for vertical jigging in all different depths of the water column.
The best bait for crappie fishing is the Missouri minnow. The Missouri minnow is hands down the undisputed champion of crappie fishing baits. Many successful crappie fishermen will troll Missouri minnows at varying water depths as they drift or slow troll across lakes and ponds. You will want to use the techniques mentioned above when trolling Missouri minnows.
Watch the video below and catch more crappie with lures.
Best Crappie Fishing Florida-- Rods and Reels
Most of the crappie that I have caught during my lifetime have been with cane poles. I like to vertical jig for crappie with jigs and beetle spins. A great place to do this is around deep lily pads. The fish will be in the stems looking for minnows and shrimp to ambush.
You will want to have a cane pole that is at least 12 feet long (the longer the better if you ask me) with a 6 to 8 pound mono filament fishing line. You don't need that high of a breaking strength line for the crappies. You need that strength because you will inevitably catch bass in the lily pads too. You can't get a 5 pound bass wrapped around the lily pad stems without heavier line.
If you are using a spinning reel, then you will want no more than a 2000 or 2500 series reel at a maximum. A 1000 or a 1500 series is even better. You will want to have this reel rigged with 6 to 8 pound mono filament line.
The rod that you will need is a 7 to 8 foot long medium action one. The longer the rod the easier it is to cast far. Crappie lures are very light and are a challenge to cast far. You can get a great rod and reel combo for less than $150. That is not so bad.
Best Crappie Fishing Florida--Summer
Many crappie fishing enthusiasts do not like to fish for them in the Summer and other hot months but you can catch crappie year round in Florida. In the hotter months, you will have to look for them in deep water near some sort of structure. Crappie fishing in Summer can be awesome!
It is true that crappie are a cold water fish and do not like water temperatures near 80 degrees but that is why they live in deep lakes. Those lakes have water temperatures in the 70s in their deeper parts. That is where you will have to look for crappie in the hot months.
The optimal temperatures for crappie is between the high 60s to mid 70s. Let's call it 68 to 75 degrees. That is the best temperature range for crappies to be feeding in. You want to find those temperatures to find feeding fish in other words.
Obviously, those water temperatures are easier to find in the Central and Northern lakes around Florida. Lake Okeechobee is about the best Southerly lake for crappie fishing in Florida. Its deeper holes will stay in the 70s even in the hottest parts of the Summer.
Florida also has a whole bunch of spring fed rivers where you can catch crappie all year long. Those springs gush water out of them at a constant 72 degrees and it takes a while for the Sun's heat energy to be absorbed by the water.
So if you can find a nice spring fed, slow moving river then you can find yourself some speckled perch to catch even if it is 100 degrees in the shade.
Many crappie fishing enthusiasts do not like to fish for them in the Summer and other hot months but you can catch crappie year round in Florida. In the hotter months, you will have to look for them in deep water near some sort of structure. Crappie fishing in Summer can be awesome!
It is true that crappie are a cold water fish and do not like water temperatures near 80 degrees but that is why they live in deep lakes. Those lakes have water temperatures in the 70s in their deeper parts. That is where you will have to look for crappie in the hot months.
The optimal temperatures for crappie is between the high 60s to mid 70s. Let's call it 68 to 75 degrees. That is the best temperature range for crappies to be feeding in. You want to find those temperatures to find feeding fish in other words.
Obviously, those water temperatures are easier to find in the Central and Northern lakes around Florida. Lake Okeechobee is about the best Southerly lake for crappie fishing in Florida. Its deeper holes will stay in the 70s even in the hottest parts of the Summer.
Florida also has a whole bunch of spring fed rivers where you can catch crappie all year long. Those springs gush water out of them at a constant 72 degrees and it takes a while for the Sun's heat energy to be absorbed by the water.
So if you can find a nice spring fed, slow moving river then you can find yourself some speckled perch to catch even if it is 100 degrees in the shade.
Best Crappie Fishing Florida--Fall
When the first cold fronts begin to roll through Florida in October and November the water temperatures begin to drop in the crappie lakes around Florida. As mentioned above, the optimal water temperatures are between the high 60s and mid 70s. This means that those lakes will have more areas favorable for feeding crappie as they begin to cool down.
This can make it harder to find crappie. In the Summer months you know exactly where they will be. They will be in deep water near some sort of structure. You don't have to waste any time fishing the upper parts and middle parts of the water column because you know that they will be down deep.
As the water temperatures begin to drop the crappie can move to just about any part of the water column. This makes it much more challenging to find them. BUT finding them is half the fun of catching them anyways.
