Saturday, November 24, 2012

TIME: 12:00 PM to 4:30 PM

WEATHER: Mid-40s, sunny

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 units on White River, 1 unit decreasing to 0 units on Norfork River

LOCATIONS FISHED: White River, Rim Shoals; Norfork River, Mill Dam Eddy

FLIES USED: #14 gray sow bug, #14 BHFB pheasant tail, #14 gray Norfork River scud, #20 red/black zebra midge, #20 furnace cockleburr

ROD USED: 8’ 6” 5-wt Winston JWF

HATCHES: Midges

OTHER: I fished with Ron.  We drove to Norfork first, but it had one generator of discharge; SWPA had projected 0 generation after 6:00 AM until 5:00 PM, but instead ramped up to 1 generator shortly after 10:00 AM—same old story! We drove to Rim Shoals, and walked down the right descending bank as far as the path would take us.  It was tough fishing; I caught 3 (one on BHFB pheasant tail, and two on tan sowbug).  It began to get crowded, with over a dozen fishers coming in.  We opted to leave, and noted the Norfork was slowing going down.  We waded in at Mill Dam Eddy, and struggled while the water completed falling.  After it stabilized, Ron took about 9 fish on gray scud and red/black zebra midge combination.  There were several other fishers coming downstream in drift boats, canoes, and kayaks.  One guide in a drift boat came right through the narrow lane we were fishing, and after my shaking my head, said that I didn’t own the water.  Of course, he had over a hundred yards from which to choose a path, but chose the little lane where we were fishing.  A lady guide behind him in drift boat, stopped short, got out and pulled her drift boat into another lane; I thanked her.  We will see more and more unethical guides on the Norfork with the advent of minimum flow (be careful what YOU ask for cause I didn’t want it, anticipating this very problem along with some others we’ll see come along). 

Tuesday, September 25, 2012—SWPA has NO CREDIBILITY!

TIME: 8:00 AM to 10:30 AM

WEATHER: Low 60s to mid-70s, sunny, windy

WATER CONDITIONS: 1 unit increasing to 2 units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Riffle above Island below McClellan’s

FLIES USED: #14 olive Norfork River scud, #20 red/silver zebra midge

ROD USED: 7’ 9” 2-wt Winston WT

HATCHES: Midges, Crane flies

OTHER: I fished with Ed, Bill, and John. We walked in at Mill Dam Eddy to what we thought was falling water. Bill and John remained downstream while Ed and I waded upstream. We crossed from the island to the left descending side of the river, and fished our way upstream towards the riffle, but I only took one fish on the scud/zebra midge combination.  The water did not recede as projected, but remained at what appeared to be around 1/4 unit.  I waded upstream to the left descending side of the plunge pool and noted rising water.  Ed and I waded to the bank, and realized that water was rising too fast for our return to our walk-in—WE WERE STRANDED.  SWPA had projected 0 generation after 6:00 AM, but instead ramped up to 2 generators at 8 AM, with a swift rise in water levels.  Why they could not or did not project this is beyond me.  This is the only region of the country in which we have NO RELIABLE GENERATION PROJECTIONS.  Please write your US Senators and Congressmen and complain about this; we don’t have to tolerate this kind of arrogance.  If this happens with minimum flow, it will only be a matter of time until someone is seriously injured or dies from unexpected high water conditions.

Meanwhile, Ed and I waited on the bank for any passing boat, but none were seen.  We walked through the woods to the road near McClellan’s entrance, knowing that Kay would pick us up if she was aware of our situation; sure enough, she came to our rescue.

I am so incensed at SWPA; I sure hope someone gets the political entities involved, with the threat of cutting Federal funding unless they provide accurate, reliable projections similar to that provided by Tennessee Valley Authority, Bonneville Power Administration, and other quasi-governmental power agencies in the rest of the US!

Monday, September 24, 2012—Crane Flies, Again

TIME: 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM

WEATHER: Low 60s to mid-70s, sunny, windy

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Riffle above Island below McClellan’s

FLIES USED: #14 olive Norfork River scud, #20 red/silver zebra midge, #14 Norfork River crane fly

ROD USED: 7’ 9” 2-wt Winston WT

HATCHES: Caddis, Midges, Crane flies

OTHER: I fished with Ed, Bill, and John.  We walked in at Mill Dam Eddy to falling water.  Bill and John remained downstream while Ed and I waded upstream.  Fishing was slow on the scud/zebra midge combination.  Shortly after 9:00 AM, crane flies began surfacing and fish were rising to them. Ed moved to the center of the riffle, between two streams of river, and immediately began catching fish on top; most of the fish were 14-15 inches and pretty hot.  He continued to catch fish on the crane fly imitation for the next 3 1/2 hours.  I fished the right descending side of the riffle and caught quite a few fish. I waded upstream to the plunge pool and again caught fish, about half of which were caught stripping the crane fly imitation. I switched back to the scud/zebra midge combination, moved to the left descending side, and caught several fish in the small riffle.  wading downstream to the tail out above the island, the fish continued taking the zebra midge, with far more misses than catches.  Bill worked his way upstream and caught lots of fish below, along side of, and above the island while John caught a bunch of fish below the island. 

Saturday, September 22—A Good Time Was Had By All

TIME:  8:30 AM to 1:00 PM

WEATHER: Low 60s to mid-70s, sunny, windy

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Riffle above Island below McClellan’s

FLIES USED: #14 olive Norfork River scud, #20 red/silver zebra midge, #14 Norfork River crane fly, #22 olive/black midge

ROD USED: N/A

HATCHES: Midges, Crane flies

OTHER: I accompanied Ron and Matt, son and son-in-law respectively.  Ron began catching fish immediately in the tail out of the riffle just above the island; most fish were caught on the red/silver zebra midge.  About 9:30 AM, crane flies began hatching and fish began rising to the hatching insects.  I tied on a Norfork River crane fly, and the “boys” caught an occasional fish.  Matt moved to the center of the riffle, between two streams of river, and immediately began catching fish on top.  Ron waded upstream and likewise began catching fish on top.  This continued until about 12:00 PM, and the fish stopped taking the crane fly fly.  I tied on a #22 olive/black midge trailer below Matt’s crane fly, and he caught an occasional fish on the trailer.  At about 12:30 PM, neither the crane fly nor the trailer would catch fish.  Ron and Matt switched back to the scud/zebra midge combination and again caught fish, but sporadically.  At 1:00 PM, we called it a day after lots of fish being caught by both.

Thursday, September 20, 2012—A Great Crane Fly Day

TIME: 10:15 AM to 11:30 AM

WEATHER: Mid to high 70s, sunny, breezy

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Upstream riffle above Ol’ Charlie’s

FLIES USED: #14 Norfork River crane fly, various midge and midge emerger patterns

ROD USED: Winston 8’ 6” 5-wt WT JWF

HATCHES: Crane flies, midges

OTHER: Fished solo.  I waded in near the upstream riffle above Ol’ Charlie’s, to find this section of the river completely void of fishers.  I caught a nice fish on the first cast, and continued to catch fish on almost every cast for about an hour, catching at least 30 fish, and probably more.  A prolific midge hatch began and the fish keyed on them like crazy, completely leaving the crane fly imitation I had on.  I tried almost every midge emerger pattern I had, then almost every midge, with little success.

As I was walking out, there were a bunch of fishers near the stocking chute at Ol’ Charlie’s; the fishers must like catching fish in a barrel because that’s just about what it is like.

Wednesday, September 19, 2012—It’s Dry Fly Time

TIME: 12:00 PM to 2:30 PM

WEATHER: Mid to high 70s, sunny, breezy

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Mill Dam Eddy

FLIES USED: #14 Norfork River crane fly

ROD USED: Winston 9’ 6-weight BII

HATCHES: Crane flies, midges

OTHER: Back from a trip to the Canadian Maritime Provinces to find cooler weather and fishable water, I fished with Wayne and Bill.  It was Wayne’s first time on the water in several weeks, but he hasn’t lost his touch, catching at least 5 dozen fish.  I hung around Mill Dam Eddy, wanting to fish dries, and caught a couple of dozen fish on a crane fly imitation.  My friend, Donnie, came down the river, and I convinced him to fish dry flies as well.  He, too, caught several on the crane fly imitation.  Wayne finished catching all the fish upstream, and waded back down, waiting to exit the water.  As we left, I snapped a photo of some pretty wildflowers on the river bank.

