I’ve been fishing nonstop since Friday. The weather has been great and the water conditions have been just as good. Saturday and Sunday I had trips and took a gamble and fished Rim Shoals. It has not been offering up the numbers of fish like most of the places I am fishing, so for me I was debating whether or not to go there. The funny thing was, it paid off big time. I had Dale and Rick from Oklahoma. Dale has been out with me at least four times and Rick is brand new to the sport. I started the day out teaching Rick the fundamentals of the cast so it wouldn’t be too difficult trying to learn as we fished. It didn’t take long for him to be casting like a pro. Sometimes it happens that way...I guess he’s a born natural.
When we arrived there were only three cars in the parking lot. I couldn’t believe it for a Saturday...we had all of Rim Shoals to ourselves. John Berry and Gabe Cross were the other two guides there. It was lower than I’ve seen it in a long time (it was 3 feet below the high water mark on eight units, if you call that low), so I was anxious to see if this type of flow would make a difference. I know in a max eight units, it can sometimes be tougher to find the fish, and often the trout don't feed throughout the day. My goal was to fish shallower and hug more of the banks and islands. I figured a fl. pink san juan was the hot fly so that’s what we started out fishing with. I noticed the fog was really thick when we first got there and the fishing was slow until it lifted...but once it did we ended up with at least sixty fish and two 'bows that were pushing 20-inches. And guess who caught the two big fish? Rick, the beginner with beginner's luck. Dale is always the one catching bigger fish when he brings a buddy, but today he got outfished by the newbie. I thought it was comical and since I have a good rapport with Dale, I could rub it in his face a little bit. Be sure he was thrilled and excited for Rick, even if he didn’t catch the big fish of the day. All I can say is Rim Shoals is on fire right now!!! Take my word for it.
Here's what Dale had to say:
"Jeremy... just wanted to let you know what a great time we had with you on the White. This is the fourth time I have been a client of yours and I not only catch a lot of fish, but always a few big fish. Two day's ago was Rick's first time to fly fish. I appreciate the time you spent with him on shore giving him a casting lesson, and I know it made for a better day on the water. And your instructions on the water with Rick were great. He picked up the casting and mending quickly, and I credit your patience, instructions, and maybe a little beginner's luck for his success on the water. I think he even caught more then I did, and I know he caught the two biggest trout of the day. You have got Rick hooked on fly fishing and I am sure he will be back. I have caught more fish with you then on this trip but nothing takes the place of seeing Rick pull in all those trout. As I have said before I don’t care if it is high water, low water, or if we're wading, you always put me on fish. Again thanks for a great time, already looking forward to the next day on the water " -Dale Kirkley
The next day- Rim Shoals
The next day I went back to Rim with Doug who is also a long time client. He likes to go fishing every chance he gets. We had similar results as the day before with fog on the water and lower water levels. Doug doesn’t like to fish by himself so he asked me to fish along. He says it helps him become better by watching me. I guess some people learn better that way. I think this is about his tenth time fishing with me so it’s another one of those “fishing buddy trips“.
This time when we showed up it was only John Berry and us at the boat ramp. I couldn’t believe this, another great day and Rim Shoals all to ourselves. To make a long story short, it was pretty much the same thing. About an hour into it, the fishing really picked up. I think that all of Rim Shoals is fishing well, but for me, the best action has definitely been downstream where all the islands are on the right-hand side (if you’re facing upstream). Most people I see fishing high water down at Rim are fishing in deeper areas, and away from the bank. I hardly ever see them hook up when they’re fishing this way. Perhaps the key is either getting shuttled to an island and fishing the seams that drop into deeper water while wading, or drifting in a boat. Look for soft banks and shallow water. If you can find shelves that drop off the bank you will always find fish there. Make extremely long drifts without casting a lot. Anglers must rely on their mending and boating skills to keep them on a drift. The fly of choice is any san juan worm in different shades of pink. The micro ones seem to work better if you're fishing shallow. If you’re fishing deep, go one size up which is the "ultra" size chenille.
