creekin bassnerd

For 2011 I want: 1. trout on a dry fly 2. 20+ inch walleye (preferably a school of em) 3. 5+ lb bass on topwater 4. smallie on flyrod (that's not a dink) 5. eat carp for the first time (maybe try a drum as well) 6. enjoy the hell out of 2011 fishing season (I know I will)

Ive caught many of them over the years fishing Arkansas river valley lakes. Usually fishing a crankbait when my bait gets slammed and rod tip doubles over. They definitely bulldog like a catfish. I appreciate the fight as I usually catch one when the bass aren't biting. Always pisses me off when my primary bass crank breaks off in one of their mouths. Was watching a fishing show in the great lakes and they were calling em sheepsheads. Never thought about eating one, but maybe I should. Theyre definitely abundant. Would never eat a grinnel though, just ain't that hungry, yet.

Has anyone ever fished the middle fork of the upper little red river? I drove over it going through Shirley Saturday and it sure looked fishy. What I've read is that there are some pretty good class II to III rapids, strainers, boulders, ... experienced paddlers only type stuff. So I'm wandering how's the fishing? Any good access points? Seems like a great adventure, sure looked pretty from the road anyway. Also are there any good reachable fishin holes on the south fork? thanks, Matt

I floated the buffalo last weekend and every eagle I saw was being chased by a bunch of crows.

Im with ya Justin! The more we debate, the more I like you.

Well said Ozark trout fisher!! Good luck this weekend!

I will agree that if the white was not dammed it would be a popular destination...FOR FISHING. Bass fishing the white is a good thing and city folk like from Owen's outfitters could make the journey, and FISH. Set fishing regulations and enforce them. You would still have gas-powered boats up and down the river, but they aint gonna be skiing. Chances are they are there to fish. If you want to float a river that is strictly canoes, you have plenty of options with all the streams we have. If you want to float the mighty white, then do it. Most people do want to drink when they go to the river, aint nothin wrong with that. But when you leave your trash behind, you are trying to kill what we love. I understand where you are coming from about where would these people go if the reservoirs didnt exist. I think without the reservoirs, we could be talking about a smaller pool of people, and also I think without reservoirs, that our culture would be a little more oriented toward nature preservation and not so much, "I can do whatever I want to the land as long as it is profitable for me."-as the precedent has been set Anyways, like TJ said, I get a unique emotion when Im floating down an Ozark stream. If the main populous were people who shared that unique feeling, we would probably be able to ensure that our rivers/and streams stay clean and on their own evolutionary paths.

I believe that the people who do travel from far away seeking an outdoor experience are probably not the "drunk rednecks" that we speak of. If you drive all the way from Kansas city for an outdoor experience, you probably aren't the destructive type. No trace left behind type folks. I would think anyway. On the other hand, Im looking toward the people who live close enough to casually drive over to the white and dung all over the place. People who dont care, they have access, booze, guns, fourwheelers, and an ecologically dangerous attitude. When youre floating down a river and you see something shiny on the bottom, you know instantly its a beer can. You also know instantly it was a dumbass that sank it. Its usually a bud light can.

Don't worry about the birds, they will be here long after were all gone. As Al stated, these areas would have been better off with lower populations. Why not leave these areas the way they were before us? If you love them so much you want to live there, then move there and be a mountain man. Wouldnt be all bad, you can be a hunter/gatherer, farmer, fisherman, and live a nice peaceful life. Don't darn up the pulse of these hills, stock and restock and restock... trout that are dumb as rocks, and build your cities here. The rivers/streams are here for us to enjoy. We do not own them, the native americans that were here before us didnt feel they owned them and they treated the land and rivers with great respect. They left it all preserved for us so we can do what the hell we want with it. Such an easy concept is respect, but for some reason it is the hardest to soak in. Why? I dont know, for some reason we think we have the right to do whatever we want to do to whatever we want to do it to, regardless of the sufferers. Too many greedy *******s, not enough peaceful people, that are thankful for the natural beauty around them. Also, I have to disagree about the Whites current use if it was still free flowing. I don't think as many drunk rednecks would make it down the white. Seems to me that drunk rednecks do what is easy for them to accomplish in their drunken state. Which means not drive too far away to float a river that they dont live next to. The dams never put in place, the forced tourism and cities that nestle around these reservoirs stay sleep little towns, populations stay low with residents mainly just people who were born and raised in these hills and refuse to leave. Now we have a framework for recreation. Too far away for people who dont truly care about the rivers and just close enough to find a little peace when lookin for it. Beavers are referred to as nuisance animals for the way they darn up creeks and cause flooding of land. People who act like beavers should be called worse, hmmm maybe disrespectful pieces of ****!

