The time for putting a bunch of big slabs on the ice is here and now. While early ice can be good, the action after the first of the year can be even better and is something you really don't want to miss out on. Somewhere between first ice and mid winter crappies can be a little hard to pin down and even a bit unpredictable, but not now. Now is the time when solid patterns set up that are custom made for taking advantage of.

One of the hottest and most consistent patterns occurs late in the day and well into the night. Crappies have no problem dealing with low light conditions and can really turn on once the sun goes down. In fact daytime activity may be virtually nonexistent and could be a complete waste of time. Even darker water seems to have little effect on the night bite as crappies still exhibit the same lowlight tendencies as they do in clearer bodies of water. The thing is; if you're not prepared to stay late and you give up too soon you could easily miss out on the whole deal.

Being prepared demands that you be warm and comfortable and includes portable shelters, adequate heaters, and having enough light to see what you're doing. I've been using Fish Trap's Voyager and have found that it's big enough for two or three anglers but yet easy enough to move when the conditions demand it. When you do stay late you really don't want to spend a whole of time taking down a shack and the Voyager can be packed up in seconds. Also, temperatures can drop quickly once the sun goes down and if you’re under-heated you’ll be heading home early and probably empty handed.

Deciding on a starting spot will depend on a lot of things but finding a break line that drops into deep water is good place to start. The problem with the lowlight bite is the fact that you'll have to wait crappies out to know whether or not you're in the right place. The good news is that you can expect productive areas to continue to produce night after night and even week after week once you’ve uncovered them. That is unless you end up dealing with too much fishing pressure which can move the action, or shut it all down.

Good lowlight presentations include using at least one glow bait, and maybe a plain hook and minnow. In South Dakota where I live we can fish with up to four lines which gives us plenty of opportunity to experiment. One thing is clear; it can pay to change things up and give the fish a variety until you find out exactly what they want. Glow baits, plain hooks, and even the size of the minnow can make a difference and you may never figure it out if you're stuck on one technique.

If you're going to use glow you better keep it glowing which means lighting it up every ten or fifteen minutes. Glow jigs and even glow spoons can really make a difference. A small spoon like the 1/16oz Blue Fox Rattle Flash in a Glow Perch tipped with a minnow head can be deadly, but don't over work it. Crappies are easily spooked and might run from a quick snap of the spoon. Instead, you may be better off using tiny jigging moves followed by holding it dead still. Also, you can try and work fish off the bottom and see if that trips their trigger. And if you’re seeing fish holding high off the bottom on the depth finder by all means get your bait up and in their face and see what it is you’re looking at.

Good jigging rods for using the lightest baits have super soft actions like the Rapala model IRC3024 ultra light rod and reel combination. The light rod top will let you see the subtle bite of a crappie and help keep the hook from ripping lose when you try and work it to the top.

If I'm able to fish with four lines at least two will be set rigs and I'll use spools loaded with black Dacron line tied to short six or eight pound mono leaders along with clip-on floats. The Dacron is easy to grab and hold on to and the leader is a light as you usually have to go. Crappies on a night bite are typically aggressive enough that they won’t shy away from a heavier leader.

You wouldn’t think that the size of a minnow could make a difference but it can. And smaller isn’t always better as there has been plenty of times when the bigger minnows have gotten all of the action. The thing is it wouldn’t hurt to have some of the smaller crappie minnows along as well as a few fatheads and then mix it up until you find out what’s working.

Although the perfect set up can mean more fish, you can usually catch at least a few if you’re in the right place. If you’re not it’s going to require a move, followed by a move, and maybe followed by another. Finding mid winter crappies can be hard work, but the reward can be well worth the effort.