Tuesday, August 28, 2012—Too Much Water too Fast

TIME: 11:30 AM to 12:05 PM

WEATHER: Mid 80s to low 90s, sunny, windy (18+ miles per hour)

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, upper riffle at top of island above Ackerman/Handicap Access

FLIES USED: #14 pink cockleburr

ROD USED: Winston 9’ 6-weight Boron

HATCHES: Crane flies

OTHER: I fished solo after canceling a fishing date with Bill and Bruce due to SWPA scheduled early morning releases—the SWPA DID NOT GENERATE AS SCHEDULED and the early morning releases were non-existent.  After taking care of some personal business, I finally got in the water at 11:30 AM.  As I was driving out t meet Bill, I had an uneasy feeling that SWPA might begin generation at any time, so I accessed close to the house in order to quickly egress if the occasion dictated.  Despite extremely windy conditions, a few crane flies were hatching, and fish were rising to these occasional hatches.  I missed the first couple of fish, but hooked-up with the 3rd.  After missing a few more, I caught two fish, and noticed the water was moving a little faster.  It had started to rise very rapidly.  I immediately exited the water and barely made it across the right chute just above Ol’ Charlies.  Gotta start using a wading staff.

Monday, August 27, 2012—Missed Opportunities

TIME: 8:45 AM to 11:45 AM

WEATHER: Mid 80s to low 90s, sunny, breezy

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, first and second riffles at top of the island below McClellan’s

FLIES USED: Olive and brown Wayne’s Flies, Olive Norfork River Scud, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #14 pink cockleburr

ROD USED: Winston 9’ 6-weight Boron

HATCHES: Midges, craneflies

OTHER: I fished with Bill. Bill fished the chute on the right side of the island walking up, but wasn’t successful (he did take several here on the way back downstream on a soft hackle later in the morning).  He opted to fish the right descending side of the river above the island, and I fished the left.  I fished hard, and missed several fish which just tapped the fly—no hook-up.  Near the lower end of the tail out of the riffle, I cast towards the right descending side of an underwater island, and a HUGE brown hit the fly as soon as it hit the water.  I set the hook, and gallantly fought the fish, trying to reel it in across the “island” and keep it’s head up so it would not rub the fly out.  It was so heavy that I could hardly move it in the slow current.  It was a brief battle as the clinch knot attaching the fly to the tippet came loose.  This unloosening of the knot repeated itself a half dozen times over the course of the morning, each time resulting in loss of both the top and bottom flies—frustrating.  I did managed to take 8 fish in the tail out.  Moving upstream to the left riffle in the plunge pool, I did not take any fish.  I saw a few crane flies emerge, and a couple of rises in the riffle just downstream.  I tied on a #14 pink cockleburr and fooled a couple more fish, and missed a couple more.  The right descending side of the riffle did not produce any fish.  I ended the day with just shy of a dozen fish, a dozen lost flies, and about 15 misses.  It was as tough a fishing day as I’ve h ad in years, but a fun one nevertheless.  I did learn, though, the the pink cockleburr with oversized hackle would suffice as a pattern for a crane fly.

Thursday, August 23, 2012—Mill Dam Eddy

WEATHER: High 70s to low 90s, sunny, windy

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Mill Dam Eddy

FLIES USED: #20 furnace Cockleburr, #20 Kay’s Grey, #20 Dunn’s Dun, #20 furnace Cockleburr, Big Ugly

ROD USED: Winston 8’ 6” 5-weight WT JWF

HATCHES: Midges

OTHER: I fished with Kay. Our intent was to walk upstream to the riffle above the island and enjoy some relatively easy fishing. However, we saw two fishers near the top of the island, wading towards where we wanted to fish. We also considered fishing at Mill Dam Eddy, but there were already two fishers on the gravel near our walk-in point and close to where we would fish. It appeared one was a beginning fly fisher and the other was giving him very basic instructions. We waded upstream of them so as to not interfere with their fishing.  We opted to fish with emerger flies, but both of us had to change what we already had on.  We each tied on a #20 Kay's Grey. Kay struck first, catching a pretty rainbow. Soon after I caught a rainbow. Over the course of the morning, I caught about a dozen fish, most browns, but had to use several different patterns to catch the fish. I missed hooking up with a large fish, estimated at about 20 inches, that attacked the fly ferociously, but did catch a nice 15-16 inch cutthroat. We also caught a fish on the Big Ugly.  The wind began blowing, and we called it quits after a great morning on the water.

Wednesday, August 22, 2012—The Sabbatical is Over

TIME: 9:00 AM to 12:30 PM
WEATHER: High 70s to low 90s, sunny, windy
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units
LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, top of the island below McClellan’s to top of the gravel above Otter Creek (below McClellan’s stairs) 
FLIES USED: Olive Wayne’s Fly, Olive Norfork River Scud, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge
ROD USED: Winston 8’ 6” 5-weight WT JWF
HATCHES: Midges
OTHER: I fished solo. This was my first time on the water or three weeks; I had just tired of fishing. There were two fishers above the riffle above the island, surprisingly leaving the best water for me. I caught eight fish in the tail out of the riffle. I proceeded upstream and fished Ace in the Hole, with no success. Further upstream, I caught two fish above the Walnut Tree. I walked upstream to past the end of the gravel above Otter Creek, but below the stairs at McClellan’s, catching one fish with several misses near the tree on the left descending bank. I fished the middle of the river where the current changes from the left side to the right side, with no success. I caught three or four fish on the right descending bank as I worked my way back downstream to the sycamore tree across from Otter Creek. I heard the siren blow, indicating generation was about to begin, and started the long walk to my egress point. I surprised two armadillos, getting within a rod length from each of them. These are not our favorite animals.

Thursday, August 2, 2012-I’m Tired of Fishing!

DATE: Thursday, August 2, 2012
TIME: 9:00 AM to 12:30 PM
WEATHER: High 70s to high 90s, sunny, windy
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units
LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Top of the Island below McClellan’s to above Otter Creek
FLIES USED: Olive Wayne’s Fly, Olive Norfork River Scud, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge
ROD USED: Winston 8’ 6” 5-weight WT JWF
HATCHES: Midges, crane flies
OTHER: Fished with Bill.  We walked in at Mill Dam Eddy and waded/walked upstream to the top of the island.  Bill waded upstream fishing along the right descending bank while I waded upstream fishing the left descending bank.  I managed to take 4 fish in the pool below the riffle, but fished hard.  A brief shower occurred just as I reached the riffle.  I walked upstream to the left riffle in the plunge pool but didn’t take any fish.  I walked just upstream of Otter Creek and fished above the sycamore tree, and took a solo brown, fat and about 14 inches long.  Bill fished upstream of the gravel and took a bunch of fish, including 4 over 16 inches.  Meanwhile, I waded back downstream, without any success, and ended up fishing the riffle above the island, taking 8 fish on almost as many casts.  Bill joined me and we waded downstream, intending to fish Mill Dam Eddy, but unexpected generation—an hour early—ran us off the river.  It’s probably a good thing because this piece of water has been pounded to an extent that many of the fish have moved out, seeking sanctuary.  In the process of wading out, we observed what a 4-inch rise would do (about what minimum flow will generate) and were surprised at how treacherous wading was, including crossing from the island at Mill Dam Eddy—it was all I could safely handle!  This means that when SWPA begins generating, with minimum flow as a base, it will be prohibitively dangerous to wade where I typically wade and cross.  Better be careful what you ask for. 
NOTE:  I have finally lost my desire to fly fish every day; but am hoping it will come back in a few days!  Kay and I have had a great summer staying home and investing in family relationships, spending quality time with kids and grandkids.  And the fishing has been the best I’ve experienced since moving here in 2004.  But the wind, heat, heavy fishing pressure in my home waters, and unreliable generation forecasts has resulted in a need for a break.  I hope to be back on the water in a week or so, but who knows!  Until then…

Wednesday, August 1, 2012—The White River

DATE: Wednesday, August 1, 2012
TIME: 9:00 AM to 12:30 PM
WEATHER: High 70s to high 90s, overcast, windy
WATER CONDITIONS: Up to 5 Units
LOCATIONS FISHED: White River, Red’s Landing to Lindsey’s Boat Dock
FLIES USED: 1/16 oz Zig Jig, various colors
ROD USED: Custom Zig Jig Spinning Rod/Reel combination 
HATCHES: N/A
OTHER: Fished with Bill. We launched at Red’s Landing and fished our way downstream.  Fishing was tough and I only caught a couple of fish.  The heavy generation resulted in a lot of “junk” in the water, and almost every cast would result in debris on the jig.  It was the first time I had been all the way from Red’s Landing to Calico Rock, and there were some great places to fly fish during low water.  We saw a bald eagle and several turkeys, and one feeder stream with small rock bluffs on one side.  This is definitely an area to be further explored, both by kayak and individual pontoon. 

