Big Sem

Question
We had such a great time last year, (thanks to your advise) We are headed down again the second week of March. We will be fishing around Seminole state park up to Rays lake for bass and crappie. Any advise would be greatly appreciated.

thanks Ken

Answer
Ken; I am glad you had a good time last year and that whatever I told you paid off.  To be honest, however, I do not remember specifically what I told you or even who you are.  I have had a lot of questions since then.  

Of course what the fishing will be like in the second week of March will depend greatly on the weather between now and then.  We did have a cold spell a week or so ago and now it has warmed up quite a bit.  If it stays this warm with no more cold fronts the spawning will likely be pretty well over by mid March.  If, however,there is a cold front or two fish may still be on beds by then.  Bass that is as Crappie are not as much affected by cold fronts as bass and will likely spawn anyway.

Why don't you try giving me a follow up and tell me a little about what I told you last time so I can get a better ideas of how I can best give you information now.  Meanwhile I will look back and see if I can find my answer to you last year but that isn't easy as the messages are simply in order of date sent.  If I knew the date I could do much better.

Meanwhile I can say that for crappie I would start with live minnows as a search bait.  I like to use a pole and bobber and move around.  If I don't get a bite within a minute of dropping a minnow into a hole I try moving it up a little having started near the bottom.  If by the time I move it up to a foot or so of the surface (five minutes or so) I move a ways and do it again.  Of course I am always looking for cover either brush or weed clumps.  I try to cover water until I find the crappie then settle in until they stop biting then move on.  They haven't stopped biting usually but simply moved.
I have always had my best crappie fishing the last hour of daylight until I can no longer see my bobber.  I have tried night fishing using a light a time or two but haven't had much success.  My late brother in law used to catch lots of crappie at night however.

As for bass I like the looks of the upper end of Ray's Lake where there are large areas of lilly pads.  A popper or a frog should bring some action or a Johnson Silver minnow with pork (not plastic) frog worked through the pads should work.  Of course lizards and large plastic worms should work too.  Up off the few cabins at the upper end of the lake are a few stumps.  I have caught some bass around these using worms.  I think plastic swim baits should do well here and in the open water of Ray's lake should work.
I have never fished the lake below Ray's lake.  It is completely ringed with lilly pad beds and should hold bass.  I do not know how deep it is except that it isn't very deep although deep enough to have no problem with a motor except maybe weeds.

Sorry I can't do a whole lot more as I simply have not fished the area from the park to the bridge where the canal leads to Ray's Lake.

You might try the follow up as I suggested and I will try to be more specific for you.

Jack L. Gaither   (JackfromSeminole)