I know what you are thinking, warm weather and clear water! Indiana Gravel and Strip pit fishing.

Fishing these holes can be very frustrating and sometimes almost impossible. All of us have been skunks at one time or another. I will provide you with what I have learned fishing in these areas.

First you need to learn the design of a well. Strip pits have very direct drops and high vertical banks from where they blew off the dirt. Most of these have been reclaimed and fish spawning areas (shallow water) have been added. In these pits they just took a big shovel after blasting and loaded the coal onto trucks. Sometimes you can find an old road bed where loaded trucks were going in and out of the pit.

Anything different can contain fish. Underwater structure, dots, pockets in the weeds.

Gravel pits are often deep (they can be shallow), and if you look around you can probably guess where the roads went in and out of these pits. These old roadbeds are the main structure for large Indiana snook. Don’t forget that dots, weed lines, and pockets are also good areas. Please be aware of these areas when fishing these holes.

To continue with the basics. All the pros will tell you to downsize your lures and use the lightest line you can get by with. That’s fine if you want to catch a lot of small fish, but if you’re looking for quality fish, use Muskie sized lures! Sure, you won’t catch as many fish, but the ones you will catch will be quality fish instead of all the dinks.

Sound and vibrations can make a difference in the offer. One night fishing for bass while fishing for a spinnerbait for over an hour I hung it from a tree and lost the leaf. Being too lazy to walk back for a new bait, I started throwing it without the blade and the fish loved it! I have never caught a bass on a spinnerbait on that lake.

Try the night fishing for bass. At night you can use floating baits like the Rapala and be very successful. If you catch a lot of little ones, switch to bigger baits. At night I will go out to prowl the shores in search of active fish. Crazy-rigged pre-assembled worms make excellent baits. I’ll also use a 6- to 12-inch Texas rigged worm with the plumb line stuck in to launch it at trees, branches, and other obvious structures. Remember to hit the old road beds, the basses will use them as a road when they feel like feeding.

Basically the only two lure colors I use at night are white or black, whichever the fish like best. Crappie and pan fishing in Indiana gravel and strip wells. Crappie disperses after spawning and can be found along lines of weeds and fallen structures. You really have to be sneaky as all fish in clear water are very easily spooked. The best bait to use is a cork and minnows.

Live bait is an excellent bait option for all fish. Use minnows for bluegill and bass, shiners for bass, small live bluegill or goldfish for flathead catfish, and live shad, creek chub for muskie. Musks are stored in some lakes.

Night fishing is a plus, and use big baits. No matter what it is, use big baits for Muskie!

In general, night fishing can improve your chances of catching large Indiana bass, large Indiana muskrat, large Indiana walleye, large bluegill, and large crappie. Just remember that fish can be very easily spooked in clear water! If you fish from the bank, walk gently and keep a low profile.

That’s just my style of fishing and it’s not for everyone! I hope you enjoyed the article, and I hope you catch more and bigger ones!