Willow Springs 5/30

[Fish Hawk]

on the water around 7am 59° water temp. started trolling for trout about 45min before fisrt bite. first double came at 8:30 off tip of sardine point. sarted going up the west side of sardine point and picked up a few more trout and a nother double. than headed to the east side of sardine point and picked up a few more trout. got up in the trees on the east side of sardine point and crappie sacked everywhere on the graph. started casting john deer and it was on. little crappie, i mean little crappie. fished till around 3. ended up with 7or8 trout, all stockers @ 8" maybe 15 crappie going at .5lbs. 62°water tempe at 3. nice day, 70° air temp at 3pm.     

[Piscolli]

Nice Hawk, thx for the report.

[Fishless]

thanks for the report Bill, saw Johnny Johnson catch a couple (nice crappie) at willow springs two years ago on one of his shows?? thought interesting, sounds like there is a bunch in there, I have caught a lot in years past a lake mary and it takes them a longgggggggggggggg time to grow up with limited forage for food and short growing season with the lake so cold. sure would rather see crappie than those northern pike in the trout lakes at least they don't compete.

Bill did you find the crappie with your new side scan secret radar unit??

how crowded was it

[Fish Hawk]

I did find the crappie with my new radar unit. when i got there was no crowds, when i left it was standing room only around the shore I've never seen so many poeple. out on the water was fine. I had to pull all the way out to HWY260 to finish tieing the boat down. poeple every where. glad I went early and took the boat. I bet there was not place left to camp.

[Whatagearhead]

Nice report - sounds like you beat the crowd by being in the middle of the lake 

[boatpeople]

 Great report Bill, can you use minnows at Willow Springs?

[Fish Hawk]

Great report Bill, can you use minnows at Willow Springs?

no minnows at WS

[PhishingPhreek]

Never mind that post I had on how your trip was...

I fished WS that weekend and managed 4 trout and 1 tiny bass. I had to work hard to catch anything... maybe I was fishing the wrong spots. Met a guy at Woods Canyon who told me about the crappie at WS and went to the cove I could have SWORE he said was the crappie area and I didn't get anything back there. Where is this Sardine Point?

[AZfisherdude]

Good question. I have fished that lake a few times. This was before I knew what crappie even were though. I know I haven't caught any up there. Bluegill, bass and trout but no crappie.

[Fish Hawk]

for crappie at WS, go to the cove stiaght across the lake form the ramp. use your electonics to find them

[PhishingPhreek]

I use a 12' dingy with no electronics... In fact, I have a 10hp motor that works everywhere but that lake. haha

The guy I talked to said to go to the cove where you can see the highway from the water. It was the one with tons of grass and weeds in the back? I didn't catch anything back there other than the same stump a few times.

[AZfisherdude]

for crappie at WS, go to the cove stiaght across the lake form the ramp. use your electonics to find them

I am guessing you mean to follow the lake around opposite of the ramp and head towards all those stick ups? There are a few about half way back and then, as I recall, there are loads of stickups in the back end.
There is a tiny cove straight across from the lake but I am thinking you may mean something else?

@PhishingPhreek -  I know what you mean with the motor. My 6 hp gives me loads of touble at that lake for some reason. It is a little hard to start at Big Lake but seems to run rough too at WS for some reason. I might be heading up there in a couple of weeks to try it out. Haven't been in a while and I actually like that lake.

[Fish Hawk]

for crappie at WS, go to the cove stiaght across the lake form the ramp. use your electonics to find them

I am guessing you mean to follow the lake around opposite of the ramp and head towards all those stick ups? There are a few about half way back and then, as I recall, there are loads of stickups in the back end.
There is a tiny cove straight across from the lake but I am thinking you may mean something else?

@PhishingPhreek -  I know what you mean with the motor. My 6 hp gives me loads of touble at that lake for some reason. It is a little hard to start at Big Lake but seems to run rough too at WS for some reason. I might be heading up there in a couple of weeks to try it out. Haven't been in a while and I actually like that lake.

yep, there is a small cove, but no crappie there. go to the big cove with trees. good luck and give us a report when you get back   

[azslabber]

You've got to lean them motors out about half a turn and they will run perfectly.Elevation my friends.Remember to put them back where they were or you'll have the same problem back down here.

[AZfisherdude]

Well, it has been a while but I went up there recently. I went way back in there and never saw any crappie. Not on the sonar or otherwise. Only spotted two bass the whole day. Loads of tiny trout though. Oh, well. Maybe I'll try again next year.