I actually think windmills are quite beautiful in their own right

I agree tjulianc, too few and far between cared enough when it mattered to afford an effort to preserve the White. Thinking about an undammed white is painful, it hurts my natural state of mind, but all we can do is enjoy and take care of the free flowing rivers/streams we do have and stand up ready to fight for them if they are threatened. In regards to realistically removing a dam, lets start at crooked creek and get rid of that meaningless rectangular pond in Harrison. Seriously, what is the reason for this?

Love me some John Hartford, Doc Watson, Townes VanZandt, Steve Earle, and of course, Woody Guthrie Like John Hartford said, "Ain't nothin like a crooked ole river to straighten your mind right out"

I'm with all that feel robbed by the damning of the White river. It saddens me to think of what once was; a seamless network of free flowing rivers/streams with the great White river being the backbone of these beautiful Ozark streams. And the smallmouth bass, ruler of it all. These reservoirs and trout fishing tailwaters really annoy me. They were created by money hungry developers looking to build golf courses and attract tourism. There was no regard for the hill people of the Ozarks, for the future inhabitants who have a right to experience an untouched Ozark river system as my grandpa once did, and a blatant disrespect of the land. Humans are are the number 1 invasive species of Ozark rivers, trout is second but you can't really blame trout for being born in a hatchery and dumped into a river. No wander they are so darn easy to catch, just ring a bell and they think its feeding time back at the ole concrete homestead. So invasive humans dam up the White so people with jetskis and speedboats can flock to these reservoirs and piss off anyone who is out there trying to fish. These reservoirs were built under the title "flood control" but I believe it was the work of money hungry developers, who should actually be called by there real titles, destroyers. They destroyed the rivers that attracted my ancestors to these mountains, to drown valleys so idiots who like to "go to the lake" can drive their motorboats around in circles all day. When you dammed the White, you darn us all.

Last weekend I caught my 2nd bass over 5 lbs for the year. I caught him slow rolling a spinnerbait from the bank of an oxbow lake in south arkansas. It was a beautiful fish! I guess next year I will have to up the ante on new years resolution to maybe 3 bass over 5 lbs or 2 over 7, don't know yet. All I know is I love tryin. Cheers

Thanks Cody, I appreciate it.

Does anybody know of anyone who will shuttle my car downstream so I can float/fish little red some weekend by myself? thanks, Matt

Id have to say that it is neither, but if you want a more detailed analysis, submit a pic of an actual bass.

Caught her in a river in the heart of the Arkansas Ozarks. Had a pretty good current, tossed my lure at the base of a limb that was pointed downstream, as we floated by, I let the current drift to the end of the stick when about 3/4 of the way down the stick my line quit drifting, reeled in the slack line and felt a thump, set the hook and the fight was on. She was pulling our canoe all around. I had a great hookset in the bone of her upper lip, did my best to let her wear herself out without getting too close to the structure. I think the current helped a little to get her off the limb she was sitting on. It was great, this year my new years resolution was to catch at least 2 bass over 5 lbs. This one got me halfway home!!

Hello Ozark Anglers, This is my first post on this forum. I really enjoy reading all the different fishing discussions about our great Ozarks. Back in July I caught a good bass and since have had sort of a hard time confirming whether it was a spot or a straight largie. Either way it was definitely my best bass, weighing in at around 6lbs on my nondigital scale and measuring 22.5 inches. So, Im wondering, what the general consensus is on its correct species. Im posting a few different pics of the ole girl. Thanks for the feedback.