# Crappie on the Choctawhatchee?



## joshuae2 (Sep 18, 2011)

I'm looking to take my paw in law over towards Ebro in search of crappie. I've bream fished over there a lot and thought it would be a good place to find some river crappie. Can anyone tell me if they know of a good area or location over that way? Maybe fishwalton?


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## FishWalton (Jul 22, 2010)

joshuae2 said:


> I'm looking to take my paw in law over towards Ebro in search of crappie. I've bream fished over there a lot and thought it would be a good place to find some river crappie. Can anyone tell me if they know of a good area or location over that way? Maybe fishwalton?


If you fish the river just move from tree top to tree top that is in the water. The older the better....but not always! Minnows have been working really well from all reports, but jigs sometimes are better. Prepare to hang up a lot but that's where the fish will be. 

If you fish the lakes behind Cowford Island they can be good at time,. Crews Lake and the Chain of Lakes which are behind the island. If you know how to get into Stealing Lake which is upriver don't forget that one. 

Off the river behind the island there are a few houseboats. If no one is there you might poke around a little. Sometimes crappie will gang up around a houseboat. 

In lakes don't just stick to the tree line. Check out in deeper water with a sonar. I have wasted a lot of time fishing the trees when they were bunched up out in deep water on structure you can't see without a sonar. That's the case in other lakes off the river as well. 

(Edited 0950) We have a slight river rise right now at Caryville, but it's holding steady about 7.6 ft. at Cowford. This is just about perfect at Cowford. 

I assumed you want to fish the Cowford area where you have been fishing for bream. 

Hope this helps.


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## joshuae2 (Sep 18, 2011)

First off, thank you for the awsome info. We just pulled the boat out of the water. We got to ebro about 8 and used minnows. We ended up with 3 bass. Didn't try jigs, and the guy I was with didn't have any electronics so that part sucked. Anyway we had a great time and we will go down and try them again sometime. again thank you for the info.


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## Chumbuster (Oct 17, 2017)

I was on the river yesterday and found 1 crappie, a cat and a gar...it was slow for me, I was up river of caryville. Didn't mark much on my graph, but it was great to get out before the cold sets in!


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## FishWalton (Jul 22, 2010)

Chumbuster said:


> I was on the river yesterday and found 1 crappie, a cat and a gar...it was slow for me, I was up river of caryville. Didn't mark much on my graph, but it was great to get out before the cold sets in!


Sure too nice a day to sit at the house, especially with cold weather coming. Incidentally, since you are Alaska hardened I'm looking for some good reports for cold weather fishing on the Choctaw. :yes: If I can muster the courage I may try to find a crappie on Tuesday.

We had a great day fishing sheepshead yesterday at the Destin Bridge, but the bite didn't start until after noon.


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## DMC (Nov 28, 2010)

It's just to cold this week. We were planning on going but I'm just to soft. I hope that the rain hold off so not to mess things up.


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## FishWalton (Jul 22, 2010)

DMC said:


> It's just to cold this week. We were planning on going but I'm just to soft. I hope that the rain hold off so not to mess things up.



Know what you mean. My outdoor minnow holding tank is half ice on top of water. aerator bubbles keeping the middle open. Have covered it up now and hope the bait doesn't freeze. 
Wth this sustained freezing weather all week the speckled trout and reds should be stacking up in the creek and river deep holes.


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## Chumbuster (Oct 17, 2017)

Spent the day running the smoker, cleaning guns, tying up crappie rigs...catching up on loose ends. I might get out later this week, I bet there won't be much traffic on the water.


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## FishWalton (Jul 22, 2010)

Chumbuster said:


> Spent the day running the smoker, cleaning guns, tying up crappie rigs...catching up on loose ends. I might get out later this week, I bet there won't be much traffic on the water.


Good time to do such things with the cold...Funny how times have changed. When I was a teen-ager when the weather got this cold that's when the speckled trout fishermen headed to Mitchell and Choctawhatchee mouth to troll for specs. Those were the days of the old black nylon line that became water logged and froze on your reel. Now days we mostly sit at the house.


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