COLUMBUS LAKE
When asked, fisheries biologist Larry Pugh immediately picked 9,000-acres Columbus as the best lake on the Tenn-Tom Waterway for crappie fishing. That is partially due to the reservoir's very diverse habitat.

"Besides sloughs and old river runs, there are flooded gravel pits at Columbus," Pugh noted. "Crappie start appearing at these flooded gravel pits first because the water stays clear and warms up faster than it does in the sloughs and old river runs.

"Also," he continued, "Tibbee Creek, a major tributary at Columbus that comes into the lake from the west, is a separate fishery that's connected to Columbus Lake. You can run a 21-foot bass boat 20 miles up Tibbee Creek. "

Crappie fisherman A.E. Smith primarily fishes Columbus Lake.

"I usually put my boat in at Columbus Landing," Smith admitted. "One of my favorite places to fish is the pit area where gravel was mined to help build the waterway. A lot of drop-offs are there, where I can find 28- to 29-foot water depths. The gravel pit itself also has quite a bit of structure. In this open water, I like to spider-rig and slow-troll.

"I usually find many underwater drop-offs in Tibbee Creek," he continued, "which always has crappie holding somewhere in the structure. Even when there's a current, I can find dead-water bays where crappie are stacked up. I truly believe that Tibbee Creek is one of the best areas of the waterway to fish."

A number of fishing methods can work on Tibbee Creek. Some that Smith mentioned are using a jig pole, drop-fishing vertically or slow-trolling. The many sunken trees in this region are especially ideal for the jig-pole action. Many of the crappie boated weigh 1 1/4 to 2 pounds each.

"If I'm fishing high-water conditions, I've discovered that blue and black jigs are my best colors," the angler pointed out, "and I've even won some crappie-fishing tournaments using these colors when the water is high and muddy. Yellow is another color that produces good-sized crappie in muddy water.

"If the lake has stained-water conditions," he continued, "orange and red crappie jigs are productive colors to use."

THE TENN-TOM IN A NUTSHELL
Larry Pugh selected Columbus as the No.1 lake on the Tenn-Tom Waterway for catching crappie.

"If the fish aren't biting in the sloughs or old river runs, you can fish the gravel pits or Tibbee Creek. Many different patterns, depths and styles of fishing will produce crappie on Columbus Lake. Anyone can catch crappie there."

Pugh also recommended Smithville Lake as a back-up location where you can catch crappie. And of course, for the deep-water fisherman who wants to stay away from the crowd and feels confident in his ability to use electronics, Bay Springs Lake is an option.

"Whether you like to troll or fish with a jig pole or a cork and minnow, select the lake that best suits your style of crappie fishing," Pugh concluded. "Crappie are all up and down the Tenn-Tom Waterway. All you have to do to catch them is learn the lakes."