White River

TIME: 11:00 AM TO 2:30 PM
WEATHER: Partly Cloudy, Mid 50s
LOCATIONS FISHED: White River, Rim Shoals area
WATER CONDITIONS: 3 Units
ROD USED: Crossfire Custom Spinning Rod, Shimano Reel, Tectan line, ALL PACKAGED BY WHITE RIVER ZIG JIG
FLIES USED: White River Zig Jigs produced by White River Zig Jig (These rigs are perfectly matched and cannot be surpassed for this style of fishing. I highly recommend them. http://zigjig.net/)
HATCHES: Caddis, Midges, and Blue Winged Olives
OTHER: Fished with Bill. We launched at Rim Shoals, and fished downstream along the first island continuing down to the top of lower Rim Shoals. Most of our runs were from below the island and upper Rim Shoals to the top of lower Rim Shoals. We had a superb day, catching lots of fish, most a little larger than those previously caught, using black and chartreuse.

White River

TIME: 9:00 AM TO 2:30 PM
WEATHER: High 60s, Party Cloudy
LOCATIONS FISHED: White River, Jenkins Creek to lower Rim Shoals
WATER CONDITIONS: Clear, 3 generators
ROD USED: Crossfire Custom Spinning Rod, Shimano Reel, Tectan line, ALL PACKAGED BY WHITE RIVER ZIG JIG
FLIES USED: White River Zig Jigs
HATCHES: Caddis, Midges
OTHER: Boat fished with Bill (namesake of Ackerman-Handicap Access). As with our previous trip, Bill and I caught lots of fish, with about half being in the 14-15 inch category. This is an incredible way to fish.

White River

TIME: 11:00 AM TO 4:00 PM
WEATHER: High 60s, Overcast
LOCATIONS FISHED: White River, Jenkins Creek to lower Rim Shoals
WATER CONDITIONS: Clear, 3 generators
ROD USED: Crossfire Custom Spinning Rod, Shimano Reel, Tectan line, ALL PACKAGED BY WHITE RIVER ZIG JIG
FLIES USED: White River Zig Jigs
HATCHES: Caddis, Midges
OTHER: Boat fished with Bill (namesake of Ackerman-Handicap Access). I had been wanting to fish with Bill for some time, and finally had the chance along with an invitation. Bill is an incredible spin fisher, in the same company with John Simank, and has few equals when it comes to trout. It has been many years since I spin fished for trout, and with a little knowledge, some rudimentary skill, and a great “guide” is a lethal means of fishing. Bill and I caught fish almost at will, with Bill catching fish on almost every cast. It was indeed a fun time, and certainly won’t be the last time. This method of fishing our tailwaters is yet another of several tools available to fish our varying water levels. And no, I haven’t abandoned fly fishing.

White River

TIME: 8:30 AM TO 2:00 PM
WEATHER: Partly Cloudy, Mid 50s
LOCATIONS FISHED: White River, Rim Shoals area
WATER CONDITIONS: 3 Units
ROD USED: Crossfire Custom Spinning Rod, Shimano Reel, Tectan line, ALL PACKAGED BY WHITE RIVER ZIG JIG
FLIES USED: White River Zig Jigs produced by White River Zig Jig (These rigs are perfectly matched and cannot be surpassed for this style of fishing. I highly recommend them. http://zigjig.net/)
HATCHES: Caddis, Midges, and Blue Winged Olives
OTHER: Fished with Ed and John. We launched at Rim Shoals, and fished downstream along the first island continuing down to the top of lower Rim Shoals, returning to float this particular reach the remainder of the day. We all caught lots of fish, and Ed, as usual, had the big fish of the day, about 17-18 inches; black and chartreuse was the color of the day. Once, again, I departed early because of a prior commitment, though Ed and John continued to fish, switching to fly rods and weight flies.

