MOLLY SEMENIK BY JOHN BERRY

The North Arkansas Fly Fishers (NAFF), our local fly fishing club, which is affiliated with the Federation of Fly Fishers, sponsors the Sowbug Roundup. This is the best produced and most successful local fishing event and has been gathering a lot of national notice and respect in recent years. A successful show like this also creates a nice source of revenue. NAFF uses a substantial portion of these revenues to currently fund $13,200.00 in scholarships for local area college students. 

Another primary use is to bring in National speakers on fly fishing to help educate the public. Such an event will occur this weekend Saturday, October 29 and Sunday, October 30 at Gaston’s Visitors Center over looking Bull Shoals Dam. It will feature Molly Semenik a Federation of Fly Fishers Master Certified Casting Instructor, a member of the Federation of Fly Fishers Certified Casting Instructors Board of Governors, an experienced professional fly fishing guide and outfitter, an accomplished fly tyer and author. The programs will run from 9:00 AM till 4:00 PM on Saturday and from 9:00 AM till 3:00 PM on Sunday. Attendance is open to the public at no charge. 

Molly is known primarily as a casting instructor and the range of programs she is presenting illustrates this. On Saturday, she begins with a seminar, on fly casting faults and fixes, based on the most common casting errors she sees, when guiding and teaching. Then she concludes the day with a seminar, on accuracy casting. Both are taught outside and feature group participation. On Sunday, her casting seminars are about distance casting and making the Spey cast with a single hand rod. 

She has several travelogue type presentations featuring the Yellow Stone River (she guided there for fourteen years), Tarpon fishing in Florida, Steelhead fishing in the Pacific Northeast and Christmas Island. She will also talk about fly fishing technique like how to fish from a boat or how to cast to a pod of rising fish during a midge or Blue Wing Olive hatch. Both of these would be very valuable around here. 

What really interests me is a presentation on her new book, 25 Off the Beaten Path Montana Fly Fishing Streams. I have been to Montana a dozen times and I always find myself fishing the same famous trout streams over and over again. I think it would be nice to check out some lesser known streams that are off the beaten path. Unfortunately, I am scheduled to guide this Saturday and will be unable to attend. Maybe I can chat with Molly about that on Sunday. 

This is a rare opportunity to improve your casting and learn a bit about fishing in various locations and techniques that will help you here. The fact that it is free and open to the public is wonderful. Thank you North Arkansas Fly Fishers. I hope to see you there.

JOHN BERRY FISHING REPORT 10/28/2016

During the past week, we have had no rain, cool temperatures and heavy winds. The lake level at Bull Shoals remained steady at four and five tenths feet below seasonal power pool of 659 feet. This is forty and five tenths feet below the top of flood pool. Upstream, Table Rock rose two tenths of a foot to rest at five and seven tenths feet below seasonal power pool and nineteen and seven tenths feet below the top of flood pool. Beaver Lake fell two tenths of a foot to rest at five and five tenths feet below seasonal power pool and fifteen and one tenth feet below the top of flood pool. On the White, we had heavy generation in the afternoon this week with lower generation in the morning and no wadable water. Norfork Lake fell three tenths of a foot to rest at one and two tenths of a foot below seasonal power pool of 553.75 feet and twenty seven and four tenths feet below the top of flood pool. On the Norfork, we had low levels of generation all day with some wadable water.

Seasonal power pool has been reset for the lakes in the White River system. All of the lakes on this system are below seasonable power pool. With cooler fall weather and lower lake levels, we should see more wadable water.

The Catch and Release section below Bull Shoals Dam is closed from November 1, 2016 to January 31, 2017 to accommodate the brown trout spawn.  The State Park will be seasonal Catch and Release for the same period.  All brown trout must be immediately released.  In addition, night fishing is prohibited in this area during this period.

