gavin poppen
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Most of the fisherman will be standing elbow to elbow & fishing for spawners down at Cow Shoals in early October…Youd probably have a better trip on the White or Norfork Tailwater. If your son is under 16 he could fish Dry Run creek and that is an opportunaty you shouldnt pass up if he’s eligable…As for Arkansas Guides…there are many good ones…but I’d recommend John Gulley if he’s not already booked up…but there are many others…Lots of information on John Wilson’s site…check it out.
I’d go for a Royalex tandem canoe in the 16-17′ range, and around 36″ wide or thereabouts. Wenonah, Bell, & Mad River make good boats.
If you cant afford a Royalex boat go for one made out or cross link or polylink…The Wenonah North & Southfork models are good entry level choices..I know several canoe rental owners and those are the boats they buying for their fleets. They used to buy Old Town Disco’s…but they say the new Old Towns dont hold up very well.
Avoid the Coleman & Pelican canoes…that Ram X plastic cannot be repaired…Nothing sticks to it other than duct tape..Cheers.
I’ve had 5-6 of them move and take my fly while fishing for other species in AK..But thats the exception, not the rule…
Sockeye are a good meat fish, but not much fun to fly fish for, IMO…Catch a well colored male for your grip & grin then get back to fishing for rainbows, silvers, or dollies.
Depends on the club, but most are either affiliated with the Federation of Fly Fishers, Trout Unlimited, or both…I’m a member of Ozark Fly Fishers in St. Louis, MO…probably one of the best clubs in the nation…300 members or so, and the club puts on at least 20 public education programs througout the year, plus 10 monthly meetings, members only classes, monthly newsletter, provides support for stream conservation efforts…the list goes on…Dont know where you are at, but there is probably a club near you. Havent been involved allot in the past 5 years, but you get back what you put in. Cheers.
There are thousands of miles of smallmouth water in Missouri, some trout to be had too…
If you want to cadillac camp….A wall tent & woodburning stove is a must…plus a chainsaw & an axe to split wood for the stove and cooking wood. Bring a couple lanterns and fuel for light at night. Big stock pot, big skillet, grill grate, dutch oven, propane stove, cooking and eating utensils. Add a couple lawn chairs, a table or two, and your set.
2nd Winter Float Trip-Upper Current River, MO-February 2005
My favorite flies for silvers….they hate pink with a vengance…
#1 Greg Coffey’s Sparkleminnow… size two…works best in slack or slow water on a floating line. Kinda like a wooly bugger but its profile is a lot different in the water…More of a baitfish or tube jig type look to it when the Angle hair body slims down in the water. Should be able to find the pattern online.
#2 is a Tom Hargrove’s string leach pattern..Black, Purple, or Pink..it only works well in current and its best fished on a sink tip…A Teeny 250 or 300 is usually my choice, but you may want to cut the heads back a bit to make for easier roll cast pickups.
Recipe..
Salmon hook, mount some big heavy eye balls on the front underside of the hook.
Secure a loop of 30lb or stronger braided line to the hook shank. It should extend about 1.5-2″ past the end of the hook shank.
Dub the body with some sparkly stuff, tie in two long rabbit strips on top of the hook, add a couple silicone rubber legs extending out either side, dub the head, tie off, and cement.
Clip the salmon hook off at the end of the shank and smooth it out with a file.
Cut the two rabbit strips to length…The fly should be about 4″ long..or longer..
Loop on a Gamakatsu Octopus Stinger hook…size 2 or 4 or whatever you like.
I like the grip…but a walnut real seat is kind of pedestrian for a $700 fly rod. I’m sure it casts like a champ….but the cosmetics could be better. Think I’ll wait for blanks to become available. Cheers.
Don Frank out of Smithville, MO does some really nice work. Gary Fischer at 4greatfish in Bolivar, MO does too…Wish Ed Walicki was still with us…Super nice guy and he made some fantastic fish carvings, wood, foam, you name it.
Congrats…there is some great fishing in that area…My mom used to have a place in Treasure Island….I’d recommend a guide or take Bob’s offer of a kayak….Finding fish is usually harder than catching them once you find them. Have a great trip.
Fishing to gulpers on Ennis Lake is allot of fun…..youll do better if your patient and pick your shots…constant casting puts them down. Wade fishing down in the Bear Trap can be fun too…kinda snakey though. Cheers.
The Joe’s Hopper is an old Michigan Pattern but I’ve never heard of the Michigan Brown Hopper…Get ahold of Jerry Regan, he’s the Michigan fly tying guru…if anyone knows what it its it would be him. Cheers.
The first one…no thanks…looks like a gravel can enter and stay there. Probably fine for around camp or a bit of boat fishing. The second one looks allot better. Cheers.
Doc Thompson is a couple hours north of there. I’d check out his website for some ideas.
Another option would be the Grand River near Fergus, Ontario..Its about a 4 hour drive from Detroit…Get ahold of Ken Collins at Grand River Troutfitters..Big brown trout on the Grand, Smallmouth & Musky. Had a ball up there in 2004..
I’d head Grayling and take a trip in an Au Sable river boat. I’d stay at Gate’s Lodge or Fuller’s North Branch, or Penrod’s.
The 48″ bottom river jons are more stable than the 41″ bottom boats…but the 41″ bottom boats are not tippy…You’ll have to do something pretty stupid to swamp either of them..Most of the trout docks in
I’m not sure if it will fit your purpose…but a river jon might work for you..They dont draft much water, work with a prop or jet, or oars…and they are very comfortable fishing platforms.
