If I were a trout.....

[bmartin]

Where would I be in late March?

Spring break is coming and kids and I want to try our hand at some fishing. Never been trout fishing before in AR and would like to do an overnight float somewhere in some canoes but really would apppreciate getting pointed in the right direction. Some good places to go, where to rent canoes, shuttles, pretty much the works.....

[painterbob]

gaston's resort the one stop shop! ...no canoes but they have flat bottom boats .i think one comes with a cabin rental the motor rental is extra ." can corn ,and red wigglers" ultra lite fishing gear, stren green line (4 lbs test) 1/8 oz bell sinkers... you'll have the best time! toss your lines out and you drift backwards then run up stream and do it over and over allday

[robkanraft]

I'm a little out of the loop, but If I were a Conway resident...I'd probably be looking at day trips on the the Little Red River below Heber Springs, probably base camping in JFK park, or somewhere downstream in a private camp ground. Not sure who rents canoes over that way anymore... Hey Roger???

Please don't take this negatively, but I think I can safely say overnighters on any of the trout rivers are all a little risky... these are tailwater (hydro dam flow controlled) very cold temp swift rivers that can go from knee deep to four feet in a matter of hours. On Norfork, the low to flood time is even faster. That makes gravel bar camping a very risky thing, plus there is little public access camping along the banks of the White, Norfork or Red. It also gets quite cool to cold on the river when the sun goes down, a camping concern for some.

The cold water can be a deadly serious concern if there is a tip and you or one of your party ends up in the water. Please use those life jackets, extra important in the cold water.


Unless something has changed, I don't believe there are canoe rentals at all around Norfork anymore. The Norfork is short so it makes a great day of fishing and floating. I've canoed it dozens of times. They recently have been running a lot of high water so that's really going to limit fishing and increase canoeing risk.

There used to be resort on the mid section of the White called the White Buffalo Resort that at one time had canoes. It is also far enough down from the dams that the surprise rise of water is somewhat buffered. It was a nice place and very pretty bluffs to camp as well. Very near there was also some limited state camping. Hope that helps some. rob

[painterbob]

they rent canoes by beaver dam in eureka springs and there is camping at the town of beaver that has a swing bridge ,( spider creek or the dam store that's what it's called!) ..but i think that's a long flat water trip.fishing is only good in the first few miles the rest is table rock lake headwaters. Eric paddles that stuff a lot in his long kayaks maybe he will jump in ..

[kayakrat]

Most of the Tailwaters(about the only places in Ark that hold trout) are very good for floating canoes, jons, driftboats, etc. The generation just makes for a faster float...not alot of trecherous water. Beaver Tailwaters below Beaver Lake is a good spot. Plenty of places to camp and as Bobber said, Beaver Dam Store and Spider Creek rent canoes. White River below Bull Shoals is good and you can get canoes all along that stretch. Gostons, Copper John's, Rim Shoals, etc. You can stay in Flippin, Cotter, or even Mtn Home. Check out Crooked Creek while you are there. Also within driving distance from Bull shoals Tailwaters is the Norfork Tailwaters. Gene's Trout Dock may rent canoes, not 100% sure. Lil Red is probably closest to you, but with all the high water, most of the livery and shops have gone out of business. Taneycomo, below Table Rock(Branson) is not paddle friendly at all. Too many guys like to bring the big boats out and have no respect for a smaller boat. Most of the trout streams in MO are wade only.

So in short, Beaver Tailwaters near Eureka is a good bet and fishable for a good few miles. You also have the Kings on the other side of Eureka for smallies.

The White below Bull shoals and Norfork are close together and very canoable. tons of places to stay and accesses as well. Be sure and read up on your trout regs. March is prime time for the AGFC to jet boat up and down the Taiwlaters.

[Jim Krueger]

Brad,

All good advice so far, I can only try and add to it. Marlo and I enjoy trout fishing when we're on the Spring River for Rec. School each year, we usually take some time before or after the school to do so. The Spring R. has some great fishing but of the other streams suggested, will be further away. One plus for the Spring is that it's not dam fed so there won't be any water dumped in from above however the class I rapids/ledges can be something to be mindful of with a canoe full of gear and cold weather/water temps. Still, the Spring has outfitters, boats, cabins, shuttles, etc. In the warmer months the Spring can be full of rental boats but I would think during March is a little too cold for swimming suits and would be more fishermen than goobers.
I second Bob's suggestion on the ultra-light spinning rigs, we usually either rig like he suggests with corn, worms, etc. or go all artificial and use small rooster-tail or Mepps spinners. Most of our fishing is done by wadding or bank fishing when using live bait. If we use our kayaks, we are mainly using them to either get into a still hole to fish or to a choice bank where we can park them and fish on foot. When fishing for trout with spinners, we sometimes even catch some nice Walleye :)
Have a good trip.


