Every resident of the Natural State lives within an hour's drive of some outstanding crappie fishing. Crappie inhabit every Arkansas Game and Fish Commission lake, every U.S. Army Corps of Engineers impoundment, every oxbow lake and every warmwater stream in the state.

One way to get a good sampling of the best crappie waters in the Natural State is to take a look at top crappie waters in each of the state's 10 fisheries districts. A district fisheries biologist employed by the AGFC oversees fisheries work in each district, and thanks to the work of these men and women, each of our fisheries districts offers first-rate fishing for slab crappie in several lakes. Here are the best of the best, district by district.

DISTRICT 1
This northwest Arkansas district, which includes Benton, Carroll, Washington and Madison counties, has fair to good crappie fishing in lakes Bentonville, Crystal, Elmdale, Kidd and Hindsville. But when it comes to trophy-size slabs, Beaver Lake stands head and shoulders above the rest. A Corps project, Beaver is situated in the Ozark Mountains, with access available from several state and federal highways branching out from Rogers, Eureka Springs and Springdale.

Beaver Lake encompasses a lot of excellent crappie habitat. But because it covers 28,220 acres, its fish can be hard to find. When you locate them, though, you'll enjoy superb fishing. There were a lot of 1 1/2- to 2 1/2-pound crappie caught here last year. Some anglers brought in limits of big slabs day after day, and the potential for savvy fishermen this year is equally good.

Spring anglers do well fishing white twistertail jigs around stickups and cedar trees. The Coose Creek area is one of the best crappie fishing spots, and there's also excellent fishing in Esculapia Hollow, around the Ventris Recreation Area and in the Pine Creek area.

Call the Corps' Beaver Lake Project Office at (479) 636-1210) for more information, or check out the lake Web site at www.swl.usace.army.mil/ parks/ beaver.

DISTRICT 2
District 2 encompasses Boone, Marion, Baxter, Searcy, Stone, Independence and Izard counties in the northern Arkansas Ozarks. This region isn't considered one of the state's best crappie fishing areas, but anglers can find good action for slabs on the upper end of Bull Shoals Lake. This Corps reservoir covers 45,440 acres west of Mountain Home. Access is via Arkansas highways 14, 7, 178, 125, 202 and 281.

The upper end of Bull Shoals seems to provide better conditions for crappie than do its lower reaches. There's almost always a good spawn there, and there's a lot of good crappie habitat, where anglers can catch fish up to 2 pounds. Most will average 3/4 pound.

Big crappie action can be found in the areas around Tucker Hollow, Deer Cove and West Sugar Loaf. Most fishermen concentrate their efforts around sunken brushpiles. There's very little visible cover, so to find crappie, you might want to ask a local fisherman to show you the location of some brushpiles, or use a sonar unit to find them. When you find fish, you're in for a treat. This portion of the lake has served up really good fishing for the past several years.

For additional info on Bull Shoals, log on to www.bullshoalslake.comor www.bullshoals.org, or phone the Corps' Mountain Home Project Office at (870) 425-2700.

DISTRICT 3
District 3 covers the state's northeast corner-- Fulton, Randolph, Clay, Sharp, Lawrence, Greene, Jackson, Craighead, Poinsett and Mississippi counties. Several well-known lakes in this area -- Charles, Ashbaugh, Frierson, Mallard and Poinsett -- are very popular with crappie fishermen. But it's a little AGFC lake tucked away in delta farm country that produces some of the biggest slabs.