Ham

I really think it is just a clear cold water LMB. The glare and haste of the camera operator (me) lead to odd effects all day long. The eyes on that fish didn't catch my attention when I was unhooking and releasing it at all

Hey TFR, I use 6 lb for trout/panfish. I use 8 and 10 lb for smallies. I Throw my Ned stuff on the 8 lb usually. I use the White Nano and I would also feel good about the chartreuse. I will not buy the low Vis green. I want to see the line to help with visual strike detection when dead sticking. I use a leader.

The Crossfire really throws the jigs well. It is a light Rod not a UL. I've caught some real nice fish on it. A Second generation Crossfire Rod is in the works. They are working to shave a little weight off of it with a crisper blank as well. The Brown/ Orange , Triple Olive, Olive/orange, and Olive/ginger have been my best smallie colors. I've never tried the Chart/White. You may already have a perfect Rod for the Zig Jig. I can say with the utmost confidence that you won't go wrong buying some Zig jigs.

The Zig Jig is a very under rated cool water Smallie jig. They are considering offering the Zig Jig with a heavier hook. This will make it and even better smallmouth offering.

I can't remember a time where I ever used the spare spool. Ever. I take great efforts too get the mono on correctly and trail it out behind the boat to get it on tight and twist free. Of course, I'm a Nano Man now so I don't ever need a spare spool.

I here ha Rick. I use the line capacity thing strictly as an indicator of spool diameter and how easily line will come off the spool.

Hey Justin, are you out of the PM business?

My past experience with Okuma's was that they were heavy and line capacity was low = smallish spools, but that may have ALL changed since then.

You'd think I would remember the automobiles if I floated that before right?

I've got pretty good fly fishing gear and I fish with a handful of times a year, but if you'll get a good light action rod and buy some Zig Jigs, you'll catch more trout and it will make you a better smallmouth angler as well. Just sayin.

I'm sure Tommy Martin would be a fanatastic day on the water. If that doesn't work out you might consider Joe Joslin. He works the Southern part of the lake. Regardless, have a great trip. We went last spring.

Hey TFR, Spend another $30 and get the Lews Team Gold Spinning in the 3000 size. The spool is large and the drag is wonderful. Light weight for its size. Of course, I use Nanofil so I have a different set of problems than the fluro on spinning guys do. You might can do some internet searching and find them cheaper than TW. Maybe.

Look, I've explained this already. I'm addicted to the feel of that bite. The thump or little tick or whatever you want to call it. That feeling is why I fish. That split second between that feeling and the hookset is the best.

IT would be IF he had felt the bite.

I have NOT done that float, but the pictures are pretty.

Thank you for the update on the water temp. It should really warm up this week with the warmer over night temps.

If you have a smart phone AND you haven't done so already, search for an the Corp of Engineers app (look under Little Rock District). You'll need to play with it a little after you get it installed BUT, it will give you "real time" = 2 hour delay generation information and a projection generation for the next day if you'll look in the late afternoon. The projected information is subject to change but it is your best guess at what is happening the next day. The generation patterns are spotty at best. It varies widely based on rainfall / lake level and energy needs. Short answer is most likely YES. They are showing brief periods of heavy generation. Bear in mind it only takes about 90 minutes for water to reach the confluence from the QP dam once generation starts, but the water drops out quiickly as well. there are wading oppurtunites at QP and at Akerman access. I think the water coming down the Buffalo and CC have the lower White off colored which would not be my first choice. Keep in mind, that Two Rivers fly shops rent canoes and will shuttle you if you have your own boat. This is a great way to work your way down the river at minimum flow using the baoat asa water taxi. ALWAYS KEEP AN EYE ON WATER LEVEL CHANGES. Don't get too far from the boat.

I get it Mark. When I was a little younger. I got up at 0300 and drove from Minden down to the coast and fished all day and then drove back home. 10 hours of driving for 8 hours of fishing. I got to bed at midnight and got up at 0600 the next day to get ready for work. I'll settle for my 40-65 minutes runs to the parts of BSL I frequent.

Oh heak yeah Ollie. I've caught Brookies there, Just not one this year. It is my first trip there in a while. I even caught about a 15 inch Brookie by hand. He had managed to get stuck in a pool and water was falling out. He was about to be food for a camper or for a bird. We got him back into the deeper flows before that happened though. .

I know that some years it is excellent, but NONE of the runs are excellent EVERY year.

I'm wanting to try the Little Red runs above Greer's Ferry. Have you ever fished that one PW?

I took a quick trip with my son Sunday afternon. They were running part of 1 unit (the app says it was 1152). We fished for approximately 2 hours. I would loved to have had all day with flyrods and a kayak at that flow rate. I was looking for a Brook Trout but, what I found was a lot of people fishing. Several guide boats working from the put in to the bottom of the first pool. Most of the guide boats are soaking creek chubs with lines out well below their boats. A couple of guys where in their yaks anchored up fishing straight down current with Rapalas and junk. It's really a pain having to weave in and out of 6 or 7 other boats anchored up. I knew my son wouldn't want to fish until dark so I didn't make the run to Long Hole. I tried to stay close. Normally, I can get away with that. The bite was off a little but that was as much a function of all the other boats in the way as anything else. I did make the run up to the legal limit below the dam. We caught a few fish up there,but again I was disappointed with that spot. I think most of the fish hold above the legal boundry. We did find a few groups of fish and they bit a variety of colors of Zig Jigs. I really did think the 1/16 oz was a better option than the 1/8 oz., but as soon as I would get on them another boat would roll up and be in the way. We had 20 or so fish between us. I had a pretty decent brown. I could have easily ground out more fish, but my son got a headache and we both were aggravated by the other boats so we bailed. No Brook trout for me yet.

So if bank fishing with bait, North Fork of the White is out. Bank fishing with bait is fine. Look at Quarry Park on the Norfork River. It isn't all that rough but it would be tent camping. State Park below Bull Shoals is another option. Bank fishing and tent camping. I could tell you about a half dozen bank fishing locations on the White. It is sooooooo much better from a boat though.

Pretty stained. Not at all what I would look forward to fiahing. Good job catching a few.

I think I'll have as many questions as I have answers. When you say camping,are you talking RV camping or tent camping? Do you want water and electricity or to really rough it. You want to trout fish. Ok, fly or spin? Artificial or bait? Are you planning on bank fishing, wade, or boat? Solo or with a guide? I'm partial to the White River and the Norfork River, but an hour further north puts you on North Fork of the White which is cool too. A little closer than the White is the Little Red which is a good place to fish, but I have zero experience there. I'd be glad to help you fishing tips if you fish the White near Mountain Home.