Fly Fishing Tips & Tackle

Fly-fishing on the White River

Written by admin on July 26, 2009 – 8:31 am -

John Berry's 'Fly-Fishing Report': Fly-fishing picking up on the White River
The lakes on the White River system are continuing to fall but at an ever decreasing rate. The lake level at Bull Shoals Dam fell 1.2 feet to rest at 6.3 feet above the power pool of 654 feet. This is 34.7 feet below the top of the flood pool.

Upstream, Table Rock Lake fell .6 of a foot to rest at .9 of a foot above the power pool or 15.1 feet below the top of the flood pool. Beaver Lake fell .5 of a foot to rest at 6.2 feet above the power pool or 3.4 feet below the top of the flood pool.

The pattern on the White was for round-the-clock generation. During the night and morning we have been getting slightly lower flows. The flows have been heavier in the afternoon during peak power demand. This created some challenging conditions for drift fishing and very limited wade fishing.

Norfork Lake has fallen 1.1 feet to rest at 4.3 feet above the power pool of 552 feet or 23.7 feet below the top of the flood pool. Generation on the Norfork has declined, which has created some limited wading in the morning. The recent rains have slowed my prediction for wadable water. My best guess is that there will be wadable water in two weeks.

Remember that there is a new size limit on brown trout. All browns less than 24 inches must be released immediately no matter where they are caught on the White and North Fork rivers. Only one brown trout may be kept in the daily limit of five trout.
The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, in conjunction with the Corps of Engineers, is scheduled to begin installing fish habitat designed to provide cover for juvenile trout in the catch-and-release section below Bull Shoals Dam on or around Aug. 1.

This work will be done at low water levels and should take about two months to complete. It should provide some wadable water on the White River during this time. There is some concern that the habitat will create navigational hazards for river boats at low levels of generation. At this time, we do not know how high the new habitat structures will sit in the water.
The catch-and-release section below Bull Shoals Dam has fished well this past week. There were a few days when the White was muddied from runoff caused by the recent rains.

The best place to always find clear water is directly below Bull Shoals dam. The flows have been a bit lower this week due to higher water levels downstream. On these flows, the hot flies have been brightly colored San Juan worms (cerise, hot pink and red) and egg patterns (orange).

The section from White Hole to Cotter has been fishing well this week. The most effective technique has been to bang the bank with large streamers. The hot flies have been Kelly Gallop zoo cougars and other similar oversized streamers.
The secret is to get the fly down. With the heavier flows, you must use heavy full-sinking or sink-tip lines. To cast these huge flies and heavy lines, most anglers are using eight-weight or larger rods.

Another effective technique has been to bang the bank with grass-hoppers. The secret is to get the fly close to the bank and to achieve a perfect drag-free float. Twitch the fly occasionally to initiate violent takes.

Rim Shoals has fished well this past week. The lower flows have been fishing particularly well. As the flows increase, the action has moved to the lower section of the area, White Shoals. The hot flies on lower flows have been black zebra midges with silver wire and silver beads. On higher flows the hot flies have been San Juan worms in cerise and hot pink.

Crooked Creek and the Buffalo River have run high and off-color since the recent rains. Give it a few days to clear.
The North Fork River has been a bit slow this week. There has been a bit of wadable water early. Generation for the rest of the day is near maximum levels. On low water, small midge patterns have been the ticket. Try black zebra midges or Dan's turkey tail emergers. Grasshoppers have also been producing.

On high water, the most effective tactic is to fish brightly colored San Juan worms or egg patterns under an indicator. If you are not in the catch-and-release section, consider using a size 14 black zebra midge as a dropper.

Dry Run Creek has fished well this past week. The hot fly, as always, has been the sowbug. Other hot flies have been worm-brown San Juan worms and egg patterns.

There is a lot of overhead cover from trees on the creek which allows very little room for casting. The best technique is to high-stick nymphs under a strike indicator. Be sure and use heavy tippet (4X or larger) in order to land some of the larger fish. Carry the biggest net you can lay your hands on. A long-handled boat net is best. Do not forget the camera!

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