Barbarian Fishing

If you’ve never fished for crappie with a fly rod, then you’ve really missed something. In my opinion, crappies, and other panfish, are the ideal fly rod quarry for the following reasons;
There are plenty of them.
They are almost everywhere.
They are scrumptious!
They are incredibly willing to smash your fly (most of the time) and do battle.
Unless you live in Alaska or Hawaii, chances are good that you live within one or two hours from a body of water than has crappie in it. Crappies are seasonal migratory predators. I won’t go into their seasonal habits here because that is a subject unto itself. Suffice to say it helps to know your quarry.
It’s pretty simple for most of the year. If you find em..you’ll catch em. The notable exception is summertime, when crappies get moody, sulk and suspend in open water. They frequently get lock-jaw at this time and will even refuse a live minnow dangled right under their nose!
You don’t need a $1000.00 fly rod to catch crappie (or in my experience, any other freshwater fish). A $19.99 Wal-Mart special will catch just as many crappies as an $850.00 outfit from G. Loomis. For crappie, you want to go light. A 6-1/2 to 8-1/2 2 or 3 weight fly rod is perfect for crappie. If you want to chase crappie during the summer, you may want to move up to a 5 weight rod with a sinking line, to get your fly to the depths quicker.
All you need is a single action reel, and it does not have to be an expensive one. Next, you will need a WF2F, or WF3F, or ST fly line, or maybe a DT5S for summer. Top it off with a 5 tapered leader (crappie are not line-shy, so a long leader is not necessary) and a 4X or 5X tippet, and your almost ready to go.
If you need to learn how to fly fish, I’d like to recommend the premier website for all things fly fishing FlyAnglersOnline. Here you will find all the information you need, and then some, for learning how to properly fly fish, find your quarry, and make and maintain your equipment. There are thousands of proven fly patterns there, with complete directions and step-by step instructions for tying them. There is also a forum where you can ask us any questions you want.
A few accessories are nice to have. If you fish from a boat, and plan to crappie fish all year, a good depth finder is a necessity. You’ll want a landing net, because crappies have very tender mouths and can tear-off easily. For the same reason, a floating fish basket or live well is good to have, because crappie can tear off of a stringer easily.
You’ll need a lantern for night-fishing. If you don’t have a boat, you might want to look at the various models of Belly Boats, or Float Tubes. They are great for crappie fishing in still waters.
Now, for the most fun part of flyfishing selecting your flies. You have two options: You can look for a supplier that ties the patterns you want, or you can do what the rest of us do, and tie your own. This is as much fun as fishing!

Are you a fan of fly fishing wondering if you can catch crappie that way? Or maybe you are an avid crappie fisherman and want to know of new methods and techniques for catching these favorite fish. Either way, crappie fly fishing is becoming more and more popular and if you’re interested, you can learn how to do it for yourself.
Crappie are some of the easiest and most popular fish to fish for in the United States. There are two main species: the white crappie and black crappie and both types are found in different parts of the country.
Time has brought us many new tools and techniques for catching crappie. There are also many new lures that work great at enticing the crappie to bite. Fly fishing is a great way to present your bait to the crappie and entice them to bite. It’s smoother and less likely to scare the fish than other types of bait casting. If you like the idea of crappie fly fishing, you’re going to need to learn to go about it the right way. Here are some tips and ideas to try to help you.
Preparing for Crappie Fly Fishing
Before you can play a fly fishing crappie trip, you need to have the proper supplies. If you don’t already know how to fly fish or have a fly fishing rod, you’re going to want to take some time to try to learn this first. Get some lessons, practice on your lawn or whatever you need to do to get in the groove before heading out on a crappie fishing trip. Once you feel confident enough to try fishing in the real waters, you need to pack your tackle and supplies. You also need to learn about the area you are fishing at. Here are some ways to prepare.
So how can you get ready for a crappie fly fishing trip? Just like any other crappie fishing trip, you need to prepare by learning as much as possible about where you will be going and the weather and more. You can get fishing reports of the lake or body of water you are fishing in if possible to help you prepare. If you’ve been to the body of water before it will help you plan for the best spots to try some fishing. Crappie fly fishing is different from deep water crappie fishing so you need to try to go at a time and season when the crappie will be fishing essentials to the list but this is a great place to start.
Crappie fly fishing is probably most easily done in the spring when the crappie are spawning and easily biting and when you can wade in the water at comfortable temperatures for you.
Techniques for Crappie Fly Fishing
If you’re going fly fishing for crappie, you need to know the proper techniques to help you reel them in every time. The unique thing about a fly rod is that it allows you more opportunity to gently place the bait where you want it so that it does not upset or startle the fish.