July - September 2007
September 27, 2007 - Courtesty of Arkansas Game and
Fish Commission -
White River Levels: According
to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, as of Wednesday the White
River stages are:
5.2 feet at Calico Rock (flood
stage 19 feet)
6.6 feet at Batesville (flood stage 15 feet)
2.1 feet at Newport (flood stage 26 feet)
13.1 feet at Augusta (flood stage 26 feet)
1.0 feet at Georgetown (flood stage 21 feet)
10.0 feet at Clarendon (flood stage 26 feet)
CENTRAL ARKANSAS
Little Red River: Lindsey's
Resort (501-302-3139) said the river is normal. Generators are
still running in the afternoons. Trout fishing has been excellent
on chartreuse Powerbait and Power eggs and olive or brown marabou
jigs.
NORTH ARKANSAS
White River: Sportsman's White
River Resort said the water is clear and normal. The generators
are on in the afternoon. Trout fishing has been excellent on
yellow powerbait, lures, rapalas and buoyant spoons. Fly fishing
is still good on midge patters.
Angler's White River Resort
(870-585-2226) said the water is normal. Generators are being
turned on in the afternoon. Trout fishing has been excellent
on screaming eagle lures and powerbait.
NORTHEAST ARKANSAS
Spring River : Many Islands
Camp (870-856-3451) said the water is clear and normal. Trout
fishing has been excellent using roosertails, spinnerbaits and
salmon eggs.
October 3, 2007 - White
River - Submitted by Berry
Brothers Guides
- JOHN BERRY CONCLAVE FISHING REPORT
There has been a little rain
in the twin lakes area and overall the lake levels have changed
very little. The lake level at Bull Shoals Dam has risen three
tenths of a foot to rest at two and three tenths of a foot below
power pool at 654.00 feet. Up stream, Table Rock Lake has dropped
two tenths of a foot to three and two tenths feet below power
pool. Beaver Lake has remained steady at four and seven tenths
of a foot below pool. The pattern on the White River has been
for no generation or low levels of generation in the morning
and then to spike it with a bit more water in the afternoon and
early evening, when there is peak demand for electricity. This
has created some limited but excellent wading on the White. Norfork
Lake has fallen eight tenths of a foot to rest at four and eight
tenths feet below power pool of 552.00 feet. The pattern has
remained fairly erratic. There have been periods of no generation
with excellent wading conditions on some days. With no predictable
pattern, I would recommend that you check conditions before wading
and carefully monitor the water level when fishing. The forecast
is for warm weather and sunny skies. With the existing conditions,
we should have some low water on both rivers.
On the Norfork, the dissolved
oxygen levels have remained low. This is most critical during
periods of no generation. Last week, the dissolved oxygen level
hovered around one and two tenths parts per million. There was
one instance where it dropped below six tenths of a part per
million. On the White River the dissolved oxygen has remained
steady. It has averaged three and a half parts per million most
of the time. The oxygen level is at the critical stage on the
Norfork. Great care should be taken to prevent stressing the
trout particularly near the dam where the dissolved oxygen will
be the lowest. Fish should be quickly landed and carefully revived
before release.
Anglers visiting from other
states to attend the Federation of Fly Fishers Southern Council
Conclave should be aware that the White and Norfork Rivers are
infected with the invasive alga, Didymo. They should carefully
clean their waders before returning to their home waters to prevent
spreading the didymo. The Federation of Fly Fishers recommends
that you remove any visible alga at the stream. Your waders should
be washed in hot water and then be carefully dried (especially
the felt soles) before being used again.
Fishing on the White River this
past week has been Red Hot! The fishing on the upper river from
Bull Shoals Dam to White Hole has been particularly good. There
have been reports of some really great days and some very nice
browns. The hot flies have been small midge patterns and San
Juan worms. There is still some excellent top water action on
large terrestrials especially grasshoppers and ants.
Wildcat Shoals has been another
hot spot. While the small zebra midges have worked well, soft
hackles like the partridge and orange and green butt have worked
well. Here again the grasshoppers and ants have been productive.
Rim Shoals has also been fishing
particularly well. The same flies effective else where will also
work here. As the waters become more crowded this week with visitors
from Conclave, this is a good place to go because there is quite
a bit of water. To escape the crowds, take the trail that follows
the river down stream. It begins at the walk in access and goes
for some distance providing easy access and exit from some very
productive water. As I mentioned last week, Gary Flipin at Rim
Shoals Trout Dock also runs a water taxi that will deliver you
to remote water for a small fee.
The Norfork has also been red
hot this past week. Here the black zebra midges, black Norfork
bead heads, San Juan worms, and olive woolly buggers have been
the most productive flies. There is very limited access to the
Norfork and it gets crowded quickly. Several anglers have been
walking up to McClellan,s. This area has been fishing well, but
since it closed in January the only way to reach it has been
to wade or float in. With the erratic pattern of generation,
I consider wading in very dangerous. It would be much safer to
float in from the dam by canoe, kayak, river boat, or personal
watercraft.
Dry Run Creek is always a hot
spot. If you have not been there you need to visit just to see
the huge fish. It is Catch and Release that was set aside for
kids and the handicapped. The most effective way to fish it is
by high sticking sowbugs and San Juan worms. Egg patterns are
also effective this time of year. Take the biggest net you can
find and a camera.
John Berry
September 29, 2007 - Norfork and White River - Courtesty
of Mountain
River Fly Shop
-
WHITE RIVER: Once again we have had happy fly fishers wandering
through the store all week with broad grins, recounting tales
of oodles of fish being caught and released, everywhere from
State Park to Buffalo Shoals. One fish not released, as it was
on death's door and unable to be revived when found by a guide
near Stetson's Hole, provoked plenty of chatter on the White
River grapevine last weekend. The photo (thanks to our mate Jimmy
Traylor) popped up on numerous websites, and goes to show the
sort of fish the river produces. It weighed in at 35 pounds.
No information on the cause of death but Jimmy pointed out there
weren't any hooks in its gullet.
Dark Midges have been the fly
of choice this week. Copper Zebra (either our slimline tie or
Umpqua's) have been performing extremely well. Brown thread,
black thread, or camel thread, it doesn't seem to matter, though
different fly fishers swear by their favorite color and size.
We've heard good things on everything from a 22 to 16.
Olive woolly buggers, that Ozark
standby has been in strong demand as well, showing that its taking
it share (and probably more) of fish. Similarly orange-hued scuds,
like our Dead Scud, Kaufman's orange scud, Rainy's woven scud
and copper McLellan's scuds have also been in demand. A few of
the Mountain River crew were out on the river filming yesterday
(another little project we are working on) and a quick report
was everything they threw was eaten.
Certainly it appears that the
cooling weather is signaling to the fish that fall and the spawn
is fast approaching so its time to fatten up. A pretty good time
to be on the water. About the only section of the White which
has been a little slow is the flats immediately below the dam,
where we have been seeing a consensus that "its been tough".
NORFORK: All the attention has been on the White again
this week, with early morning generation, and only small windows
of afternoon low water, sending fly fishers to the White. There's
also been talk of voluntary personal bans on fishing the Norfork
in low water, which might also be keeping some fly fishers away.
Scuds continue to do well on
the Norfork, either McLellan's Rainy's or Kaufman's in the smaller
sizes. Copper and brown zebras or olive WD40s seem to be the
midges of choice as well.
Tightlines from all at the Mountain
River Fly Shop
Gary, Cindy, Chad, Jim, Marc,
Faye, Mike and Steve
September 28, 2007 - White River - Submitted by Berry
Brothers Guides
- JOHN BERRY FISHING REPORT 9/27/2007
There has been a little rain
in the twin lakes area and the lake levels have continued to
fall. The lake level at Bull Shoals Dam has dropped two tenths
of a foot to rest at two and six tenths of a foot below power
pool at 654.00 feet. Up stream, Table Rock Lake has dropped six
tenths of a foot to three feet below power pool. Beaver Lake
has dropped four tenths of a foot and is now at four and seven
tenths of a foot below pool. The pattern on the White River has
been for no generation or low levels of generation in the morning
and then to spike it with a bit more generation in the afternoon
and early evening, when there is peak demand for electricity.
This has created some excellent wading on the White. Norfork
Lake has fallen four tenths of a foot to rest at four feet below
power pool of 552.00 feet. The pattern has remained fairly erratic.
There have been periods of no generation with excellent wading
conditions virtually every day. With no predictable pattern,
I would recommend that you check conditions before wading and
carefully monitor the water level when fishing. The forecast
is for cooler weather and sunny skies. With the existing conditions,
we should have some low water on both rivers.
On the Norfork, the dissolved
oxygen levels continue to drop. This is most critical during
periods of no generation. Last week, the dissolved oxygen level
hovered around one and two tenths parts per million. There was
one instance where it dropped below six tenths of a part per
million. On the White River the dissolved oxygen has remained
steady. It has averaged three and a half parts per million most
of the time. The oxygen level is at the critical stage on the
Norfork. Great care should be taken to prevent stressing the
trout particularly near the dam where the dissolved oxygen will
be the lowest. Fish should be quickly landed and carefully revived
before release.
The fishing on the upper river
from Bull Shoals Dam to White Hole has been good. The top water
action is still excellent with grasshoppers continuing to catch
fish. Nymphing with zebra midges (black with silver wire and
silver beads and brown with copper wire and copper beads all
in size eighteen) has been very productive. The bigger browns
are beginning their annual migration upstream to spawn. Effective
tactics for these migrating trout would be casting weighted larger
streamers and crayfish patterns.
Wildcat Shoals has been another
hot spot. The lower water has been a boon to fly fishers. While
the grasshoppers and zebra midges have been effective here, the
big producer has been soft hackles. The best flies have been
the partridge and orange and the green butt size fourteen and
sixteen.
The section from Cotter to Rim
Shoals has also been fishing very well. The grasshoppers, zebra
midges, and soft hackles have all done well here particularly
on the lower water. There have also been some very predictable
caddis hatches late every afternoon. Elk hair caddis in size
sixteen have been quite productive. Immediately before the hatch
occurs, caddis pupa have been accounting for some good fish.