Norfork
Since Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday I’ve been fishing the Norfork in the drift boat. It’s been a blast!!! For some unknown reason they are only running 30-40 megawatts over there ( one full unit is 40mw, two full units is 80mw) and it’s made for some awesome fishing. And get this, all three days we’ve been out there, we have only seen a total of three boats a day. Here’s the kicker: The dam area and lower river are getting some pressure, but in the middle stretches you won’t see a soul. So the only place we are seeing boats is upstream by the docks or downstream by the confluence. What I’m wondering is where are all the wade fisherman? This is really good water if you like to wade some challenging riffles and runs (and always be aware of rising water). The best way to do this is in a pontoon or some kind of vessel that you can get out of easily and hit the pockets and shoals. Who knows how long this will last, so make sure you jump on this opportunity before it’s gone for a month or so (October and November should bring us more of this type of flow).
We’ve been fishing this “lighter water” several ways. The best flies seem to be egg patterns, midges, bead head hare’s ear‘s, and dead or olive scuds. It really depends on the area you’re fishing though. In water that is flowing fast with riffles, it’s been the egg and bead head patterns. In the slow moving water along the banks it’s been bead head midge patterns. I’m sure san juan worms are working (like always on high water), but I wanted to try other patterns in an attempt to see if I could figure some new things out. The whole river is fishing well. We’re also throwing a few streamers and some hefty dry fly patterns as well. Stimulators and white streamers have pulled a few. I’ve had the best luck with streamers right along the banks by Gene’s and Charlie’s boat docks (dam area). Smallish browns are chasing shad and sculpin patterns, but it’s still fun seeing them come out and bang this streamer. I sometimes switch over to stimulators when I see trout hit the Palsa indicators. There will be periods when you’ll get several hits on your Palsa. That’s when you should switch over to dries. It’s been real scattered , meaning the bite isn’t good throughout the river, so I haven’t stuck to it.
The best part about these trips has been learning the river in one unit. And also seeing all the news things to watch out for since April‘s devastating flood release. I’ve hit two big rocks that were barely submerged, but the boat took it well. It’s one of those things: if you want to get to the good water, you might have to take a few risks getting to it. I had some of the best luck on streamers getting in those tough places. Fast riffle water that is rushing over and through rocks is some of the best streamer water in my opinion. I learned this from watching Kelly Galloup fishing Michigan water several years back. These Arkansas rivers are made for streamer fishing. Taney is good for fishing streamers at night, but I think during the daytime hours you can’t beat the ‘fork. Some of the best water around, guaranteed. When these browns start moving their way upstream for the spawn I’m wondering what we have in store this year from the Corp having to run all this high water? I guess we’ll have to find out.
Taneycomo
Man, I wish it was easier to get over and fish Taneycomo. I’m excited for the locals who actually get a break now and again from all this high water. They’re seeing low water mornings and this will probably continue until they start dumping Beaver. Table Rock only has a foot to go before they are back down to pool. Once I see it’s been low for longer periods throughout the day I’ll get over and fish it. I’ve been talking to some of my buddies who are hitting it at night and during the day. They are saying it’s been fishing well. Nothing big, but a lot of healthy rainbows. The browns aren’t on the move yet, so it’s still a bit early for the pre spawn activities. If you’ve been fishing Taney, maybe you can send a small report my way so I can post it for everyone to read. It would be greatly appreciated for all the readers.
August 23rd 2008
General News
Home Waters is pretty much the Bible when it comes to fly fishing the Ozarks. It is an invaluable resource for those wanting to learn about all of our awesome angling opportunities, and Home Waters is also on most of the local guides bookshelves for frequent reference. You can purchase the new 3rd edition at Blue Ribbon Fly Shop in Mountain Home, Arkansas. Blue Ribbon also has two incredible video series entitled "The Underwater World of Trout". This footage is eye-opening for all that are passionate about trout behavior. I wouldn't be talking about these items unless I felt they were well worth having.
One more thing: Hopefully you noticed on the home page the news about a regulation change in Arkansas for the entire White and Norfork. Beginning January 1st, 2009, the limit from browns will be dropped from two fish to one fish. And the minimum length is a whopping 24-inches!!! This regulation could possibly make for the best trophy brown trout fishing ever down here. Hopefully there will be more trophy oriented regulations over the next few years geared towards rainbows. The potential is here to be the most prolific trout fisheries in, perhaps, the world…the fish here grow extremely fast and most are very healthy. Check out www.agfc.com for more info.
