The road to the C&R Area is now 100% complete and boy does it look good.
Jim’s Report
Jeff in the picture above came to fish with a couple of buddies from Dallas. We had a great couple of days on the river with tons of fish hooked and landed and as you can see Jeff hooked and landed a great brown trout. Thanks Doug fro bringing Ken and Jeff. Ken had only fly fished one time before which was for a couple of hours the day before. I must say Ken picked up the fly casting and landing the fish pretty dang quick. If you click on my lodging page and see the really nice house there and want to stay in it give doug a shout or contact him on his web page (there is a link) and you won’t be sorry you did. Beautiful home.
Red-Red-Red. That sure seems to be the color the fish like right now. Does not seem to matter what color bead or hue of red as long as it’s red.
From the dam down into the Rim Shoals area this red midge seems to b e working pretty well on the low water minimum flow which seems to be fluctuating.
Other flies are also working such as the pearl midge when it’s a bit foggy and when the sun comes out this guide is switching to red. I’m using the blood red midge fished under some sort of terrestrial or even a humpy and if the surface fly spooks the fish I’m taking it off and going to a smaller indicator such as palsa or small styrofoam indicator with the toothpick so I can change the depth. These fish are liking shallow areas and in some parts of the river are moving into the shallow gravel areas. Rainbows have been spawning in the State Park by the spring for the past few Octobers which is why they are moving into these shallow areas. Brown trout will be following them into these areas to munch on the loose eggs. I have not seen any actual redds as yet but I imagine it won’t be long. Other folks coming into the shop are telling me that small Adams #20’s 18’s are working in areas of the C&R area at the dam. By the way you will enjoy the newly paved road which is now complete and smooth. It has been paved on both sides of town.
Jim
Henry’s Wading and Walking Report:
Both tailwaters have been cooperating this week in allowing some wading. The middle section of the White has been productive using black and cooper Zebra midges #16 – #20, I found if you will tie in just a very tiny bit of white cdc at the thorax, you may pick up an extra trout or three. I call that an enhanced Zebra midge. Other flies that have provided a great deal of activity is the PT enhanced midge and the Rainbow Warrior, all in sizes #16 – #20.
A friend of mine waded into the White in the Cotter area (this gentleman uses Woolly Buggers period) and called to tell me that he landed 30 – 35 healthy trout that morning. All were caught on olive BH rubber legged Woolly Buggers size #8. One of the best days he had had in sometime. He would have caught more but a rise in the water level made him feel uncomfortable.
We are expecting more wadeable water as the days grow shorter so that is something to look forward too. Water levels are usually the most stable during this time because the lake levels are low, if you can remember in the past the water closer to the dam would not be so good due to lack of oxygen, minimum flow should solve that problem.
Remember if your new to the river consult with an experienced river guide, they monitor the dam generation via the hotline and know how to interpret the information for accurately gauging the flow levels. For safety reasons always get a guide if your new to the rivers.
As a side note I want to mention that Mountain Home Trout Unlimited chapter is the most active TU chapter in the state and introduced a kids summer day camp a few years ago. Wishes and Fishes is one of the big supporters of the day camp which has introduced hundreds of kids to joy of fly fishing at the world famous Dry Run Creek, however the camp is more than just a how to fly fish it also brings education and conservation efforts to the forefront. So if you have any children under 16 and would like for them attend this encampment or want more information call 870) 421 1432.
Life is good in the Ozarks