If you want to try some new water, stop by the office at Rim
Shoals Trout Dock and have Gary Flipin take you away from the
crowds in a water taxi. He will come and pick you when the water
comes up or at a predetermined time.
The Norfork has done a little
better lately. With wadable water on the White, it has not been
so crowded. The bigger fish should start moving up stream soon.
If you are fishing there and releasing fish, try and avoid the
upper river near the dam because of the low dissolved oxygen
(DO) there. The DO will be higher down stream. As the water flows
through riffles on its way down stream, it will pick up some
oxygen. The most productive flies have been midges. Black zebra
midges and Norfork bead heads in size twenty or smaller have
been the hot nymphs. Dan,s turkey tail emergers in size twenty
two have also done well. If you want to fish something a bit
larger try a grass hopper or worm brown San Juan worms.
Dry Run Creek is still fishing
well. The big browns should be moving in soon. Sow bugs are the
dominant food on the creek and I have seen some pretty big ones
there up to a size twelve). San Juan worms in red and worm brown
can also be effective. I would recommend using a bit stronger
tippet on Dry Run than you normally would. This will help the
kids catch some of these larger fish. To stay out of the trees,
try high sticking nymphs. It works!
John Berry
September 28, 2007 - Courtesty of Missouri Department
of Conservation - Trout Parks
Bennett Spring State Park:
56 degrees, normal, clear; fishing
is good; successful lures are: marabou jigs (black and yellow
and white), mini-jigs (white floss and John Deere); glo balls
(easter egg 3 color and peppermint); dry flies: cracklebacks
and renegades; other successful lures are white brassies and
wooly buggers with spinners; zone 3: white Power Bait and yellow
Power Bait. Bennett Spring experienced a flood event on August
20, 2007. This event caused some minor fish loss. However, it
will not affect stocking at Bennett Spring for the remainder
of the year or next year. MDC's coldwater hatchery system was
able to cover the limited mortality associated with this event.
(Report made on 9/26/2007)
Maramec Spring Park:
58 degrees, stream is normal
with cloudy water conditions; fishing has been productive throughout
the overcast days; fish early morning or late evening for best
results; white scented doughbaits have been effective early;
try green and white rubber legged jigs with a 2 pound test leader
later in the day; other lures to try include marabou jigs (orange
and yellow), small plastic orange or lime green worms, jigs and
scented glo balls (try various colors). (Report made on 9/26/2007)
Montauk State Park:
59 degrees, low, clear; fishing
is good; the river continues to be clear and low; 2 lb. test
line or less is recommended; in the natural and artificial bait
area: doughbaits in pink, yellow, orange and white and garlic
scented are producing good numbers of fish; in the flies only
area: small flies are doing well throughout the day; marabou
and mini jigs are good choices, colors to try are white, black/yellow,
green and brown. (Report made on 9/27/2007)
Roaring River State Park:
58 degrees, rising, water flow
has increased with recent rains and is slighty dingy; 4 lb. test
line is recommended; trout are striking on marabou jigs (1/32)
in olive, black/yellow, brown and white; plastic power eggs in
brown, white, and yellow; plastic worms in cheese yellow, white,
orange, and chartreuse; and Rooster Tails in black, skunk, brown,
and olive; check locally to see what flies work best; for more
information on current fishing conditions call 417-847-2430.
(Report made on 9/27/2007)
Septemer 27, 2007 - Courtesty of Arkansas Game and
Fish Commission -
White River Levels: According
to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, as of Wednesday the White
River stages are:
2.3 feet at Calico Rock (flood
stage 19 feet)
7.2 feet at Batesville (flood stage 15 feet)
2.3 feet at Newport (flood stage 26 feet)
13.3 feet at Augusta (flood stage 26 feet)
1.6 feet at Georgetown (flood stage 21 feet)
11.6 feet at Clarendon (flood stage 26 feet)
CENTRAL ARKANSAS
Little Red River: Lindsey's
Resort (501-302-3139) said the river is normal. There has been
a generator turned on in the afternoons for about an hour. Trout
are biting well on artificial lures, yellow Power Bait, chartreuse
eggs, black Rooster Tails, and Buoyant Spoons.
Jed Hollan at the Little Red
Fly Shop said steady weather patterns during the last two weeks
have resulted in regular water releases from the Greers Ferry
Power House. One generator starting at 4 p.m. and running for
an hour or two has been the norm. Water temperatures coming through
the turbines over the last few days have averaged 47 degrees.
Aquatic insect hatches have been prolific lately. I have seen
caddis flies, blue winged olive mayflies, sulphurs, pale morning
duns and midges flying around the river. Someone asked me the
other day what flies were working and I told them "the ones
with hooks in them!" I have listened to many reports of
customers catching more fish than usual and larger fish than
usual. The dry flies that are working the best include elk hair
caddis (sizes 16-18), BWO (sizes 18-20), sulphur (size 16), green
drake (size 14), PMD (sizes 16-18) and Adams (sizes 16-18). Subsurface
flies that are taking fish include any nymph pattern such as
the pheasant tail or prince (sizes 14-16), sow bugs (lt. gray
or tan sizes 14-16), zebra midge (size 16-22), purple haze (size
14), red tail emerger (sizes 14-16), P & O (size 16), chuck's
emerger (size 16) and, since we are in the midst of a rainbow
trout spawn, egg patterns are useful (sizes 14-16 in bubble gum
or salmon).
NORTH ARKANSAS
White River: Sportsman's White
River Resort said the water is clear and at normal levels. The
generators are on in the afternoons. Trout fishing has been excellent
on Power Bait and Buoyant Spoons. Fly-fishing has been good on
sow bugs, worms and zebra midges. Rapala lures are good to use
while the generators are running.
Angler's White River Resort
(870-585-2226) said the water is clear and low, which has improved
fishing. Trout fishing has been excellent on artificial spinners,
Rapalas, and locally made Screaming Eagle lures.
Norfork Tailwater: Gene's Trout
Dock (870-499-5381) said the water is at normal level and flow
for this time of year. Rainbow and brown trout fishing has been
very good on worms and nightcrawlers.
Mountain River Fly Shop said
the tailwater has been getting some topsy-turvy up-and-down generation
pretty much all week, so it's understandable we haven't had too
many reports. When they're generating, try a brown San Juan worm
fished deep or heavier rigs with size 14 or larger tan or olive
scuds. If we get some wadeable water back this weekend, try consistent
Norfork fare like Zebra Midges in brown/copper, black/copper
and black and silver or the deadly Trout Crack fly.
NORTHEAST ARKANSAS
Spring River : Many Islands
Camp (870-856-3451) said the water is clear and normal. Trout
fishing has been excellent using Rooster Tails, spinnerbaits
and salmon eggs.
SOUTHWEST ARKANSAS
Little Missouri River:Jeff Guerin
of Little Missouri Fly Fishing said the transition from summer
to fall was fast and drastic. Unfortunately, the fishing is at
its hardest because of the quick change from strong generation
to slow current. But as we get less generation, more light cahills
will be popping out of the water. Dry fly action should be good
very soon.
September 20, 2007 - Norfork and White River - Courtesty
of Mountain
River Fly Shop
-
White River: Apparently while were away the fishing was very
good. Even better some nice windows of low water have been opening
up. We have been getting glowing reports from people coming off
the river on the numbers of fish. Nothing huge mind you, that
we have heard about, not since Jim's 24" brown last week.
Up and down the River the dry
fly action remains supreme; with these warm days and a touch
of breeze, it will continue nicely for a couple of weeks yet
at least until the Journal gets to bang some hoppers one more
time. We'd mentioned earlier in the hopper action; last year
the red Rainy's Grand Hopper was good, but for us at least it
had been and on or off fly that would pull one or two fish or
none. Yesterday, in wandered a customer who went back to the
bin for his weird hopper. The red Rainy's which had performed
well. You heard it here first!
Subsurface, size 16 Black and
Copper Zebras have been doing very well, alongside Beadhead Trout
Crack, and McLellan's Scuds in olive and tan. Fish these under
a hopper if you like to vary things up.
We have also had a run on woolly
buggers this week: flash-a-buggers, krystal buggers, red head,
coneheads, with rubber legs and without. It's been like throwing
a switch, and it's hard to ignore.
Norfork: Norfork has been getting some topsy-turvy up and
down generation pretty much all week, so it's understandable
we haven't had too many reports, particularly with the White
working so well. When they are generating, try a brown San Juan
fished deep or heavier rigs with size 14 or larger tan or olive
scuds.
If we get some wade able water
back this weekend, try consistent Norfork fare like zebra midges
in brown/copper, black/copper and black and silver plus the ubiquitous
Trout Crack.
Tightlines from all at the Mountain
River Fly Shop
Gary, Cindy, Jim, Chad, Marc,
Faye, Mike and Steve
September 20, 2007 - White River - Submitted by Berry
Brothers Guides
- JOHN BERRY FISHING REPORT 9/20/2007
There has been little if any
rain in the twin lakes area and the lake levels have fallen a
bit. The lake level at Bull Shoals Dam has remained steady at
two and four tenths of a foot below power pool at 654.00 feet.
Up stream, Table Rock Lake has dropped two tenths of a foot to
two and four tenths of a foot below power pool. Beaver Lake has
dropped three tenths of a foot and is now at four and four tenths
of a foot below pool. The pattern on the White River has been
for no generation or low levels of generation in the morning
and then to spike it with a bit more generation in the afternoon
and early evening, when there is peak demand for electricity.
This has created some excellent
wading on the White. Norfork Lake has fallen eight tenths of
a foot to rest at three and six tenths of a foot below power
pool of 552.00 feet. The pattern has been fairly erratic of late.
There have been periods of heavy generation for over twenty four
hours and some periods of no generation. With no predictable
pattern, I would recommend that you check conditions before wading
and carefully monitor the water level when fishing. The forecast
is for warmer weather and sunny skies. With the existing conditions,
I would hope for some low water on both rivers.
On the Norfork, the dissolved
oxygen levels continue to drop. This is most critical during
periods of no generation. Last week, the dissolved oxygen level
hovered around one and a half parts per million. There was one
instance where it dropped below one part per million. On the
White River the dissolved oxygen has continued to drop. It has
averaged three and a half parts per million most of the time.
