Although most anglers anchor over these spots to fish a minnow and a bobber, slow-trolling along the edges of creek channels and stumpfields allows you to cover more water and locate the crappie easier. Turn the trolling motor down to its lowest setting, or just use the wind, if it’s blowing in the direction you want to go, to push the boat slowly along.

Chotard Lake is another consistent producer of quality crappie, although it’s sometimes hard to get a limit there. The papermouths here can be tough to pattern. They seem less predictable with regard to the timing of their move out of deeper water on the way to spawning along the shore. Since crappie begin heading out to breed when water approaches the 60-degree mark, tracking temperature is the best bet for picking the moment to fish here.

Slow-trolling in spring along any areas of structure or deeper cuts offers another means of locating the fish. Use a 3-way swivel and attach a 1/4- to 1/2-ounce weight to about 8 inches of line on one of the eyes. Use the other eye to tie on a shorter line and fasten on the jig.

When you hook a fish, throw out a marker as close to the spot as you can get and then anchor nearby and fish the spot thoroughly at about the same depth.

Okatibbee Lake near Meridian is another excellent spot for finding crappie. There’s a lot of beaver activity in and around this lake, so natural brushpiles and downed trees are always plentiful. There are also plenty of stumps along old creekbeds, which attract crappie late in the spring after the spawn. Even with all these advantageous options, most anglers fish the concrete platform below the dam.

This is another lake where using jigs with soft-plastic bodies pays off. Colors should be matched to the color of the water. Thus, if the lake is murky, chartreuse and white work best, while, if the water is fairly clear, more natural colors like silver and blue are the ones to go with.

Lake Charlie Capps near Green­wood is another lake that’s known both for its excellent crappie and for its angler-friendliness. Although the boat ramp can accommodate all sizes of craft, boats are only allowed to run at trolling speed. Having a place to fish where constant backwash from joy-riders, water-skiers and personal watercraft fans is a big improvement over many state waters.

“This is one of my favorite crappie lakes in the state,” said Laurel resident Joe Lorinc. “The fishing requires a light touch to catch crappie, but there are some giants hanging around down there.”

The largest crappie recorded as taken from this lake, caught in 1992, weighed 3 pounds, 8 ounces.

If hauling a boat is too much trouble, five fishing piers are scattered around the lake. Or, a boat can be rented at the lake.

Although Lake Bogue Homa, east of Laurel, is known more for bass than for crappie, it is loaded with standing timber and stumpfields that also hold papermouths. In fact, it’s a great lake at which to pick up a limit of crappie.

Since the schools of baitfish move around the lake, trolling is a good way to locate likely pods of forage and schools of crappie. This is another lake where live minnows work best. Most crappie anglers use a bobber. They begin fishing at a depth of about 2 feet, working the bait down 6 inches at a time until the cork starts bobbing around and the first fish is hooked.

There are several boat docks around the lake. Note that a special fishing permit is required in addition to your state fishing license.

NORTH

The rest of the state is hard pressed to measure up the crappie-fishing standard set by big U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lakes scattered along I-55 in the northern part of Mississippi. These impoundments have everything that a crappie could want — food, structure and lots of room to grow.

Unfortunately, according to Keith Meals, the area fisheries biologist for the MDWFP, Arkabutla, Sardis and Enid lakes have one major drawback that keeps them from being ideal for anglers: They’re too close to Memphis, and thus receive a lot of angling pressure. Meals also noted that recent years have seen an influx of anglers from Missouri, Illinois and Iowa coming south to get a jump on spring fishing.

“ Arkabutla Lake is muddy in springtime,” Meals added. “Start fishing the coves on the north side since they warm first.” The biologist doubts that there’s much chance of catching a 3-pound fish in the big lakes in this area, because of all the pressure. On the other hand, he says, quantities of fish are there.

According to Meals, the best bet for big crappie in years past has been Grenada Lake. “Grenada should be awesome this spring,” he offered. “The average size of fish will double in this lake just because out-of-state anglers to the north don’t make it this far. If big crappie are the goal, Granada is the place to go.”

Another option in the area for big slab crappie is Tunica Cutoff. But, Meals cautions, Tunica Cutoff peaks three to four weeks later than do the big reservoirs, as cold water from the Mississippi River slows the spawn down.

Since both of these lakes are likely to have stained water in the spring, the same rules on using bright-colored jigs in dirty water apply. When trolling, he suggests, get the lure down 4 to 8 feet deep.