Thursday, July 25, 2012—Just Another Day

DATE:  Thursday, July 25, 2012
TIME:  9:30 AM to 12:00 PM
WEATHER: High 70s to high 90s, sunny, windy
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units
LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Riffle above Island below McClellan’s to Mill Dam Eddy 
FLIES USED: Olive Norfork River Scud, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #14 Cockleburr 
ROD USED: Winston 9’ 6-weight BIIX
HATCHES: Midges, crane flies
OTHER: Fished solo, but met up with Donnie at the riffle above the island.  I caught a few fish before Donnie arrived in the tailout of the riffle, and then Donnie rowed down from upstream.  We tried to fish Cockleburrs, both dry and stripped in the film, but the fish were not cooperating.  Susie and Tony came through on their way downstream to fish the Pool, and Donnie and I worked our way downstream along the island.  Donnie hooked and/or caught about 8 fish in the skinny water; he’s an excellent fly fisher, but had not fished this particular water before.  After the skinny water, he rowed downstream to catch up with Susie and Tony, and I waded for home, disappointed that Donnie didn’t get to catch any fish on the Cockleburr, but glad he got to fish the reach along the island.

Monday, July 22, 2012—A Big Fish Day

DATE:  Monday, July 22, 2012
TIME:  6:15 AM to 1:00 PM
WEATHER: High 70s to high 90s, sunny, windy
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units
LOCATIONS FISHED:  Norfork River, Riffle below Resort Hole to Otter Creek
FLIES USED:  Olive Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #20 black/red zebra midge, #14 olive Norfork River scud, various other midges
ROD USED:  Winston 9’ 6-weight BIIX
HATCHES:  Midges, crane flies
OTHER:  Fished with Donnie, Susie, and Tony; used “loaner” frameless pontoon.  Today marked to earliest I have ever been on the river, not counting night fishing.  Mist hung in the air for almost 3 hours, but produced a beautiful sunrise.

The long riffle at the bottom of the Resort Hole yielded 4 bites, but only one fish to hand.  I did not fish the Long Hole.  The riffle at the bottom of the Long Hole (above McClellan’s) did not produce any fish, though I fished it hard—it may have been too early in the day.  The Stairs at McClellan’s did not produce any fish.  Below McClellan’s, I hooked and caught 3 fish, and then fishing shut down for me for almost two hours.  I could not find a good drift, and with an upstream wind the fly would just suspend in the current.  Meanwhile, Donnie and Susie were catching fish fairly regularly.  When their action slowed, Donnie tied on two different midge patterns—one dropped below the other—and had consistent action.  I finally gave up fishing the pool below McClellan’s and fished along side the gravel in a leaf line where I found a decent drift.  With a #20 red/silver zebra midge dropped below an olive scud, I finally began scoring, and almost every fish was 16+ inches.  I caught a dozen fish within a short distance, including several 16-inchers, two 17-inchers, one 18-inch fish, and one shown below that measured 19+ inches (I couldn’t stretch it to 20, try as I might.)

Donnie and Susie had to leave at 12 noon, so we all began rowing downstream for the hour-long trip to the access.  I contacted Kay on the walkie talkie and she picked me up—what service!  The first 4+ hours were very tough for me, but the big fish the last 45 minutes made up for this long period of inactivity.

Wednesday, July 18, 2012—Retirement Cancelled

DATE: Wednesday, July 18, 2012
TIME: 7:45 AM to 10:45 AM
WEATHER: Low 80s to high 90s, mostly sunny, slight breeze
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units
LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Plunge Pool below McClellan's to just upstream of Mill Dam Eddy
FLIES USED: Green Wayne’s micro sculpin, #20 black/red Zebra Midge, #14 furnace cockleburr, #20 furnace cockleburr, #20 Kay's Gray, #20 Dunn's Dun, #14 soft hackle-gray with silver rib
ROD USED: Winston 8' 6" 5-weight WT JWF
HATCHES: Midges, Crane flies
OTHER: Fished solo. Wrote prematurely yesterday that I had retired the old Orvis wading boots. Before throwing them into the trash, I took the inner sole out and discovered quite a bit of gravel. I removed the gravel, and repaired the insole with Goop. The boots are now as good as new, except for new laces--no retirement for these boots!

I walked in that Mill Dam Eddy, walked up the Island and noticed this spider web highlighted against the sun.


I crossed the right-hand chute, and continued walking upstream to the Plunge Pool. I cast a number of flies at rising fish, but only caught a couple. I tied on a # 14 soft hackle, gray with silver ribbing, and the fish would take the fly on the surface. I caught a total of seven fish in the Plunge Pool. I began wading upstream and noted fishers across from Ottercreek, so turned around and waded back downstream to the riffle above the island. The soft tackle did not work there, so Wayne's fly, "Lucky", was tied on, and a black/red zebra manage dropped below. I caught 6 fish in the tail out below the riffle, fishing from the left descending bank. At the top of the island, I crossed to the right side, and fished "Lucky" in combination with the zebra midge along the island, taking another 4 fish before the water began rising.

Wading out I noticed this pretty bloom floating in the rising water.

Monday, July 16, 2012—Lucky is Back

DATE:  Monday, July 16, 2012

TIME: 10:00 AM to 12:15 PM

WEATHER:  Low to mid-80s, partly cloudy

WATER CONDITIONS:  0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED:  Norfork River, riffle above the Island below McClellan’s downstream to Mill Dam Eddy

FLIES USED:  #20 furnace cockleburr, Olive Wayne’s Fly (aka Lucky), #20 black/red zebra midge

ROD USED:  Winston 8’ 6” 5-weight Winston WT JWF

HATCHES:  Midges, a few crane flies, a few sulphurs

OTHER:  Fished solo.  I walked in at Mill Dam Eddy, waded across the river, walked upstream to the top of the island, waded further across to left descending bank. It felt like some gravel has gotten into my left boot/neoprene sock, so off they came, but nothing fell out.  I checked the boots and the lugs had worn through the insole.  These Orvis boots are over 10 years old, and were only being used for wet wading and boat fishing when waders were required.  They were good boots and are being officially retired today!

After putting the neoprene sock and boot back on, I continued upstream, fishing Wayne’s “Lucky” fly with a black/red zebra midge dropper.  (In talking to Wayne about this absolutely wonderful fly pattern, I told him I often referred to it as a micro sculpin; he laughingly said he just called it Lucky!  Having watched him catch thousands of fish with it, I can see why.)  I caught 3 fishing in this area at the top of the island, but wanted to try the cockleburr.  Wading in between the left and right riffles, I cast a bunch of times, but didn’t get so much as a look.  I waded across to the right descending bank, tied on Lucky with a red/zebra midge dropper and managed a couple more fish, both on Lucky.  Here are a couple of photos, upstream and downstream.  Notice that there are no other fishers.  It’s awesome to have a world-class river all to one’s self!

Wading back across to the island, Lucky was in a zone, and I caught 8 more fish between the top of the island and Mill Dam Eddy. all on Lucky.  A couple of casts at Mill Dam Eddy didn’t produce anything, and the old boots were getting pretty uncomfortable, so the boots and I called it a day.