There were several instances where it went below three parts
per million. The oxygen level is reaching the critical stage
especially on the Norfork. Great care should be taken to prevent
stressing the trout particularly near the dam where the dissolved
oxygen will be the lowest. Fish should be quickly landed and
carefully revived before release.
Fishing on the White has been
consistently excellent. The Catch and Release Section at Bull
Shoals Dam has been particularly hot this past week. There has
been a lot of top water action on large terrestrial patterns.
Western foam grass hoppers and Chernobyl ants have been the go
to flies. At the same time, small black midge emergers (size
twenty four or smaller) have been very productive. There have
been some mayfly hatches but there is some discussion over whether
they are pale morning duns or blue wing olives. The hot dry fly
has been the Adams parachute size twenty (a good generic dry
fly).
For anglers desiring a good
float, the section from Wildcat Shoals to Cotter has been very
productive. There is a lot of water that does not get a lot of
fly fishing pressure. Grass hoppers have been the ticket here
along with streamers like olive woolly buggers and wool head
sculpins. Black zebra midges and sowbugs have been the nymphs
of choice.
Rim Shoals is red hot. My wife,
Lori, and I fished it yesterday and caught a nice, late summer
caddis hatch. The elk hair caddis in size sixteen and lime trudes
accounted for a lot of fish. During lulls in the hatch, caddis
pupa were the ticket to success. The hopper fishing has remained
hot and streamers like olive woolly buggers and sculpins have
also been very productive.
The fishing on the Norfork has
been quite slow. The big fish have not moved up yet. The crowding
has been somewhat alleviated by the low water on the White river.
The most productive flies have been the small midges. The Norfork
bead head and the zebra midge is size twenty or smaller have
been productive. Midge emergers like the Dan,s turkey tail emerger
in size twenty two have accounted for some large fish. The water
is gin clear and the fish are very selective so you need to go
to 8X tippet. With this light a tippet be sure and fish with
a rod that has a soft tip to protect them.
Dry Run creek is fishing well.
The dissolved oxygen on the creek is higher than the river because
of the oxygenating action of the hatchery discharge pipes. As
we get into the fall, we will see a lot of large brown trout
moving into the creek to spawn. During this time, egg patterns
will be the go to fly.
Be sure and stop by and visit
me at my booth at the FFF Southern Council Conclave in Mountain
Home, Arkansas on October 5th and 6th and let me tie you a fly.
John Berry
September 13, 2007 - Norfork and White River - Courtesty
of Mountain
River Fly Shop
-WHITE RIVER: Over the past few
days the edge has been taken off summer, with some nights getting
down into the 50s. It's been nice with some cool mornings, prompting
thoughts of where is my jacket and fleece. I must actually dig
them out for when I really need it. Last weekend's rain was welcome
too, not so welcome was a bunch of generation for all the folks
who came in.
Still its time to start thinking
about fall fishing as October creeps closer and closer. Mind
you September is good. You can get the best of both worlds. Warm
afternoons with some hopper and dropper activity. Perhaps some
streamer fishing during the day, particularly if its an overcast
day.
Hoppers like the Schroeder's
Para Hopper, Rainy's Grand Hopper (good reports on green this
week), Chaos Hopper and the Deer Hair Hopper continue to work
extremely well. The choice of a dropper is up to your personal
taste, whether you want to fish a midge, a scud or something
heavy and edible like a Copper John (red 18-16 have been good)
or a Lightning Bug.
Scuds have also been all the
talk bottom bouncing in the flows too. McLellan's Hunchback Scud
has been good in gray and olive, 16s and 14s. Get them down deep
and dead drifted. Trout Crack, Kauffman's Scud (tied barbless)
and Rainy Woven Scuds are also worth carrying particularly in
the larger sizes for heavy flows.
Streamer time is coming, or
if you like fishing at night, already here. It won't happen every
night (ask Steve about last night when it didn't) but when your
in the right place at the right time it can. One of Marc's old
Oklahoma buddy Jay was certainly in the right place at the right
time last weekend after rising at 3am. In his first 15 minutes
on the water he picked off two gorgeous browns a guesstimated
23" male and a 21" female. We saw the pics and they
were deep-bodied strong fish.
If you want to try it make sure
you scout the water in daylight so you know where the rocks and
holes are, being safe is critical. We like larger woolly buggers
in black for fishing at night, close to the surface. But there
are aficionados of deep sculpins, like the Whitlock series, Bunny
Leeches. Daytime streamer fun can be intense, fish tight to the
banks in a flow and rip that fly out, trying to imitate panicked
fleeing prey. John Barr's Tungsten Slumpbuster is one of our
favorite searching streamers, so is the Conehead Autumn Splendor,
Flash Bunny, Conehead Kiwi Muddler and Conehead Madonna. For
these patterns, try our Streamer Page
NORFORK: You might recall our
bout of whining a couple of weeks back when the Journal took
some mates to Norfork on a Sunday only to cop some rare morning
generation. Last Sunday we had the same scenario, an early morning
phone call, a different group of friends, Bull Shoals was running,
and Norfork wasn't. So let's hit the Norfork. "Not again".
The Journal would apologize to anyone else on the river that
had to live through our curse. But while we were there the fishing
was good. Bec slammed fish for a while on a bead head Trout Crack,
the Journal introducing her to the wily ways of Norfork trout.
We managed a nice 'bow on a McLellan's olive scud, the first
time we had personally fished this favorite fly in a while.
The rest of the party was into
some nice action on smaller midges, when the water rose.
Copper or gray midges had been
doing exceptionally well on Norfork. Also try McLellan's Hunchback
Scuds in tan or olive, Trout Crack, Kaufmann's barbless scuds
tan or brown-olive, and McLellan's Woven Sowbugs.
STOP PRESS: See what happens
when we let our guys get a day off. Former CHiP (if you're gray
haired old fart like the like the journal you'll remember that
show) and Idaho driftboat jockey Jim Mengle snuck over to Norfork
when we weren't looking and nailed a 24" brown on a size
20 Dan's Turkey Tail Emerger, with 6x flouro tippet. Jim told
us the fish was beautifully colored and in superb condition _
so we asked where was the camera so we could put it on the website??
Changing the subject he told
us how he'd picked up another dozen or so fish in the 16"
to 17" all sight-fishing during a nice midge hatch.
Tightlines from all at the Mountain
River Fly Shop
Gary, Cindy, Ron, Jim, Marc,
Faye and Steve
September 13, 2007 - White River - Submitted by Berry
Brothers Guides
- JOHN BERRY FISHING REPORT 9/13/2007
There has been a bit of rain
in the twin lakes area but this has resulted in little change
in the lake levels. The lake level at Bull Shoals Dam has dropped
three tenths of a foot to rest at two and four tenths of a foot
below power pool at 654.00 feet. Up stream, Table Rock Lake has
risen four tenths of a foot to rest at two and two tenths of
a foot below power pool. Beaver Lake has dropped two tenths of
a foot and is now at four and one tenth of a foot below pool.
The pattern on the White River has been for no generation or
low levels of generation in the morning and then to spike it
with a bit more generation in the afternoon and early evening,
when there is peak demand for electricity. This has created some
limited but excellent wading on the White. Norfork Lake has remained
steady at two and eight tenths of a foot below power pool of
552.00 feet. The pattern is to turn the generators off in the
morning and to run a bit of water in the afternoon and early
evening. This has created some excellent wading opportunities
on the Norfork early in the day. The forecast is for cooler weather
and sunny skies. With the existing conditions, I would hope for
some low water on both rivers.
On the Norfork, the dissolved
oxygen levels continue to drop. This is most critical during
periods of no generation. Last week, the dissolved oxygen level
hovered around two parts per million. There were a couple of
instances where it dropped below one and a half parts per million.
On the White River the dissolved oxygen has continued to drop.
It has averaged four parts per million most of the time. There
were several instances where it went below four parts per million.
Great care should be taken to prevent stressing the trout particularly
near the dam where the dissolved oxygen will be the lowest. Fish
should be quickly landed and carefully revived before release.
On the White, fishing has been
excellent. The Catch and Release section below Bull Shoals Dam
has been red hot. The story here has been large terrestrials.
Grass hoppers and large ants have been the most productive flies
for top water. The best flies for nymphing have been black zebra
midges with silver wire and silver beads and olive scuds all
in size eighteen. There has not been much really high water on
the White.
Further down stream, the section
from Cotter to Rim has been producing a lot of fish. Here again,
the story has been the big hopper patterns. If you are fishing
above the Catch and Release section, I recommend that you tie
on a dropper at the hook bend of the hopper with an eighteen
inch 5X tippet. The best fly for this technique is the black
zebra midge in size eighteen. My clients have also done very
well swinging a size fifteen partridge and orange soft hackles.
On the Norfork River , the fishing
has been a bit slow. With the only reliable wadable water, it
has been getting a lot of pressure. During the week, it has not
been as bad but the weekends have been a zoo. The best place
to fish is still McClellan's but it is difficult to get there.
A lot of anglers have been walking in from the Handicap Access.
I saw a couple of guys get caught in high water as they were
walking in this week and they looked pretty wet when they got
out.
The hot flies here are black
midges as small as you can tie them (size twenty eight or smaller).
With something this small you will have to go to 8X tippet or
smaller. When you cut the tippet, do so at a forty five degree
angle to create a point at the end of it. This will be easier
to thread through the hook eye of these small flies. Other flies
to try are worm brown San Juan worms and size twenty orange scuds.
Dry Run Creek is fishing well.
As the weather cools you can expect a lot of large Brown trout
to begin moving up into it to spawn. Egg patterns, sow bugs and
San Juan worms are all good producers here. Most of the big fish
are lost in the netting process. Take the biggest net you can
find and do not forget the camera.
