The crappie were hitting at Otter Pit between 2 pm and 4 pm. Then again around 6 pm to 7 pm. I caught 21 crappie and one bluegill. Hooked several short bass that threw the hook when they broke surface. It's fun to play a small 1.5 lb bass on 6 test line and ultralight spinning gear. Even these small bass put up a good fight. The key is a good drag system.

Fish were suspended about 8ft to 10ft below the surface at this time of the day and out over 18 to 20 ft of water. If you can find some brush then you will find the crappie normally. Even in the middle of July you can catch these crappie. They average about 8.5" in length. Once in a while you will hook into an 11" fish but not very often.

I talked to another couple that fished Otter for crappie yesterday and they said they caught a few crappie also. The lake is full of small crappie and they need to be taken out so that the food supply can feed the remaining crappie and help them grow larger. There should be enough food for the crappie that are left to grow bigger.

I noticed while cleaing my fish that most were females. They were still full of eggs. The eggs didn't look ripe like they do in late April. So these fish didn't get the chance to spawn I guess. Not sure if they will just dump these eggs or what. I wonder if they will save them until next spring? It takes a lot of energy for a fish to produce these eggs. Maybe they will excrete them and then turn around and eat them for energy. They should be very rich in protein and minerals. It's the middle of June and the water temps are pretty hot now. I doubt that these fish would have spawned if I had not caught them. But you never know. I was really surprised that they all were still full of eggs. I also read that crappie caught at Patoka Lake this month have also been full of eggs. Never noticed crappie full of eggs at this time of the year before.



Regards,

Moose1am