White River

TIME: 8:30 AM TO 11:30 AM
WEATHER: Partly Cloudy, Mid 50s
LOCATIONS FISHED: White River, Rim Shoals area
WATER CONDITIONS: 3 Units
ROD USED: 9’ 6 wt Winston LT
FLIES USED: #14 Weight Fly
HATCHES: Caddis, Midges, and Blue Winged Olives
OTHER: Fished with Ed and John. We launched at Rim Shoals, and fished downstream for about ½ mile, returning to float this particular reach the remainder of the day. We all caught fish, though no big fish were taken. I departed early because of a back problem, though Ed and John continued to fish, switching to spinning gear and catching lots of fish using the White River Zig Jig.

White River

TIME: 11:00 AM TO 2:00 PM
WEATHER: High 60s, Overcast
LOCATIONS FISHED: White River, Jenkins Creek to lower Rim Shoals
WATER CONDITIONS: Clear, 3 generators
ROD USED: Crossfire Custom Spinning Rod, Shimano Reel, Tectan line, ALL PACKAGED BY WHITE RIVER ZIG JIG
FLIES USED: White River Zig Jigs produced by Whiter River Zig Jig, http://zigjig.net/.
HATCHES: Caddis, Midges
OTHER: Boat fished with Bill. Bill and I caught fish, though not as readily as our last time out. The black and chartreuse jig seemed to be working better, though the brown and orange, and the ginger were also taking fish. This is an incredibly successful way to fish and will definitely be a part of my arsenal, particularly for high water.

Norfork River

DATE: October 5, 2009
TIME: 11:00 AM TO 4:00 PM
WEATHER: High 60s, Overcast
LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, from Island below McClellan’s to 2nd Island above Ackerman-Handicap Access
WATER CONDITIONS: Clear, 2 generators
ROD USED: Winston 9’ 6 wt
FLIES USED: Weight Fly
HATCHES: None
OTHER: Boat fished with John; it was our first time to fish the Norfork with two generators. We both caught lots of fish, though no big fish were taken. Being able to fly fish the Norfork River with 2 generators or less from a boat gives us many options.

White River

TIME: 9:00 AM TO 4:00 PM
WEATHER: Cloudy, Mid 50s
LOCATIONS FISHED: White River, Rim Shoals area
WATER CONDITIONS: 3 Units
ROD USED: 9’ 6 wt Winston LT
FLIES USED: #16 John’s Miracle Fly, #16 Weight Fly
HATCHES: Caddis, Midges, and Light Cahill
OTHER: Fished with Ed and John. We launched at Rim Shoals, and fished downstream for about ½ mile, returning to float this particular reach the remainder of the day. We all caught lots of fish, though no big fish were taken. As a side note, the Blue Ribbon Fly Shop guide (son-in-law of the owner) had two clients out and noted that we were catching lots of fish. He began following us on our upstream run, stopping about one hundred feet downstream of us to start his drift. I was running the motor on our boat, and when I would move over to pass him on our downstream drift, he would shift over blocking us. He did this on 4 separate downstream drifts. He is doing irreparable harm to Blue Ribbon Fly Shop, and as a result of a couple of other stunts he’s pulled working at the fly shop, I have chosen to shop elsewhere, and recommend anyone else to do the same. Also, a couple of other guides, with clients, were fishing the off side of the island at Rim Shoals, where so many redds are located (I counted 27 there one year), and today, I noticed fish on many of the redds. One guide fished there all day with his clients fishing the redds constantly, and they were very successful. Neither of these guides had information on their boats as to who they were, but they constantly pounded the redds. Seems to me this is something the FFF, Southern Council, and local clubs need to consider very carefully. My respect for local fly fishing guides has decreased considerably, with only a few exceptions.

White River Fishing

TIME: 11:30 AM TO 5:00 PM
WEATHER: PC, Low to high 70s
LOCATIONS FISHED: White River, Rim Shoals area
WATER CONDITIONS: 3 Units
ROD USED: 9’ 6 wt Winston LT
FLIES USED: #16 John’s Miracle Fly, #16 Weight Fly
HATCHES: Occasional caddis, midges
OTHER: Fished with Ed and John. We launched at Rim Shoals, and fished downstream for about ½ mile, returning to float this particular reach the remainder of the afternoon. We all caught lots of fish, though no large fish were caught.