September 12, 2007 - Courtesty of Missouri Department
of Conservation - Trout Parks
Bennett Spring State Park:
56 degrees, normal, clear; fishing
is good; successful lures are: marabou jigs (black and yellow
and white), mini-jigs (white floss and original peach bug); glo
balls (original 3 color and anything white); dry flies: cracklebacks
and renegades; other successful flies are olive wooly buggers
and any Rooster Tail; zone 3: white power bait and white plastic
worms. Bennett Spring experienced a flood event on August 20,
2007. This event caused some minor fish loss. However, it will
not affect stocking at Bennett Spring for the remainder of the
year or next year. MDC's cold water hatchery system was able
to cover the limited mortality associated with this event. (Report
made on 9/12/2007)
Maramec Spring Park:
58 degrees, low, clear; women
fish free Saturday, September 15th; first 1/3 of spring branch
will be reserved for women only on this day. Stream is up slightly
but in very good shape. Fishing has been productive throughout
the overcast days; fish early in the morning or late in the evening
for the best results; brown floating doughbaits will be most
effective during early hours; try Rooster Tails with a 2 pound
test leader later in the day; other lures to try include marabou
jigs, small plastic orange or lime green worms, chartreuse jigs
and scented glo balls. (Report made on 9/13/2007)
Montauk State Park:
59 degrees, falling, clear;
fishing is good; 2 lb. test or less is recommended; in the flies
only area: midges, brassies and other small flies are doing well
throughout the day; marabou and mini jigs are good choices, colors
to try are white, black/yellow, green and brown; in the natural
and artificial bait area: doughbaits in pink, yellow, orange
and white and garlic scented are producing good numbers of fish;
fishing hours for September are 7:30 am to 7:15pm. (Report made
on 9/13/2007)
Roaring River State Park:
58 degrees, normal, clear; water
flow is normal; 2-4 pound test line is recommended; trout are
striking on marabou jigs (1/32) in olive, black/yellow, brown
and white; plastic power eggs in brown, white, and yellow; plastic
worms in cheese yellow, white, orange, and chartreuse; and Rooster
Tails in black, skunk, brown, and olive; check locally to see
what flies work best; for more information on current fishing
conditions call 417-847-2430. Water weeds have been cut recently
and the river is in good shape for fishing. (Report made on 9/13/2007)
Septemer 12, 2007 - Courtesty of Arkansas Game and
Fish Commission -
White River Levels: According
to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, as of Wednesday the White
River stages are:
3.4 feet at Calico Rock (flood stage 19 feet)
6.7 feet at Batesville (flood stage 15 feet)
3.6 feet at Newport (flood stage 26 feet)
16.7 feet at Augusta (flood stage 26 feet)
6.5 feet at Georgetown (flood stage 21 feet)
16.7 feet at Clarendon (flood stage 26 feet)
CENTRAL ARKANSAS
Little Red River: Lindsey's
Resort (501-302-3139) said the water is clear and generation
has been primarily during the evenings. Trout fishing is very
good on wax worms with a marshmallow floater fished near the
bottom or on corn fished without a sinker.
Jed Hollan at the Little Red
Fly Shop said with moderate temperatures, fewer people are running
their air conditioners which makes for small water releases from
the Greers Ferry Power House. Mid-afternoon releases with less
than one full generator and for only an hour or two have been
the norm. Large female rainbow trout have been preparing their
redds for spawning in the Winkley and Libby Shoals areas. The
brown trout will begin spawning in October and November and they
are staging as well. A sporadic and light caddis fly hatch is
occurring on the river, as is a green drake hatch. Dry flies
that will work include the elk hair caddis (tan size 16-18),
blue winged olive dun (size 18), sulphur (sizes 16-18 orange
or yellow), parachute Adams (sizes 16-18), and CDC PMD (size
18). Any sub-surface fly that looks like a nymph will work including
the lowly sow bug (sizes 14-#16). Egg patterns are also excellent
with the spawn about to begin.
NORTH ARKANSAS
White River: Gaston's White
River Resort said water generation has been good for fly-fishermen
in the early part of the morning. Around noon, one to three units
are turned on and by mid-afternoon, the water is rolling with
four to seven units. Trout can be caught on a variety of baits
or lures. The most common bait is two Power Eggs or a pink rubber
worm with a single yellow Power Egg set up on a White River trout
rig. Fly-anglers have had excellent catches with 1/64-ounce chrome
dome pink jigs under a large strike indicator. Rising trophy
browns have also been known to hit Hank's Bulbous Bivisible or
Hank's Quick Sight Ant. Other recommended flies are the olive
woolly bugger and the red San Juan worms.
Anglers White River Resort (870-585-2226)
said the water is low and clear. Flow has been low because the
generators are not being run as much with the cooler weather.
Trout fishing is excellent on spinners, worms and Power Bait.
September 6, 2007 - White
River - Submitted by Berry
Brothers Guides
- JOHN BERRY FISHING REPORT 9/06/2007
Water levels continue their
drop and every impoundment in the White River system is now well
below power pool. There has been a little rain and the daily
high temperatures have cooled to the mid eighties. The lake level
at Bull Shoals Dam has dropped seven tenths of a foot to rest
at two and one tenth of a foot below power pool at 654.00 feet.
Up stream, Table Rock Lake has dropped three tenths of a foot
to rest at two and six tenths of a foot below power pool. Beaver
Lake has dropped three tenths of a foot and is now at four and
three tenths of a foot below pool. The pattern on the White River
has been for low levels of generation in the morning and then
to spike it with up to seven generators in the afternoon and
early evening, when there is peak demand for electricity. This
has created some excellent boating conditions but little if any
acceptable wading. Norfork Lake has dropped three tenths of a
foot and is now two and eight tenths of a foot below power pool
of 552.00 feet. The pattern is to turn the generators off in
the morning and to run a full two generators in the afternoon
and early evening. This has created some excellent wading opportunities
on the Norfork early in the day. The forecast is for slightly
cooler weather and more rain. With the existing conditions, I
would hope for some low water on both rivers.
On the Norfork, the dissolved
oxygen levels continue to drop. This is most critical during
periods of no generation. Last week, the dissolved oxygen level
regularly dropped below two parts per million. There was one
instance where it dropped below one and six tenths parts per
million. On the White River the dissolved oxygen has continued
to drop. It has been below five parts per million most of the
time. There was one instance where it went below four and one
half parts per million.
When there is inadequate dissolved
oxygen, the trout will be stressed. This has, in the past, resulted
in fish kills. Great care should be taken to prevent stressing
the trout particularly near the dam where the dissolved oxygen
will be the lowest. Fish should be quickly landed and carefully
revived before release. As the water flows down stream it tumbles
through shoals and is oxygenated.
Fishing on the White has been
spectacular. The milder temperatures and consistent water flows
have created some near perfect fishing conditions. There seemed
to be a smaller than usual number of anglers on the recent holiday
weekend. The fishing has been good from the Dam to below the
confluence with the Norfork.
The Catch and Release section
at Bull Shoals Dam, Cotter, and Rim Shoals were all hot spots.
The usual nymphs like the zebra midges and scuds were very productive.
The top producer in the past
week has been western terrestrials. These are the western foam
grasshoppers, big ants (size six or larger) and foam beetles.
These flies have been accounting for the larger fish caught and
have been producing numbers of fish as well. The western flies,
as a group, are easy to see and float like corks. Since they
are essentially made from closed cell foam, they do not require
a dressing to make them float. Conventional hopper patterns like
Dave,s hopper and Schroeder,s hopper have accounted for a lot
of the fish caught.
On high water the best bet is
brightly colored San Juan worms (bright red, hot pink, and fire
orange). Big egg patterns in pink and orange have also been catching
fish. If you are not fishing in a catch and release section,
tie a small nymph dropper to your worm or egg. A good choice
for this would be a size eighteen black zebra midge.
The Norfork has not fished as
well as the White. With no wadable water on the White all of
the anglers desiring to wade ended up on the Norfork. It got
severely crowded and many anglers expressed frustration with
the situation. With that much pressure the fishing was spotty
at best. Those anglers reporting success caught fish on small
midge patterns like the zebra midge in black and brown and the
Norfork bead head in olive. All of these flies were size twenty
or smaller.
Dry Run Creek has remained the
ultimate place to take kids fishing. Sowbugs and San Juan worms
are the ticket. There were several fish caught on dry flies there
recently. This requires a bit more skill than most kids have.
Remember to take the biggest net you can find and a camera.
Practice water safety and always
check conditions before you leave home.
September 6, 2007 - Norfork
and White River - Courtesty
of Mountain
River Fly Shop
-
WHITE RIVER: Oh the fates can be cruel. The one day in the
past week the White has been wadeable and it happens to be today.
The one day of the week the Journal can't take a Mental Health
Day, fake a sickie, play hookie or what have you. Besides the
Boss can put 2 +2 together and get low water fishing. He knows
where we fish. So, now you know why we roll our eyes at any suggestion
fly shop labor gets to fish all the time. Reports of big browns
and rainbows being taken over the last week by those actually
on the water makes it even harder to bear. Well stiff cheddar!
No point whining, about the water levels, you roll the dice and
fish hard when you can.
We keep talking about hoppers,
hoppers and more hoppers. Guess what? They are on. Guide and
regular shop hand Marco
Poulos has been getting on the water plenty this week with
a friend from Chicago and they have been doing well. This morning
it was the foam bodied, Deer Hair Hopper in Tan, up underneath
the Dam which did exceptionally well. This fly has been a great
producer for us over the past three weeks. It has a great profile,
with the seductiveness of the cut Deer Hair head and the durability
and floatability of the foam underbody. We have heard other good
things on hoppers up and down the river, including John Berry's
very nice 25" brown at Rim Shoals. Incidentally, we came
across another very easy to tie hopper pattern on the internet
this week, co-incidentally by one of the Journal's good friends
Toby Vaughan. Here's our fly tiers' bonus for the week Toby's
E-Z Hopper <> . If you need the fixin's, like foam, hackle
or chenille, check the Webstore <http://store.mtnriverflyshopstore.com/>
or give us a call.
Since we haven't been on the
water much, we also checked in with guide Kevin
Brandtonies, who was floating the upper section of the river.
Between motor noise, screaming reels and his Chicago accent we
made out certain key words, "eating", "scuds",
"really on them". When we established a clearer line
it turns out weighted scuds like McLellan's Hunchback scud or
Kaufmann's Scud in gray or olive in size 16 or 14 were the ticket
on the White today, once 1 generator was on. It makes sense then
to fish these patterns in the shoals where there are naturally
faster flows. "Get them down and get a dead drift"
was his final admonishment. Can't get any fresher report than
that without getting wet!
