Photo by Ron Sinfelt.

It's January. Old Saint Nick has gone back to the North Pole, and the New Year has finally arrived. Mississippi deer and duck hunters are milking all they can from the last few days remaining in the hunting seasons. And most of the Magnolia State's crappie fishermen have their poles rolled and neatly stored in their garages.

Those anglers believe that crappie season begins when spring announces its presence with the white blossoms of dogwoods. But diehard crappie anglers like Paul Johnson and Rabbit Rogers from Brandon don't let the freezing temperatures and sharp January winds deter them one bit. Dressed in warm hunting boots, thermal underwear, and as much insulated clothing as they can lay their hands on, these two crappie catchers consistently haul in coolers full of these succulent slabs.

"If you want to catch that once in a lifetime white perch, late winter can be the time to do it," said Paul Johnson, president of the Magnolia Crappie Club. "In my opinion, January is one of the best months to go crappie fishing in Mississippi."

When it comes to crappie fishing, no geographical region of the Magnolia State lacks for excellent lakes, and overall crappie action is good statewide. However, thanks to recent management actions and environmental conditions, crappie anglers can expect some of the best fishing seen in years at North Mississippi lakes. More harvest restrictions and greater education efforts were implemented in a concerted effort to preserve the trophy crappie action at many of the top Magnolia State crappie lakes.

White-perch anglers at Sardis, Arkabutla, Enid, and Grenada reservoirs have a new creel limit of 20 per person, and crappie must be over 12 inches long at all four lakes in order to keep them. Each angler can use up to five poles (except at Grenada, where the limit is three poles). The bag limit for crappie is 20 at the spillways of all four lakes; no length limit applies for those.

Lake Washington, over in the Delta, has updated restrictions as well. The creel limit for Lake Washington crappie is 30 fish per person per day with no more than five fish less than 10 inches.

Even Pickwick Lake and a section of the Tenn-Tom Waterway between State Route 25 and the Aliceville Lock and Dam have a 9-inch minimum length in place for crappie. These restrictions are the primary reason for the continued good prospects for the papermouths swimming these North Mississippi waters. With 52 percent of the state's anglers targeting crappie, many people feel that these restrictions are not only warranted, but also beneficial.

While tighter restrictions may help improve the crappie fishery for this part of the Magnolia State, some environmental conditions could have just the opposite effect. In the four flood-control reservoirs, water levels fluctuate up to 24 feet each year. When spring water levels are high, flooded vegetation improves habitat and produces more young crappie for anglers two or three years later.

Unfortunately, the drought of 2007 marked the third straight year for below-average rainfall totals. Low water levels concentrate fish, resulting in higher harvest potential and congested boat ramps as anglers flock to what water remains. While the short-term effect of low water levels is better fishing, the long-term consequence can be a falling off of fishing success in subsequent years.

Now that we know what conditions are like at these North Mississippi lakes, let's review each to see what techniques are most productive for cold-weather crappie.

PICKWICK LAKE
This 50,000-acre impoundment near Iuka in the far reaches of northeast Mississippi is one of a number of lakes created by the damming of the Tennessee River. Known primarily for its giant smallmouth bass, Pickwick is fast becoming a crappie hotspot as well. With close to 500 miles of shoreline bordering Alabama, Tennessee, and Mississippi, this lake is prime crappie habitat.

A new boat ramp and a larger parking lot at J. P. Coleman State Park should greatly improve access to Pickwick -- great news for the 70 percent of all anglers there who target crappie.