hoglaw

Anyone know Jerry Dudley? I work with another lawyer who said I needed to find him and I have a hunch he frequents this board.

Oh, and is there lots of boat traffic up that far?

Is there a take-out between Houseman and the bridge at beaver? It looked on Google Earth as if there was a boat ramp between the two, on the left as you head downstream. Looks like this area might be ripe for a canoe trip, but it's an awfully long float to the Beaver bridge.

Terry: Floating to the White River is not an option unless you like carrying canoes for extremely long distances through willow thickets. Kelly's slab is right off of 62/412 (I forget what it's called there). It's well marked with AGFC signs. If you wind up in downtown Yellville, you've gone too far. From the slab to Yellville is the most popular float. It's easy and has good access. Other than that, the access gets trickier and the floats get longer, especially with low water. There are a few good threads in the crooked creek section. I suggest checking out those for the other floats.

Excellent. Thanks for the news Larry. If anyone is going out there today, I'll be the guy getting blown around in a green canoe with no seats and way too much gear.

Certainly not trying to discourage anyone. Night wade-fishing in the Arkansas river sounds like a helluva time. Who knows what you'll hang in there at night. I'm just thinking you might need to go BIG with your flies. McClellan's here in Fayetteville sells a fly called a "wiggle minnow." Not sure how common it is elsewhere. It's a foam body that moves like a crankbait when stripped, then floats back up to the surface. Seems like it might create a bit more disturbance like a muddler.

Thanks Larry. Are there lots of big boats running around? I'm not sure what the water level is like since I haven't been that way in a couple of months. I imagine I'll be putting in at the ramp and heading downstream to the first long pool below the twin bridges hole.

darn, that's not the kind of news I want to hear. Fortunately I didn't pay much for this reel, but it is a seriously annoying problem. Do the guys on that board suggest any fixes? I suppose I'll have to check it out for myself tomorrow.

Are you used to catching white bass in the dark with such a subtle presentation? Seems to me that a clouser in that kind of current just wouldn't produce enough disturbance to get noticed unless you bonked one in the nose. A fat colorado blade 1oz spinnerbait, maybe. I've caught plenty of trout at night on sight presentations, but the water wasn't moving as much as what you guys are fishing.

The reel has not been wet while in my possession. This seizing up problem only happens under tension, otherwise it reels like a champ. It does not feel like a rust problem or grit problem, but I haven't opened up the reel yet.

I recently acquired a used Shimano Citica 201 at a steal (now I realize why). It casts like a dream and I didn't realize it had any problems until I got it on the water. The first fish I hooked, the reel locked up. After hanging a few more (and a couple of trees) I realized that whenever there was tension on the line, the spool would seize. I couldn't reel or anything. It would release after I fanagled it a little, but this is a seriously annoying problem. Adjusting the spool tension or the drag does not seem to have any effect. If anyone can offer any advice, I would much appreciate it. If I need to be more descriptive, let me know.

Anyone heading out on Wednesday? I'm planning on leaving my office around 4, canoe trailer in tow, direct flight to twin bridges. I haven't had a solid report of water levels, but with the nice weather, I'm going to give it a go. If anyone was planning on hauling a boat out there on Wednesday and needs a fishing companion, I'd be happy to share gas and provide a couple of tasty beverages of your choice. Are you guys still catching active fish on rattle traps, or has anyone switched to fishing jig-head grubs?

