Visions of icing slab crappies seldom include crowds of anglers. More often, sweet dreams of icy nirvana center on remote backcountry waters or hidden gems that somehow fly under the masses' radar. However, while untapped fisheries can be dynamite, you can also enjoy banner catches on waters besieged by the bucket brigade.

As the anticipated crappie season is around the corner, crappie anglers are storing up on new tackle and accessories. Trying to get an edge on their buddies or on the tournament trail. During this season of preparation, there is one thing you need to check and that is your crappie checkers.

The leaves are turning, temps are dropping, and the crappie are biting!  Fall crappie fishing can be some of the best all year, once you locate them.  If you’re willing to trade some of your tree stand time this fall, you can be rewarded with some nice stringers full of slab crappie.  There is something special about the month of October, in fact some of my most memorable fishing trips have taken place in the fall.  The key to this amazing fall feed is location, which in my opinion is always the biggest key to any successful fishing trip.

Here we are, right in the middle of the crappie spawn!  Here in my home state of Missouri the Red Bud trees have bloomed and the water temperatures are from 55 – 63 degrees, that means it is almost one pole jigging time. However, for the last three months, one pattern has dominated crappie fishing, and the crappie tournament trails.  Slow trolling or spider rigging (depends on where you live in the country). The method of using multiple rods and rod holders while moving along slowly with the trolling motor.  This method is absolutely the deadliest method for catching pre-spawn crappie anywhere in the country.  This is due to the pre-spawn crappie pattern that takes place throughout the country until the spawn hits.  Crappie move out of the winter homes, and start to migrate up shallower; simply they seem to wander around until right before they spawn.  Some will head to cover, but the majority of them are in transition, and that is where slow trolling is so deadly. No other method can even compete when it comes to catching huge pre-spawn crappie.  In my crappie career, I have had the pleasure of catching three, 3# crappie.  They were all caught in pre-spawn stage, and all were caught slow trolling.  Being a crappie fisherman who loves one pole jig fishing, I know I would have not caught these 3# monsters if I had not been slow trolling.  That’s just how awesome this technique is on pre-spawn crappie.