Fishing
A few of us are going fishing this afternoon (if the weather permits), so I’ll let you know how we do. I’m taking Larry from Blue Ribbon and Gabe Cross, a personal friend of mine, who's been guiding on the White & Norfork for 9 years. Should be a lot of fun. We're going to fish, but the main goal is to go search for some bigger browns and see if they’re in the same spots as last week. I’m curious to see what these browns behaviors are throughout the year. This river is different than Taneycomo in the respect that it’s shallow throughout the whole river. Taney Como “lays out” to have shallow water for the first three miles and then it gets deep. The only time you see big browns in good wading areas is during the fall when they run up to the dam (hatchery) to spawn. The rest of the time, they’re deep and you hardly see them unless you hook one because of the water clarity . I wonder how many big browns are in the White that are over 20 pounds? That’s one of my goals, find big fish and see if they live there or do their patterns change throughout the year.
August 20th 2008
White River
I know I said I would get some patterns done, which I have. I just haven’t had much time to write out the tying instructing though, which is the hardest part of the task because it takes the most time. Every morning I start to work on them, but seeing bright blue, clear skies pretty much calls me to the water. I’m going fishing. And that’s the rub…fishing has got to be my first and foremost priority because I’m really obsessed with learning this river. They are calling for rain the next five days, so maybe I’ll get some of this done. Finally. I do have some good news for those who are tiers. The last few evenings I’ve had the opportunity to have Eric Schmeucker, who’s father owns Wapsi, come by and share with us some of his personal patterns he ties for the rivers around here. I’m sure these patterns are well “guarded”, and are not in local shops. We have six done so far and I’ll be featuring these once a week as the “fly of the week”. The first one is the “Wee Craw“. I think this pattern is unique and I’m sure you will too. It’s a crawdad pattern that is a lot faster to tie than most, but at the same time displays a lot of action. After I write this report I’ll be working on getting the hopper tying instructions finished, so make sure to check that out.
Fishing as been extremely productive down here on the White. I’ve had some trips, but for the majority of the time it’s me and the river, which I’m glad and thankful for at the same time. It’s truly a blessing to be able to go fishing everyday. I don’t like stress and used to have a lot of it until I got out of “the matrix “ (corporate world) and this fits me a lot better. I mean who likes stress? There’s plenty that I could talk about and just like I did with laying out of the zones of upper Taneycomo and explaining them in detail, is what I plan to do with the White and Norfork. When the water gets lower I plan on getting started. One thing I will say is: the browns are on the move and working their way upstream. I don’t think the spawn is here, but I do believe there is some movement going on. I’ve been following some of their patterns and one day you’ll spot them in certain areas and the next day they won’t be there. Instead you’ll see them a little further upstream. Another thing I’ve noticed is, these big browns are holding in areas that have hardly any structure. Right on the bottom of the river where it’s just gravel and smallish rocks. The interesting part is the holding lies have to have a slope or a break in the current, where it’s deeper. Yesterday I went out with Jimmy T and we didn’t even fish. Instead we spent three hours looking for big fish. It was actually as much fun doing that as it is fishing…It’s really neat to see big browns gets spooked and bolt in the blink of an eye.
I’ve fished from Rim Shoals all the way up to the dam and to me it’s still happening right up at the dam. I can honestly say that the bigger fish are more up top and not really downstream. Most of the smaller fish I’ve been catching, believe it or not, are at Rim in the catch and release area. The islands are fishing better than along the banks and right in the middle. Wildcat is fishing really well if you find the grass beds along the banks. The water is only about two feet deep and the fish are buried down in all that stuff. You have to be out a little ways when you start your drift and make a further cast or you’ll end up spooking them out and the bite will go south. I’ve made five or six passes before they wised up and didn’t hit as much, but every time you make a drift you should hook up with five or six fish. I’ve also seen some big browns holding in these types of shallows but I’m not able to get them to bite. This week has let me down a little bit with respect to the amount of browns I’m catching. Last week I caught at least one brown that was in the 20-inch range every day. This week it’s been primarily rainbows in between 14 and 16 inches. The flies of choice have been san juans in fl. pink, red, blood red, orange, fl. Red and worm brown. Other flies have been the bead head dubbed hair bug (hares ear), egg patterns in white, peach, lt. pink, pink, mixtures of yellow and lt. pink ( a washed out look) and dead scuds. Midges are also working in the shallower water with lighter current flows.
