Keith Lusher 06.24.24
I bear in mind it prefer it was yesterday. I used to be simply 17 years outdated, casting a inexperienced and black Johnson’s Beetle Spin right into a slim canal lined with fallen timber. My goal was bream, and that morning I had already crammed my stringer with about seven fish. I aimed close to a half-submerged treetop and started reeling in. Out of the blue, I felt a strong thump—extra forceful than the standard bream strikes I used to be accustomed to. As I lifted the fish out of the water, I spotted it was a crappie. It marked my first encounter with this species and sparked my fascination with them.
Since then, I’ve caught 1000’s of crappie, experimenting with varied strategies resembling utilizing shiners beneath a cork, tight-lining jigs, and jigs beneath a cork, all of which have confirmed efficient. Nevertheless, one technique I’ve grown significantly keen on is casting and retrieving jigs with a spinner blade.
Lately, I had the chance to check out a really useful spinner bait referred to as the Sac-a-lait Slayer, made by H&H Lures, prompt by a lifelong crappie angler and good good friend. For these unfamiliar, “Sac-a-lait” is the French time period for crappie, generally used anyplace north of Baton Rouge.
My journey started on the Tickfaw River in Southeast Louisiana, an space nonetheless recovering from the dramatic environmental shifts brought on by Hurricane Ida a couple of years in the past. I began fishing alongside a shoreline lined with cypress knees and lilies, armed with the Sac-a-lait Slayer on my ultralight setup. The morning started slowly, however because the solar rose, the fish turned extra lively.
Listed below are my key takeaways from utilizing the Sac-a-lait Slayer:
Weight: The lure weighs 1/16 ounce, which is completely suited to an ultralight setup in water no deeper than 10 ft. I might advocate the 1/8-ounce model for deeper waters.
Design: This lure shines in its streamlined design, with no jig head to interrupt its horizontal swimming movement. The embedded weight all through the lure permits for clean retrieval via constructions and vegetation.
Spinner: The robust, gold teardrop-shaped blade was properly made, exhibiting no indicators of flaking or chipping, in contrast to cheaper ones. Personally, I desire bigger blades for elevated water resistance, this enables me to decelerate my presentation, however this can be a matter of non-public choice.
Throughout my journey, I landed 23 crappie, with the spotlight approaching a forged to submerged log. As I paused to untangle my spool, the lure sank to the underside. After I began reeling it in, I felt resistance, and after a vigorous battle, I landed a strong 16-inch crappie—one of many largest I’ve ever caught and it got here on the Sac-a-lait Slayer!
