Paparock

Nice , wade style boat. Do you wade much?

Ahhhhh! Redfish! How I miss them! They never tire of giving you the fight of your life if it is in the mud flats in the salt grass or out at the jetties during the "Bull Run"! Tailing Reds in the skinny water or out at the end of the jetties at Galveston I never tired of catching "reds"! I had a 21ft. Gulf Coast in a sling out back of my canal home in Bayou Vista, Texas. Had a light in the water so at night the bait fish would form a living "lava lamp". The big trout would "POP" bait so loud sometimes off the surface you would swear it had to be kids slapping the flat side of paddles on the water out in the canal. Mama would say she felt like some fresh fish for supper so I would take my rod down on my dock and cast past the light into the darkness. As the lure approached the edge of the light hold on because something was taking off on a screaming run. Redfish or trout it did not matter as that was the life. I have watched a silver dollar size crab swimming across the surface when suddenly a four foot long Redfish came completely out of the water to suck it in and re-enter the water with a huge splash. I loved just watching the action! Have you ever seen a living "shad fountain" that is when the redfish and big sea trout would pen a school of shad in the end of one of the canals where I once lived and then plowed into them from below. The bait would explode upward out of the water into a fountain like display trying to get away from the predators beneath the surface. There were often hundreds of bait fish forming what looked just like a giant fountain coming out of the water and then raining out and back down into the water. It looked very impressive and beautiful. Sometimes this would happen several times in a row. I have seen a similar thing when big Jack Crevalle would pen a school of up to 2 pound mullet against the Galveston jetties. Seeing a hundred 2 pound mullet skyrocketing four feet out of the water in mass for their lives is quite a site to behold.

Praise God! That is great news. Many more great years of life and fishing to you!

A small number of tiger muskies (529 fingerlings to be exact) were released experimentally by the AGFC into Spring River Lake - an impounded section that lies upstream from Dam No. 3 near Mammoth Spring. Eventually these fish, assisted by floods, found their way downstream to other sections of the river. Some were pushed into the river below by a 50-year flood. They grew well in the cool, forage rich water. The current Arkansas State Record tiger muskie (23 Ibs. 12 oz.) was caught in 1995 in the river and was only 6 years old. They and the walleye inhabit the deeper pools. A 22-pound tiger muskie was caught from the river in February 1997. Tiger muskies were stocked again in the Spring River again in 2001 and 2004. I'm not sure if they still stock them into the river as I no longer live in the area. You can check with the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission to see if they are still being stocked into the river. I hope they continue the program as they sure are beautiful fish and I know I would have loved to have tangled with some of the ones I saw!

Fox is a character, lol. If you see him tell him Rocky That once owned Southfork Resort over on the South Fork of the Spring River says HI! Fox is a good guy and he taught me about trout and fly fishing when my wife and I purchased the resort years back. I was born and raised in Arkansas, I miss the people, the lakes, rivers and fishing there. .

Please wear a life jacket. I lived in and fished that area for several years. The current can be tricky and people drown there every year. Beware of canoes and kayaks! LOL.

You might try the South Fork of the Spring River and Myatt Creek for some great Smallmouth bass fishing. They can both be accessed via highway 289 south out of Mammoth Springs.

