Brian Wise

Did I hear buffalo?? Is this above or below the lake? What about the spillway? Brian

Yeah, the biots help tying time a whole lot! They also hold up better after a bunch of fish. I don't tie Princes with biots anymore.... Brian

Here you go, and pictures below.... Teal Prince (in order of materials onto hook) #16-12 Nymph Hook Silver Bead Black Thread Black round Rubber Legs (two strands still stuck together) Silver Holographic Tinsel Teal Peacock (actually called "bright green") Cream colored saddle hackle White Round Rubber Legs (two strands still stuck together) Keeping the rubber legs stuck together makes it a lot easier getting them on the hook, just pull them apart to form the "V" when you are done with the fly. The main reason I put the rubber legs on there instead of biots is because I hate working with biots. Brian

I love that float CMAC!! It's a totally different river than farther downstream, and yes, there are some crazy nice fish up there!! Brian

Hey guys! With springtime temperatures pretty much here (for now at least) it's time to take a look at what is in store for fishing the North Fork of the White River. First of all lets cover gear. As far as rods and line go a 9' 5wt medium action rod is going to be the best all around rod for fishing the North Fork of the White. Floating line is the norm but a sink tip should usually be handy for fishing during this time of year just in case of a little bit of high water. If a sink tip is in order a faster action 6wt or even 7wt is going to be a better rod for these conditions. 3-5X leaders and tippet are going to be the best bet along with some 6x tippet for those spring hatches and the dry flies that can be so much fun during the spring. Hatches, Hatches, Hatches!! As with everything during the spring the bugs are coming back out of the winter and moving more and more. Hatches of Blue Winged Olives and Caddis are the most common but midges and mays are thrown in the mix as well. The springtime is also the time the Stones "hatch" more as well. To match these hatches be sure to carry size #18-14 Adams, #18-14 Parachute Blue Winged Olives, #16-12 Elk Hair Caddis, #16-12 Cracklebacks, along with #20-16 Griffith's Gnat, and #14-10 Stimulators. A lot of the time though you will run into a great hatch but see very few risers so also have in your arsenal some soft hackles and some general wet flies and emergers to get the fish that are getting to the bugs before they get to the surface. Nymphing is always going to catch fish on the North Fork of the White. The #1 producer on the river is a #10 dark (black, brown, or dark gold) Stonefly nymph, usually a Kauffman Stonefly is the go-to pattern. Usually dropping another nymph off of the stone is a great way to go. Prince Nymphs, Pheasant Tails, Hares Ears, Copper Johns, bead head Cracklebacks, and Red Fox Squirrel Nymphs are the best of a wide array of nymphs to drop off of the stones. Finding fish is fairly easy on the North Fork of the White, sometimes getting the to bite is the harder part. When nymphing look for any good riffle and in particular those riffles with a deeper tailout or a drop-off in the riffle, these are going to be the best areas to catch numbers of fish. Also when nymphing, nymph deep. If using an indicator make sure the indicator is at least 5' from the first fly and sometimes up to 9'+ from that first fly. When fishing the riffle concentrate first on the closest seam and then work your way out, pretty much fish the closest water to you first so you don't cast over fish, which applies to all water any time of the year. When fishing to rising fish during a hatch, most of the time those fish will be rising in the tailout or lower end of the riffle from where the water starts to smooth out downstream. Have a great spring! Brian Wise Head Guide River of Life Farm www.riveroflifefarm.com

Gotta love that!! I think the road in the photo could possibly hurt the chances for the B&C record though.... Brian

Hey guys, For Sale TFO TiCrx 5wt about 8 1/2 feet, I had a client break the tip and had it fixed, and after the fix was still pushing a 120' cast with this rod. Just over 2 years old... $100

Sold

Do you notice this problem when nymphing heavy nymphs and casting dries?? Brian

Good call Gavin! I forgot, there is a charge for taking out at Dawt if you didn't use them as your outfitter. I don't know if these rules apply during off season but they do during season. Brian