Sunday, July 15, 2012—Swimming Armadillo

DATE:  Sunday, July 15, 2012

TIME:  1:30 PM to 4:00 PM

WEATHER:  High 80s to low 90s, mostly sunny, breezy

WATER CONDITIONS:  0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED:  Norfork River, riffle above the Island below McClellan’s downstream to Mill Dam Eddy

FLIES USED:  #14 furnace cockleburr, #20 Kay’s Gray, #20 furnace cockleburr,

ROD USED:  Winston 8’ 6” 5-weight Winston WT JWF

HATCHES:  Midges, a few crane flies, a few sulphurs

OTHER:  Fished with Kay.  We walked in at Mill Dam Eddy, waded across the river, walked upstream to the top of the island, waded back across, and walked upstream to the riffle.  We both began with a #14 furnace cockleburr.  I managed a fish or two in the riffle on the left descending bank, switched to a #20 Kay’s Gray and caught a couple more, then switched to a #20 furnace cockleburr, and caught several more fish.

  Kay missed a few fish, but hooked up with fish in the right descending bank riffle.  Kay fished the tail out, but it produced nothing.  As Kay reeled in, we noticed an armadillo on the right descending bank upstream at the riffle.  It came towards us, then turned towards the water.  We both commented that it definitely would not go into the water—it did.  We then commented that it wouldn’t swim—it did, quite efficiently.  It played, dove, and played some more, very similar to an otter, then swam back to shore an waddled off.  We wouldn’t have believed it had we not seen it for ourselves!

Shaking our heads, we waded back to the island, and Kay hooked up with a fish just upstream of the leaning trees.

We continued walking/wading downstream to Mill Dam Eddy, and I managed to fool a couple on the small cockleburr, including one at the drop off at the end of the island, just like the old days.  I didn’t notice that the fish had a zebra midge fly in the center of it’s left gill plate until I saw this photo—the zebra midge is almost centered between the eye and the edge of the gill plate.The whole afternoon proved to be difficult fishing, but I ended the day with 10 fish, though no big ones.

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

DATE:  Wednesday, July 11, 2012

TIME:  8:15 AM to 12:00 PM

WEATHER:  Low 70s to high 80s, mostly sunny, breezy

WATER CONDITIONS:  0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED:  Norfork River, riffle above the Island below McClellan’s downstream

FLIES USED:  #14 olive Norfork River scud, #18 clay zebra midge, Wayne’s olive micro sculpin,#14 furnace cockleburr

ROD USED:  Winston 9’ 6-weight Boron IIX

HATCHES:  Midges, a few crane flies

OTHER:  Fished with John.  John is one of the best nymph fishers around, and it’s always fun to watch him fish.  We fished the tail out from the right descending bank, and it was pretty tough fishing.  I waded across to the left descending bank, and fished the tail out across from John.  It seemed that we would alternately catch fish.  Here’s John with a “fish on” in the riffle.

 

I succumbed to the furnace cockleburr and took a few more in the film and on the surface.  We moved upstream to the plunge pool, where fish were occasionally midging, but were not successful in taking any fish, despite changing flies (John is shown here tying on a new pattern).

As we began wading downstream, I finally talked John into fishing a cockleburr, and he took 4 fish, mostly on top and fished dry.  We both ended with a dozen or more fish, and several were beautifully colored.  It was a fun day, and John is one of my favorite fishing partners.

Tuesday, July 10, 2012—Camera, Action, Roll

DATE:  Tuesday, July 10, 2012

TIME:  11:00 AM to 12:15 PM

WEATHER:  Low 80, mostly cloudy

WATER CONDITIONS:  0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED:  Norfork River, riffle at the top of the island above Ackerman/Handicap Access

FLIES USED:  #14 Furnace Cockleburr

ROD USED:  Winston 8’ 6” 5-weight WT JWF

HATCHES:  Midges, Craneflies

OTHER:  Fished solo.  I only wanted to fish a short while, so walked in close to home, and it was crowded, with fishers scattered everywhere.  There was an open spot in the pool below the tail out of the riffle at the top of the island above Ackerman/Handicap Access far enough away from the other fishers so as not to bother them; still, I asked permission from them to fish the area.  The downstream fisher was a well known local guide making a DVD on midge fishing (he is an excellent fisher, a good guide whom I would recommend, and a world class fly tier—in other words, he’s a good guy), but he had a poor spot in which to fish, as did I.  I lucked out and caught a small fish, then two fishers at the riffle left, and I waded upstream to fish there.  Fish were taking midges on top and in the film, and I was able to take 5 in pretty short order on the furnace cockleburr.  I felt bad because the camera man kept turning the camera my direction, and it was a bit embarrassing.  I finally waded out, spoke to the guide and offered some insight into the fishing, and left.  It was difficult fishing, and none of the other fishers caught anything, but they were fishing nymphs, midges, and other flies that just wouldn’t work given the time and place they were fishing. 

Monday, July 9, 2012—Neuropathy and a Few Fish

DATE:  Monday, July 9, 2012
TIME:  8:15 AM to 12:00 PM
WEATHER:  Low 70s to high 80s, cloudy, breeze
WATER CONDITIONS:  0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED:  Norfork River, riffle above the Island below McClellan’s downstream to Mill Dam Eddy
FLIES USED:  #14 olive Norfork River scud, #18 clay zebra midge, #20 red/silver zebra midge, #14 furnace cockleburr

ROD USED:  Winston 8’ 6” 5-weight WT JWF

HATCHES: Midges, a few sulphurs, a few crane flies
OTHER:  Fished solo.  Rain was forecast and today was supposed to be a rest day—i.e. no fishing—but like the T-shirt says, “I fish because the voices in my head tell me to.”  The river was shrouded with fog until about 9 AM, but the fish seemed to be a little hungry after almost a full day’s generation.  The clay zebra midge was working well, but I missed far more fish were missed than were caught.  A switch to a #20 red/silver zebra midge was attempted to remedy the situation, but to no avail.  I took a half dozen fish on the two midges but fished hard.  About 9:45 AM, a few fish began midging in the film, so a #20 furnace cockleburr was tied on, but didn’t produce any action.  After only a short while, a #14 furnace cockleburr was tied on, and the fish smashed it as it hit the surface.  I caught 2 nice 16-inch browns in almost the same place, then took this 14-inch, again in about the same location (note the cockleburr in the corner of its mouth).  Cold and cold-induced neuropathy forced me to the bank, and I walked downstream a few yards but the midging fish enticed me back in and this fat rainbow succumbed to the cockleburr which can be seen in the corner of the fish's mouth.  I waded across the top of the riffle to the left descending bank, and took one of the most beautifully colored cutthroats I have ever seen, about 8 or 9 inches long.  Without much feeling in my feet or hands, I walked and waded downstream to Mill Dam Eddy, where a few fish were working the film and surface for midges and other aquatic insects.  I caught a couple of fish, then hooked into a big, big cutthroat, but lost it about half way back on the retrieve.  It was an omen because no other fish would bite.  I ended the day with about a dozen fish.

Saturday, July 7, 2012—Where Have All The Fish Gone?

DATE:  Monday, July 7, 2012

TIME:  8:15 AM to 2:00 PM

WEATHER:  Mid-70s to low 100s, sunny, windy

WATER CONDITIONS:  0 Units, 1 unit of generation at 1:00 PM

LOCATIONS FISHED:  Norfork River, Riffle below Resort Hole to Riffle above McClellan’s

FLIES USED:  #14 Olive Norfork River Scud, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #14 Furnace Cockleburr, #20 Furnace Cockleburr, #20 Kay’s Gray, #10 Big Ugly

ROD USED: Winston 9’ 6-weight BIIX

HATCHES:  Midges and a few sulphurs

OTHER:  Fished with Whit, Patty, and Whitten. The riffle at the bottom of the Resort Hole did not yield any fish, but the run from this riffle to the top of the Long Hole produced 3 fish on the zebra midge.  The deep trough on the right descending bank of the river in the Long Hole looked promising, and a number of nice fish were breaching, but yielded nothing to a fly.  The riffle at the bottom of the Long Hole did not have birds darting in and out over the surface like on previous days, and few fish were rising to insects.  None were interested in the Big Ugly, but the #14 and #20 furnace cockleburrs worked well.  A few fish began midging on the surface in the riffle’s far left bubble line, looking downstream, and a few fish succumbed to the Kay’s Gray, including a nice brown and a nice cutthroat.  The wind began howling upstream about 12 noon and Whit and I rowed downstream in the pool below McClellan’s to meet up with Patty and Whitten where we found Patty harassing the fish with a midge pupa.  We enjoyed great chicken salad sandwiches compliments of Patty at the top of the gravel and had planned on fishing the riffle above the island below Otter Creek, but generation began and we began our downstream float to exit the river.  Thank goodness for the little things as Bill and Larry and others had fished the riffle in the morning and all are really good fishers, likely leaving giving all the fish sore mouths.  I ended the day with maybe a dozen fish, including a couple of cutthroats, three browns, and the rest rainbows. 