I’ve also been playing around with streamer fishing and throwing some hoppers. Still a little early yet for the hoppers (on these rivers, anyway), but I did hook a few fishing white streamers using a 7.0 ips sink tip line. I was using sink tips in 3.9 and 4 ips, but it wasn’t getting down quick enough to get a good presentation in the faster current. I really believe the 7 ips is the right one if you’re wondering which ips is he best for eight units. I’m using Kelly Galloup streamers and Dave Whitlock’s swimming sheep shad. These flies are fairly big and I think that’s the key on getting bigger fish to strike. I did have one amazing look from a pretty nice rainbow, but once he came up to hit it, he immediately refused the fly and turned around…just like that. What a sight to see, though. I believe if this river was running a little less water, streamer fishing would be on fire. I can’t wait until they start fluctuating these water flows downward. I didn’t really take any pictures this week because we didn’t hook anything very big.
August 13th 2008
Little Red River
This was the second day in a row for low water down on the Little Red so we decided to go see what was in store. Not only that, a break from high water was something I needed. I took Gabe and my father along with the drift boat just in case. Come to find out, we didn’t use the drift boat. Instead we drove around hitting different access points where the shoals were within walking distance. That had a lot to do with my father. He’s getting older and the most important thing to me is his health so we can enjoy many more moments in the future. I would feel bad to see him fall or something while I was in his presence.
Anyways…back to the story. This was actually the first time I’ve fished the Little Red. I mean all this hype about the world record coming from here, I had to go see for myself why this river could produce such an enormous fish. The first thing I saw that was real interesting about this river was how shallow it is. I could see why this could produce a lot of redds. Its real narrow and it reminds me of Taneycomo and Beaver tailwaters in the way that it has alot of docks like Taney and is narrow like beaver. I would say it’s a step up from Beaver’s tailwater, but doesn’t hold a candle to the White, Norfork or Lake Taneycomo. It has a lot of small fish, the average fish was 6-12 inches that we caught. The conditions weren’t the best in the way of water clarity either, which made fishing a little more challenging. In the deeper water it was real dirty and visibility was slim. If you found areas that were shallow shoals with a drop off into some deeper water the fish were plentiful and could actually see a little better which increased your chances at more fish. I spent more time driving around then fishing. I wanted to learn as much as I could in a day so when I go back I’ll know where the better holes are. Then I can spend more time learning these areas.
I think out of all the places I went which were right at the dam, Cow Shoals, Winkler, Libby Shoals and Ramsey. Cow Shoals is where its at. I know myself I must have caught 30 rainbows in this one stretch. Gabe caught a bunch on dead scuds and my day was fishing zebra midges in red and black. Really all you had to do was find fish and the rest was history. Even in this dirty water the fish seem to not care. If you’re wondering what I used, yes I use the good ole egg pattern in peach and they tore it up. There was one guy downstream from me that finally swallowed his pride and asked me what I was using. The funny thing about this was, we were taking our time heading down around the bend at Cow Shoals and this guy came walking down in a hurry actually passing us by while we were making our way down. We all looked at each other thinking the same thing, this guy didn’t want us to get his spot. Of course I’m used to this from fishing Roaring River and Taney so what I did is fish all the water he passed up. It kind of teaches people to not get in a hurry. He passed up some of the best water to hit to what he thought was “the hot spot‘. I did look down at his fly when he passed by and could tell he was new to the sport because the water he was fishing didn’t store anything that looked like what he was throwing. So when I finally made the turn around the bend I could see him about 100 yards downstream. I started at the head of the shoal and immediately hooked up. From the fish splashing around he turned around to see me with the first trout of the day. Then another one and so on. I think I saw him catch a total of three fish the whole time I was there. After I did tell him I was throwing a egg pattern, to my amazement he actually switched over to one. The only thing is he didn’t catch any on it. I knew why and some of you who do know how I fish my egg patterns know why too. I won’t go into it because I’ve preached enough about it. All I can say is I think I’m on to something with this egg technique I’m doing. It’s hard to switch from it because its such a go getting pattern. I’ve used it everywhere and the same results happen. All these trout relate to it the same. It doesn’t matter what trout, I think it will fool any, anytime, anywhere.