Too bad the guy was a jerk, but it's nice to know they're grilling people about trash and glass. Lots of dumping takes place, especially in the Mt. Hershey area since it's a little more remote. As far as the fishing license requirement, the law doesn't provide much clarity. You must have a license in order to attempt to take fish by any means. If you're still by the truck setting up camp and you just happen to have some rods in the cab, that's a tough sell. If you're loading up a canoe getting ready to float and you have rods with you, I'd say that's pretty strong evidence that you're about to attempt to take fish. They don't have to actually catch you in the act, but there has to be some significant circumstantial evidence that you're fishing or attempting to fish. It's kinda like having to have a license to hunt. I don't have to have a license to walk through the woods wearing camo and orange during modern gun season. If I have a large caliber pistol with me, however, it's a pretty tough sell to argue that I wasn't out there hunting. The agent doesn't actually have to witness me shooting at anything. One of the funnier AGFC license tickets I heard about was a friend's mother. They live on lake Hamilton and have a dock with a couple of boats. She was cleaning the dock and the boats. In the process, she grabbed a handfull of ultra-lites (strung up and ready to go) off of the party barge and set them by the ramp. The wildlife officer saw her carrying the rods and came by and checked her. She didn't have a license, and kindly explained the situation to the officer who promptly wrote her a ticket.

I didn't get to go. My efforts have been diverted elsewhere. I imagine the whites were getting going until this recent cold snap. Not sure what they're doing now.

Okay, I've got the wrong place. There's another store in South Fayetteville. It's on 71 just south of 15th st. I believe. It's run by an older (than me) gentleman and his wife. He builds all of his spinnerbaits, but he might sell war eagle and strike king as well...not sure about that. He's also got a huge room in the back with crates and crates of soft plastics. Many of these appear to be discontinued or hand poured plastics. It's a neat place with pretty good prices, but he doesn't take plastic.

What's this other river you speak of? I'm good at keeping secrets, don't eat smallmouth, and might have an area of interest to trade for such precious knowledge.

I do my shopping at Southtown - fly fishing stuff at McClellans. There's another place on South School...maybe that's Hook Line and Sinker. Not sure what the name is, but it's run by a really nice couple, so I imagine it's the same one sfiser is describing. Is Sportsman's Warehouse going to have a close-out sale?

This is an artificial demand spike fueled by speculators. Sound familiar? Buyers are buying in bulk now and using the artificial demand as a way to get high prices from their ammo at gun shows. Production capacity hasn't changed, regulations haven't changed, the only thing that's changed is demand fueled by expectations. Nothing is going to happen to make ammunition harder to get in the foreseeable future. It's just not going to happen. The temporary shortage is a self fulfilling prophecy, and will be followed by a period of low sales and wide availibility of ammunition. Once the crazies calm down, this will work itself out.

Haven't driven 45 in a while now. What's the water level like? Is it back to normal or still backed up like it was this summer? I sure would enjoy a white bass season without bass boats crusing around above the 45 bridge (no offense). I imagine with this week's warm weather, this weekend could see some action. Anyone taken a water temp reading lately?

Thanks for the reply shaker. It looks like it's going to be really windy this weekend so I may have to scrap the canoe trip. May go try my hand at some white bass.

Bittle: Any advice on what to buy/avoid during the first few months? I don't need to get into lathes and all of that jazz, but do I need a specialized rack? Tools for winding thread? Should I just stick to components the first couple of times around? I'll get involved in a dedicated rod building forum at some point, just figured I'd angle for some easy pointers first. You're not related to Larry Bittle in Fayetteville by chance, are you?

My main line of thinking here is that this will be a hobby that may take off into an obsession. I like the idea of being able to learn decorative wraps for gift rods. I also like the idea of being able to build on top of the line blanks for less money than getting a retail rod. Like fly tying, I'm sure it takes more than a couple of rods to hit that break even point, but I know offers on bulk blanks come up every now and then. In my internet searching, I did come across Mudhole. Looks like a wealth of information and pretty good prices to boot.

I'm looking to get into rod building. Anyone here involved in building rods? Anyone given it up and have supplies/tools they want to sell? Anyone have any words of wisdom for a newbie?

So, back to my initial question. Now that we're all vaguely familiar with the whereabouts of Romp Hole, does anyone know if the walleyes move above it? Am I wasting my time trying to find them between there and Stoney Point?

http://www.kingsriveroutfitters.com/rivermap.html That's a crude map. Romp hole is 4 miles above the highway bridge (highway 86?). Other than that, I just know to google earth it. It's on the river right as you float downstream.