To improve the quality of the trout angling and encourage wild trout reproduction, Missouri TU needs your help! For example, the St. Louis area has over 600 TU members and no local chapter. John Wenzlick and Missouri TU would be overjoyed if a few dedicated conservationists started a chapter in this city. Existing chapters in other parts of the state would benefit from the involvement of more TUers, so if you live in Missouri, contact your chapter president about how you can help. What needs to be done? Riparian zone improvements would protect several small streams throughout the state, including the Barren Fork. Efforts to plant trees and fence out cattle are already in the works, but more hands are always appreciated. Regulations on many Missouri streams are not conducive to wild trout reproduction. Every trout stream in the state besides Crane Creek and a section of the North Fork are stocked. According to John, wild trout exist in some of the put-and-take streams and are subject to heavy harvest. Working with the state to implement slot limits or catch and release areas on these fisheries would improve the quality of angling for wild trout as well as the stocked fish. On Lake Taneycomo, minimum flows would help rainbow trout reproduction and angling quality. Get involved and help Missouri trout!

The North Fork transitions from a free-flowing river into an exceptional tailwater as it enters Arkansas. Norfork Dam, a hydropower and flood control structure, regulates the flow and temperature of the stream. Below the dam, the river is a highly productive trout fishery. When the generators are turned off, the North Fork is an ideal size for wading. Shallow riffles support many feeding trout and provide exciting sight fishing opportunities. Deeper runs and slow pools add mystique, especially since monster browns measured in pounds, not inches, are regularly caught in this river. Minimum flows are supported exclusively by water exiting a hatchery, Dry Run Creek, and seepage through the substrate around the dam. A little more water in this system could improve the fishery, but the Southwestern Power Administration manages flows without much regard for the downstream trout. When they are generating, water is released in 3 foot units. The wading angler must always pay attention to the water level, because it comes up quickly. The locals say the river fishes well at consistent flows and rising water, but that things slow down as the water level drops. If you have access to a boat, I hear the river (and the White River proper) can fish well at high flows. Be careful though as these rivers have killed before and will kill again. I would recommend hiring an experienced guide if you would like to fish from a boat at any flows. I fished with two of the best during my stay.
John Gulley, the Orvis “guide of the year” for 1998, lives on one of the best sections of the North Fork. He guides wading anglers right out his back door and offers float trips in a specially designed john boat. I met up with John for a morning of excellent angling. John showed me his non-typical technique for shallow water nymphing and we were quickly hooking trout on just about every cast. After a handful of fish, I decided to try a dry fly while John continued to catch ridiculous numbers of fish on a gray midge pupa. A #20 parachute adams did the trick on the surface for cutthroat and rainbow trout.
I also fished with Brian Harris, a highly professional guide out of the White River Angler shop in Fayetteville. Brian really knows his rivers and he has a great temperament for guiding. As a relatively young guide, he brings focused energy and a strong back to the river each day. We were planning on floating the North Fork in his drift boat, but violent thunderstorms limited us to roadside access in case we needed to retreat to the car. I scored a “grand slam” with Brian, catching rainbow, cutthroat, brook, and brown trout in one day. Brian’s experience allowed us to put the right flies in the right spots, resulting in many trout brought to hand.
Wild brown trout spawn in this river (as well as the mainstem of the White), but the rainbows and cutthroat are not as successful. The rainbows try to spawn, but heavy flows in the springtime undermine their efforts. Some guides and biologists (such as the fisheries guys at University of Arkansas) think that there is a small population of wild rainbows, but the state Fish and Game Commission has not shown this definitively. To encourage wild trout reproduction in the White River system, anglers, Fish and Game, and TU need to lobby Southwestern Power to consider wild trout in their water flow management plan. Until then, rainbow trout spawning efforts will be largely fruitless.
I’ll admit it, I’m a snob. I like my fish wild and on many occasions I have opted not fish at all instead of fishing for stocked fish. I’ve even called stockers “fish sticks.” That said, the hatchery-born White River system fish are as colorful, selective, and feisty as most wild trout. The fish are stocked while they are still small. In the river, they feast on scuds, sowbugs, and midges, growing at a rate of about an inch a month. Many of the rainbows have white-tipped fins and the cutthroat have brilliant orange slashes. Even the brook trout appear wild, a nice contrast to the “washed out” look typically exhibited by most stocked brookies.
These trout have seen many flies and lures and they will keep you honest. 6x fluorocarbon and small, realistic patterns are often the trick. At low and falling water on the mainstem of the White below Bull Shoals dam, I found the trout to be so selective that it took 7x fluoro to tempt a strike. The big browns are particularly cagey, but some nice fish can be taken at night.
Clay Henry is a second generation sports writer from Fayetteville. He covers the Razorbacks with a magazine (hawgsillustrated.com), a radio show, and a newspaper column. Since University of Arkansas athletics, particularly football, are almost a religion throughout the state, Clay is a local celebrity. I don’t know a Razorback from a razorblade, but I can see Clay’s appeal. He is a kind and personable man who also happens to be a fly fishing fanatic. Clay is one of the Arkansas TUers I had the pleasure of meeting and fishing with during my trip.
Mutual peer pressure inspired us to get up at 1:30 in the morning, wade up to our waists in the cold water, and throw bird sized streamers for large brown trout. Big browns are almost entirely nocturnal, feeding between midnight and dawn. Clay and I went to a section of river that he knows well, definitely a plus when you can’t see your wading boots. I had some success throwing a neutral density streamer that suspended a couple inches below the surface (see the photos HERE). In addition to a fat brown, I caught a 16 inch rainbow and moved a couple smaller trout. It’s a kick to fish a river in the dark, particularly when you know the pool you are fishing may hold a 20 pound trout. Every strip of the line is filled with anticipation and every strike is an adrenaline rush.
If you live in northwestern Arkansas and you are not an active member of the Arkansas chapter of TU, you are missing out. While my trip to the state was filled with many memorable moments, the best part of the trip was getting to know some of the local TU members. Dennis McCarty, Clay Henry, Larry Tabor, and Bruce Ritter were great hosts and fishing partners. They are also active conservationists working on important projects in northern Arkansas. Their chapter teaches kids, cancer survivors, and interested neighbors about fly fishing and coldwater conservation. They push for catch and release regulations, slot limits, and other responsible protection measures for wild trout stocks. The chapter is also helping fund University of Arkansas Master’s student, Aaron Cushing, who is studying rainbow trout movement on the North Fork. I had the pleasure of meeting Aaron, and spending a day on the river with him as he collected data. Be sure to check back tomorrow for an article about our day on the river tracking rainbows with radio telemetry equipment.

If you haven’t already, CLICK HERE to see the photo gallery. There are some good ones, so check it out.