On the White, the bite has been spotty. Some days have been excellent and some poor. The hot spot has been Rim Shoals. We have had no wadable water. The hot flies were olive woolly buggers (#8, #10), Y2Ks (#14, #12), prince nymphs (#14), zebra midges (black with silver wire and silver bead or red with silver wire and silver bead #16, #18), pheasant tails (#14), ruby midges (#18), root beer midges (#18), pink and cerise San Juan worms (#10), and sowbugs (#16). Double fly nymph rigs have been very effective (my current favorite is a cerise San Juan worm with a ruby midge (#18) suspended below it).

The best bet for large trout has been to bang the bank with large articulated streamers delivered with heavy twenty four to thirty foot sink tips (350 grains or heavier) on bigger water. You will need an eight or nine weight rod. This is heavy work but the rewards can be great.

The Buffalo National River and Crooked Creek are navigable. The smallmouths are still active. My favorite fly is a Clouser minnow. Carefully check the water level before entering Crooked Creek or the Buffalo River. There are no dams on these streams. They both have large drainages and are prone to flooding during and following any rain event. The water can rise very quickly.

There has been precious little wadable water on the Norfork. The lake has turned over and there is a sulphur smell on the upper river and with lower dissolved oxygen, in that area, the bite has been slow there. The most productive flies have been small midge patterns (#18, #20, #22)  like ruby midges, root beer midges, zebra midges (black or red with silver wire and silver bead) and soft hackles (#14, #16) like the green butt. Egg patterns have also been productive. Double fly nymph rigs have been very effective. Try a small bead headed nymph (zebra midge, copper John or pheasant tail) suspended eighteen inches below a brightly colored San Juan worm (hot fluorescent pink or cerise #10). There have been reliable hatches of small midges (try a size 24 Adams parachute) and caddis (try a size 18 elk hair caddis). The fishing is better in the morning. My favorite fly has been the ruby midge. 

Dry Run Creek has been less crowded with school back in session. A large number of brown trout have moved into the creek. The hot flies have been sowbugs (#14), Y2Ks (#12) and various colored San Juan worms (worm brown, red, hot fluorescent pink and cerise #10). While you are at the creek you should visit the Norfork National Fish Hatchery. It is fascinating. Be sure and remove your waders before entering to prevent the spread of aquatic diseases.

The Spring River is fishing well. This is a great place to wade fish, when they are running water on the White and Norfork Rivers. Canoe season is over and there are fewer boats on the river. Be sure to wear cleated boots and carry a wading staff. There is a lot of bedrock that can get very slick. The hot flies have been olive woolly buggers with a bit of flash (#10), cerise and hot pink San Juan worms (#10) and Y2Ks (#10).

Remember that the White and Norfork Rivers and Dry Run Creek are infected with didymo, an invasive alga. Be sure and thoroughly clean and dry your waders (especially the felt soles on wading boots) before using them in any other water. Many manufacturers are now making rubber soled wading boots that are easier to clean and are not as likely to harbor didymo.

JOHN BERRY FISHING REPORT FOR 10/14/2016

During the past week, we have had a rain event (about an inch and a half here in Cotter), warm temperatures and moderate wind. The lake level at Bull Shoals fell a foot to rest at three feet below seasonal power pool of 659 feet. This is thirty nine feet below the top of flood pool. Upstream, Table Rock rose one tenth of a foot to rest at six and three tenths feet below seasonal power pool and twenty and three tenths feet below the top of flood pool. Beaver Lake fell one tenth of a foot to rest at five and one tenth feet below seasonal power pool and fourteen and seven tenths feet below the top of flood pool. On the White, we had heavy generation in the afternoon this week with lower generation in the morning and no wadable water. Norfork Lake fell four tenths of a foot to rest at eight tenths of a foot below seasonal power pool of 553.75 feet and twenty seven feet below the top of flood pool. On the Norfork, we had low levels of generation all day with little wadable water.

Seasonal power pool has been reset for the lakes in the White River system. All of the lakes on this system are below seasonable power pool. We cooler fall weather and lower lake levels we should see more wadable water.

