If you really enjoy fishing, you should experience crappie night fishing, which can lead to a huge catch in a short period of time. If you know where to go and where to drop your line, you can find some excellent crappie night fishing at several of your own area lakes. What techniques give you the best options for night fishing? Where should you be looking for crappie in the dark of night?



To begin with, it requires some basic equipment. You can take your pick of rod and reel, but the best line to use is either braid or microfilament. Use #1 size hooks, with 1/4 ounce sinkers with snap swivels or 1/4 ounce jigheads. You'll probably want to bring a plankton attracting light that has a fully charged 12-volt battery. Frozen anchovies make excellent bait. Other equipment that can be helpful includes an LED headlamp and an ice bucket for your catch.

Night fishing for crappie is best when you avoid the full moon, and try not to fish for two days before and after the full moon, and for best results, make your trip as close to the new moon as possible. Cut the anchovies into smaller pieces, about one inch in length; this will get more bites than large pieces because crappie have small mouths that tear easily and they do not bite large bait. Depending on the night location you choose, you may have to search deep in the lake to find the schools. However, you can also fish off the docks, piers, and banks for crappie in the shallows with lots of cover.

As with typical daytime fishing, you'll want to cast several lines at various depths in order to find the best location where crappie are suspended. Because they prefer cooler temperatures in the summer, you'll find that night fishing often brings fish closer to the surface as the waters cool overnight. By the same token, night fishing in the winter will produce the opposite effect; crappie will be found closer to the bottom of the lake, where temperature maintains a bit of warmth and general consistency.

Crappie night fishing can be frustrating when you are inexperienced in the practice, so for your first few times out, you should carry an electronic depth finder with you to help you locate possible schools of crappie, unless you plan to fish off the banks or piers. Target areas around tree bases or rocky embankments, as these are favored hiding places for loose schools of crappie. They don't like any kind of exposure and will hide in any cover they can find.