NORFORK: The Princess of Tailwaters has been the most consistent
place for wade fishing again this week. She has been performing
well. With the White running almost around the clock (at least
whenever we are able to fish), extra fishing pressure has been
put onto the Norfork. Canoes, pontoon boats or other water craft
offer a great way to get away from the crowds.
Marc and Greg floated on Wednesday
and did well, with several fish around the 20" mark. Marco
pulled a 21" cutthroat on the same tan Deer Hair Hopper
and also reported that scuds were doing very well. Try olive
or tan hunchback scuds in 16. Copper midges, Zebra and San Juan
worms have been doing well close to the access points and I'm
sure further afield.
Please be careful with releasing
fish in the Norfork as we are approaching the season for low
oxygen levels.
Tightlines from all at the
Mountain River Fly Shop
Gary, Cindy, Ron, Jim, Marc,
Faye and Steve
September 5, 2007 - Courtesty of Missouri Department
of Conservation - Trout Parks
Bennett Spring State Park:
57 degrees, normal, clear; fishing
is good; successful lures are: marabou jigs (black and yellow
and ginger), mini-jigs (John Deere and brown roach); glo balls
(original 3 color and anything white); dry flies: cracklebacks
and renegades; other successful flies are brown wooly buggers
with gold spinner and salmon colored brassies; zone 3: orange
Power Bait. Weed cutting has been rescheduled due to the recent
flood: September 11 from approximately 9AM-3PM. Bennett Spring
experienced a flood event on August 20, 2007. This event caused
some minor fish loss. However, it will not affect stocking at
Bennett Spring for the remainder of the year or next year. MDC's
cold water hatchery system was able to cover the limited mortality
associated with this event. (Report made on 9/6/2007)
Maramec Spring Park:
58 degrees, low, clear; fishing
has been productive throughout the overcast days; fish early
in the morning or late in the evening for the best results; brown
floating doughbaits will be most effective during early hours;
try Rooster Tails with a 2 pound test leader if the bites are
less frequent later in the day; other lures to try include marabou
jigs, small plastic orange or lime green worms, chartreuse jigs
and scented glo balls. (Report made on 9/5/2007)
Montauk State Park:
59 degrees, falling, clear;
fishing is good; 2lb test or less is recommended; in the natural
and artificial bait area: doughbaits in white, yellow, pink,
orange and garlic scented are producing good numbers of fish;
in the flies only area: marabou and mini jigs are good choices,
colors to try are white, black/yellow, green and brown; midges,
brassies and other small flies are doing well throughout the
day. (Report made on 9/6/2007)
Roaring River State Park:
59 degrees, clear; water flow
increased slightly but is still low; 2-4 pound test line is recommended;
trout are striking on marabou jigs (1/32) in olive, black/yellow,
brown and white; plastic power eggs in brown, white, and yellow;
plastic worms in cheese yellow, white, orange, and chartreuse;
and Rooster Tails in black, skunk, brown, and olive; check locally
to see what flies work best; for more information on current
fishing conditions call 417-847-2430. (Report made on 9/6/2007)
Septemer 5, 2007 - Courtesty of Arkansas Game and
Fish Commission -
White River Levels: According
to the National Weather Service, as of Tuesday the White River
stages are:
3.2 feet at Calico Rock (flood stage 19 feet)
6.3 feet at Batesville (flood stage 15 feet)
2.4 feet at Newport (flood stage 26 feet)
13.8 feet at Augusta (flood stage 26 feet)
1.6 feet at Georgetown (flood stage 21 feet)
10.9 feet at Clarendon (flood stage 26 feet)
CENTRAL ARKANSAS
Little Red River: Lindsey's
Resort (501-302-3139) said the river is clear and low. The generators
are running in the afternoon. Trout fishing has been excellent
on wax worm/marshmallow combinations, Power Eggs and nightcrawlers
in low water. Fly-fishing is starting to pick up. Spin fishing
is good on Rooster Tails.
Jed Hollan at the Little Red
Fly Shop said the cooler weather and longer nights are resulting
in lighter than average water releases at the Greers Ferry Power
House. Most days, water releases have lasted only an hour or
two in the afternoons. The brown trout spawn traditionally occurs
in October, November and December, however, browns will begin
their pre-staging rituals in September. A hopper-dropper is a
particularly effective fly combination this time of year. Attach
a size 10 Dave's hopper or equivalent to your tippet and use
it as a strike indicator. Tie some skinny tippet material to
the bend of the hook and a midge fly pattern (size 18-22) about
18 inches below. You should get strikes on both flies during
the day. Keep your false casts to a minimum to prevent tangles.
Also, don't use the hopper-dropper in the special regulations
areas on the Little Red where only a single hooking point may
be legally used. BWO's, PMD's, sulphurs and midges keep hatching
in our river every day and the flies that represent these critters
are working the best. Try a CDC baetis dun (sizes 18-20), CDC
PMD (size 18), sulphur patterns in orange or yellow (sizes 16-18)
or cream midges (sizes 22-24). Productive sub-surface flies include
sow bugs (sizes 14-16. gray or tan), zebra midges (sizes 16-22
in red, olive or black), Yong special (size 22, red or olive),
copper John (sizes 14-16, chartreuse or red), pheasant tail (sizes
16) and gold-ribbed hare's ears (sizes 14-16).
NORTH ARKANSAS
White River:Gaston's White River
Resort said water generation has been good for fly-fishermen
in the early part of the morning. Around noon, one to three units
are turned on and by mid-afternoon, the water is rolling with
four to seven units. Trout can be caught on a variety of baits
or lures. The most common bait is two Power Eggs or a pink rubber
worm with a single yellow Power Egg set up on a White River trout
rig. Fly-anglers have had excellent catches with 1/64-ounce chrome
dome pink jigs under a large strike indicator. Rising trophy
browns have also been known to hit Hank's Bulbous Bivisible or
Hank's Quick Sight Ant. Other recommended flies are the olive
woolly bugger and the red San Juan worms.
Sportsman's White River Resort
said the water is clear and normal. Two generators are running
at night, which helps fishing. Trout fishing has been excellent
on almost any kind of bait.
Angler's White River Resort
said trout fishing has been good, and night trout fishing is
even better. They are being caught on spinnerbaits, glow worms,
Power Bait, and Rapalas.
Norfork Tailwater: Gene's Trout
Dock (870-499-5381) said the water is clear and low. The generators
are being turned on in the early afternoon. Trout fishing has
been very good on nightcrawlers, Power Eggs, and corn.
August 30, 2007 - Norfork and White River - Courtesty of Mountain River Fly Shop -
WHITE RIVER: What
a week of fishing! It has been nothing but exceptional. We even
got some low water. The elder statesmen of the Mountain River
Fly Shop Jim and Ron headed out with guide Kevin Brandtonies
onto the Upper end of the White on Tuesday. Kevin had about 85
years worth of fly fishing knowledge, and goodness knows how
many guide days on rivers out west and in Arkansas, in the front
of the boat so you'd expect them to find a few. When the Journal
spoke to Jim on Tuesday night, he was still giggling like a schoolboy.
In modern parlance they "slayed
'em". Ron was probably being a little modest when he told
us that anything you threw on the water would get eaten, but
the "boys" did well. Jim had on a big cutthroat of
probably just under 20" which pulled the hook at the boat.
Best flies were the bead head
trout crack, black midges pheasant tail and tungsten soft hackles,
tan bead head scuds. Jim also had several fish hit his hopper
while drifting hopper and dropper rigs, and size 14 Olive Woollies.
As mentioned before Steve and
Bec did very well on the Red Legged Hopper at Rim Shoal on Monday
as the water fell out. We heard of other hoppers working well,
including Dave's Hopper and the Brown Grand Hopper from others
fishing nearby. Copper and Black Midges were also performing
well.
It should be a great 3-day weekend.
Drop by the store and say G'day.
NORFORK: The Journal would like to apologize to everyone
who headed to the Norfork Sunday morning. We had just strung
up a rod for a first outing on the Princess of Tailwaters for
a while when the horn sounded. Obviously, it was our fault. I
don't think we will make it over this weekend, so go have a great
time.
Once again, the Norfork has
offered the most consistent wading this week, with afternoon
generation (apart from last Sunday) on the agenda for the most
part. Terrestrials, hoppers and ants can work well here through
the warmer part of the day. For the better fish try Trout Crack,
Woven Sowbugs, and scud patterns.
Midge patterns, like the black
and copper midge, have been doing extremely well at both McLellans
and downstream to the handicap access. We have heard scuttlebutt
from some spin fishers of nice fish being caught downstream of
the handicap access where fewer fly fishers appear to go. Just
watch out for the water as you have to walk back against the
rise.
Tightlines from all at the Mountain
River Fly Shop
Gary, Cindy, Ron, Jim, Marc,
Faye and Steve
August 30, 2007 - Courtesty of Missouri Department
of Conservation - Trout Parks
Bennett Spring State Park:
57 degrees, normal, clear; fishing
is good; successful lures are: marabou jigs (black and yellow
and ginger), mini-jigs (John Deere and bedspread); glo balls
(original 3 color and anything white); dry flies: #12 chartreuse
cracklebacks; other successful flies are brown wooly buggers
with gold spinner and red brassies; zone 3: white, orange, or
yellow Power Bait. Due to the recent flood we were unable to
cut weeds on August 22. We have rescheduled the weed cutting
to September 11 from approximately 9 AM-3 PM. (Report made on
8/30/2007)
Maramec Spring Park:
58 degrees, low, clear; fishing
has been productive throughout the day; fish early in the morning
or late in the evening for the best results; brown floating doughbaits
will be effective early; try white rubber-legged jigs or Rooster
Tails with a 2 pound test leader later in the day when the sun
is high; other lures to try include marabou jigs, small plastic
worms, chartreuse jigs and scented glo balls. (Report made on
8/30/2007)
Montauk State Park:
59 degrees, falling, clear;
fishing is good; 2 lb test or lighter line is recommended; the
river is dropping slowly; in the flies only area: marabou and
mini jigs are good choices, colors to try are white, black/yellow,
green and brown; midges, brassies and other small flies are doing
well throughout the day; in the natural and artificial bait area:
doughbaits in white, yellow, pink and orange are producing good
numbers of fish; fishing hours for August are 7:00am to 8:00pm.
