JOHN BERRY FISHING REPORT 7/11/2014

During the past week, we have had a couple of rain events (for a combined total of three quarters of an inch here in Cotter), warm temperatures and moderate winds. The lake level at Bull Shoals fell five tenths of a foot to rest at four tenths of a foot below seasonal power pool of 661.2 feet. This is thirty four and two tenths feet below the top of flood pool. Upstream, Table Rock Lake fell four tenths of a foot to rest at three tenths of a foot below seasonal power pool and fourteen and three tenths feet below the top of flood pool. Beaver Lake fell three tenths of a foot to rest at one and two tenths feet below seasonal power pool or nine and eight tenths feet below the top of flood pool. On the White, we had little wadable water. Norfork Lake fell three tenths of a foot to rest at seasonal power pool of 556 feet and twenty four feet below the top of flood pool. On the Norfork, we had wadable water every day.

The water level for the top of power pool has been reset for the lakes in the White River system. All of the lakes on this system are below seasonal power pool. We should receive more wadable water.

On the White, the hot spot was Wildcat Shoals. The hot flies were olive woolly buggers, Y2Ks, prince nymphs, zebra midges (black with silver wire and silver bead or red with silver wire and silver bead), pheasant tails, ruby midges, pink and cerise San Juan worms, and sowbugs. Double fly nymph rigs have been very effective (try a beadhead pheasant tail nymph with a ruby midge or red fan tail midge suspended below it).

The sulphur hatch has been sighted but is sparse. Several anglers have reported success fishing this hatch. It seems to be late, possibly due to the brutal weather last winter. This is our most reliable mayfly hatch of the year. It is a size fourteen or sixteen insect and it is yellowish orange. Before the hatch, I fish mayfly nymphs. My favorites are copper Johns and pheasant tails (some guides including myself are fishing flashback pheasant tails). As the insects begin their emergence, I switch over to a partridge and orange or partridge and yellow soft hackle. This is often the most productive tactic. When you observe the adults on the top of the water, switch to a sulphur parachute dry fly. It is time to prepare for fishing grasshoppers.

The Buffalo National River and Crooked Creek are low and clear but still navigable. With the warmer weather, the smallmouths are active. The most effective flies are Clouser minnows and crawfish patterns. 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.

The Norfork River has fished poorly recently. With little no wadable water on the White there has been more angling pressure on the Norfork.  The most productive flies have been small midge patterns like zebra midges (black or red with silver wire and silver bead) and soft hackles like the green butt. 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). 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 and late afternoon and tapers off midday.  

With warmer weather, there has been a lot of action on Dry Run Creek. It has been crowded at times. Remember that there are trout everywhere. Now would be a great time to fish it. The hot flies have been sowbugs, Y2Ks and various colored San Juan worms (worm brown, red, hot fluorescent pink and cerise). The creek is located in a narrow valley and is surprisingly cool during hot weather. It is a great place to beat the heat.

The water level on the Spring River is a low and clear. This is a great place to wade fish, when they are running water on the White and Norfork Rivers. We are in the midst of canoe season and it can be difficult to fish during the aluminum hatch. You should fish during the week to avoid the crowds. 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, cerise and hot pink San Juan worms and Y2Ks.

The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission is making repairs to the Dam at the State Fish Hatchery at the Dam Three Access. During this process water may be diverted from the main channel to the north channel that runs alongside the parking lot resulting in a rise in the water level there of up to two feet. The access will remain open to the public although the parking may be limited to the lot on the North side of the railroad tracks during busy times. All users are requested to exercise extreme care when in the area.

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 is a fly fishing guide in Cotter, Arkansas and has fished our local streams for over thirty years.

BARRY AND BRIAN’S DAY ON THE WHITE RIVER BY DENNIS SCHULE

On July 8th I received a call from Barry Hart from Missouri who was looking for a fly fishing guide for a half day guide trip the next.  I told Barry that I was available and would pick them up at Gaston's where he and his friend Brian, from Virginia,  were staying.

Barry and Brian were at Gaston's for a conference and said they had a half day available and wanted to spend it fly fishing on the White River.  I picked them up at 7:30 the next morning and we headed down river to the Rim Shoals area.  The generation was running at minimum flow of 672cfs so I figured we would still have adequate water down river.  Upon arrival at Rim Shoals we found the water in perfect condition.  We launched the boat and headed up river to the Jenkins Creek area.  I had their rods rigged with a two fly rig consisting of two nymphs.  I maneuvered the boat into position and we started our first drift.  The first drift favored Barry and he caught two fish and jumped out into the lead over Brian.  

We worked the Jenkins Creek area for a while and caught numerous fish including several double hook up's.   I then decided to head down river below the island  and try a new area.  We managed to get several fish but the catching was much better up river.  I noticed that the water was really falling out fast so I decided to head back up river to the Jenkins Creek area.

