In the dog days of summer, when temperatures in Arizona are well above the century mark, many fishermen turn their sights to night fishing.  Besides escaping the blistering sun, anglers avoid the summertime boat and jetski activity all at the same time. 

                It is no secret that one of the most sought after species once the sun goes behind the mountains are Crappie.  The funny thing is, Crappie will actually seek you out.  Inexpensive floating and submersible lights are the ticket and in no time at all, they will bring the food chain right to your boat.  The lights mimic the moonlight and come in white or green.  The light draws in plankton, which then attracts shiners and in turn Crappie.   The brighter the light the further it will shine and draw fish.

                My favorite light to use is the Green Submersible Fish-N-Lite from Optronics.  I have had the most success with the green light, which I think closer resembles a full moon.  Fish are more active around a full moon than any other time.

                Crappie, on summer nights, by far tends to be more active than during the smoldering day.  The extreme pressure Crappie face during the spring and early summer days could account for their switch to aggressive night feeding.  Chances are the average size will also be better.

               Crappie Nights

 When using light, your boat location is not significant.  You just need to be in the general area of the Crappie and they will come to you.  Your equipment, on the other hand is significant, I like to use a light rod with a spinning reel that has a 4-16 lb. Test monofilament line.  Personally I spend several nights each summer with my boys on Lake Alamo and have concluded that you can’t beat a minnow on a 1/16 oz. Jighead.  We will jig under and around the boat until   I determine the depth where we will get the most action.  Then we mark our lines with a permanent marker to keep us in the strike zone.  When jigging the minnows up and down you will suddenly feel a weighted sensation or a tap, which means to set the hook.  You don’t want to set the hook to hard; I mainly just lift my pole a couple of feet in a quick motion.  A large Crappie on a light rod is a lot of fun.  There are nights at Alamo where we catch 100-150 Crappie and an occasional bas or cat.  The kids go home happy and so does dad.

                Crappie reproduce extremely fast therefore catch-and-release is not necessary.  In fact, some lakes including Alamo have no limit as to how many Crappies you can catch.  And in my opinion Crappie is one of the best freshwater fish on the menu.

                If you haven’t tried a Crappie night in Arizona, the time is now.  So get them while it's hot.

Kip Pollay