Friday, July 6, 2012—A Good Day’s Fishing

DATE:  Friday, July 6, 2012

TIME:   7:15 AM to 12:00 PM

WEATHER: Low 70s to high 90s, mostly sunny, slight breeze

WATER CONDITIONS:  0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED:  Norfork River, riffle above the Island below McClellan’s upstream to above the Gravel above Otter Creek, and back downstream

FLIES USED:   Olive micro jig, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #14 Gray Norfork River Scud, #14 Olive Norfork River Scud, #14 Furnace Cockleburr

ROD USED: Winston 9’ 6-weight BIIX

HATCHES: Midges, sulphurs

OTHER:  Fished with Bill.  River was shrouded with fog when we walked in and began wading upstream.  The riffle and tail out above the island did not produce many fish; I caught 3.  We moved upstream as far as low water depths would allow to the pool above the gravel at Otter Creek.  I began fishing the left descending bank and Bill fished the right descending bank.  He took a fish, and then I took a fish, and he took 4 more, and I took none; none would hook up with me, even though I switched to the right descending bank.  Changing to an olive #14 Norfork River Scud proved to be the ticket as I caught 6 browns in a row, then a rainbow, another brown, and another rainbow before calling it quits.  I wet-waded and got a bit cold despite the near 100 degrees air temperature.  I have been wet-wading now for 5 fishing trips and have a tan line above the ankle where the wading socks/boots stop—kind of like “farmer” hands—and yes, I have those, too.  

Wednesday, July 4, 2012—The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

DATE:  Wednesday, July 4, 2012

TIME:  12:30 PM to 2:30 PM

WEATHER: Low 100s, sunny, windy

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, the riffle at the bottom of the Pool to Cook’s Island

FLIES USED: #14 Furnace Cockleburr, #20 Furnace Cockleburr, #20 Kay’s Gray, #14 Black Cockleburr, #14 Olive Cockleburr, Big Ugly

ROD USED: Winston 8’ 6” 5-weight WT JWF

HATCHES: Midges

OTHER: Fished with Kay.  We both wanted to fish, but neither wanted the crowds.  As we had guessed, everyone was off the water, at least in this particular area, by lunch, leaving us to fish without any crowding; and we both caught fish (the Good).  Regrettably, it was very windy (the Bad) and hot at 103+ degrees (the Ugly).  We began at the riffle below the Pool (top of the island above Ackerman-Handicap Access).  Fish were midging, and we took a few fishing the Furnace Cockleburr as a dry fly, and stripping it in the film.  Wanting to see the “improvements” made downstream, we waded to the riffle on the left of Cook’s Island, and again took a few fish on the surface and stripping.  We waded to the downstream end of the island and fished the right side of the island, and Kay got into a zone and took more fish stripping the Furnace Cockleburr.  She ended the day with 5 fish to my 3, and fell in love with the Winston 9’ 6-wt boron rod.  I tried a bunch of flies, and had lots of refusals and missed fish, but we both had fun on this hot July 4th day. 

Tuesday, July 3, 2012—The Cockleburr

DATE:  Tuesday, July 3, 2012
TIME:  8:30 AM to 12:30 PM
WEATHER: Low 70s to high 90s, sunny, windy
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED:  Norfork River, Riffle below Resort Hole to Riffle above McClellan’s
FLIES USED:  Yellow Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #16 Bead Head Pheasant Tail Nymph, #20 Special K, #14 Big Ugly, #10 Big Ugly, #14 Furnace Cockleburr

ROD USED:  Winston 9’ 6-weight BIIX

HATCHES:  One sulphur (or crane fly); nothing else observed
OTHER:  Fished solo via an Outcast pontoon. Unlike the previous two times, the riffle at the bottom of the Resort Hole did not produce any fish, though I tried a yellow Wayne’s fly with a zebra midge dropped below.  I took time to rearrange fly boxes, flies, etc. so as to avoid wearing the heavy vest.  As written earlier, the entire reach from below the Resort Hole all the way to the top of the Long Hole is a continuous riffle, with water depths varying from almost two feet to almost 4 feet.


 



The right descending bank has been stabilized with a combination of downed trees with root wads intact, rock, and earth.  It’s probably the “best” environmentally acceptable method, though I would like to have seen less uniformity, less rock, and more trees, letting the trees/root wads do their thing.  Anyway, about halfway down, the riffle produced several fish, including this nice 16-inch brown (yeah, I know the marker shows 14+ inches, but the tail extends a couple inches beyond the “0” marker).
  Just below the top of the Long Hole, a deep hole on the left descending bank produced a couple of fish, but held many more, though I was in a hurry and did not fish it long.  I rowed against the wind the remainder of the Long Hole, anchored the pontoon, and fished the riffle at the bottom of the pool (aka the riffle above McClellan’s). The zebra midge worked on a couple of fish, but neither the large nor small Big Ugly resulted in a hook-up, though both experienced several misses; somehow, the fish just would not hook-up.  I tried a #20 Special K but had a couple of refusals, then tied on a #14 furnace Cockleburr.  This fly was apparently the ticket as I hooked and landed about 9 fish, including a nice 16-inch rainbow, and missed at least that many more.  By then, it was 11:35 AM and having an appointment at 1:30 PM, I began the arduous job of rowing downstream against the wind.  At the riffle above the island below McClellan’s, I visited with a young man who inquired about scheduled generation.  It was his first time to fish the Norfork, and he was really enjoying the experience.  He was a biologist with the Florida equivalent of the game and fish commission.  I made it to the takeout point about 12:30 PM and Kay there to pick me up, having communicated a few minutes earlier via walkie talkie.  It was a good day on the water, but would have been even better If more time could have been spent fishing the Cockleburr! 

Monday, July 2, 2012—Fishing Nearby

DATE: Monday, July 2, 2012

TIME: 6:30 AM to 8:15 AM

WEATHER: Low 70s to low 80s, sunny

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED:  Norfork River, Cook’s Island upstream to the riffle at the bottom of the Pool

FLIES USED:  #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #16 Bead Head Pheasant Tail Nymph, #20 Furnace Cockleburr, #20 Kay’s Gray, Big Ugly

ROD USED: Winston 8’ 6” 5-weight WT JWF

HATCHES: Midges

OTHER: Fished solo. This was a quick, early morning trip due to other commitments at church later in the day, and scheduled early generation.  It’s the first time I had been to this particular area in several weeks as the aesthetics have gone to heck in a hand basket because of the work done under the auspices of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission.  Even at the early hour of 6:30 AM, the river was already crowded.  Finding a spot away from nearby fishers, I tried the nymph/zebra midge combination and connected with only one fish. Switching to a #20 Furnace Cockleburr, I began fishing the far side of the bubble line, and hooked up with a fish.  A group of fishers waded up from the access downstream, and crowded me a bit.  Recognizing one of them, I gave him my spot, a couple of flies, and some direction on how/where to fish, and then waded upstream. As the sun rose above the horizon, the fish actively pursued the Cockleburr, and I took over a half dozen fish.  A fisher above me, recently moved to the area from Alaska, waded down and asked about the fly and technique.  I gave him a couple, told him how to fish the fly and area, caught 3 more fish, and left—too many people!  This “being nice to people” sure goes against my instincts—guess Kay will be proud of me.