(Report made on 8/23/2007)
Roaring River State Park:
59 degrees, falling, clear;
water flow increased slightly from last week-ends rain but is
still low; 2-4 pound test line is recommended; trout are striking
on marabou jigs (1/32) in olive, black/yellow, brown and white;
plastic power eggs in brown, white, and yellow; plastic worms
in cheese yellow, white, orange, and chartreuse; and Rooster
Tails in black, skunk, brown, and olive; check locally to see
what flies work best; for more information on current fishing
conditions call 417-847-2430. (Report made on 8/30/2007)
August 30, 2007 - White River - Submitted by Berry
Brothers Guides
- JOHN BERRY FISHING REPORT 8/30/2007
Water levels continue their
drop and every impoundment in the White River system is well
below power pool. There has been precious little rain in several
weeks and the daily high temperatures have hovered in the mid
to high nineties. The lake level at Bull Shoals Dam has dropped
four tenths of a foot to rest at one and four tenths of a foot
below power pool at 654.00 feet. Up stream, Table Rock Lake has
dropped eight tenths of a foot to rest at two and three tenths
of a foot below power pool. Beaver Lake has dropped six tenths
of a foot and is now at four feet below pool. The pattern on
the White River has been for low levels of generation or no generation
in the morning and then to spike it with up to seven generators
in the afternoon and early evening, when there is peak demand
for electricity. This has created some excellent wading conditions
on the days with no morning generation. Norfork Lake has dropped
seven tenths of a foot and is now two and a half feet below power
pool of 552.00 feet. The pattern is to turn the generators off
in the morning and to run a full two generators in the afternoon
and early evening. This has created some excellent wading opportunities
on the Norfork early in the day. The forecast is for slightly
cooler weather. With the existing conditions, I foresee continued
heavy afternoon generation on both rivers.
On the Norfork, the dissolved
oxygen levels continue to drop. This is most critical during
periods of no generation. Last week, the dissolved oxygen level
regularly dropped below two and a half parts per million. There
was one instance where it dropped below two parts per million.
The oxygen level will be the lowest just below the dam. On the
White River the dissolved oxygen has started to drop. There was
one instance where it went below five parts per million.
Despite the heat, the White
has been fishing extremely well. The section from Wildcat Shoals
to Cotter has been a real hot spot. At low levels of generation,
zebra midges and small scud patterns have been effective. On
high water the hot flies have been brightly colored San Juan
worms (red, hot pink, and fire orange) and egg patterns.
The big story has been the grass
hopper fishing. It has been spectacular. On low water, particularly
in the afternoon hopper patterns have been the ticket. The debate
is over which pattern is the most effective Rainey,s hopper,
Schroeder,s hopper, or Dave,s hopper. Should it be rubber legs,
foam or deer hair? I have been using the Dave,s hopper size ten
and doing well. Be sure and use at least a 4X tippet and let
the fly hit the water with a splash. There is a tendency for
most anglers to set the hook too soon with dry flies. Take a
deep breath, and make sure the fish has taken the hopper before
setting the hook.
Another hot spot, on the White
River, has been Rim Shoals. On low water, this section has been
very productive. The best flies have been the zebra midge in
brown with copper bead and copper wire in size eighteen and partridge
and orange soft hackles. The grasshopper has also reigned supreme
here.
The Norfork is not fishing as
well as the White. On the days when they are running water on
the White, the Norfork can get pretty crowded, particularly on
the weekends. The overcrowding has been worsened by the closing
of McClellan,s. Small midges are still the best bet. Hot patterns
are the black zebra midge with silver wire and silver bead, brown
zebra midge with copper wire and copper bead, and the Norfork
bead head in olive. All are most effective in size twenty or
smaller. The partridge and orange has been the hot soft hackle.
Grass hoppers have also been quite effective here.
Dry Run Creek is still the place
to introduce children to trout fishing. If you have not visited
there you need to check it out. There are trout as big as your
leg all over the place. This is what Catch and Release could
all be about. The best way to fish it is by high sticking sowbugs
(the dominate food source on Dry Run Creek), San Juan worms,
or egg patterns. Don,t for get to take the largest net you can
lay your hands on and a camera. This is where memories are made.
Always practice water safety
and check conditions before you leave home.
The Mid South Fly Fishers is
celebrating its thirty year anniversary with a homecoming event
September 4, 2007. All are invited for free pizza and a program
highlighting the clubs history.
August 29, 2007 - Courtesty of Arkansas Game and
Fish Commission -
White River Levels: According
to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, as of Wednesday the White
River stages are:
2.5 feet at Calico Rock (flood
stage 19 feet)
6.7 feet at Batesville (flood stage 15 feet)
2.2 feet at Newport (flood stage 26 feet)
14.0 feet at Augusta (flood stage 26 feet)
2.2 feet at Georgetown (flood stage 21 feet)
11.7 feet at Clarendon (flood stage 26 feet)
CENTRAL ARKANSAS
Little Red River:Lindsey's Resort
(501-302-3139) said the river is clear and at a normal level.
Trout fishing has been excellent using wax worms with marshmallows
and Power Bait.
Jed Hollan at the Little Red
Fly Shop said The Greers Ferry Power House has been releasing
water mid-afternoon every day. The generation has been lasting
from two to six hours using mostly one generator. This fish and
angler-friendly pattern is most welcomed since it serves to keep
the river clear, cold and richly oxygenated. The same old aquatic
insect hatches means that the same old flies are still working.
This is a good thing. Sulphurs, pale morning duns and blue-winged
olive mayflies are still hatching and their artificial fly counterparts
are attracting trout. Try a CDC Baetis dun or a CDC PMD dun pattern
or any sulphur in orange or yellow and you will catch some fish.
Catching trout on dry flies is always exciting, but if you want
to catch (and release) larger quantities of fish, you should
fish under the hatch. Fishing soft hackle emergers, such as the
Red Tail or Partridge & Orange during a hatch usually results
in more strikes. Flies such as the pheasant tail, copper John,
gold-ribbed hare's ear or prince are excellent mayfly nymph imitations.
NORTH ARKANSAS
White River: Sportsman's White
River Resort said the water is clear and normal. Two generators
are running at night, and they are picking up in the afternoon.
Trout fishing has been excellent. Many big and healthy trout
have been caught using about any kind of trout bait.
Angler's White River Resort
said trout fishing has been good, and night trout fishing is
even better. They are being caught using spinnerbaits, glow worms,
Power Bait, and Rapalas.
Mountain River Fly Shop said
fly-fishing has been excellent with the best opportunities for
wading of any Ozark tailwater. A copper and copper midge remains
a favorite among more experienced anglers leaders should
be long and fine and indicators small and subtle. Black/silver,
red/silver and black/copper zebras are doing well. Ron's Anna
K in black is also working well swung across the nose of trout
rising to some seriously teeny midges. Hoppers have also scored
some very nice cuts recently, tan hoppers, plus larger ant or
beetle patterns can produce on windy afternoons
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS
Beaver Tailwater:McLellan's
Fly Shop said generation has been during mid-afternoon on most
days, providing plenty of wading opportunities during the mornings.
The terrestrial dry-fly fishing has really picked up over the
last couple of weeks, with various ant, beetle and hopper patterns
producing several hook-ups. While fishing terrestrials may not
produce as many hook-ups as nymph fishing, the smashing strikes
that patterns like the club sandwich, Turk's tarantula or chaos
hopper can produce are more than enough to make up for it! During
low water, midge patterns are always important on Beaver Tailwater.
Patterns like the jujubee, the poison tung, and the zebra midge
have been fooling lots of trout.
August 25, 2007 - Norfork
and White River
- Courtesty of Mountain River Fly Shop - WHITE RIVER: WADEABLE water has been hard to find on the White
over the past week with pretty much a constant 2 units of water
running. Waders can pick their spots for some fishing, but a
river boat, drift boat, pontoon or some kind of watercraft offers
way more versatility. At this water level the fishing has been
very good. Our guides have been doing well for their clients
fishing a mixture of patterns.
Tan scuds have
been very, very good in the Upper Sections of the river, 16s
and bigger. Try McLellan's Hunchback Scud, Kaufmann's Tan Bead
Head, and Rainey's Woven. Add some weight if needed to drift
these along the edges and seams in the current and you will find
fish. Use the motor to extend the drift as long as possible.
Pink and Fire
Orange San Juan Worms have been killer as usual in this flow.
Try some bigger midges size 14 and larger.
Hopper and dropper
combinations continue to do well. Try Deer Hair Hoppers, Rainey's
Grand Hopper, and Dave's Hopper in size 10s and run a deep dropper
with a red, copper or silver Copper John, Lightning Bug or one
of the above mentioned scuds.
We have also
been getting a lot of bugger customers in stocking up, a sure
sign these great streamers are doing well, particularly Flash-A-Buggers
in olive and black. Try a sink-tip line or sinking leaders to
search out the deeper holes below the fast water at places like
Rim or Wildcat Shoals, with Buggers, Tungsten Slump Busters,
Whitlock's Near Nuff Sculpin or a Dead Drift Crawdad
Once the water
levels settle wading fisher should be in for a treat. Rim Shoals
and Wildcat Shoals have been producing and so has the Dam region.
NORFORK: THE Princess of the Ozark Tailwaters
has been offering the best opportunities for wading fly fishers
over the past week. Please be careful when releasing fish, give
them extra time in clean, moving current to sort themselves out
as the oxygen levels diminish. Norfork has been at her frustrating
best for some, and very kind to others.
A copper and
copper midge remains a favorite among more experienced Norfork
hands, leaders should be long and fine and indicators small and
subtle. Black and Silver, Red and Silver and Black and Copper
Zebras are doing well. Ron's Anna K in black is also working
well swung across the nose of trout rising to some seriously
teeny midges.
Hoppers have
also scored some very nice cuts recently, tan hoppers, plus larger
ant or beetle patterns can produce on windy afternoons.
