The skies turned from just being a bit cloudy to very dark, and a warm rain proceeded to come down in torrents. We motored upstream to brush that had been especially productive that week just beyond the old Bethel Community House. It was raining so hard that we had to stay within 50 yards of the shore to be able to see land.

The particular brush we wanted to fish was in excess of 75 yards out in the lake and I could not see the trees I usually triangulated to find the brush. We began to circle as I told Jim, "We are bad close to where we want to go, but I can't pinpoint the brush."

After turning the depth recorder on, we finally located the brush and threw a buoy in it to mark it. It was pouring down rain, and the gas can began to float as the water gathered in the boat. My boat doesn't have a bilge pump, so we dipped water out with a cut-off gallon plastic jug. Jim Casada looked at me as if to say, "What kind of nut have I gone fishing with today -- he doesn't know when to quit!" We parked the boat straddling the brush with anchors both fore and aft to keep the boat from moving around.

I told Jim, "Even though the water is 20 feet deep here, it is only 7 feet down to the top of the brush. Open your bail and start counting as soon as your minnow touches the water; when you get to the count of six, shut the bail and start reeling very slowly until you feel a light tap. When this happens, set the hook, and reel your fish in."

Almost every drop that each of us made resulted in a nice crappie. It didn't take long for us to have our 60-fish limit and we headed back toward the cabin. Jim was shaking his head as he muttered, "I saw it and I still don't believe it!" Days like this one make me pray that history will repeat itself! I hope I live long enough to see Lake Wylie get back to the "Glory Days."

According to where you live in the state, you might have to travel the extra mile to get into good crappie fishing during the 2009 season. I prefer to fish old standby waters, but new territory is always exciting to visit and cover. You might have to have an attitude adjustment if your old strategies aren't working, but we all need to learn something new from time to time.

Some crappie anglers have the opinion that they "know it all," but this same person will undoubtedly lie about other things too. We never get too old to learn. I've often heard that the school for learning about the outdoors doesn't have a graduation date. I'm a firm believer in this. There is always more than one way to skin a cat. Turn off the TV, get in your truck, and try a new crappie lake this year. You just might be surprised at what you find!