Sunday, July 1, 2012—The Upper Norfork, Again

DATE: Sunday, July 1, 2012

TIME: 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM

WEATHER: Low 90s to high 90s, sunny, windy

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units, 2 units of generation at 3:00 PM

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Riffle below Resort Hole to Riffle above McClellan’s

FLIES USED: Green Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #16 Bead Head Pheasant Tail Nymph, #14 Special K, #10 Dave's Hopper, #10 Big Ugly

ROD USED: Winston 9’ 6-weight BIIX

HATCHES: None observed

OTHER: Fished solo. The riffle at the bottom of the Resort Hole was the first place I fished, and it produced a couple of fish. The tail out had been fished, and the fisher was working his way downstream to the top of the Long Hole. We exchanged pleasantries and I continued rowing downstream. I fished the Long Hole hard from the top to about 2/3 of the way downstream, wading via the center of the channel, picking up only one fish. The wind was howling upstream and made a drag free drift near impossible. At the riffle at the bottom of the Long Hole, birds were attacking insects like crazy, just above the water's surface, though no hatches were observed. A couple of fish were caught in the bubble line on the zebra midge, then a Big Ugly was tied on. Fish would suspend on the surface with open mouths waiting for the fly to drift in. A couple of fish were taken this way, and a switch to a Dave's Hopper, provided similar results. And then, the water began rising via apparent generation, and I began rowing downstream passing above a big, deep hole holding more large fish than I have seen in a long, long time. It will be on my itinerary next time, maybe July 4. The day ended with less than 3/4 dozen fish caught.

Monday, June 25, 2012—Fishing the Upper River

DATE:  Monday, June 25, 2012

TIME: 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM

WEATHER: Low 70s to low 90s, mostly sunny, slight breeze

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Quarry Park to Ackerman Access 

FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #14 Gray Norfork River Scud, green micro jig, #14 Special K, #16 Parachute Sulphur Dun

ROD USED: Winston 9’ 6-weight BIIX

HATCHES: Midges, sulphurs, occasional caddis

OTHER:   I fished solo, and apparently didn’t post an entry into the Donald’s Fishin’ Journal blog.  However, some photos of fish were dated with this date, and there were pictures of the upper part of the Norfork River below the dam, and also photos of the one man pontoon and oars.  Apparently, fishing was pretty decent as evidenced from the photos.  And, it appears that at least one large fish was caught.

Sunday, June 24, 2012—Karma and a Few Sulphurs

DATE: Sunday, June 24, 2012

TIME: 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM

WEATHER: Low 70s to low 90s, mostly sunny, slight breeze

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, above the Gravel above Otter Creek downstream to Riffle above the Island below McClellan’s

FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #14 Gray Norfork River Scud, green micro jig, #14 Special K, #16 Parachute Sulphur Dun

ROD USED: Winston 9’ 6-weight BIIX

HATCHES: Midges, sulphurs, occasional caddis

OTHER: Fished solo. I should have known not to fish during church and Sunday school hours; Karma will get you every time.  John Gulley’s truck was parked near my usual walk-in which was kind of a surprise as we had been told several times that the owner had told him not to trespass.  As I waded upstream from Mill Dam Eddy, a solo fisher was fishing the right hand chute along the island (he too had trespassed as he later walked out via Otter Creek).  John Gulley was guiding two clients at the riffle above the island but neither was catching fish.  Further upstream in the plunge pool, a couple of canoers were fishing.  Consequently, I waded all the way to the end of the gravel, arriving there about 9:30 AM, when I should have been in early church.  I didn’t catch my first fish until 11:15 AM, and it was the only bite I had—should have gone to church and Sunday school.  Having decided to wade out, I trudged downstream and the two canoes were attempting to snag fish in the plunge pool and were having limited success—they caught two, maybe three fish.  Gulley had left the riffle above the island and no one else was there so I decided to make a cast or two, and was rewarded with several fish on the green micro jig and several others on the red/silver zebra midge.  A few sulphurs were coming off and the riffle had not been fished with dry flies in several days.  I crossed the first riffle and standing between the two riffles tied on a #14 Special K and got slammed.  I took several fish this way, and then decided to try a #16 parachute sulphur dun.  Again, the fish bit, and I took several more, with quite a few misses and quite a few refusals.  Switching back to the Special K, I took a few more fish and called it a day, ending with almost 2 1/2 dozen fish, including browns, rainbows, and cutthroats.  No big fish were taken, but all the fish were “hot” and several were 14-15 inches. 

Thursday, June 21, 2012—Big Ugly

DATE: Thursday, June 21, 2012

TIME: 9:15 AM to 12:30 PM

WEATHER: Low to mid-80s, mostly sunny, high winds

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Elisabeth Creek to Mill Dam Eddy

FLIES USED: Olive Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #20 Dunn’s Dun, #14 Special K, #10 Big Ugly

ROD USED: Winston 8’ 6” 5-weight WT JWF

HATCHES: Occasional sulphurs

OTHER: Fished with Wayne; we repeated yesterday’s scenario, though the bite was much less frequent, and the fish not as big.  We worked our way upstream, with only an occasional fish here and there.  About half of what I caught up to Mill Dam Eddy were on the #20 red/silver zebra midge.  Just below Mill Dam Eddy, the fish were “midging”, and I tied on a #20 black/silver cockleburr, then a #20 Dunn’s Dun.  I finally resorted to a #14 Special K and had success pulling the fly under the surface and short stripping it back.  I took 5 fish this way.  Then, I decided to try the Big Ugly in the leaf line where fish were gently surfacing.

I was immediately rewarded with a small brookie, then a nice 14 or 15-inch brown. Wayne switched to a Big Ugly and caught 4 fish, including a couple of nice 16 to 17-inch browns.  I ended the day with 14 fish. 

Wednesday, June 20, 2012—Seems Like Old Times

DATE: Wednesday, June 20, 2012

TIME: 9:15 AM to 12:30 PM

WEATHER: Low to mid-80s, mostly sunny, high winds

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Elisabeth Creek midway upstream to Mill Dam Eddy

FLIES USED: Olive Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #14 Gray Norfork River Scud

ROD USED: Winston 8’ 6” 5-weight WT JWF

HATCHES:  Occasional sulphurs

OTHER: Fished with Wayne; it’s been so long since we fished together, and particularly this reach of river, that it seemed like old times.  As usual, Wayne caught and released his first fish before I even had a fly in the water.  He continued to take fish, breaking off a large fish, while I broke off or missed what must have been 3/4 dozen, including a large fish.  As we progressed upstream, I finally began to get into some rhythm, and caught fish with regularity, as did Wayne.  I hooked, fought, and landed a nice 20-inch brown on the red zebra midge; thank goodness I was using 4X tippet and dropping the zebra midge with 5X.  After photographing and releasing the fish, Wayne immediately followed by catching one only slightly smaller.

We continued to take fish, but not as often.  Wayne broke off a large cutthroat upstream near Mill Dam Eddy.  As we finished up the day, Donnie and Susie from McGehee came floating down and it was a pleasure to introduce them to Wayne, and vice versa—all good people, and good fishers!

Tuesday, June 19, 2012—It Began as a Really Tough Day

DATE: Tuesday, June 19, 2012

TIME: 9:00 AM to 12:30 PM

WEATHER: Low to mid-80s, mostly sunny, wind

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Riffle above the Island below McClellan’s to above the Gravel above Otter Creek

FLIES USED: Green Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #14 Gray Norfork River Scud

ROD USED: Winston 8’ 6” 5-weight WT JWF

HATCHES: Midges, sulphurs

OTHER: Fished solo. I began today fishing the tail out below the riffle from the left descending bank. I used a gray Norfork River scud and a red/silver zebra midge.  The bite was very slow, and I didn’t seem to have IT all together, with several tangles and a break off, but the first 4 fish were browns; the 5th was also a brown, but took me into the only submerged tree in the pool, forcing a break off between the leader and tippet.  This was not going to be my day.  I took an occasional fish here and there, in the riffle above the island below McClellan’s, but missed many more than I caught.  Neither the left descending riffle in the plunge pool or Ace in the Hole produced anything.  I wasn’t able to get any bites along the gravel at the old Sycamore Tree Hole or the Walnut Tree Hole.  I didn’t catch any more fish until I waded up above the gravel as far as I could and fished the right descending bank channel. The wind was blowing upstream resulting in a poor drift, so I would throw a mend creating a downstream belly in the line and used what little current was available to pull the fly along; it worked (an old Indian trick taught me by Wayne). Though the drift was about as slow as watching paint drive, a fish resulted in almost every cast. Donnie and Susie from McGehee were fishing upstream, and I visited with Donnie briefly, then headed back downstream. The tail out below the riffle above the island below McClellan’s didn’t produce any fish compared to yesterday, but further downstream, I caught a couple of fish under the trees along the island, ending the day with maybe 2 1/2 dozen fish.

