bfishn

Yep. There are actually two, both on the same road (the road that goes completely across the following map from top to bottom);

Summer cats seem to like it. Jackpot! This fella's collected a lot of Monte Ne; http://jamesmskipper.us/MonteNe/MonteNe1.html

Here's a picture of that Monte Ne bridge you couldn't locate... :-)

Just found another view of the old Porter's Bluff (Hwy 12) bridge;

Cool, thanks!

Another member has posted family stories to the contrary, but it's my understanding there never was a bridge at Lost Bridge. They built a nice road from the north, but funding dried up, hence Lost Bridge. I've searched it pretty hard, but no undeniable evidence either way. (yet)

Google man, it can change your life. Install the Google toolbar for easy access to custom searches like images. The Rogers Historical Museum and the Shiloh Museum in Springdale have the best collections of pre-Beaver pictures, some are online. The History of Benton County by J Dixon Black is well worth the price. And for a broader perspective, particularly regarding the natives, The Encyclopedia of Arkansas is just plain awesome; http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/

That rail spur was extended from Monte Ne over to Piney around 1917 to haul out timber. Since the line was closed about 15-20 years later, I have to wonder if they ever hauled enough timber to even pay for the bridge and the rail spur. There's an interesting tale about that bridge. Supposedly it swayed and shook so bad that no one had the guts to ride the train across. They'd stop before crossing and all but the engineer walked across first. Then the engineer started the train and promptly bailed off. The brakeman jumped on after the train was safely across and stopped it so the crew could get back on. I have no idea if that's true, but it sure makes a good story.

The remaining pier of the old railroad bridge has been a good winter crappie spot just out of Monte Ne. Locate the railroad cut on the east bank, just south of the HB island cut-through, and search straight out from the cut toward the mouth of Monte Ne. It's quite a ways off the railroad cut bank, but still in the original channel. It lacks a good 15-20' from reaching the surface, but easy enough to locate. The bridge itself was scrapped during WWII, but the pier remains;

Wow... I don't know where to start... so I won't.

I thought so too, but never found them at home there. The closest flatties I've found there were further out at the old stone bridge.

That picture was from the winter of '63. People were intent on getting a few last looks before it went under water.

It has one of the biggest submerged springs in the lake that is shallow enough to remain active.

Keep it up and you might catch a boot!

Peace on earth Good will towards men Remember Christ's birth Be a kid again.

I actually did that once as a kid.

Gonna have to make a really tiny hook look like a bit of algae stuck to a rock for the stonerollers and other grazers. Good luck with that.

It's surprising how much these fish move this time of year. I was able to track a nice school for 7 nights out of 10 a few years back. They'd leave a 30' hole at dusk and moved 1/2 mile up and back by dawn. You could wait for them at a pause point, and have the heat for 20-30 minutes, then move to the next one once they headed that way. Pretty awesome. Those fish vanished at sunup. I scratched a few with their heads in the rocks, but you had to go in after them.

So is thunder, but I don't call the cops about it. :-)

Really nice fish Josh (all of them).

Bella Vista's pretty boring, They print nearly every complaint they get. There have been complaints about Two Squirrels Boinking, I kid you not. A compilation of published complaints would be an interesting read. With that in mind, there's a fair chance this was really just a couple of over-zealous Hog fans that strayed off from a pre-Alabama game party. They get crazy when cornered, and have been known to eat their young.

The only odd species you'll encounter in Bella Vista is yankeemuvsoufus crankyopterus... :-) I know some creek bait holes that can hold 10-12 different species, but catching them your way could be tough. You could pick up sauger on the Arkansas River next month (maybe next week with this cold spell). There's always a chance of catching bonus species there; eel, yellow bass, drum, etc.

You've inspired me sir. I too now have a '14 goal... ...naming 52 species. :-)

...and flatheads.

Pull the rope, the plate drops from straight back to straight down.