Hot Hot Hot

[Early Riser]

Going down on Monday to cool off and fish. Has anyone caught fish at Parker ? Have they migrated up stream enough that I should fish and camp closer to Babtist. Any info is appreciated. I would hate to set up camp - fish - move and reset camp. Where is the road that goes to Loves Cabin, I have seen vehichles on the river between Babtist and Parker. There must be some way down there.

[Gavin]

I saw a couple nice fish down near Parker a couple weeks ago...but the fish counts are much lower than what you find several miles upstream. The brush was thick, water was low, and mid-day fishing was SLOW when we were down there a couple weeks ago...I have no desire to fish there until Fall. Rent a canoe and camp on the river if you want to access the middle reach. Have fun.

[ozark trout fisher]

I would encourage you not to fish that far downstream in this heat. I don't know the exact temperature at Parker Hollow but after days of 100+ and extreme low water, I would bet on it getting above 70 degrees a considerable percentage of the time-which would mean very slow fishing and almost certain death to any trout you release. I'd go further upriver-think Baptist, Tan Vat, or Montauk.

[awhuber]

Going down on Monday to cool off and fish. Has anyone caught fish at Parker ? Have they migrated up stream enough that I should fish and camp closer to Babtist. Any info is appreciated. I would hate to set up camp - fish - move and reset camp. Where is the road that goes to Loves Cabin, I have seen vehichles on the river between Babtist and Parker. There must be some way down there.

I have floated and fished Baptist to Parker twice a week for the last 4 weeks. The fishing has been real good from Baptist to Asley creek. Not so good below there. The road to Loves and the other holes is very rough. Take a canoe and camp like Gavin said.

Also we are getting some rain!!!

[ozark trout fisher]

It will probably have to be a major all day or all night type of rain to effect the river much at this point...The ground is so dry that even a a relatively signficant rain will most likely get soaked right up. But the cooler temps on the way should moderate stream temperatures slightly, which is a bit too little too late, but better than nothing I guess.

Not that it will matter much unless we get the kind of rain we need.

[Nortrad]

Parker water was slow and low several weeks ago. We moved up to Baptist and did fairly well, but that was like 4 weeks ago. Fishing is tough now until sustained rain and/or cooler temp's.

[Early Riser]

Thanks for the info. My old Hooptie would love to ride the rough trail to Love's Cabin. She thrives on adventure. So any info is appreciated. I think the access is off YY between Babtist and Parker by Julia's old horse stable. As for the fishing I will take your advice and fish Babtist up to the cable.

[ozark trout fisher]

Good luck. In these kind of conditions you'll generally have a pretty good bite right at dawn, and right as the sun is coming off the water in the evening. That's about an hour and a half of good fishing time total, with not a whole lot that's worth bothering with in between. But those two times can make things worth it, especially if you happen to hit a hatch and rising fish. Total stealth is the only way forward now. Maybe this rain tonight will affect flows and improve day time fishing, but for now I'm betting against it. Until it becomes clear that the drought is broken, I'm not going to fish the Current or any of the other trout streams across the state, but that's just me, and probably isn't 100% necessary. Just keep an eye on the stream thermometer and please don't fish if it's above around or above 70, and you shouldn't be hurting anything