The biggest crappie caught during the event weighed in at 2.31 pounds, and was entered by the team of Rick Solomon and Mike Walters. The winners of the Semi-Pro Division, Jim and Bob Raymer, came in with 12.56 pounds of crappies, and they were fishing in 12 feet of water, too. They were using purple and chartreuse jigheads.

The weather during the tournament was mostly sunny with air temps in the upper 60s during the afternoon. Water temperatures were between 64 and 65 degrees, and the water was stained.

And if that wasn't good enough news for crappie fishing at Monroe, an angler/creel survey was held at Monroe Lake in 1998. The survey revealed that crappies were the third most abundant fish caught, coming in at 11.6 percent of the total catch recorded. Not insignificantly, another angler creel survey was conducted in 2000 and crappies were the most abundant species caught. During this survey a whopping 85,258 crappies were caught from May 3 through October 2000.

If you're going to fish Monroe Lake, be sure to get a map, because this lake is huge and it is loaded with crappie hotspots; one of these hotspots is the finger that Jacobs Hollows drains into. You can also go to the ACA's Web site at www.Crappieusa.com and get detailed information on how and where the competitors caught their fish at Monroe, and other lakes where ACA competitions were held. The DNR office number for information about Monroe Lake is (812) 837-9546.

SALAMONIE RESERVOIR
Located in Wabash County north of Marion, Salamonie Lake contains 2,855 acres of water. It is another of Indiana's fine crappie fisheries. Like Monroe Lake, Salamonie was also included in the ACA's tournament circuit in 2006. This means that Salamonie Lake is another prime location to go after these popular fish.

A creel and fish survey was conducted here in 2003 from April through October; and for slabside seekersthe news is very good.

Thomas Nimrick and Robert Williamson won the Amateur Division. These skillful angers took a total of 6.53 pounds of crappies (no more than seven fish total). The winning pair was fishing brush (structure) in 8 to 9 feet of water with the fish being suspended 3 feet from the bottom. Nimrick and Williamson utilized a vertical-jigging technique with 1/16- ounce red and orange jigheads to come away in first place.

Deb and Dave Gregory won the Semi-Pro Division. The winning couple started out fishing in deep water, but opted to switch to shallow water where they scored big by using black/chartreuse jigs.

The big-fish award went to the amateur team of Nimrick and Williamson with a 1.64-pound crappie. Water temperature at the time of the tournament was 62 to 64 degrees. This reservoir is about four miles long, and one-half mile wide at its widest point. It, too, is loaded with fingers and coves that crappie fishermen should target.