Pretty Decent Fishery?

[Nathanael]

Hey guys, im a college student in okc and i have never fished the lir. I head out the white in arkansas pretty often then always make my way up to colorado for some fly fishing every year. This river isnt too far though and i have been thinking about trying it out. Is this river worth the drive out there? I have always heard about the stripper fishing out there and figured there were only a few trout but after reading some on here i think i had the wrong impression. Let me know guys. thanks

[DaddyO]

OK. It's not a fair comparison to TaneyCoMo, White River, Norfork River, NFOW or anything in Colorado. But, it's not a bad little river to sharpen your casting skills and haul in some trout. Don't expect HUGE fish, but you can expect to be able to have a 30+ fish day, on a good day, of 9 to 15 inch fish and occasionally one a little larger. I rate it better than the Lower Mountain Fork but that's just my opinion because it's closer to me and I can fish it more often.

[fishncrazy]

OK. It's not a fair comparison to TaneyCoMo, White River, Norfork River, NFOW or anything in Colorado. But, it's not a bad little river to sharpen your casting skills and haul in some trout. Don't expect HUGE fish, but you can expect to be able to have a 30+ fish day, on a good day, of 9 to 15 inch fish and occasionally one a little larger. I rate it better than the Lower Mountain Fork but that's just my opinion because it's closer to me and I can fish it more often.

DaddyO,about every angler i talk to on the LIR has caught over a 100 fish a day.with the Exception of the days i'm within sight of them.LOL!!!

and to confirm what DaddyO has said.

Seriously,If you know your stuff, you can easily catch over a dozen in 4 hr. 13"-15" occassionly a couple of 16"-20"

Rainbows.

To me it's heaven!

[Danimal]

Daddy-o is spot on in his description -- as far as numbers go it's a really good river. I caught about 30 or so yesterday from one spot swinging soft hackles before giving it up to a gentleman who happened along. When I walked back by him about an hour later while heading to the car, he said he picked up 21 on an olive bugger. Your numbers will go down on the Mountain fork, but if you want a shot at a 20+" rainbow that's the place to go (especially if you can hit it during the week). Hope this helps. Dan-o

[Nathanael]

Well you learn something new everyday dont you. I had no idea it was this kind of fishery at all. Im a fisheries biology major and actually worked for the okc fish hatchery this summer so i heard alot about the lmf but for some reason not much about the lir for some reason. I think its only about 2 and half hrs from the city so im gonna have to grab my stuff and head over there some day! Being a tailwater there are probably not alot of hatches but do most of yall fish midges, hackles, nymphs? thanks guys! im excited now!

[fishncrazy]

Chiromids about size 20 black with silver wrap,fished under an indicator ,(if bobber watching is your thing)will keep you happy.

[Zach Bearden]

Hey man, what college you go to?

I'm actually looking to go into the same major/field, (Fisheries and Wildlife Conservation is what I've put on my apps) and wanted to know what you thought of that schools program.

Oh, I guess I'll share some information.

I love fishing small flies here right now. Also a lot of san juan style things. Water's not deep here so weight's not a big deal. Soft hackles are pretty cool too. Like fishncrazy said, midges can get you plenty of fish.

Dries (small adams, caddis or even a bwo) can stack up quite a few fish on the right days. If I were going to fish a dry I always degrease my tippet about a foot up.

[On The Fly 6]

I've fished numerous places in numerous states and have never pulled in more fish than I have at the LIR. I've had days where I've gotten tired of taking the fish off the hook. Nymphs, midges, micro jigs, worms, and buggers all produce fish. I'd recommend the LIR...if nothing else, it'll put your curiosity to rest! :-) Good luck with your degree, you going to go the Game Warden route?

[Nathanael]

zach, right now im actually just regular biology at southern nazarene university (free schooling for me to get my basics) here in oklahoma city. After this semester though it kinda depends on what my summer ends up doing. im trying to get on as a guide at a few different ranches in colorado. if that all works out ill be attending colorado state. if that doesnt work though im gonna stay here and go to oklahoma state, i have looked into many different schools for this including arkansas tech, southeastern and a few others. out of these i would say osu has the best program.

on the fly, right now my goal is to be a biologist and focus on cold water streams and rivers for trout but if that doesnt work im completely open to the idea of being a warden.

[Zach Bearden]

Dude.

I'm actually awaiting a reply on my application to CSU lol

Of course I haven't had the best gpa (2.8ish) so I'm not really sure how it's going to go down. Really nervous.

Another college to look at is Northeastern State in Tahlequah. I've heard it's got a really good program for that.

Okay, okay. I'll stop hijacking your thread. Maybe we can meet up and fish sometime? I'll show you what I know lol