On the White, the bite has been spotty. Some days have been excellent and some poor. The hot spot has been Rim Shoals. We have had no wadable water. The hot flies were olive woolly buggers (#8, #10), Y2Ks (#14, #12), prince nymphs (#14), zebra midges (black with silver wire and silver bead or red with silver wire and silver bead #16, #18), pheasant tails (#14), ruby midges (#18), root beer midges (#18), pink and cerise San Juan worms (#10), and sowbugs (#16). Double fly nymph rigs have been very effective (my current favorite is a cerise San Juan worm with a ruby midge (#18) suspended below it).

The best bet for large trout has been to bang the bank with large articulated streamers delivered with heavy twenty four to thirty foot sink tips (350 grains or heavier) on bigger water. You will need an eight or nine weight rod. This is heavy work but the rewards can be great.

The Buffalo National River and Crooked Creek are navigable. The smallmouths are still active. My favorite fly is a Clouser minnow. Carefully check the water level before entering Crooked Creek or the Buffalo River. There are no dams on these streams. They both have large drainages and are prone to flooding during and following any rain event. The water can rise very quickly.

There has been little wadable water on the Norfork but it has fished well. The most productive flies have been small midge patterns (#18, #20, #22) like ruby midges, root beer midges, zebra midges (black or red with silver wire and silver bead) and soft hackles (#14, #16) like the green butt. Egg patterns have also been productive. Double fly nymph rigs have been very effective. Try a small bead headed nymph (zebra midge, copper John or pheasant tail) suspended eighteen inches below a brightly colored San Juan worm (hot fluorescent pink or cerise #10). There have been reliable hatches of small midges (try a size 24 Adams parachute) and caddis (try a size 18 elk hair caddis). The fishing is better in the morning. My favorite fly has been the ruby midge. 

Dry Run Creek has been less crowded with school back in session. A large number of brown trout have moved into the creek. The hot flies have been sowbugs (#14), Y2Ks (#12) and various colored San Juan worms (worm brown, red, hot fluorescent pink and cerise #10). While you are at the creek you should visit the Norfork National Fish Hatchery. It is fascinating. Be sure and remove your waders before entering to prevent the spread of aquatic diseases.

The Spring River is fishing well. This is a great place to wade fish, when they are running water on the White and Norfork Rivers. Canoe season is over and there are fewer boats on the river. Be sure to wear cleated boots and carry a wading staff. There is a lot of bedrock that can get very slick. The hot flies have been olive woolly buggers with a bit of flash (#10), cerise and hot pink San Juan worms (#10) and Y2Ks (#10).

Remember that the White and Norfork Rivers and Dry Run Creek are infected with didymo, an invasive alga. Be sure and thoroughly clean and dry your waders (especially the felt soles on wading boots) before using them in any other water. Many manufacturers are now making rubber soled wading boots that are easier to clean and are not as likely to harbor didymo.

GRAND SLAM ON DRY RUN CREEK BY JOHN BERRY

A grand slam is where you catch all four species, brown, brook, cutthroat and rainbow trout on one day. In my thirty plus years of fly fishing on the White and Norfork Rivers, I have done it five times (two of which occurred on the same day). It seems like catching three of them is fairly common but the ever elusive brook trout is not very abundant. I have never had a client catch one on Dry Run Creek in my twenty five years of guiding there. All of that changed last Thursday.

My client Scott brought his twelve year old daughter, Grace, and his nine year old son, Scotty, up from Memphis to fish Dry Run Creek. It was a cool start but a beautiful day. We were the first ones there and I brought some of my loaner waders and lots of socks to equip the kids in waders. If your children wear waders, you can fish spots that are difficult to get to and do not get as much pressure as others.