Norfork River, AR

TIME: 8:00 AM TO 10:00 AM
WEATHER: PC, Low 50s to high 70s
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units
LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, 2nd Island above Ackerman-Handicap Access
ROD USED: 8’ 9” 5 wt Joan Wulff Favorite Winston LT
FLIES USED: #14 gray Norfork Scud
HATCHES: Midges
OTHER: Fished with Ken. Kay and I met Ken and Sharon in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas this past February; they are from northwest Arkansas. Ken is new to fly fishing and I offered to show him the ropes on the Norfork River. We worked on casting, line control, and drag-free drifts. This was only Ken’s second trip ever fly fishing, and he did quite well, catching a few fish, and hooking up to several others. The water unexpected came up and we had to hurriedly leave after only a couple of hours.

Norfork River, AR

TIME: 9:00 AM TO 12:30 AM
WEATHER: PC, Low to high 70s
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units
LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, above 2nd Island above Ackerman above Ackerman-Handicap Access
ROD USED: 9’ 6 wt Winston LT
FLIES USED: #14 gray Norfork Scud, Wayne’s Fly, Big Ugly, #14 Flying Ant, #20 Dunn’s Dun, #20 Kay’s Grey
HATCHES: Midges
OTHER: Fished with son, Ron. As we walked in, there were 9 fishers fishing my usual riffle, with room for only 3! We began wading upstream, fishing the pool, and I caught several fish using Wayne’s setup. As we neared the bottom of the island below McClellan’s, Ron broke the code, and caught fish after fish on the river-right side of the leaf line using a #14 gray Norfork scud; he ended up catching about 3 dozen fish. The fish were midging like crazy, and I switched to midge emergers, but could not develop any consistency. Finally switched to terrestrials and caught a few fish; they slammed the terrestrials, but again, no consistency. Neither of us caught any large fish, but it was a good day.

White River Fishing

TIME: 9:00 AM TO 3:00 PM
WEATHER: PC, Low to high 70s
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units
LOCATIONS FISHED: White River, Wildcat Shoals to Cotter
ROD USED: 9’ 6 wt Winston LT
FLIES USED: #16 John’s Miracle Fly
HATCHES: Occasional caddis, midges
OTHER: Fished with Ed and John. We launched at Wildcat Shoals amidst a full parking lot; John piloted the boat. The river was packed with fishers downstream as far as we could see, making navigation around fishers and through shoals difficult, at best. Fishers continued to pack the river as we drifted downstream. We finally found a riffle that was not being fished, and managed to catch a few fish, though no big fish were caught. We ate lunch, and the highlight of the day was being passed by two bikini-clad young women in a canoe, though none of us looked at them! As we maneuvered through the various shoals, John worked his fanny off pushing us through tight places, and over and around submerged rocks. It was a difficult day.

White River Fishing

TIME: 9:00 AM TO 3:00 PM
WEATHER: PC, Low to high 70s
WATER CONDITIONS: 2-3 units
LOCATIONS FISHED: White River, Rim Shoals Vicinity
ROD USED: 9’ 6 wt Winston LT
FLIES USED: #16 John’s Miracle Fly
HATCHES: Occasional Caddis
OTHER: Fished with Ed and John. We launched at Rim Shoals, and floated the area from the top of the island to near the top of lower Rim Shoals, about ¾ miles downstream; Ed piloted the boat. We all caught dozens of fish; I managed to fool a 20-inch and 22-inch brown (unmeasured), and John caught a 21-inch rainbow (unmeasured).