The other spots we fished weren’t real big fish producers so not much in the way of saying how we did. I’ll have to spend more time to say more. At least the water is low until 4-5pm and probably will stay that way because they’re back down to pool. The next place to be back to pool is Taney. Be looking for low water there coming real soon. I hear some people talk about it’ll be another month, I don’t believe that, but who knows I could be wrong. We’ll just have to see.
August 9th 2008
White River- Rim Shoals & Bull Shoals Dam
Yesterday was one exciting day. We started the day fishing Rim Shoals catching a lot of fish on pink san juan worms, but everything was a little small for what I thought would be more quality from all the hype about fishing there right now. The average trout here is between 12-14 inches that we caught in the catch-n-release area. I believe this spot isn’t the best right now for bigger fish or for that matter, the place to fish. I keep writing about fishing up at the dam in the evening, but still nobody seems to head up there and fish. A while back I heard a rumor about Cane Island was fishing well. Some of you might remember the 24 inch brown I caught back in May. That was due to people talking so I guess its good to jump on those opportunities when they come.
After spending just a few hours at Rim we decided to go where I thought the fishing would be better. All I can say is, I’m glad I made that decision. Owen and myself both fished because we were on a mission to land some browns and look for that big one to come out and play. I met Owen from another guide who got sick while we were fishing at Rim, so I offered to take him out for the rest of the day. After meeting and talking to him while on the trip I got to find out that this guy eats, breathes, and sleeps basketball. Good guy and the fishing was up to par. With the bite staying consistent the whole time it made the day complete. We stayed until dark catching browns and rainbows until we couldn’t0 see anymore. The best places were along the banks and in the middle of the river down by the campground. There’s a tree that sticks out of the water, you can’t miss it. We had the best bites down there, but the browns and the bigger fish all came up at the dam. I didn’t see any walleye following fish to the boat, but we did see some deer feeding right up at the dam right along the river. This was the first I’ve seen in all my years of fishing up at the dam. You know it’s not just about catching fish, it’s about the whole experience that makes the day in my book. I know I’ll always remember that because it doesn’t happen all the time.
What’s New
I recently got two new videos that you can pick up from Blue Ribbon Fly Shop that are called “Underwater World of Trout”. There are two volumes right now that will BLOW your mind about how trout relate to current and a lot more. It sure changed the way I thought about current. I actually applied some of this to yesterday and fished some water that I would’ve never fished if it wasn’t for watching this video. I’m not just trying to sell you a video, I’m being honest. If you want to excel in this sport you’ll need these videos to advance your understanding on how to read water. And that’s a big deal in fly fishing.
Taneycomo
I haven’t fished Taneycomo in a month, but I do know the water is dropping out of the lake. It will be the first out of the three tailwaters that will have their lake back to pool. So I would expect this to be wadable for the brown run and even sooner. I’m sure night fishing will be back up and running here shortly. As of right now the lake has only four feet to go. Bull Shoals and Norfork have a long way to go so it’s going to be awhile for these to get back to normal. However there will be times they will back off or slow down the generation schedule, we just have to be ready when they do. I’ll keep you posted if I hear anything different.
August 8th 2008
Norfork
Well I guess you could say, I woke up to rain so that explains the rest of the story. Along with rain I also “really” paid my dues this time.
I’ll start by saying, for the record, I lost my Sage SLT 9’ 5wt and Ross Evolution 2 yesterday off the side of my boat. While I was rigging a back up rod with a midge Scott ended up hooking a fish so I decided to take his fish off and go back to rigging. I laid the rod on the side of the boat with the rod tip facing towards the water and the reel was stopped by the side of the boat. So after I released the fish I looked back over and the rod was gone. I started thinking to myself, why don’t they make cork that will float enough to keep the rod from sinking. The reel was balance well for the weight of the rod so to me, it shouldn’t be this way if we are spending that kind of money on a rod. Not too long ago another friend of mine lost his rod over the side of my boat. He had the same reel as mine except for it was on a Scott rod and the tip stayed upright and never sank. So the moral of the story is, I’m ok with losing a rod, but I think I’ll call Sage and let them know what I think. Who knows, maybe they will get on top of that.