Best Regards
Jim

P.S. if your boys are pretty young, I would also agree with Bob that renting a flat-bottomed boat and motor might just be the best. Maybe save the canoeing for warmer water and weather. 0.2 cents worth.

[hfunkhouser]

Those are great recommendations for late March, however there are many small pools and lakes that are stocked right now. Check the AG&F website for the locations....I've had several good meals caught from Devil's Den since January.

[Eric Esche]

While I have never fished on the White below Beaver Dam (yet), I have seen a lot who have, (wading, bank fishing, from canoes, and from John boats) and I've paddled there several times with a guy ( David F. Dempsey) who used to be a full time fishing guide. Think I remember him saying that both the Dam Store and Spyder Creek were good outfitters and guides. I've sent him a e-mail, asking for recommendations, and asked David which sections are keeper sections and which are catch and release only. I know they do stock rainbows on the white, but have seen some very nice browns come out of there, like 18-22 inches. Very scenic to pastoral section to float from dam to town of Beaver and there are at least 4 places to put in between dam and town of Beaver if you do not want to do that length which is something like 13 miles. Trout Unlimited has built some stream structures over the years up closer to the dam, mostly to prevent bank erosion at generating levels, but I have not seen much of the type fish habitat structures like we built over in north Georgia and North Carolina to provide deep spots, shade, and egg laying areas to wash clean gravel, and anchored logs for food habitat. Different rivers use different methods. I never worked on a dam controlled river with TU.

Last two-three years I have gotten to paddle with a weekday paddlers group whose jobs or lifestyles, allowed us to paddle during the week. and the White and all over Beaver lake wound up being our usual haunts, although they have also gone to Lake Leatherwood, Swepco, and others. Flip Puthuf, bought a Sea kayak last year and he comes with us on occasion. We often have paddled up stream on the White in the winter as several live over that way, and see all types of Hawks, Herron, Owls, and Eagles there. Less they are generating, easier it is to paddle up stream, but in sea kayaks we can go up stream even with full flow, just takes a little more constant paddleing. Going up stream allows us to not have to run shuttle, and gets folks back to their houses or jobs sooner if they work second shift. I've been a slackard this winter with my neck problems and haven't gone with them as much. And then embarrassed myself by having to turn back early on one trip due to bad timing with my pain levels when the electronic pain blocker wore off too soon, and the middle of the lake was not a good place to take pan pills, due to currents, wind, and waves, but they were all good sports about it and did not let me go back alone.

Will post again when I hear from David.

Eric

[johnnybiggun]

I was at Albert Pike on the Little Mo Sunday... there were pair of guys there who had a stringer full of trout....FYI they are doing major work on the campgrounds there....

[kayakrat]

Eric, Same guy owns both Spider Creek Resort and the Beaver Dam Store. Bryce Cadion is the guy to talk to about floating. We do some guiding for the shop and he is always in the know on water and whats catching the fish. The lake is far enough down now, there isnt a ton of generation going on. What they will be doing in March is anyones guess though.

[bmartin]

Thanks for the suggestions. Kids are all teens and boat worthy, but as many teens, they can certainly fall into the 'goober' category from time to time.

Kind of leaning towards the Kings river and Beaverlake tailwaters area since there are two rivers to choose from without too much driving, but the Spring sounds tempting too. Haven't floated either, so both would be new experiences for us.

[Eric Esche]

And David's response was:

Eric
Riverview Resort used to be the only place to rent a real 20 foot jonboat, but I think the Dam Store and maybe Spider Creek rent them nowadays also. The Dam Store stays up on where the best fishing is and what kind of baits, flies, lures, etc. are working well lately, although that may be the stuff they are overstocked on at any given time.

If they are willing to take a guide tell them to call the Dam Store and book with Lisa or her son. A guide will probably be their best bet of catching a limit of good trout. But they may do well and have a lot of fun on their own.

Tell them to bring an extra set of warm clothes in case anyone falls in the water from a canoe.

David

[fryingsquirrel]

This may be cheating, but there is a trout farm just north of Harrison called Bear Creek Springs, and I've got some great memories of fishing there when I was little. Last time I went (last march,) I made Carl very jealous of my huge rainbow that I cooked over the campfire at Tyler Bend. It's the only way to catch trout if you ask me, they even gut them and pack them in ice for you. How sweet is that!
My $.02
Jon Ellwood