Early on Grace had the hot hand. Her first fish was a stout twenty three inch brown that was quickly followed by a twenty five inch brown that was fat and colored up and some rainbows. When I guide on Dry Run Creek, my goal is for all of my clients to land at least one trophy trout. Now Grace had landed two but Scotty was fishless. He had a monster on but lost it. I coached him on his mistake and had him trade spots with Grace. He was soon on a fat twenty two incher and this time managed to get it to the net. The next trout was a spectacular twenty five inch male brown with a spectacular kype. A few rainbows followed.

It was time for a change in scenery and we walked far upstream. Grace continued catching browns and rainbows. Scotty was still in the game. Dad was working with Grace and I was working with Scotty. About this time he landed a twenty one inch cutthroat. It was a great fish and it made me consider the possibility of a grand slam. The very next trout was a brook. It was only ten inches long but it got me more excited than any of the other much more spectacular fish that we had landed, because it gave me my first client grand slam on Dry Run Creek. There were photos and high fives galore.

My only question is now that you have landed a twenty five inch male brown trout and achieved a grand slam, on your first day of fly fishing, at age nine, where do you go from here?

SPECTACULAR DAY ON THE WHITE RIVER BY JOHN BERRY

Last Sunday I had a guide trip with Mike, his brother Mark and his son Matt (monograms must be simple in that family). It was a close knit family and all were accomplished fly fishers. As I have written about before, three person guide trips can be troublesome (especially when in a boat) but this time it worked out incredibly well. After twenty five years of professional guiding I have finally figured this thing out.

The basic problem is that three people casting at the same time in a twenty foot long boat is an invitation to disaster. The big problem is the back cast when your lines cross, when you cast at the same time. You are generally facing forward when casting and you don’t see the other angler’s back cast. It can produce a bird’s nest that would make the Gordian knot look like child’s play. The solution is to have one of the anglers not fish, when the other two are actively fishing. This allows the two anglers to be farther apart and it is a lot easier to keep up with what one other angler is doing rather than trying to keep up with two other casters.

It is important that everyone catch some fish so the idea is to change places from time to time. After one angler has had a very successful drift or two, where he or she has landed several trout, it is time to relax for a while and let the angler that was not fishing give it a try. If you do it right, everyone has caught plenty of trout and the catch is basically even, at the end of the day.

The other problem is netting fish in the front of the boat. When the angler, in the front of the boat, hooks a fish, I have to move from the back of the boat from my seat by the motor to the front to net the fish. On the way, I have to move past the other angler in the back of the boat and the non fishing angler in the center of the boat without tripping. The solution is simple, carry an extra net and have the non fishing angler in the middle of the boat net the fish for the angler in the front of the boat.

I figured this out, when I was preparing the boat to launch that morning.  I noticed my wife, Lori’s, boat net in the back of my Suburban. It is a big boat net like mine that she uses, when she guides on Dry Run Creek. We use it, when we fish together, in the boat, so that we can both net our own trout. If one of us hooks a big fish (over twenty inches long), we help the other one land it, of course. I put it in the front of the boat so that the non-casting angler could net the fish hooked by the angler, in the front of the boat, while I concentrated on the fish hooked by the angler, in the back of the boat. It worked flawlessly. It gave the non fishing angler something to do and kept him in the game.

We began early when there was a heavy fog on the river. I rigged them all a little differently but had all of them on a ruby midge dropper. The lead flies we used were a hare and copper, pheasant tail nymph and a cerise San Juan worm. It was quickly apparent that the cerise San Juan worm was working the best. I changed them all to a Cerise San Juan worm with a ruby dropper and we began to really catch fish. Half on the fish caught were on the ruby and half on the worm.

The action was non-stop. We caught as many as eleven trout on one drift and had several doubles. The least trout caught on a single drift was three. I didn’t count but estimated the total number of fished brought to the net to be well over a hundred. The guys enjoyed it immensely. The highlight of the day was the banter between them as they fished or netted trout. It was a definite bonding experience and it will go down as one of my most enjoyable guide trips ever.