Yeah, that first step is a doosy!! I agree with Catman, if you are going to float all the way to Dawt I would go ahead and add a couple of extra miles to it. The headwinds can be a little tough...I wouldn't recommend wearing baggy clothes for fear of them turning into a kite and taking you all the way back upstream. The lake isn't backed up into the river hardly at all right now and it takes quite a bit of water to actually make "slack" water up into the river. You will be on moving water all the way to Tecumseh bridge. Brian

Fred, The runs of the stripers and hybrids are really dependant on water. There have already been several small runs of stripers through the Tecumseh area(hwy 160 bridge.) If we were to get some warmer nights and more water I would not be suprised to see the stripers all the way up to Dawt Mill dam. As for the whites and walleye I would not be suprised to see the small males up to Tecumseh any time. The bigger sows (whites) will be behind the small males and they are usually around a week and a half or 2 weeks behind the males. All of that is dependant on warmer weather for an extended time. We actually have plenty of water right now so there is a possibility of some of the best white bass fishing we have had in years, as long as it stays warm. If you are looking to make a trip down I would wait until the reports of the good runs of white bass are in and make sure there are no chilly nights between the time you come down and leave as that will push them back farther into the lake. The fish will only make it up each river as far as they can. Usually they don't make it real far up the Bryant because there is a ledge about a half mile up the river but with enough water they will just keep going, the farther up you go though the fewer numbers and bigger fish you will see. The whites are going to be your best bet for consistant fishing but that is either at the mouth of the lake or a little lower. But at any given time a float from Cooks Landing to Tecumseh will produce smallmouth, small whites, walleye, and on and on. Remember the streams are not "open" to catch and keep for a while yet though.... As soon as the whites start running real good I will start posting reports, but they will be based out of Tecumseh. Brian

Floating in the 1000's cfs is very doable. When it comes to fishing though it is really hard to get to the spots where you need to be to fish CFS like that. It can be done but by all means BE CAREFUL, when you wade in wade to where you are comfortable and take a step back. Fish long leaders/tippet so you can get the fly down. I would go 12' to the first fly and then drop something off of that fly. Use a lot of weight and get stellar drifts. If you plan on using streamers a sinktip is the only way to go. By the way, Kelley Ford isn't a bridge it is actually the dead-end of a county road and really has pretty good parking for what it is. Brian

Gavin, I mean this in all seriousness not being "smart." I know you are a smallmouth guy, did you get a chance to fish the Bryant Creek 20 years ago? My family homesteaded land on the Bryant and my uncles have told me stories of the insane amount of fish (and big fish) they caught there in the 60's thru the 80's. There is little to NO developement on there now and the river is no where near what it was then, sure it is still good fishing (just like the North Fork of the White is.) Brian Brian

I wish I had lots on ther river!! I have read this whole thread several times and can't find where I said I agree with developement on the river... Brian

Sorry Hank, Kelley Ford Directions: Hwy H to CR 372 CR 372 to CR 365 CR 365 to CR 368 When you think you hit the middle of no where you are almost there Kelley is at the end of CR 368. Brian

Oh geez, I'll be the first to say the river isn't near what it was in the 80's. Honestly I wish I could have "gotten in on" that fishing but I was just a young pup. I can't totally agree that the main reason for smaller fish populations than the 80's is developement. A 10 year drought will take it's toll on a river....actually on a whole drainage. If you can look back at the #'s for the last 27 years you will see good numbers in the 80's and then a decline as the drought set in. After that drought you can see a steadily rising number of fish. Sure some years will be a little off (like last year) but on average the numbers are rising nicely. If you look at other rivers that don't that developement you will see great fishing rivers that have stayed great fishing for years and years....stocked rivers. Stocked rivers are too easy to keep fishing good, dump 10,000 rainbows 2 or 3 times a year into the NFOW and it will fish great just like the rest of the stocked rivers...but it is a wild fishery that will have it's ups and downs because it is just that...wild. It's easy to push the NFOW aside and say "it's too hard to fish" or "there aren't enough fish there" but it is one of the true gems that we have around here. Now having said all that I WILL NOT say that developement has nothing to do with fish numbers going down...but it's not the main culpret. Brian