Norfork River

TIME: 8:30 AM to 10 AM, 2 PM to 4:30 PM
WEATHER: PC, Low 70s
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 units
LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, 1st and 2nd Islands above Ackerman/Handicap Access to Otter Creek at McClellan’s
FLIES USED: #14 BWF
ROD USED: 8’ 6” JWF 5 wt Winston
HATCHES: None
OTHER: Fished with Ed. We waded upstream to near Otter Creek in the morning and generation began almost immediately, forcing us to hurriedly wade downstream and abandon our fishing. In the afternoon. we again waded upstream to near Otter Creek, catching fish all the way up. Ed caught several fish below the island below McClellan’s and we both caught lots of fish from the top of the island to Ed’s Hole. On the way back downstream, Ed again caught several fish below the island. Ed had a couple of very nice fish today. We were both tired and weary after wading almost 4 miles.

Norfork Lake

TIME: 5:30 AM to 11:00 AM
WEATHER: PC, High 70s, Windy
WATER CONDITIONS: Lake level is approximately 562 feet
LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork Lake
FLIES USED: Gray sliders, chartreuse jigs
ROD USED: 9’ JWF 8 wt Winston
HATCHES: None
OTHER: Fished with John Gulley. John is an excellent lake fisher (and one of the best guides on the Norfork River). We initially planned to fish for stripers, but the wind was very heavy, and only two schools were observed, both too far to chase. We did see carp spawning along the edges and it was fascinating, and awesome. We both caught Kentucky bass and sunfish, but John caught most of the fish. It was a pleasurable trip, and I learned a number of things about fishing Norfork Lake. This is a must-do again trip.

Basswood Lake, Quetico Wilderness, ON

WEATHER: PC, Low 30s rising to high 50s, light wind
WATER CONDITIONS: Clear, about 50 degrees
LOCATIONS FISHED: Basswood Lake
FLIES USED: #6 Gray/White Clouser
ROD USED: 9’ 8 wt JWF Winston
HATCHES: Mayflies
OTHER: Boated and paddled into Basswood Lake on Sunday, May 31, but did not fish. We had our original crew, plus Ron Higgins. With water temperatures at or near 50 degrees, it was useless fishing a popper, slider, or diver. I fished hard in the morning with Mary, our guide, paddling, but did not catch a fish. In the afternoon, John “guided” me, and I caught a single fish on a popper. It was a very slow afternoon.
Breakfast: Early morning cookie, followed by fishing, then eggs in a nest, bacon, garlic cheese grits, toast
Lunch: Snack bars, candy bars
Dinner: Pan fried pork chops, Spanish rice, sweet bread, ?

Norfork River, AR

TIME: 9:00 AM TO 10:30 AM
WEATHER: PC, Low to high 70s
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units
LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, 1st and 2nd Islands above Ackerman-Handicap Access
ROD USED: 9’ 6 wt Winston LT
FLIES USED: #14 gray Norfork Scud, #20 Dunn’s Dun, #20 Kay’s Grey
HATCHES: Midges
OTHER: Fished with Wayne. As usual, Wayne caught lots of fish, about 30 in an hour and a half, using his usual setup. I managed only a dozen or so with most success using midge emergers. Neither of us caught any big fish.

Norfork River, AR

TIME: 2:00 PM to 3:45 PM
WEATHER: Clear, Mid 60s
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 units
LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, upstream of Ackerman Walk-in Access
ROD USED: Winston JWF 8’6" 5 wt
FLIES USED: Wayne's Brown Fly
HATCHES: Caddis
OTHER: Fished with Wayne. We began fishing upstream of the 2nd island above Ackerman Walk-in Access. We both caught lots of fish in areas where we caught only a few the last several days. I was able to fool a 17-inch rainbow and a couple of 15 inchers.