JOHN BERRY FISHING REPORT 10/08/2016

During the past week, we have had a rain event (about an inch and a half here in Cotter), warm temperatures and moderate wind. The lake level at Bull Shoals fell eight tenths of a foot to rest at two feet below seasonal power pool of 659 feet. This is thirty eight feet below the top of flood pool. Upstream, Table Rock fell one tenth of a foot to rest at six and four tenths feet below seasonal power pool and twenty and four tenths feet below the top of flood pool. Beaver Lake rose one and five tenths of a foot to rest at five feet below seasonal power pool and fourteen and six tenths feet below the top of flood pool. On the White, we had heavy generation in the afternoon this week with lower generation in the morning and no wadable water. Norfork Lake rose two tenths of a foot to rest at four tenths of a foot below seasonal power pool of 553.75 feet and twenty six feet and six tenths feet below the top of flood pool. On the Norfork, we had low levels of generation all day with no wadable water.

Seasonal power pool has been reset for the lakes in the White River system. All of the lakes on this system are below seasonable power pool. We cooler fall weather and lower lake levels we should see more wadable water.

On the White, the bite has been excellent. The hot spot has been Wildcat Shoals. We have had no wadable water. The hot flies were olive woolly buggers (#8, #10), Y2Ks (#14, #12), prince nymphs (#14), zebra midges (black with silver wire and silver bead or red with silver wire and silver bead #16, #18), pheasant tails (#14), ruby midges (#18), root beer midges (#18), pink and cerise San Juan worms (#10), and sowbugs (#16). Double fly nymph rigs have been very effective (my current favorite is a hare and copper nymph (#14) with a ruby midge (#18) suspended below it).

The best bet for large trout has been to bang the bank with large articulated streamers delivered with heavy twenty four to thirty foot sink tips (350 grains or heavier) on bigger water. You will need an eight or nine weight rod. This is heavy work but the rewards can be great.

The Buffalo National River and Crooked Creek are navigable. The smallmouths are still active. My favorite fly is a Clouser minnow. Carefully check the water level before entering Crooked Creek or the Buffalo River. There are no dams on these streams. They both have large drainages and are prone to flooding during and following any rain event. The water can rise very quickly.

There has been no wadable water on the Norfork. The most productive flies have been small midge patterns (#18, #20, #22)  like ruby midges, root beer midges, zebra midges (black or red with silver wire and silver bead) and soft hackles (#14, #16) like the green butt. Egg patterns have also been productive. Double fly nymph rigs have been very effective. Try a small bead headed nymph (zebra midge, copper John or pheasant tail) suspended eighteen inches below a brightly colored San Juan worm (hot fluorescent pink or cerise #10). There have been reliable hatches of small midges (try a size 24 Adams parachute) and caddis (try a size 18 elk hair caddis). The fishing is better in the morning. My favorite fly has been the ruby midge. 

Dry Run Creek has been less crowded with school back in session. A large number of brown trout have moved into the creek. The hot flies have been sowbugs (#14), Y2Ks (#12) and various colored San Juan worms (worm brown, red, hot fluorescent pink and cerise #10). While you are at the creek you should visit the Norfork National Fish Hatchery. It is fascinating. Be sure and remove your waders before entering to prevent the spread of aquatic diseases.

The Spring River is fishing well. This is a great place to wade fish, when they are running water on the White and Norfork Rivers. Canoe season is over and there are fewer boats on the river. Be sure to wear cleated boots and carry a wading staff. There is a lot of bedrock that can get very slick. The hot flies have been olive woolly buggers with a bit of flash (#10), cerise and hot pink San Juan worms (#10) and Y2Ks (#10).

Remember that the White and Norfork Rivers and Dry Run Creek are infected with didymo, an invasive alga. Be sure and thoroughly clean and dry your waders (especially the felt soles on wading boots) before using them in any other water. Many manufacturers are now making rubber soled wading boots that are easier to clean and are not as likely to harbor didymo.