Hi, Joe, my name if Rocky Latham and I am a former owner of Southfork Resort on the South Fork of the Spring River. My wife and I had to sell the resort years back due to the advancement of my neurological disease that just made it to hard for me to do the work I needed to around the resort. That said, Southfork Resort is a family oriented resort for families and fisherman. You want to go fishing in the springtime when the water flow on the Soutfork of the Spring River is at its best. You should contact the current owners for how the conditions and fishing have been. There are current flows on their website also. There are Tiger Musky, Rainbow Trout, and Smallmouth Bass available on the Spring River but as you have heard the Spring river can be full of college age party animals during weekends and holidays. Southfork resort runs trips on both the South Fork of the Spring and the Spring River. There are times even on the main Spring River you can have some great fishing especially in the spring you can catch Tigers but you have to go in just south of the spring itself. Something only the locals know if you walk upstream keeping low and out of sight above the highest canoe/kayak put ins there are some pools full of BIG Tigers but if they see you or your shadow you are busted and will have to come back hours later to try again because if the have busted you they have lock jaw. As you go down river you catch mostly Rainbow trout and as the water warms as other creeks come in then the smallmouth start to show up until they become the dominate species. The Southfork of the Spring River is a total smallmouth river. Start off lure color is anything pumpkinseed and if they are not chewing on that start experimenting. Sometimes "hot pink" is the hot color on the Southfork River. Just don't get a mindset stuck on what has worked before for you. I have seen some days when fly anglers came in saying their arms were wore out from catching smallies while spin fishermen were coming in saying the river was fished out. They would say, it just wasn't like it used to be. The next day I would be picking up fishing parties where the spin fishers tore the smallies up and the fly guys could hardly buy a bite. It was funny really and I noted the difference in the days as to temperature, sky cover, wind, etc. Pumpkinseed was the most consistent color for soft plastics but when it was off you just need to experiment to see what they want and it could change daily or even hourly when they were on their finicky faze. Sometimes they can be so finicky I've had guys ask if we sell dynamite, lol. Then there are they guys you have to teach. They would come in saying, "wow, we saw a lot of big smallmouth, and we threw everything we had at them but they just would not bite." I would gently advise them guys relax tonight and enjoy the campground. Tomorrow is a new day, but tomorrow when you go down stream and you see some smallmouth holding in a spot note where they are by something on the bank of the river and quietly fish on down stream. Then in about 20 minutes as quietly as possible paddle back within casting range of where you saw those smallmouth. Cast upstream of them and let the current bring you lure to them. I explained to them that if you can see the fish the fish can see you and smallmouth will not bite. Next day, happy campers when I picked them up as my "trick" worked. Customer happy and friend made. There is a special creek I ran trips to out of Southfork Resort. I don't know if the new owner still does. Its Myatt Creek, and it is water sensitive and it can be a bear to fish but when everything comes together there you can have one of your best stream fishing days ever. The water is clear. It contains good populations of smallmouth and spotted bass, and shadow bass. Most of the smallmouth will be 10- to 12-inches in length but there are 20-inch fish in this creek. I hope this helps you. Rocky

One of the most interesting fish I ever encountered in Arkansas was in the cold spring water just south of Mammoth Springs. They are Tiger Musky. They are beautiful fish and super spooky in super clear water. I never tried fishing for them as I was always working at my resort 24/7/365 and just never took the time to try for them but I did admire them when I was dropping of clients on the river that were mostly just there to paddle the river. We did get a few anglers but the "tigers" were mostly incidental catch by those fishing for trout near the upper reaches of the Spring River. Usually they only god a fast run and "snick" as those razor sharp teeth cut their line. Only a very few would bring tieable wire leader and serious fish for the "Tigers". There were some monsters in those big pools south of where the Mammoth Spring comes out of the ground. If they saw you it was over and you had to sneek and make long casts. I kept wanting to try but never took the time. They sure are beautiful fish.

Amery, hang in there! I pray for God to give you peace and understanding in your life and him to send you the right people to surround you for your support. I have my own diagnosis that gives me understanding into your frustration. Keep going forward one step at a time even when you feel you just can't do it any more. You can and there will eventualy be a breakthrough. You are in a marathon so you have to pace yourself like a distance runner. You also need personal support and help so seek it. You are not week for asking for help as we all need help at times. I'm a big guy that played football as a defensive tackle but I still need others help at times. We are humans and we need each other; its how we are made. You are in a highly stressful situation and you need support to deal with it all. It's not always stubbornness but repetitive behavior feels safe to them and change can feel scary or threatening to them because they don't understand the way we do. I have a Psychology degree and have helped with children with extreme disabilities. I was also diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. My doctors are still arguing over the exact diagnosis and it gets frustrating how it affects my body and my mind at times. Hang in there Amery as you not only can't do it all, you don't have to.

Dear Al, I pray for your wife's recovery from cancer. I understand as cancer runs in my family. I'm 67 years old and over that time I have seen many miracles let us pray for one in your wife's case.

Rusty you hang in there and have faith. I have walked in your shoes my friend as cancer runs in my family. Their are people praying and where two or three gather in faith in prayer there is God. God send your Holy Spirit to render miracles in this life in accordance with Your Word for You are Life and You Love us more than we can ever understand.

Greetings Ozark anglers from the Peoples Republic of California. My wife and I owned the small canoe and kayak resort "Southfork Resort" in Saddle, AR located on the South Fork of the Spring River. My health caused us to have to sell the resort but I really miss the great people I came to know there and the great smallmouth bass fishing. My wife talked me into moving to southern California so she could nanny her newest fraternal twin grand-daughters. One is a blond sweet heart and the other is a mischievous little red head that have me wrapped around their fingers. I also lived on Lake Bull Shoals in a community called Lakeview near the dam. I am a friend of Fox Statler as he guided out of our small resort and he taught me about fly fishing.