Once back at Jenkins Creek we began catching fish again.  Barry and Brian caught numerous fish, approximately 25-30 fish.  Unfortunately the big fish did not cooperate and the brown trout kept their heads down.  

Overall it was a great morning of fly fishing.  Perfect weather, two avid fly fishermen who are really good guys, and the fish decided to cooperate.  Thanks Barry and Brian for selecting Blue Ribbon Guides and for spending the morning fishing with me.          

AN EVENING ON THE WHITE RIVER

July 3rd brought a beautiful day in the Ozarks.  The temps were very mild and the humidity had dropped to very tolerable conditions compared to what we have been experiencing.  I had just wrapped up a couple of guide trips on the White River where the temps and humidity were just about unbearable.  The temp was in the nineties and the humidity matched.  So when we finally got a very pleasant day it was a welcomed. 

During the early afternoon my wife Mary suggested that we head to the river later that day and fish for a few hours.  She didn't have to ask twice.  So about 4:00 p.m. we loaded up the boat and headed for the catch and release area below the Bull Shoals Dam.  They were generating about 3100cfs and we were pleasantly surprised when we arrived at the ramp to find only one other boat on the river at that time.  This is usually the case when you fish later in the day.  All the guides have completed their day on the river so many times you have the river to yourself. 

We launched the boat and immediately headed up to the dam.  I observed several fish breaking the surface but did not see any hatches appearing.  This lead me to believe that the fish were possibly taking emergers just under the surface.  Once we arrived at the area 100 yards below the dam we began our first drift.  We drifted about 50 yards and Mary struck first with the first fish of the evening.  It was a nice fat little rainbow.  After releasing that fish we continued our drift.  Mary then informed me that she had another fish on and it appeared to be bigger than the first one.  She loves telling me when she has a fish on.  That is her subtle hint to get the net.

Mary fought this fish and as it got closer to the boat we could see that it was a very respectable rainbow.  We got this fish in the net, took a quick picture then released it back to the river.  Mary had several estimates as to the size of that fish and each estimate appeared to be bigger than the previous one.  My guess was around 16 inches.

I then hooked into a very nice brown trout but he spit the hook after a nice jump and clearing the water by at least one foot.  

We continued to make several drifts from the dam down to the Baxter County side boat ramp.  Each drift we would pick up fish.  Then the fishing below the dam slowed so I suggested that we go just a little farther down river.  We ran through the riffles by the boat ramp then turned around and started a drift through a deeper channel.  We hadn't drifted 20 feet when a I got hooked up with a nice fish.  I managed to get this fish to the boat and Mary netted a very nice rainbow for me.  This fish turned out to be the fish of the evening.  We took another quick picture and released the fish.    Mary estimated this fish to be about 18" and I did not argue with her.

 

As the sun began to set behind Bull Mountain we both agreed that it was another beautiful evening on the White River.  We are already looking forward to our next adventure.

 

GUIDES’ OUTING BY JOHN BERRY

I met Dennis Schule and his wife, Mary, a few years ago when my wife, Lori and I were both guiding for Blue Ribbon Fly Shop in Mountain Home as was he. He is a retired police detective and she was a court reporter from Minnesota. When the shop closed, we started a new business, Blue Ribbon Guides so that we could maintain contact with our old customers. Lori, Dennis and I would guide and Mary would be the web master for our new website, http://www.blueribbonguides.com. We all hit it off from the beginning and have become close friends. Dennis and Mary have an active outdoor lifestyle like Lori and I and we often hike, fish or kayak together. 

We had been planning to kayak the Norfork River but the conditions were not optimal. We went out to lunch instead. While we were there we came up with the plan to meet the next day and float the White River in our Jon boats. Dennis and I had both guided on the White recently and knew that it was fishing particularly well. The day would be even more enjoyable with the opportunity to fish with friends. Of course, I always enjoy fishing with Lori. 

We arrived at the ramp at Rim Shoals about 9:00AM and we took a few minutes to get the boat ready and string up a couple of fly rods. It was warm and sunny. The weather forecast was for much warmer temperatures in the afternoon with high humidity. The river level was about 3,000 cubic feet per second or a little less than one full generator. The wind was from the east at five to ten miles per hour. 

We began fishing and we had almost immediate success. The hot flies were beadhead flashback pheasant tail nymphs with a ruby midge dropper. We were fishing them below a strike indicator with a BB split shot. Most of the trout were taken on the ruby midge, which has been a hot fly for the last couple of months. We had the depth (the distance from the strike indicator to the bottom fly) set at about six feet. 

We were all doing well but Dennis and Mary wanted to fish another section of water. They headed downstream and Lori and I continued fishing the section we were in to great success. About noon, I was getting pretty hungry and we headed back to the ramp. We set up our lunch in the shade of a large tree near the river. The shade was welcome, as the temperature was climbing. A few minutes later Dennis and Mary joined us. They had done well downstream and had landed a decent brown and lost a good rainbow. Luckily Mary had brought a container of brownies. She is also an accomplished baker and I am always on the prowl for her baked goods. 