No big fish were caught, though the number and percentage of browns was even higher than yesterday.

Monday, June 18, 2012—Moving Upstream

DATE: Monday, June 18, 2012
TIME: 8:30 AM to 12:00 PM
WEATHER: Low to mid-80s, mostly sunny, wind
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Riffle above the Island below McClellan’s to Otter Creek
FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #14 Gray Norfork River Scud, #20 black/silver Zebra Midge.

ROD USED: Winston 8’ 6” 5-weight WT JWF

HATCHES: Midges, sulphurs
OTHER: Fished solo. I began today, as I do most days, by fishing the tail out below the riffle, except today I fished it from the left descending bank.  I used a Wayne’s Fly and a red/silver zebra midge, taking about a half dozen fish.  I moved out of the riffle and waded upstream to the plunge pool and missed a couple of fish in the left descending bank riffle.  Wading further upstream on the left descending bank, Ace in the Hole was quite productive, and I took another half dozen fish right immediately, then the action stopped.  Further upstream, the Walnut Tree hole produced a few fish.  I was intent to fish all the way upstream as far as water depths would allow wading—above the gravel above Otter Creek (below McClellan’s Dock) and I saw Donnie and Susie from McGehee, and looked forward to visiting with them.  I caught quite a few fish at the top of the gravel, and had decided to wade further upstream, but saw a couple of kayaks coming down the river, and it can get real crowded real fast.  I turned downstream and fished my way back.  The tail out below the riffle above the island below McClellan’s fished better than at any time this year, producing a half dozen or more fish in a brief period despite the fact that I had fished it earlier from the other side of the river.  Further downstream, I missed a couple of fish under the trees along the island, ending the day with maybe 3 dozen fish.


No big fish were caught, though the number and percentage of browns were higher than I can remember ever catching.

Thursday, June 14, 2012—A Big Fish

DATE: Thursday, June 14, 2012

TIME: 8:30 AM to 1:30 PM

WEATHER: Low to mid-80s, mostly sunny, light wind

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Riffle above the Island below McClellan’s to just upstream of Mill Dam Eddy

FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #16 Parachute Sulphur Dun, #20 Special K, #14 Special K, #14 Gray Norfork River Scud, #20 black/silver Zebra Midge.

ROD USED: Winston 7’ 9” 2-weight LT

HATCHES: Midges, sulphurs

OTHER: Fished solo. I began today, as I do most days, by fishing the the tail out below the riffle with Wayne’s Fly and a red/silver zebra midge, taking about a half dozen fish. The first sulphur came off about a half hour after I began fishing, so I tried the #14 Special K that was so successful yesterday.  I took a few fish pretty quickly, then it really slowed down.  I switched to a #16 parachute sulphur dun, and only took a few fish.  Next, I tied on a #20 Special K, but it only brought a couple of fish to hand.  I moved out of the riffle and waded upstream to the plunge pool and took a couple of fish on the small Special K.  Continuing wading upstream, I fished above the walnut tree, and caught a 20+ inch brown, my biggest fish this year.

I continued fishing upstream above Otter Creek, and took almost a couple of dozen fish in the slow water pool below McClellan’s Dock, all on the gray Norfork River scud.  I met Donnie and Susie from McGehee.  Donnie attended some fly tying seminars I presented in Little Rock in the early 2000s.  He is probably the best fisher I’ve ever “taught”; I sure wouldn’t want to fish behind him.  He informed me that Susie caught a 30-inch brown yesterday on a fly on the Norfork, and they had photos to prove it.  WOW!

Wednesday, June 13, 2012—Awesome Fishing

DATE:  Wednesday, June 13, 2012

TIME: 8:30 AM to 12:00 PM

WEATHER: Low to mid-80s, mostly sunny, light wind

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Riffle above the Island below McClellan’s to just upstream of Mill Dam Eddy

FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #16 Parachute Sulphur Dun, #20 Special K, #14 Special K

ROD USED: Winston 7’ 9” 2-weight LT

HATCHES: Midges, sulphurs, occasional crane fly

OTHER: Fished solo.  I began by fishing the  the tail out below the riffle with Wayne’s Fly and a red/silver zebra midge, taking about a half dozen fish. The first sulphur came off at 9:22 AM, and I switched immediately to a #16 parachute sulphur dun, and moved upstream to the area between the right and left riffles. The fish were not crazy about the fly, but I did manage to catch a dozen or more, fishing it pretty hard.  I noted that fish were taking midges instead of the natural sulphur, so I put on a #20 Special K, a pink-bodied, furnace-hackled cockleburr, and the fish liked it.  I couldn’t see the fly well against the sun, so switched to the larger #14 size, and the fish really like it.  I managed to catch another dozen and a half fish on this fly.  I didn’t have any big fish today, though most were in the 14-inch category.  It was an awesome day on the river, but my “cold” seems to be getting worse as I was having chills and coughing like crazy.  Hope it’s not pneumonia.  .

Tuesday, June 12, 2012—First Fish on a Dry Fly

DATE: Tuesday, June 5, 2012

TIME: 9:00 AM to 12:30 PM

WEATHER: Low to mid-80s, mostly sunny, light wind

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Riffle above the Island below McClellan’s

FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #16 Parachute Sulphur Dun

ROD USED: Winston 7’ 9” 2-weight LT

HATCHES: Midges, sulphurs

OTHER: Fished with Whit and Patty, friends from Little Rock.  As a relatively new fly fisher, it was Whit’s first time to fish with dry flies.  We began in the tail out below the riffle with Wayne’s Fly and a red/silver zebra midge.  The bite was slow, yielding only a few fish.  The first sulphur came off about 9:30 AM, and we switched immediately to a #16 parachute sulphur dun.  The fish really liked the selection and took Whit’s fly steadily, including his first fish ever on a dry fly, shown in the photo above.  He took a couple of dozen fish before the hatch ended, and Patty took quite a few fish as well, though we had her positioned in a less desirable area.  In between various coaching sessions, I took about a dozen fish. 

Tuesday, June 5, 2012—A Dry Fly Grand Slam

DATE: Tuesday, June 5, 2012

TIME: 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM

WEATHER: Low to mid-80s, mostly sunny, wind

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Mill Dam Eddy to Riffle above the Island below McClellan’s

FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #16 Parachute Sulphur Dun

ROD USED: Winston 8’ 6” 5-weight WT JWF

HATCHES: Midges, sulphurs

OTHER:  The “cold” is steadily improving, but the coughing and hacking is slowly dissipating. In fact, I walked the trash to the big garbage bins on the other side of the campground. Today, I fished with Bruce, a friend from the Arkansas Travelers RV Club. Bruce asked about fishing, so we loaded our wading stuff and drove to the house to change into waders and boots. We accessed at Mill Dam Eddy, and waded upstream of the island. The wind was blowing steadily into our faces, and made casting quite difficult for Bruce, a novice fly fisher. He did all the right things, but couldn’t get a trout to take the fly. I played around for about 30 minutes with a parachute sulphur dun, and managed to catch over a dozen fish, including a grand slam on the dry fly.

Thursday, May 31, 2012—More Good Sulphur Fishing

DATE: Thursday, May 31, 2012

TIME: 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM

WEATHER: Low to mid-80s, mostly sunny

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Mill Dam Eddy to Riffle above the Island below McClellan’s

FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #16 Parachute Sulphur Dun

ROD USED: Sage 9’ 4 wt. SP+

HATCHES: Midges, sulphurs

OTHER: I fished solo today. This “stupid” cold is getting progressively worse, but so far, I’m not going to let it control my life!  (I may live to regret writing this!)  So, knowing the sulphurs were coming off, I suited up, gathered vest and fly rod, and headed off to the river. Sulphurs were already hatching, so I hurried to the riffle. The fish were hitting the fly almost every cast, and I managed to take a really nice fish, having missed two others which were bigger.  Along with caddis fishing in late March and early April, this is my favorite time of year to fish.

I really dislike fish the Sage rod, but don’t remember it fishing this poorly.  First, it’s too stiff, and second, it’s too heavy.  And it doesn’t load well; perhaps a different line will help.

