Arkansas River Stripers

[Bill Butts]

Spent the entire afternoon on a nice stretch of tailwater in Tulsa, looking for some winter stripers and whites.

Very interesting day. Lots and lots of fish caught, but no size to brag about.

Caught over 50 stripers, 3 hybrids, 14 whites and 8 spotted bass. (fished 4.5 hours…1230 to 500pm)

I’m sure the largest I caught, a striper and a hybrid, would not have exceeded 3#.

I stopped by the D&B fly shop and visited with Butch before going to the river.

Found out later I didn’t even fish the best water in the stretch I fished (go figure).

I’ll try the better stretch when we go back down on Thursday/Friday.

Not that I would even want to catch more fish, but I was assured the other area would have yielded some of much better size.

To say it was windy would be the understatement of the year! Fun day for January!

[Phil Lilley]

My gosh- that's alot of fish!! That must be a heck of a fishery- fertile- or are all those stripers stocked?

I may have to go with you here in a couple of weeks... have to be in St Louis tomorrow and Thursday.

[Bill Butts]

My gosh- that's alot of fish!! That must be a heck of a fishery- fertile- or are all those stripers stocked?

I may have to go with you here in a couple of weeks... have to be in St Louis tomorrow and Thursday.

That was a lot of fish for the # of hours fished, particularly. But, note I said none were over 3#. The majority were one and two year class fish (9-10" and 13-14").

I am not positive about whether they are stocked in that stretch of the AR, but I doubt it. I talked with the fisheries biologist for Kaw Lake (the next and last lake UP-river from Keystone on the AR) and he said the striper fishery on Keystone and the 80 river miles of the AR above Keystone is self-sustaing. That distance of 80 miles is just enough for spawning stripers to succeed in their reproductive efforts. (I'll explain that later).

The AR runs quite a distance from Keystone down to the next lake, Webbers Falls, then a short distance into Robert Kerr Lake.

All the stripers I caught were beautiful specimens of shape, health, perfect fins and markings so I am quite sure they are naturally reproduced.

However, having said all that, I will email the biologist I mentioned and ask for confirmation.

Stay tuned.

[Wayne SW/MO]

Equipment, flies? Did you wade or is this a shoreline fishery?

[jay bird]

Two questions. How far of a drive is that?

Would it be safe to use a 5 weight rod?

[Bill Butts]

From Springfield it is 180 miles to Tulsa, but it takes 3 hours to get to the Riverside Drive areas we fish.

There are public parking accesses at 31st and 41st / Riverside Dr. (right on the river)

The AR River is very low and they are rarely generating at Keystone. The river channel is between 400 and 500 yards wide but the flow looks like a trickle. There are not very many good "holes" of holding water so it is not the huge puzzle it sounds like.

I wouldn't personally use anything lighter than a 7 wt. rod. I used my 7 yesterday and the wind was so bad at times I wished I'd rigged up the 8 instead. At the low level, a floating line is the best (very rare I fish one unless it is for surfacing fish on a lake). Clouser-type minnow imitations are the ticket, nothing less than a #4 (2 to 2.5"), and #2 (3 to 4.5") and 1/0 (4 to 6") would be advisable to carry. The general rule down there is small flies catch smaller fish and big flies catch fewer but bigger fish. Your choice. Gray/White, Blue/White were all I used (with flash in them), however the eyes should not be heavy (mini or small at the largest) because the water is mostly very shallow. Leaders 8 to 9 foot with heavy tippets of 8 to 10#.

Wading definitely, no shoreline fishing.

Two important factors I feel strongly about for down there: "cleats" on felt or aqua-stealth soles (I use the aqua soles, but the cleats are the ticket to cutting through any slickness, and a wading staff (even just a solid stick is better than nothing....it's hard to explain that tailwater, it is different than any I've waded. It's not as mossy and slick as the San Juan or some of those treacherous spots in the White it's just different. Lots of very very large flat rocks and even chunks of old concrete). Both of the above are for your safety.

You can thank me later.

Be sure you have some 4-6" forcepts.

Even the little dinks suck the fly down pretty deep quite often.

Oh, I didn't have to share the river with another fisherman, yesterday.

[gonefishin]

Good info and that is a lot of fish. I will definatly have to give it a try.

[jay bird]

Thanks Bill sounds like a good road trip for this time of year.