Page 15 - Crappie NOW - April 2018

FLY FISHING FOR CRAPPIE

Neither had the crappie. When
Hartman used his fly rod to drop small On the Fly
doll flies into tight spots, the fish
immediately reacted. Hartman caught * Kevin Kurz, longtime owner
big stringers full of crappie, and the of K&K Fly Fishers in Overland
word spread.
Some 30 years later, Hartman still Park, Kan., recommends using a
fishes the same way. But he is no longer 1/32nd or 1/48th-ounce marabou
a novelty. Hartman has proved time and jig with a No. 8 hook under a light
time again just how effective a fly rod strike indicator. His favorite colors
can be when trying to entice crappie to are chartreuse and black, white
bite. and blue or white and pink.
“When I had my guide service, * Kurz also has found success
people would call me and ask, ‘Where
do you fly fish for trout in Kansas?’ “ said on a bead-head Wooly Bugger
Hartman, who once operated the Fly weighted so it sinks slowly. “It’s
Fish Kansas Guide Service and taught deadly when the crappie are in the
fly fishing at Emporia State University. shallows,” he said.
“I’d tell them, ‘We don’t. But we’ll catch * David Cook, president of
just about everything else that swims in the Missouri Trout Fishermen’s
Kansas.” Association, goes even smaller
“I don’t even use a spinning rod
anymore. It’s a lot more fun to catch ‘em when he is targeting crappie in the
on a fly rod.” shallows. He will use a1/64th to
1/100th-ounce marabou jig, often
Fly Fish Kansas olive in color, under a feather-light
Hartman gets a twinkle in his eye strike indicator and slowly retrieve
and a smirk on his face when he talks it over the top of brush.
about the “flies” he uses. * When the crappie move away
“I’ve been using small marabou jigs
for years,” he said. “Well, the purists from the banks, they often suspend
think they have to be using a true fly and over deep water. That’s when Kurz
they’ve tied some patterns that really will go to a small minnow-imitation
work. fly and find success.
“I taught a friend of mine to fly
fish and he got so excited about it that
he developed his own fly. He called it of his wrist to reposition his fly.
Sarge’s Crappie Fly because he was a When the crappie are in the
sergeant in the Marine Corps. It’s deadly shallows, I can catch a lot more fish on
on crappie. But I still use a lot of cheap a fly rod than I could on a spinning rod,”
marabou jigs, too. he said.
“I don’t think the crappie care.” Hartman uses a well-equipped belly
Hartman uses a 6-weight fly rod, a 3X boat, waders and flippers to maneuver
tippet, and a 1/32nd-ounce jig or fly where he wants to be. He targets
suspended under a strike indicator. shallow water as the water warms and
The advantage of such a setup? It the crappie move in to spawn. He looks
is more of a natural presentation, he can for gravel banks, cover such as brush or
keep the lure in front of the fish longer, rocks, and weed edges.
and he doesn’t have to reel it in to make Hartman often starts in mid-March
another cast. He can use a simple flick when the crappies are in the pre-spawn

15 Crappie NOW April 2018