Tuesday, May 29, 2012—Good Sulphur Fishing

DATE: Tuesday, May 29, 2012

TIME: 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM

WEATHER: Low to mid-80s, mostly sunny

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Mill Dam Eddy to Riffle above the Island below McClellan’s

FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #16 Parachute Sulphur Dun

ROD USED: Sage 9’ 4 wt. SP+

HATCHES: Midges, sulphurs

OTHER: Despite my suffering from severe allergy problems (or a cold), the river looked too inviting to ignore. I suited up, gathered vest and fly rod, and headed off to the river. Sulphurs were already coming off, and after a few fish, I switched from the Wayne’s fly/zebra midge combination to a parachute sulphur dun. The fish were hitting the fly almost every cast, and then with a fish on I noticed the water steadily rising. While reeling in the fish, I gingerly waded to the bank for a quick hike downstream. The river has come up without warning more this year than all the previous years combined I’ve fished the Norfork. I made it safely out, drove back to the house for a shower and clean clothes.

The Sage does not fish well; it seems to be underlined.

Saturday, May 12, 2012—Fishing with Ron and Kaden

DATE: Saturday, May 12, 2012

TIME: 7:00 AM to 1:30 PM

WEATHER: Low 50s to mid-70s, mostly sunny

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Mill Dam Eddy to Riffle above the Island below McClellan’s

FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #16 Elk Hair Caddis, #16 Parachute Sulphur Dun

ROD USED: 8' 6" 5 wt Winston LT JWF

HATCHES: Midges, caddis, sulphurs, crane flies

OTHER: Fished with Ron and Kaden. It was only Kaden's second time on water other than Dry Run Creek. We began fishing early in order to avoid the crowds, but as it turned out, we saw no other fishers until we finished at 1:30 pm. Kaden hooked and missed several fish, but caught 4 or 5. He did an excellent job of managing his line, including both upstream and downstream mends. He had all the fishing he wanted by 10 am, so he and I waded out and drove to the house.

I returned and waded back upstream and began fishing, using the #14 cockleburr, catching 3/4 dozen fish in the film. I switched to an elk haired caddis and caught several more. After seeing a few sulphurs hatching, I switched to a #16 parachute sulphur dun. Casting to a spot that has produced fish all spring, I hooked and landed what ended up being a 17-inch rainbow, ending the day with a couple of dozen fish.

Ron caught a bunch of fish as well, including a couple of 15-16 inch rainbows, and several on an elk haired caddis. It was the first time he had fished in some time, and we both had a great time.

Thursday, May 10, 2012—Introducing Fishers to the Norfork River

DATE: Thursday, May 10, 2012

TIME: 9:00 AM to 1:30 PM

WEATHER: Low to mid-70s, mostly sunny

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Mill Dam Eddy to Riffle above the Island below McClellan’s

FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #16 Elk Hair Caddis

ROD USED: n/a

HATCHES: Midges, caddis, sulphurs, crane flies

OTHER: Fished with John, Ted, and Glenda. Walked in at Mill Dam Eddy, and waded upstream to above the island. Ted caught a few fishing the left descending side below the riffle; his first two were nice browns. He then fished the left side of the left riffle using an elk hair caddis and caught several. We moved to a location between the riffles and he caught more in both the left and right riffles on the caddis. Wading out, Ted fished the right-hand side of the island, and had several takes, but no solid hook-ups. He ended the day with 14 or 15 fish, and missed others which refused to fully take the fly.

Friday, May 4—Too Many People and a Rude “Neighbor”

DATE:  Friday, May 4, 2012

TIME: 8:15 AM to 11:00 AM

WEATHER: Low to mid-80s, mostly sunny, some wind

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Mill Dam Eddy to Riffle above the Island below McClellan’s

FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge,  #16 Elk Hair Caddis

ROD USED:  G. Loomis 9’ 0” 3-weight custom-built IMX

HATCHES: Midges, caddis, sulphurs, crane flies

OTHER: Fished solo.  I walked in relatively early as I was only going to fish a couple of hours, and wanted to fish dries while the weather and river conditions permitted.  A couple of guys from Dyersburg, TN, were on the island walking upstream as I walked upstream, and they asked about the fishing.  I provided information on fishing conditions the last few days, and by coincidence we knew some of the same people—folks who had worked with the Corps that lived in Dyersburg.  They continued wading upstream, while I stopped off at the tail out of the riffle above the island, and using Wayne’s Fly and a zebra midge, began fishing.  It proved to be a slow start, with only a few fish caught.  The first caddis came off about 9:45 AM, and fish immediately began keying on them, and then some small nearly white sulphurs began coming off and fish keyed on them as well. I fished a caddis and caught a few fish, but missed a half dozen on a small parachute sulphur.  I switched to a larger fly and finally caught a couple of fish.  Switching back to the caddis, I caught several more until an obnoxious neighbor from our subdivision walked in right on top of me, saying he needed more shallow water to fish; he was only about 20 feet away, and he would cast over on my side of the riffle.  Fortunately, his guest stayed a decent distance downstream.  I must say this was not unusual for this “neighbor” as he’s always been selfish and arrogant, at least the 15 or so years I’ve known him.  This is the same guy that brought a guide, John, in through another neighbor’s place on the river that had been gracious enough to allow us to trespass.  What an idiot and AH.  Fortunately, he’s a rather poor fly fisher.  I continued to catch fish, but it wasn’t much fun, so I finally gave in and let him have the riffle, which is exactly what he wanted, and he immediately called his friend to come up.  I moved downstream on river left, and asked myself what Wayne would do.  I tied on Wayne’s Fly and a zebra midge and caught 7 fish where the guest had been fishing before moving up to where I had been, and they were in full view of the hook-up, fight, and release of all 7 fish.  Satisfied, I waded downstream and called it a day.  A couple of other fishers were making their way upstream, so it was time to get off the water as people were wading up and pontoons and kayaks were coming down—too crowded for this solitary soul. 

Thursday, May 3—Fly Fishing A Caddis Hatch

DATE: Thursday, May 3, 2012

TIME: 8:30 AM to 2:00 PM

WEATHER: Low to mid-80s, mostly sunny, some wind

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Mill Dam Eddy to Plunge Pool above the Island below McClellan’s

FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #20 furnace Cockleburr, #14 furnace Cockleburr, #20 Kay’s Grey, #20 Dunn’s Dunn, #16 Elk Hair Caddis

ROD USED: Winston 8’ 6” 5-weight WT JWF

HATCHES: Midges, caddis, crane flies

OTHER: Fished with Bruce.  Bruce is a retired structural engineer who I knew in the Mid-South Fly Fishers in Memphis, and with whom I reconnected in church in Mountain Home.  We waded upstream to the tail out of the riffle above the island below McClellan’s (and Otter Creek), and began fishing using Wayne’s Fly in combination with a red/silver Zebra midge and both of us caught fish.  About 9:30 AM, I saw fish begin to take flies on the surface in the river left riffle, so moved in between the riffles to “experiment” with different patterns.  Very shortly thereafter, caddis began emerging, and the fish were keying on them.  Bruce reluctantly came over and began catching fish on caddis.  I noted a fisher upstream in a float boat catching fish seemingly every cast.  I’ve seen only one other person do that in that particular area (Wayne) so I knew this guy had to be a really good fisher.  I moved up to the plunge pool and caught several fish on various midge emergers fished dry.  Bruce waded upstream as well and began fishing the plunge pool, so I waded downstream to fish the riffle he had vacated.  My, oh my, but what a day we had.   The guy in the float boat finally floated downstream, and very politely (which seems to be a rare commodity on the river these days).  I was eager to strike up a conversation and asked how he was doing, and immediately recognized him as a friend, asked, “Do you know me?”  He responded that I looked familiar and I called his name, Donny, and told him mine, then it all clicked, and we conversed for the next 30 minutes.  Donny took several of my fly tying seminars at Ozark Anglers and has become an awesome fly tier as well as fly fisher.  Bruce and I fished a bit longer, then began wading downstream to our walkout point.  He switched to a Wayne’s Fly and Zebra midge and fished the tail out above the island with success, then took a couple of fish along the island.  We noted natural streambank protection along the otherwise caving bank.  All told, Bruce had over 50 fish on dry flies alone, and at least a dozen more on the Wayne’s fly and Zebra midge combination.   

My, oh my, but it was an awesome day with great dry fly fishing, with a grand slam, and meeting an old friend on the river.