Tightlines from
all at the Mountain River Fly Shop
Gary, Cindy,
Ron, Jim, Marc, Faye and Steve
August 23, 2007 - White River - Submitted by Berry
Brothers Guides
- JOHN BERRY FISHING REPORT 8/23/2007
Water levels continue their
drop and every impoundment in the White River system is currently
below power pool. There has been no appreciable rain in several
weeks and the daily high temperatures have cooled somewhat to
the mid-nineties. The lake level at Bull Shoals Dam has dropped
nine tenths of a foot to rest at one and one tenth feet below
pool at 654.00 feet. Up stream Table Rock Lake has dropped four
tenths of a foot and is currently one and six tenths of a foot
below power pool. Beaver Lake has dropped seven tenths of a foot
and is now at three and one half feet below pool. The pattern
on the White River has been for low levels of generation in the
morning and then to spike it with up to seven generators in the
afternoon and early evening, when there is peak demand for electricity.
This has created optimal boating conditions but has severely
limited wading. The constant generation has greatly helped the
trout cope with the high temperatures. Norfork Lake has dropped
three tenths of a foot and is now one and eight tenths of a foot
below power pool of 552.00 feet. The pattern is to turn the generators
off in the morning and to run a full two generators in the afternoon
and early evening. This has created some excellent wading opportunities
on the Norfork early in the day. I predict that we will continue
to see heavy generation on both rivers in the afternoons.
On the Norfork, the dissolved
oxygen levels continue to drop. This is more critical during
periods of no generation. There were several instances in the
last week when the dissolved oxygen level dropped below two and
a half parts per million. There was one instance where it dropped
below two parts per million. The oxygen level will be the lowest
just below the dam. This is not considered a problem on the White
River at this time where the dissolved oxygen remains at five
parts per million or higher.
Though the heat wave has kept
most anglers huddled around the air conditioner for the past
week, fishing has been excellent for those willing to brave the
heat. The upper White River has been a hot spot. The Catch and
Release section at the base of Bull Shoals Dam has been very
productive particularly early in the day during periods of low
generation. The hot flies have been midge larva patterns like
the black zebra midge size twenty and midge emerger patterns
like Dan,s turkey tail emerger size twenty two. During high generation
try San Juan worms in red, hot pink and fluorescent orange.
The area from Cotter to Buffalo
Shoals has been another hot spot. The better fishing is during
the lower generation flows. Hot flies have been the black zebra
midge size eighteen; sowbugs size 16, and small pheasant tails.
The grass hopper is still the hot dry fly. There are a lot of
patterns to choose from but I have done well lately with the
Dave,s hopper. Make sure that you use at least a 4X tippet. This
is a large fly and you will need a big tippet to turn it over.
The Norfork is not fishing as
well as the White. There has been no stocking in the middle section
for some time. With McClellan,s closed there is no stocking point
in that section. Small midges are still the best bet. Hot patterns
are the black zebra midge with silver wire and silver bead, brown
zebra midge with copper wire and copper bead, and the Norfork
bead head in olive. All are most effective in size twenty or
smaller. Grass hoppers have also been effective here. There have
been some large fish caught on worm brown San Juan worms.
The best way to escape the heat
is to take a kid fishing on Dry Run Creek. The water from the
hatchery discharge pipes, the tight confines of the creek valley
and the heavy tree cover all contribute to making this the coolest
place to fish in Arkansas. It is also the best place to introduce
kids to fishing. The creek is loaded with trophy fish. The most
effective way to fish it is to high stick sowbugs in heavy water.
San Juan worms in brown and red are very effective. Remember
to take a camera and the biggest net you can find.
John Berry
August 23, 2007 - Courtesty of Missouri Department
of Conservation - Trout Parks
Bennett Spring State Park:
57 degrees, high, dingy; fishing
is good; water levels have risen due to a recent flood; successful
lures are: marabou jigs (black and yellow and ginger), mini-jigs
(John Deere and bedspread); glo balls (chartreuse w/ red dot
and original 3 color); dry flies: #12 chartreuse cracklebacks;
other successful flies are brown wooly with gold spinner and
red brassies; zone 3: white Power Bait. Due to the recent flood
we were unable to cut weeds on August 22. We have rescheduled
the weed cutting to September 11 from approximately 9 AM-3 PM.
(Report made on 8/23/2007)
Maramec Spring Park:
58 degrees, low, clear; fishing
has been productive throughout the day; despite heavy rainfall
in some areas, the spring branch continues to be low and clear;
fish early in the morning or late in the evening for the best
results; brown floating doughbaits will be effective early; try
white rubber-legged jigs or Rooster Tails with a 2 pound test
leader later in the day when the sun is high; other lures to
try include marabou jigs, small plastic worms, chartreuse jigs
and scented glo balls. (Report made on 8/23/2007)
Montauk State Park:
59 degrees, falling, clear;
fishing is good; 2 lb test or lighter line is recommended; the
river is dropping slowly; in the flies only area: marabou and
mini jigs are good choices, colors to try are white, black/yellow,
green and brown; midges, brassies and other small flies are doing
well throughout the day; in the natural and artificial bait area:
doughbaits in white, yellow, pink and orange are producing good
numbers of fish; fishing hours for August are 7:00am to 8:00pm.
(Report made on 8/23/2007)
Roaring River State Park:
59 degrees, falling, clear;
water flow continues to decrease; 2-4 pound test line is recommended;
trout are striking on marabou jigs (1/32) in olive, black/yellow,
brown and white; plastic power eggs in brown, white, and yellow;
plastic worms in cheese yellow, white, orange, and chartreuse;
and Rooster Tails in black, skunk, brown, and olive; check locally
to see what flies work best; for more information on current
fishing conditions call 417-847-2430. (Report made on 8/22/2007)
August 22, 2007 - Courtesty of Arkansas Game and
Fish Commission -
White River Levels: According
to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, as of Wednesday the White
River stages are:
5.8 feet at Calico Rock (flood
stage 19 feet)
6.4 feet at Batesville (flood stage 15 feet)
2.7 feet at Newport (flood stage 26 feet)
14.7 feet at Augusta (flood stage 26 feet)
3.1 feet at Georgetown (flood stage 21 feet)
12.3 feet at Clarendon (flood stage 26 feet)
Statewide Family and Community Fishing Program Report: Fishing
in community ponds has been tough because of high temperatures.
To increase fishing success try fishing in early mornings or
late evenings in deeper water. Catfish can be caught using liver,
worms or paste baits and bream can be caught using crickets or
worms. For more information on catfish stockings, call toll free,
1-866-540-FISH (3474).
CENTRAL ARKANSAS
Little Red River: Lindsey's
Resort (501-302-3139) said the water is clear. Fishing is good
on wax worms with marshmallows or chartreuse or white Power Bait.
Marabou jigs in olive, brown/orange and white are all working
well. Original Rapalas in black/silver or black/gold and red/gold
Buoyant spoons are also working well. Fly-fishing is good early
and late on tan sow bugs (size 14 or 16), zebra midges in black,
tan or red and red tails (size 14 or 16).
Jed Hollan at the Little Red
Fly Shop said temperatures may be dropping slightly, but liberal
water releases continue. Most water releases are beginning around
noon and ending between 6 and 10 p.m. Anglers are finding the
water crystal clear, and the fish are biting extremely well.
Sulphurs, pale morning duns and blue-winged olives remain the
stars of the mayfly hatches on the Little Red. There is a sporadic
caddis hatch, but the small numbers coming off make it irrelevant.
Dry flies that imitate the above trout food will work the best.
Flies such as the CDC baetis dun, CDC PMD (#18), sulphur patterns
in either orange or yellow (#18), BWO (#18) and Adams (#18) are
your best choices. Sub-surface flies that are catching trout
include sow bugs (light gray or tan), zebra midges (red, black
or olive), pheasant tails, copper Johns, princes and gold ribbed
hare's ears. Streamers such as the woolly bugger or zonker in
sizes 8 to 12 and other sculpin imitators are beginning to work
very well.
NORTH ARKANSAS
White River: Gaston's White
River Resort said trout anglers have been waking up to find zero
to two units running. At noon, the power demand increases, and
four or more units will run until around 9 p.m. Most trout have
been caught on yellow or chartreuse Power Eggs. Trophy rainbows
are being caught on Power Eggs under a pink glow bug and on spoons
and spinners in sluggish current. Brown trout seem to like more
natural bait, so nightcrawlers, redworms, Rapalas, and Rogues
are the best choices. Fly-anglers have had the best luck on zebra
midges, bulbous bivisibles, olive woolly buggers, red San Juan
worms and pink or white 1/64-ounce jigs.
Bull Shoals Lake Boat Dock (870-445-4424)
said fishing has been great as always. There has been a lot of
generation, so drift-fishing Power Eggs, redworms and corn is
working well. The best artificial lures have been spinners, spoons,
Rapala countdowns and stick baits.
Sportsman's White River Resort
(870-453-2424) said the water is clear and normal. Brown trout
are biting on jigs, stick baits, spoons and spinners. Rainbow
trout fishing is good using power bait and worms.
McLellan's Fly Shop reports
that fly fishing has picked up on ant, beetle and hopper patterns.
During higher flows, brown trout are biting well.
McLellan's Fly Shop said fly-fishing
has picked up during the last two weeks using ant, beetle and
hopper patterns.
Mountain River Fly Shop said
the generators have been starting around lunchtime, allowing
some nice morning wading and the daily midge-fest. Try a change
from drifting the usual assortment of small midge pupa to these
fish. Strap on a small dry like a Griffiths gnat or a para midge
and a nice long leader for some fun fishing.
Copper and black zebras, diamond
midges and poison tungs are hard to ignore. We have also been
hearing some decent reports on San Juan Worms, in brown or red.
With an abundance of small dark green scuds, try a size 18 Rainy's
woven scud for some fun.
Table Rock Lake: Phillip Stone of Stone's Guide Service said
bass are in summer patterns. The top-water bite is over as soon
as the sun comes up, so most of the daytime fishing is going
to be deep near points and saddles with trees and brush. The
fish are really schooled up in the submerged trees from 25 to
40 feet deep. Most bass have been caught on drop-shotted finesse
worms and spoons. Crappie are really slow. If you can find some
trees in 40 to 60 feet of water, you might be able to catch a
few crappies over the tops of them about 2-30 feet deep.
