Cliff Covington.

Fishing is one of the most popular outdoor activities in the Magnolia State. Our mild climate promotes an excellent year-round growing season for the state’s game fish, and great angling opportunities abound for 12 months of the year.

Whether you prefer rivers and streams, lakes and ponds, bayous and marshes, or the open waters of the Gulf of Mexico, you can find an endless supply of possibilities to get hooked on fishing.

Let’s take a look at a few of the options available to Mississippi anglers for the coming year.

JANUARY
Crappie
Lake Chotard
When it comes to early season crappie fishing holes, none is better than Lake Chotard, a Mississippi River oxbow located inside the levee about 20 miles north of Vicksburg.

Forget the river stage and water clarity on Chotard in January. It is possible to catch huge quantities of really large slabs by using your sonar to locate schools of shad. The crappie will be underneath or near these concentrations of shad. They usually are found at depths from 20 to 25 feet. If that doesn’t work, try fishing the bottom at depths from 25 to 35 feet deep.

Rig either white or orange “glow-in-the-dark” hooks 15 inches apart and a 1-ounce weight on the end of the line. Bounce the lead weight off the bottom as you slowly drift down the steep banks of Chotard.

The folks at Chotard Landing can provide you with up-to-date fishing information by calling (601) 279-4282).

Other Choices: Located near Crystal Springs, Lake Calling Panther offers great cold-weather largemouth bass fishing this month.

For some superb striped bass action, check out Pickwick Lake in the northeast corner of the state. Trolling deep diving crankbaits along the edges of the river channel is the most productive method.

FEBRUARY
Largemouth Bass
Okhissa Lake
Recently opened to fishing, Okhissa Lake is the newest largemouth bass factory in the state. Located in the heart of the Homochitto National Forest near Meadville, this 1,200-acre lake has more than 39 miles of shoreline and an abundance of structure. With everything a largemouth needs to grow big, many expect the next state record to be pulled from its waters in the near future.

Okhissa Lake has an average depth of 31 feet, stretches approximately two miles from north to south, and is over a mile wide at its widest point. Early reports indicated that soft plastic lures and jigs fished around structure are most productive. However, medium-running crankbaits can also produce late-winter strikes along the dam.

Tim Reed, District Ranger with the National Forest Service is the contact person for more information about fishing Okhissa Lake. Call him at (601) 384-5876.

Other Choices: February is one of the best months to catch big smallmouth bass on Pickwick Lake. Fish the mouths of creeks with Shad Raps, tube baits or 5-inch curly-tail grubs.

Located at Glen Allan, Lake Washington is one of the state’s premier February crappie lakes. Live minnows fished deep tend to produce the biggest slabs.

MARCH
Blue Catfish
Mississippi River
For big blue catfish, trotlines on the mighty Mississippi River are the perfect combination. Each spring, floodwaters cause the Big Muddy to get out of her banks. Foraging catfish move into the flooded timber in large numbers.

Catfish anglers take advantage of this feeding frenzy by setting multiple trotlines in likely spots along the main channel. Chicken livers, cut skipjack, live goldfish and pond perch are the baits of choice when a boatload of Mississippi River catfish is the objective.