So on the other note, I thought the rain would lift and the fishing would be on, but that didn’t turn out to be the story. The clouds came rolling in which made a blanket of fog on top of the water and for some reason the fishing went south. So not much in the way of saying we caught a lot of fish. We caught rainbows only which I thought was also surprising since this tailwater has the variety of trout species. However the temperature was better so that was a plus.
Fishing Rim Shoals today. I’m glad the weather is up to par. I’ll be able to stay out there longer and fish. Yeah!!
August 6th 2008
Norfork and White River
Dry Run Creek
I’ve had two more trips to Dry Run Creek. Man is this place different from the norm. I wish I was under sixteen. I would have a blast having the opportunity hooking a big fish every chance I go out. One thing I’ve noticed is where these fish hold. They do move around quite a bit from their holding spots. I’ve been there a total of four times within the last week. The last two times I’ve been there they haven’t been so noticeable and look like they have moved out. I’m sure they are somewhere, but the easy accessible areas aren’t holding near the fish like the other two days we went. Still, we were able to catch some decent browns along with some smaller rainbows. I’ll be honest, even though it’s a “kid type” fishery it’s hard to get the big boys to the net. Not only that, pressure plays a huge roll on the bigger fish to come out and feed. You have to get there early in the morning to really have a chance hooking a big one right off the gate. If you stick to a pattern that’s producing make sure you work some water before switching.
White River
Had a trip this afternoon. We decided to hit Bull Shoals Dam. The only difference this time was 21,000 cfs which was more water then I’ve fished earlier in the week. It did start to drop about 5pm and the bite picked up. We didn’t catch a lot of fish, but the ones we did catch were 18-19 inch rainbows. No browns hooked up, but we did get a shot of a walleye following a trout like they have been doing the last few times I’ve been up there. It’s only happening in that one area still so that tells me the walleye are still there. I’ll be fishing the Norfork in the morning with the same group so I’ll let you know how we do. Hope they are running one unit like they did today. Fishing should be great!!
August 3rd 2008 White River
I don’t know where to start. I know it’s been awhile since I’ve updated my site, but all this fishing keeps me very busy. I’ve had trips alone, fishing by myself, and I must say, it’s been fun exploring all this new water. I’ve even stumbled on water where we switch over and catch bass.
News Flash
I don’t know if anyone is talking about Walleye still being in the White River or not, but I know for a fact they are because they have been chasing the rainbows we’re catching all the way to the boat. They’re so keyed in on the fish they don’t even think about the boat. And these rainbows we’re catching are not small either. Some of them have to be in the 14-16 inch range. There’s one place in particular that they’ve done it the most so that tells me they like it there and will probably be there until someone catches them. I’ve tried to get my camera out in time to take pictures, but by then it’s too late. I let you know because maybe someone reading this will go get them out of there. If you fly fish, the gamble could be to throw a big white streamer with a sinking line, or either dead drift it, and you might have a shot at catching a monster brown trying to comb out the walleye. I haven’t tried it, but it’s a thought. I’m sure conventional tackle would be a better way to go after these walleye, so here’s the spot: It’s up at the dam as you’re going up to the signs on the right side, along the rock ledge. You’ll see it wrap around and straighten out. As soon as it straightens out there’s a big break in the current and right at the front of it is where they’re hanging. I know there are more than a few because the size seems to vary when we see them.
Jenkins’s Creek
Jenkins’s Creek is another place where you can find warm water fish. I went in there two days ago to get out from the sun. While we were under a shaded tree I noticed three white bass schooling in a circle. My first thought was how long have they been here and what else was in this creek right now. I knew as soon as I saw it, that this was “bass heaven”, if there was such a thing. The structure and the way it was mapped out was sweet. One side would be shallow and the other dropping off to a deep pool. It didn’t go too far in there, but it went far enough to hold, from what I saw, fifty or so bass. Sizes went from babies to the biggest around five pounds. The picture you see was about the average bass caught. I didn’t bring all my gear so I was stuck throwing only a few big woolies that I use for smallmouth. The fly though is one that I firmly believe in every time I’m stuck thinking about a fly I would use for any warm water situation and I’m glad I did. It imitates a lot or variations of darter patterns in the creeks we have around here. I’ll have to put it up here when I have some free time. I’ll make sure it’s done soon. Easy pattern, but very effective. You’ll see once you go out and fish it.