When the first cold fronts begin to roll through Florida in October and November the water temperatures begin to drop in the crappie lakes around Florida. As mentioned above, the optimal water temperatures are between the high 60s and mid 70s. This means that those lakes will have more areas favorable for feeding crappie as they begin to cool down.
This can make it harder to find crappie. In the Summer months you know exactly where they will be. They will be in deep water near some sort of structure. You don't have to waste any time fishing the upper parts and middle parts of the water column because you know that they will be down deep.
As the water temperatures begin to drop the crappie can move to just about any part of the water column. This makes it much more challenging to find them. BUT finding them is half the fun of catching them anyways.
Best Crappie Fishing Florida--Winter
Winter in Florida is when most fishermen begin to target crappie in earnest. Those freezing cold nights on a boat in the middle of the night with 10 rods out is what I think of when I think of hard core crappie fishing in the Winter.
You will just hang a light over the side of the boat and set up your many rods at varying depths and wait for the bite. The lights will attract bait and speckled perch if you are lucky.
The Winter months are when the crappie spawn in Florida. They spawn in large groups starting in January. The spawn can last through January until late March or sometimes early April.
This is about the only time that I know of that you can catch a decent quantity of them in the shallows. They might even be in 3 feet of water to spawn. Again you will need to find some sort of structure like cat tails or other aquatic plant masses to find them. Winter is the only time they come in close to shore en masse. The rest of the year they will be offshore.
The water temperature that they like for spawning is very specific. In Florida, it is about 62 to 65 degrees. That is the optimal water temperature for spawning Black Crappie in Florida.
Winter in Florida is when most fishermen begin to target crappie in earnest. Those freezing cold nights on a boat in the middle of the night with 10 rods out is what I think of when I think of hard core crappie fishing in the Winter.
You will just hang a light over the side of the boat and set up your many rods at varying depths and wait for the bite. The lights will attract bait and speckled perch if you are lucky.
The Winter months are when the crappie spawn in Florida. They spawn in large groups starting in January. The spawn can last through January until late March or sometimes early April.
This is about the only time that I know of that you can catch a decent quantity of them in the shallows. They might even be in 3 feet of water to spawn. Again you will need to find some sort of structure like cat tails or other aquatic plant masses to find them. Winter is the only time they come in close to shore en masse. The rest of the year they will be offshore.
The water temperature that they like for spawning is very specific. In Florida, it is about 62 to 65 degrees. That is the optimal water temperature for spawning Black Crappie in Florida.
Best Crappie Fishing Florida--Spring
Crappie fishing in the Spring is great and there still might be a few that can be found close to shore. BUT as the water temperatures begin to rise you will have to begin to fish deeper and deeper as the hot Summer months approach. ALWAYS keep in mind that the optimal temperature range to catch crappie in Florida is 68 to 75 degrees.
A great way to find out the temperatures in the various parts of the lakes that you are fishing is with a thermometer on a long string. Why guess what the water temperature is when you can know for sure? Drop a thermometer and know exactly what the temperature is.
Just about every fish finder has a thermometer but it only tells you the temperature in the upper part of the water column. I can tell you right now that the specks won't be in the upper part of the water column if it was a warm Winter and Spring so your thermometer isn't doing you any good.
Crappie fishing in the Spring is great and there still might be a few that can be found close to shore. BUT as the water temperatures begin to rise you will have to begin to fish deeper and deeper as the hot Summer months approach. ALWAYS keep in mind that the optimal temperature range to catch crappie in Florida is 68 to 75 degrees.
A great way to find out the temperatures in the various parts of the lakes that you are fishing is with a thermometer on a long string. Why guess what the water temperature is when you can know for sure? Drop a thermometer and know exactly what the temperature is.
Just about every fish finder has a thermometer but it only tells you the temperature in the upper part of the water column. I can tell you right now that the specks won't be in the upper part of the water column if it was a warm Winter and Spring so your thermometer isn't doing you any good.
Best Crappie Fishing Florida--Lakes
There are tons of lakes all over Florida that have nice Black crappie in them.
There are some lakes that are known for their world class speckled perch fishing in South/Central Florida. Those crappie lakes include;
There are tons of lakes all over Florida that have nice Black crappie in them.
- All that you need is one that is big enough to keep them fed;
- Clean enough so that they can live healthy lives;
- and is deep enough to keep them cool in the middle of Summer.
There are some lakes that are known for their world class speckled perch fishing in South/Central Florida. Those crappie lakes include;
- Lake Okeechobee--
- Lake Kissimmee--
- Lake Istokpoga--
- Lake Toho (Tohopekaliga)--
- Lake Arbuckle--
- Lake Walk-in-Water (Weohyakapka)--
- Tenoroc Fish Management Area--
- Mosaic Fish Management Area--
- Lake Marian--