MR Crappie in Beaver Bay - south?

ndoutdrz

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Does Beaver Bay hold sizeable black crappie? I’ve caught one at the river/bay portion during ice fishing on the edge of the creek channel. Would love to get some black crappie for table fare!!!! TIA
 


Shockwave

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They are there but hard to find. I've fished a lot in that area and would catch one every once in a great while. For better chances, I would go to the Jamestown Reservoir.
 

Rowdie

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Someone filmed a crappie fishing show there once so they're there somewhere.
 

Jiffy

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They're there. If you ever see fish suspended up quite a ways off the bottom on your electronics, it's a good chance that's what they are. Stop and toss a jig in, you may be pleasantly surprised.

Or you might catch a white bass...
 

zoops

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Always seem to hear that most of the crappie success was attributed to a very large year class from 2011 (big flood year) and that those have died out. Haven't heard of much crappie success on Oahe the last few years but I'm sure there's some around.
 


Jiffy

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Caught a half a dozen suspended at about 10' in 20ish feet of water last year. They were still there when we left and the 6 we caught were thrown back. It was out of pure curiosity.

Saw a few schools on the electronics that could have been them last weekend but we didn't stop.
 

Bfishn

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Yeah it was the 2011 flood year class that caused the boom for several years and that's also when Mitchell did a fishing show there. There have and always will be crappies down there, just not in large numbers like then. The higher the water the better for them so these last few years of lower water may have hurt the population a bit.
 

Traxion

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The Oahe crappie boom was certainly mid 2010’s. A few years we caught tons around Mobridge. Now very few. Still a few but very limited.
 


Fester

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Yes very large crappie. If you target them you should have success. Pretty sure my kid had a state record without realizing it from Beaver bay. If I remember correctly was around 22" in length...big sucker. Threw him back for another day and another person to catch.
 
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grumster

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Yes very large crappie. If you target them you should have success. Pretty sure my kid had a state record without realizing it from Beaver bay. If I remember correctly was around 22" in length...big sucker. Threw him back for another day and another person to catch.
I’d of put it in hot oil..
 

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