After lunch, we returned to the water. Despite some early success the bite was beginning to slow. I thought that it was time for a fly change. I had read on one of the fly fishing forums that a local guide had been doing well fishing a black fan tail midge. I looked through my fly box looking for that fly. I was disappointed to not find one. I did find some red ones. Remembering that, when matching flies, you compare size, shape and color I decided that the red might work. On the first drift, we hooked a nice rainbow, on the red fan tail midge. It caught trout after trout for the remainder of the day. What puzzles me is how the fish turned off on the ruby midge and began taking the fan tail midge? What natural phenomenon had occurred to trigger this change? 

About 2:00 PM Dennis and Mary were overcome by the heat and decided to head for home. Lori and I were raised in the south and we were more accustomed to the heat and stayed longer. It had been a great day on the river and it was nice to get together and fish.  It was the perfect activity on a guide’s day off. 

John Berry is a fly fishing guide in Cotter, Arkansas and has fished our local streams for over thirty years.

JOHN BERRY FISHING REPORT 7/04/2014

During the past week, we have had a couple of rain events (for a combined total of half an inch here in Cotter), warm temperatures and moderate winds. The lake level at Bull Shoals fell three tenths of a foot to rest at one tenth of a foot below seasonal power pool of 661.4 feet. This is thirty three and seven tenths feet below the top of flood pool. Upstream, Table Rock Lake fell two tenths of a foot to rest at one tenth of a foot below seasonal power pool and thirteen and nine tenths feet below the top of flood pool. Beaver Lake remained steady at nine tenths of a foot below seasonal power pool or nine and five tenths feet below the top of flood pool. On the White, we had no wadable water. Norfork Lake fell three tenths of a foot to rest at one tenth of a foot above seasonal power pool of 556.2 feet and twenty three and seven tenths feet below the top of flood pool. On the Norfork, we had wadable water every day.

The water level for the top of power pool has been reset lower for the lakes in the White River system. All of the lakes on this system are at or near seasonal power pool. We should receive more wadable water.

On the White, the hot spot was Rim Shoals. The hot flies were olive woolly buggers, Y2Ks, prince nymphs, zebra midges (black with silver wire and silver bead or red with silver wire and silver bead), pheasant tails, ruby midges, pink and cerise San Juan worms, and sowbugs. Double fly nymph rigs have been very effective (try a beadhead pheasant tail nymph with a ruby midge or red fan tail midge suspended below it).

The sulphur hatch has been sighted but is sparse. Several anglers have reported success fishing this hatch. It seems to be late, possibly due to the brutal weather last winter. This is our most reliable mayfly hatch of the year. It is a size fourteen or sixteen insect and it is yellowish orange. Before the hatch, I fish mayfly nymphs. My favorites are copper Johns and pheasant tails (some guides including myself are fishing flashback pheasant tails). As the insects begin their emergence, I switch over to a partridge and orange or partridge and yellow soft hackle. This is often the most productive tactic. When you observe the adults on the top of the water, switch to a sulphur parachute dry fly.

The Buffalo National River and Crooked Creek are low and clear but still navigable. With the warmer weather, the smallmouths are active. The most effective flies are Clouser minnows and crawfish patterns. 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.

The Norfork River has fished poorly recently. With little no wadable water on the White there has been more angling pressure on the Norfork.  The most productive flies have been small midge patterns like zebra midges (black or red with silver wire and silver bead) and soft hackles like the green butt. 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). 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 and late afternoon and tapers off midday.  

With warmer weather, there has been a lot of action on Dry Run Creek. It has been crowded at times. Remember that there are trout everywhere. Now would be a great time to fish it. The hot flies have been sowbugs, Y2Ks and various colored San Juan worms (worm brown, red, hot fluorescent pink and cerise). The creek is located in a narrow valley and is surprisingly cool during hot weather. It is a great place to beat the heat.

The water level on the Spring River is a low and clear. This is a great place to wade fish, when they are running water on the White and Norfork Rivers. We are in the midst of canoe season and it can be difficult to fish during the aluminum hatch. You should fish during the week to avoid the crowds. 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, cerise and hot pink San Juan worms and Y2Ks.

The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission is making repairs to the Dam at the State Fish Hatchery at the Dam Three Access. During this process water may be diverted from the main channel to the north channel that runs alongside the parking lot resulting in a rise in the water level there of up to two feet. The access will remain open to the public although the parking may be limited to the lot on the North side of the railroad tracks during busy times. All users are requested to exercise extreme care when in the area.

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 is a fly fishing guide in Cotter, Arkansas and has fished our local streams for over thirty years.