Crooked Creek
Went to Crooked Creek from the White River access and went back as far as I could go. Probably two miles up. I went slow to see everything and sneak up on fish so I could figure out where these fish hold. It turns out that there’s a lot of largemouth in this creek. I can’t say for sure if it was a fluke deal, but right now there’s over 200 bass I know for sure are hanging around grass beads and big boulders. I stripped streamers in between the clear spots in the subsurface areas and they came right out and got it. I tried a few popper patterns, but in the middle of the day, in the heat, they didn’t want anything to do with it. I knew that going in, but when you see bass in front of you, I guess you’ll try a few ways to get them. I’m going back in the evening and I bet the poppers will be the ticket!!
Norfork
I’ve had a few more trips to Dry Run Creek since the last report. Still catching big fish, but nothing to the net to speak of. It makes me wonder if other guides help their clients catch these fish. I know, for me, it’s difficult to coach somebody that’s never been fly fishing, to bring one of these monsters to the net. I’ve been hooking them, but most people try to horse them in, especially if they’ve been tough on conventional gear or have never landed a fish before. I guess the excitement gets the best of them. I‘m sure eventually we‘ll get some to the net. On the another note, we have caught some decent browns and rainbows that were all in the 18-20 inch range. And for a kid, that‘s not a bad way to start fly fishing. But the most important thing is getting kids involved with the outdoors and teaching them to take care of what we have for the next generation to enjoy (catch and release).
White River
The only place I’ve been fishing is right up at Bull Shoals. Maybe it’s me, but the time I’m going is only in the evenings around 4pm till the fog gets heavy on the water which varies from 7-7:30pm. That’s when “I think” the bites the best. You wouldn’t believe that I’m usually the only boat fishing and have the whole river to myself ( I wonder why that is ?). That’s a huge advantage because there’s no pressure and few flies drifting by fish. So of course if they haven’t seen something in awhile then they get more curious to come over and take a peek. And that’s exactly what’s happening. I had a trip with Jon and Ron two days ago and Ron had probably the biggest fish I’ve had on up there in high water. We played it for fifteen minutes before it broke off. It’s funny the way big fish react, 18-20 inch fish seem to run hard as soon as you plug them, but trout over that will sometimes let you raise them up to where you can get a look and then they dig back down and don’t come back up at all. We saw this fish for a brief moment before it went back down and this was a brown was well over what I’ve been catching. I would say it was in the neighborhood of 26-28 inches. Big fish. I know that for sure, and the fight he put on was so strong that I couldn’t believe how strong this fish was. Even though we didn’t get it to the boat, I know I did my job putting this guy on a fish of a lifetime. To really live through that is still a rush and will continue to be as long as us trout bums live for the next big one. Go check it out for yourself, I know if you go it will pay off. We’re also catching a lot of numbers with not much dead time. The bite seems to be consistent.
What’s New
I’m in the process of getting together fly box sets . Also I’m working on putting at least 50 local “hot patterns” for all three tailwaters in Blue Ribbon Fly Shop bins. It will take awhile, but I’ll finally have some of the patterns that have been producing quality trout for me the last fifteen years. So many other things coming in the works, you’ll have to keep checking back to stay informed. Click here to read Blue Ribbons newsletter.
Tying Classes
I have some disappointing news for my tying classes at the Hatchery. I’m going to cancel classes for right now. I really apologize for this, but we will reschedule more classes soon. They will only be when we have an event through the hatchery. For the first one we will have, I’m going to bring a guest speaker from Wapsi. He’s a close friend of mine that I’m sure some of you know, “the dubbing guy”, Eric Schmuecker. This will be one you don’t want to miss out on. He can answer any questions you have related to fly tying. He will also be tying some of his own patterns that nobody gets to see unless you see him tie in person. I wouldn’t miss this for the world. I’ll let you know more details when the dates get closer.