I will agree that the river is more developed than most of the other trout streams in Missouri (except Taney) but you have to remember....it is legal to build on this river. Unlike the federal waters anyone can buy land with river frontage and build on that land. But honestly when I think of heavilly developed rivers around the area the North Fork of the White is nothing compared to rivers that are within 30 minutes of us. Anytime you can still float miles and not see a house I can't say that qualifies as heavilly developed. Brian

Hi Hank, Technically the trout water does begin at Rainbow Springs which like Catman said is about 4 miles below Hammond Camp. Depending on what you are looking to do (trout fish, smallmouth fish, or both) you could start at Hammond and float to Blair Bridge which is a little bit of a float but you would get to see the water above the Spring which looks like a totally different river. You could also do smallmouth on this float and then trout after you get to the spring. If you are looking at going after trout only I would recommend floating from Kelley Ford to Patrick Bridge, this will cover about 90% of the best trout water on the river. Yeah, the "killer rock" has claimed a TON of canoes over the years. If you are only looking to float the river and do little to no fishing you HAVE to float from Hammond to Blair or Patrick, you will really see 2 totally different kinds of river and the float from Hammond to the spring is one of the prettiest floats there are. Other than that Catman covered everything nicely The White Bass runs are defenitely something to see (and fish) if the water is right. Brian p.s. Keep a good eye on the water levels that Phil has posted at the top of this forum. It is taking VERY little rain to make the river come up....

Hey guys, I know this is NO WHERE near fly fishing but.... Parker Hunter Mag totally ready to hunt about 3 years old "maybe" 20 hunts under its belt New Zebra String Quicktune Rest 1 dozen arrows (some need re-fletched) 6 brand new mechanical broadheads (no "bands" required TOTALLY mechanical) stabilizer sights decked out with Limbsaver silencers release case Available for pick up in Gainesville or will be delivered to someone with fishing close by. I have only bow hunted 3 times in the last 2 years and want this bow to go to someone that will USE IT! And hey I liked it so much I named my first born after it..... $375 Brian

Hey thanks guys. Got to work today and had a new pheasant skin and a homemade bottle of strawberry wine in my chair.....nice Brian

I think I have the same pack you are talking about, is it the "Flak Jacket?" I used it for a while but ended up getting the waist pack from Loon, the "Nympher Hip Pack" found on this pageLoon Gear . After getting one of these I will never where anything that hangs from my shoulders again. Lumbar support and no weight around my upper body is priceless! Brian

Hey all, I have been getting some p.m.'s wondering how the river is fishing. To be honest I have not been fishing (or guiding) on the river a TON lately because of all the water we have had for a couple months now. We have had right at or above 1000 CFS for well over a month now. It seems as though everytime the water is just about to fall out we get another rain. Right now it is only taking 1/2" of rain to bring the river up several hundred CFS. I'm no where near complaining about having water...trust me. I can't wait to see the "young of the year" totals from the MDC this time next year, with all the water the fish have had through spawn the hatch should be the best we have seen in a few years. All in all, the fish are still there and if it is safe enough for heaven's sake FISH But I would stay away from wading in anything much over 700 CFS (and that is pushing it a little in a few spots) As soon as I can fish the river enough to find a pattern I will definitely report, I just have to be able to fish it for more than a day to tell you guys the "hot" flies. Just think about how FAT the fish are going to be after this water falls out!! Brian

A post by Dano December 4.... The authors words posted Jan 15.... Good call Dano! Brian

Fisher of Men, Honestly during the peak time of season it can be a little difficult as far as fishing goes. There are a lot of canoes on the river during the summer, that's not saying you can't fish, it's just you have to start earlier and end later. If I were you I would think of an early spring (Late February or through March) trip, the fishing is good and there are a LOT less canoes on the river than during the summer. Let me know when you come down and I'll try to hook you up with the hot fly selections. Brian