Due to a recent violent storm front rain, the lake levels on the White River system have risen a bit. The lake level at Bull Shoals Dam remained steady at two feet below power pool at 654.00 feet. Up stream, TableRockLake rose two tenths of a foot to settle at three and six tenths of a foot below power pool. BeaverLake rose four tenths of a foot to settle at six and five tenths of a foot below pool. There generation pattern on the White has been a bit of a mixed bag. On some days, there have been one or two spikes of heavy generation followed by periods of low generation. On other days, there have been short periods of no generation. This has created very limited wading opportunities and some excellent boating opportunities. The weather has also been a mixed bag. Some days were cold and incredibly windy and we had a couple of unseasonably warm days that spawned a killer tornado. NorforkLake has risen seven tenths of a foot to rest three and seven tenths feet below power pool of 552.00 feet. The pattern on the Norfolk has been for very little generation. We had a few days with no generation at all and some days with a brief period of heavy generation. This has created excellent wading conditions every day. The forecast is for the weather to remain cold with the possibility of precipitation. With the existing conditions, we should have some wadable water on both rivers. All of the action during the last week was centered in the recently opened Catch and Release section at the base of Bull Shoals dam. Numerous anglers came into the area to participate in the opening of the area after the spawn. There were several trophy trout caught. The action seemed to be best on midges, eggs (peach) and on heavy generation San Juan worms. Due to the infestation of this section by Didymo (the invasive algae), we are not seeing many sowbugs or scuds here. I caution all wading anglers to please avoid walking through the Redds (spawning beds recently filled with fertilized eggs by brown trout). Now is a particularly vulnerable time for the eggs and they need to be left alone so that they can hatch and become big brown trout. The redds can easily be identified as clean light colored depressions in the gravel bottom.
Every one is still on the look out for shad coming through the turbines at Bull Shoals and Norfork Dams. The recent rain and cold front should help create the conditions necessary for this natural phenomenon. The shad kill usually occurs during extremely cold weather and high generation. As yet, there have been no shad observed. One of the early indicators is, gulls converging below the dams to feed on the shad. The most effective flies to use during the shad kill would be large white streamers in floating and sinking versions.
Anglers wishing to avoid the crowds at Bull Shoals Dam headed down stream to find a bit of solitude. One of the better spots was Roundhouse shoals in Cotter. There is plenty of water there with easy access. Hot flies here were gray sowbugs, olive scuds, zebra midges and olive woolly buggers. On higher water, brightly colored San Juan worms and egg patterns did the trick.
Rim Shoals was fishing very well. The hot flies for this section have been gray sowbugs, olive woolly buggers, olive scuds, black zebra midges with silver wire and silver bead and brown zebra midges with copper wire and copper beads. On high water, the section below the first island has fished particularly well. The hot fly has been the San Juan worm in cerise.
The Norfork has fished a bit slow. There have been few anglers here in spite of the reliable midge hatches in the afternoon. Anglers have done the best with Norfork bead heads in olive size eighteen, zebra midges in black with silver wire and silver beads and brown with copper wire and copper beads in the same size. When the fish are keying in on the midge emergers in the film, Dans turkey tail emerger and Chucks emerger both in size eighteen have been the go to patterns.
There were a few kids at Dry Run Creek this past week and predictably they did well. While sowbugs are a reliable producer, try fishing an olive woolly bugger under an indicator. They generate a lot of strikes and the larger hook helps to land some of these big fish. With these you can use really heavy tippet (3X or 4X). Most fish are lost at the net. Take the biggest one that you can lay your hands on and do not forget the camera.
Practice water safety and always check conditions before you leave home.
DRESS FOR SUCCESS
The other Lori and I went fishing and it looked like summer was over. It was 41 degrees, there was no sunshine and the wind was howling. I landed a fat eighteen-inch brown and Lori landed an eighteen and a nineteen-inch rainbow. In addition, we landed a lot of other good fish. For me, truly great fishing begins in late fall and continues through winter. Here in Arkansas, we have a twelve-month season. But to take advantage of the most productive time you have you need to be able to stay outdoors to do it. To be comfortable you need to have the proper clothing.
The first consideration is waders. While neoprene provides insulation and a certain amount of flotation they do not breathe and tend to get a little clammy. My first choice is breathable waders. To provide the necessary insulation I wear capeline or polypropylene underwear and pile pants. What you have to remember is that the water at a constant 57 degrees is probably warmer than the air. When it is bitterly cold and windy, you may find yourself wading deeper to stay warm. I buy my wading boots two sizes larger than I normally wear so that I can wear two pair of expedition weight socks, a pair of sock liners and still have room to wiggle my toes. It is more important to be able to wiggle your toes than to have additional insulation. Tight shoes will be very cold.
Next you should consider your clothing, which should consist of three layers, the wicking layer, the insulation layer and the shell.
The wicking layer is the closest to your body, your underwear. The idea is to wick moisture away from your body in order for you to stay dry and dry is warm. New synthetics like capeline or polypropylene are the ticket here. What you want to avoid is cotton. When cotton is wet, the water in it cools as it evaporates. The property that makes it a fantastic fabric in the summer makes it the wrong choice for winter. Wool underwear is making a comeback. The new merino wool is itch free and can keep you warm when wet.
The insulation layer functions as it sounds it holds heat. The fabrics of choice are pile or wool. Wool is a traditional fabric and functions well. It will keep 60% of its insulating value when wet. I prefer pile garments made from polartec or synchilla. These can be wrung out when wet and then put back on. The thing you have to consider is that most are not wind proof. They do make wind stopper pile that has a wind proof membrane in it to stop the wind and they make pile jackets with a nylon shell on the outside to function as a wind breaker. Down garments should be avoided as they lose all their ability to insulate when wet. You can wear several insulating layers and remove them as the weather warms.
This of course brings us to the shell. The shell is designed to keep the wind and rain off of you. While you want the shell to be wind and waterproof you also want it to breathe. Dry is warm. The fabric of choice is Gore-Tex. It has tiny openings in it that allow water vapor to escape but keep out water in its liquid form. Another choice is waxed cotton. These cotton jackets have been treated with wax, which keeps the fabric from absorbing water. Waxed cotton is very functional, durable, and can be easily retreated at home. It does tend to be heavy and a little pricey. You should always have a hood on your shell to keep your head warm and dry and hand warmer pockets to warm up your hands.
Always wear a hat. If it is not too cold, I prefer a felt cowboy hat.The broad brim provides a lot of sun protection and they just look cool. If the weather really turns cold I wear a pile hat with a brim and ear flaps (think Elmer Fudd). I also wear gloves. I prefer fingerless wool but also have a few pair of fingerless pile gloves. I always carry an extra pair in case one gets wet. If its bitterly cold, I wear windproof gloves and polypropylene liners. I also have a pair of gloves that are a combination of mittens and fingerless gloves. The mittens fold back so that you can use the fingerless gloves to tie on fresh flies.
If you follow these suggestions, you can easily stay out in the worst weather and catch the big one while your buddy is huddled up in front of the fire trying to stay warm.
Practice water safety and always check conditions before you leave home.
John Berry is a fly fishing guide in Cotter, Arkansas and has been fishing the local streams for over twenty five years.