Norfork River, AR

TIME: 2:00 PM to 2:45 PM
WEATHER: Clear, Mid 50s
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 units
LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, upstream of Ackerman Walk-in Access
ROD USED: Winston JWF 8’6" 5 wt
FLIES USED: #14 Tan Norfork River Scud, #14 Gray Norfork River Scud
HATCHES: Caddis
OTHER: Fished with Wayne. We began fishing near the 2nd island above Ackerman Walk-in Access. There was an occasional rise to a caddis, but I wasn't able to connect with dry flies, catching one fish on a gray scud. Wayne picked up a couple on his Emu dry fly. We began fishing the pool and caught a couple of fish each, and the water came up, ending our fishing day.

Norfork River, AR

TIME: 2:00 PM to 4:30 PM
WEATHER: Clear, Mid 50s
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 units
LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, upstream of Ackerman Walk-in Access
ROD USED: Winston JWF 8’6" 5 wt
FLIES USED: #14 Tan Norfork River Scud, #14 Gray Norfork River Scud
HATCHES: Caddis
OTHER: Fished with Wayne. We began fishing upstream of the 2nd island above Ackerman Walk-in Access, and “catching” was tough again today! I didn't catch any fish in the big pool, and struck out in the riffle at Mill Dam Eddy. We walked upstream, and I managed to catch a half dozen above the island below McClellan's. Walking further upstream, just above Ed's Hole, I caught 4 or 5 under the sycamore tree. As usual, Wayne caught several more fish, but had a tough day compared to his typical catch.

Norfork River, AR

TIME: 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM
WEATHER: Clear, Low 70s
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 units
LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, upstream of Ackerman Walk-in Access
ROD USED: Winston JWF 8’6" 5 wt
FLIES USED: WBF
HATCHES: Caddis
OTHER: Fished with Wayne. We began fishing upstream of the 2nd island above Ackerman Walk-in Access, about a third of the way up the pool due to crowded conditions above the island. We both caught fish in the pool. Wayne moved upstream of the island below McClellan's while I managed to catch a couple of fish on the right side of the island. I moved upstream above the island and caught about a dozen fish, including a brookie. The shoal and Ace in the Hole were both packed with people, so I moved up to fish Ed's Hole and caught fish almost every cast. Wayne fished upstream and caught fish, as usual. I didn't catch any upstream, near the sycamore, but caught 3 fish between the Catch and Release signs (the new sign and the old sign laying on the bank). I walked upstream to just below McClellan's Dock where Wayne was catching fish. We both walked back downstream and I caught a nice brown near the new Catch and Release sign. It was a great day, with lot of fish caught, BUT THERE ARE MANY FEWER FISH THAN WE'VE EVER SEEN BEFORE. Most fishers were having a very tough time!

Norfork River, AR

TIME: 2:00 PM to 4:30 PM
WEATHER: Clear, Mid 50s
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 units
LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, upstream of Ackerman Walk-in Access
ROD USED: Winston JWF 8’6" 5 wt
FLIES USED: #14 Tan Norfork River Scud
HATCHES: Caddis
OTHER: Fished with Wayne. We began fishing upstream of the 2nd island above Ackerman Walk-in Access, and “catching” was tough! I only caught 2 fish in the pool. Moving upstream to Mill Dam Eddy, I managed to catch 7 or 8 fish in the riffle, including a couple of brookies, but didn't catch any fish on the way back downstream. Wayne caught a dozen or so in the pool. Neither of us caught any fish of size.

White River

TIME: 11:00 AM TO 6:00 PM
WEATHER: PC, High 60s, windy with south winds
WATER CONDITIONS: 2 units
LOCATIONS FISHED: White River, Jenkins Creek to Rim Shoals
FLIES USED: #14 SSF (Simank's Secret Fly)
ROD USED: 9 ft 5 wt Winston
HATCHES: Caddis, Midges
OTHER: Fished with John and Ed in the river boat. Wind gusted to about 15 mph, making drifting and fishing difficult. Nevertheless, we caught a lot of fish, though none over 16 inches. Fishing was best immediately upstream of Jenkins Creek, in the riffle at the creek, and just downstream. There was an awesome caddis hatch beside the island across the river from the creek, but we didn't see any rising fish.