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS
Beaver Tailwater: McLellan's
Fly Shop said the water has been nice, and the generators have
been holding off until the afternoon. Trout fishing has been
good using jujubes and zebra midges, as well as other midge patterns.
Best flies include: woven sow bug (14-16), poison tung in gray,
blue and black (20), grand hoppers (8-16) and zebra jujubee midges
(20-22).
Taneycomo: McLellan's Fly Shop
said with all of the high water, trout fishing has been spectacular.
Fly-anglers have been successful using various ant, beetle and
hopper patterns. Best flies include: Hunchback scud tan, olive,
and gray (14-16), unreal egg (16), grand hopper (8-16), and Turk's
tarantula (8-12).
NORTHEAST ARKANSAS
Eleven-Point River: Woody's
Canoe Rental and Campground (870-892-9732) said the water is
clear and at normal level, but very few reports have been made
because of the heat.
Spring River: Many Islands Camp (870-856-3451) said the water
is clear and the level is normal. Trout fishing has been excellent
using salmon eggs and Power Bait.
WEST-CENTRAL ARKANSAS
Shane Goodner, owner of Catch'em
All Guide Service, reports the typical summertime pattern is
in full swing at Carpenter Dam. Rainbow trout continue to thrive
in the 58-degree water and feed on huge threadfin shad schools.
With Entergy running water for 12-hour periods, most of the good
fishing is taking place when the turbines are off. Bank anglers
are catching trout using corn with a marshmallow floater. Redworms
and nightcrawlers are also a proven fish catcher as trout actively
search for prey other than shad. Boaters trolling the channels
are hooking larger trout that prowl the deeper water. Crankbaits
that dive 5 to 6 feet will target these fish. Fly-anglers casting
streamers and San Juan worms in the current are hooking fish
as evening approaches.
August 17, 2007 - Norfork
and White River - Courtesty of Mountain
River Fly Shop
- WHITE RIVER: Low water mornings,
midge hatches, hoppers during the day and if you,re downriver,
no need for waders. This is an amazing time of year, and so much
fun we are surprised it's not illegal. There has been some fun
fishing up and down the river. The Journal, courtesy of our antipodean
dry fly upbringing, has been having a blast tossing hopper and
dropper combinations all week. We have been talking about fishing
the fast water with hoppers and dropper, over the past few weeks.
This week as mentioned above,
we also found some hopper action in the tail-out and heads of
pools and even in the dead slow middle sections.
Certainly downriver it appears
that as well as the hoppers on the wing, crash-landing onto the
surface, the abundance of small (10-12) orange-brown butterflies
is attracting the attention of the trout. We saw one taken on
the wing at Rim; it was absolutely monstered in fact, by a fat
17+ bow. A hopper cast onto the same seam drew a similarly brutal
take, but the surprise was enough to catch us totally off guard,
hence we comprehensively failed to set the hook.
The technique is relatively
simple; we have been looking for sipping or rising fish and working
the fly to these fish. Drifts over drop-offs and deeper holes
in shallow sections also seem to be working. Any rising fish
at this time of year can fall for the hopper trap, even the midge
feeders close to the dam. Try a 10,-11, 5x leader, and use a
5wt or even a 6wt to turn them over effectively. You want the
hopper landing with a splat, not with feather-like delicacy,
not too close to the fish to spook but not too far away either.
If you aren't hammered immediately look for a dead drift over
likely holding water or risers.
Now while a conventional dead
drift is a fine bet we have been surprised at the number of fish
caught on a subtle twitch and more surprised during some less
than subtle movement; imagination is not a curse.
This week we have been fishing
with green, yellow, red and brown or tan hoppers, and have caught
fish on them all. But the strongest action has come on the brown/tan
yellow or olive hoppers. Don't be surprised if you don't catch
every taker. Sometimes trout miss and striking takers on dry
flies can be a black art. Generally hit the faster hard risers
faster and the slow head and shoulders rollers slower.
Our droppers of choice, when
fishing outside the Catch and Release areas have been an assortment
of the usual Zebra Midges, Bead Head Trout Cracks, Sowbugs, Scuds
and Micro Mayflies. The standard fare you would serve up under
a normal indicator on low water. You could probably do well with
a Y2K too, if you choose.
More conventionally we have
heard good things on the above assortment of flies. Have a serious
look at Charlie Craven's Blue Poison Tung during these hot bright
summer days. It's been one of the Journal's favorite blue sky
summer day patterns for a couple of years, but friend and guide
Ken Richards was in yesterday vouching for its effectiveness
on his trip earlier in the day.
If you are targeting midgeing
risers, Ron's Anna K in black was again a hot fly. We have been
introducing one of our favorite dry fly midges to a few dry fly
addicts this week; Morgan's Para Midge has been doing well below
the Dam in 20s and 22s. Its white foam parachute post makes it
significantly more visible in the morning mist.
NORFORK:
The generation schedule has
been starting around lunchtime, allowing some nice morning wading
and the daily midge-fest. Try a change from drifting the usual
assortment of small midge pupa to these fish. Strap on a small
dry like a Griffiths Gnat or a Para Midge and a nice long leader
for some fun fishing.
Copper and Black Zebras, Diamond
Midges, and Poison Tungs are hard to ignore. We have also been
hearing some decent reports on San Juan Worms, in brown or red.
The abundance of smallish dark green scuds, try an 18 Rainy's
Woven Scud for some good fun.
Cheers from all at the Mountain River Fly Shop
Gary, Cindy, Ron, Jim, Marc, Steve and Faye
August 16, 2007 - White River - Submitted by Berry
Brothers Guides
- JOHN BERRY FISHING REPORT 8/16/2007
Water levels continue their
drop and every impoundment in the White River system is currently
below power pool. There has been no rain in several weeks and
the daily high temperatures have been soaring above 100 degrees
for over a week. The lake level at Bull Shoals Dam has dropped
three tenths of a foot to rest at two tenths of a foot below
pool at 654.00 feet.
Up stream Table Rock Lake has
dropped one and one tenth of a foot and is currently one and
two tenths of a foot below power pool. Beaver Lake has dropped
one foot and is now at two and eight tenths of a foot below pool.
The pattern on the White River has been no generation in the
morning and then to spike it with up to seven generators in the
afternoon and early evening, when there is peak demand for electricity.
This has resulted in optimal wading conditions.
Norfork Lake has dropped one
and one tenth of a foot and is now one and one half feet below
power pool of 552.00 feet. The pattern is to turn the generators
off in the morning and to run a full two generators in the afternoon
and early evening. This has created some excellent wading opportunities
on the Norfork early in the day. The weather is forecast to cool
down about ten degrees and there is some rain expected. I predict
that we will continue to see heavy generation on both rivers
in the afternoons.
On the Norfork, the dissolved
oxygen levels continue to drop. This is more critical during
periods of no generation. There were several instances in the
last week when the dissolved oxygen level dropped below three
parts per million. The oxygen level will be the lowest just below
the dam. This is not a problem on the White River at this time
where the dissolved oxygen remains at six parts per million or
higher.
Despite the weather, the fishing
on the White has been excellent. With the predictable low water
conditions, anglers willing to deal with the excessive heat have
done well through out the river. The best way to deal with the
low water and heat has been to wet wade. Anglers have been wearing
tropical shirts, light slacks, big hats and wading sandals to
stay comfortable. To prevent heat stroke they have also been
carrying and drinking a lot of water and sports drinks. Others,
in an attempt to escape the heat, have been fishing at night.
This is dangerous business. Do not fish alone at night.
The Catch and Release section
below Bull Shoals Dam has been a hot spot. As usual, small midge
patterns like the zebra midge in black with silver bead and silver
wire and in brown with copper bead and copper wire have been
the ticket. There has also been some really good hopper fishing.
When the water comes up in the early afternoon, fish the rise
and switch to brightly colored San Juan worms when the water
gets high. The upper river from Bull Shoals Dam to White Hole
has fished well with the same basic techniques.
The section from Wildcat Shoals
to Cotter has been fishing well. The hot flies in this area have
been sowbugs (size sixteen) and partridge and orange soft hackles.
Grasshoppers have also been very effective particularly when
fished with a small dropper like a zebra midge or pheasant tail
(size twenty). Another killer technique for this area has been
to dredge the deeper holes with an olive woolly bugger fished
on a sink-tip line.
Rim Shoals has been another
Hot Spot. There has been some spectacular fishing there on zebra
midges, scuds and sow bugs. Soft hackles have been very effective.
The best pattern has been the partridge and orange. Grasshoppers
(size ten) have been very productive, especially later in the
afternoon.
The Norfork has not been fishing
as well as the White. The Catch and Release section has been
crowded all summer. With optimal wading conditions on the White,
I would expect there to be less pressure here. The section as
McClellan's is still the bright spot. There are some nice fish
in that section but it is still difficult to get there. The safest
way is to float down from Norfork Dam. Be prepared to drag your
boat through a few low spots.
The weather is forecast to cool
down in the coming days and with the lower water conditions,
I would expect some great fishing this week.
John Berry
August 16, 2007 - Courtesty of Missouri Department
of Conservation - Trout Parks
Bennett Spring State Park:
57 degrees, low, clear; fishing
is average to good; water levels have dropped and the stream
is low: successful lures are: marabou jigs (black and yellow
and ginger), mini-jigs (John Deere and bedspread); glo balls
(chartreuse w/ red dot and original 3 color); dry flies: #12
chartreuse cracklebacks; other successful flies are brown wooly
with gold spinner and red brassies; zone 3: white Power Bait.
We will be cutting weeds on August 22; it should start around
9 Am and be done by 3 PM; thank you for your patience. (Report
made on 8/16/2007)
Maramec Spring Park:
58 degrees, low, clear; fishing
has been productive throughout the day; fish early in the morning
or late in the evening for the best results; brown floating doughbaits
will be effective early; try green and white rubber legged jigs
with a 2 pound test leader later in the day; other lures to try
include marabou jigs, small plastic worms, white jigs and Rooster
Tails. (Report made on 8/16/2007)
Montauk State Park:
59 degrees, falling, clear;
fishing is good; 2 lb test or lighter line is recommended; the
river is a few inches lower than last week; in the nat |