White Mountains AZ

Looking out across Big Lake in AZ remembering all the good times on this lake fishing for trout.

I get asked often what got me into fly fishing for trout. I fell in love with trout fishing at a very young age while camping in the White Mountains in Northeastern Arizona. I’ll get into much more detail down below, but first I’ll talk about the techniques we used. I started out as a bait fisher using a technique we called ninja fishing. We fished pretty small freestone rivers and creeks that were tight with trees, bushes, logs, log jams and boulders scattered about. We had spinning rods, but we used kind of a euro-nymphing/tenkara technique to get in and around all the obstacles. I would place a single salmon egg on the hook and maneuver it into place with a flick and get a great drift under a dirt ledge or tree or log or grass and out would pop a trout to get the egg. I would set the hook and just kind of fling it towards the shore and then take it off the hook. We could usually get a couple trout in each spot before we had to move on. If I missed a couple bites and couldn’t get them to respond anymore then I would try a fresh worm that we dug up earlier that morning. If that didn’t work then I would try a single kernel of corn. Usually one of those 3 baits would do the trick. If not, then you just moved onto another spot in the creek to see what you could pull out.

When I moved to Arkansas I was excited to learn they had trout fishing below Beaver Lake Dam on the White River also known as the Beaver Tailwaters. I fished the White River a few times those first few years, but was confused on what to do because it was such a bigger body of water. The ninja fishing technique wasn’t really possible because the river was 100ft wide instead of 10ft wide. It was also ironic to fish a river with the same name, White River, that I grew up fishing on in AZ. So those first years I fished the White River like a lake, put power bait on a hook with weight and threw it out there and waited. We would sit there and wait for a bite and maybe catch a few trout, I really didn’t enjoy it.

As my kids got older and I didn’t have to coach all their sports, my weekends started freeing up so I started to fish more again. This time I used lures instead of bait most of the time. I would throw rapalas, rooster tails and various spinners and had marginal luck. What I did start to notice was the fly fishers. I thought that was interesting and maybe something I should try. So one day I went and bought a cheap fly fishing kit and took on the challenge of learning this new type of fishing called fly fishing. That’s how I started, not having any idea how I would fall in love with fly fishing, maybe addicted, and then becoming a guide teaching others.

Getting back to my younger years, we would spend summer vacations camping and fishing in the White Mountains in Arizona. People not familiar with Arizona don’t realize what a ecological diverse state Arizona is. They seem to only associate it with it’s hot all the time. Arizona has HOT sand dunes at sea level in the bottom left of the state around Yuma and then has Flagstaff in the north central part of the state to Show Low to the far right near the New Mexico border with elevations from 5000 to 7000ft with peaks over 10,000 ft with ski resorts on them. In between those extremes are bountiful farms, mining towns, and of course great cities like Phoenix, Tucson and Flagstaff.

From my earliest memories I remember heading to the White Mountains in the summer to camp to escape the summer heat near Phoenix where the temperature highs would average over 110 degrees Fahrenheit from June to August. In the White Mountains we would be blessed with highs in the low 80’s with nights in the 50’s. It was such a reprieve from the oppressive heat in the Valley.

Upper Log White River AZ

Some of my earliest memories are from camping at Upper Log on the White River near Whiteriver, AZ. During the day I remember running free around the camping area where we would fish, swim, build dams, hike and get every pair of clothes dirty. At night I remember sitting around the campfire roasting marshmallows and burning sticks and just having a great time telling stories of the day.

Swing at the Spring to get drinking water.

In the early years we were tent campers until we graduated to campers. We didn’t have any services so we would have to refill our water containers every other day or so and there was this huge swing there. I remember flying through the air on that swing as we filled up all our water containers.

Me playing with a water snake.

There was always plenty of wildlife on these trips. I always loved catching the water snakes around the river. There were also frogs, deer, elk, chipmunks, squirrels and lots of birds to entertain ourselves with.

Cousin Chris with busted head.

One crazy memory I have is of my cousin Chris busting open his forehead. We were both on a big log challenging each other to see who could reach further down over the log. We were laying on our bellies on the log and would go head first over the side and see if we could reach the water and then wiggle back up. Well Chris being the super competitive one he is, went a little too far and slid off the log head first onto a boulder near the creek side. They took him to the hospital where he got many stitches to close it up.

L-R: Chris, Me, My Grandma, brother Doug, Carrie and Stephanie.

One of my last trips to White River we took my Grandma for a fishing trip. We found a great fishing hole and caught tons of fish for my mom to take home. Little did I know that would be the last fishing trip in the White Mountains with my Grandma and my brother Doug. It was great day!!

Our catch at Big Lake around 1984

That picture above is from around 1984 in the parking lot of the Big Lake Store. We had a pretty productive day and we needed to get a picture in front of my dads Dodge truck that he was so proud of. I’m sure it makes the fish look more impressive as well.

Crazy to think the limit was 10 trout back then.

Here we are with our catch all cleaned. My brother caught the biggest that day I remember. The reason it was so vivid is because my brother always had some issue with his fishing pole. He spent more time out of the water than in. My poor dad would spend so much time trying to untangle his mess. So it was surprising he caught anything, let alone the biggest.

Big Lake General Store

I loved going in the Big Lake General Store. We would get some bait, snacks and drinks and head out for a day of fishing. I always wanted to work there for a summer when I was a teenager.

Original candy tray from back in the day

I remember pulling all my money out of the piggy bank for our summer trip to the White Mountains. We would stop at a Yellow Front store in Show Low to buy some fishing supplies. It was a store like the current day Dollar General, but had much more outdoor supplies. I would buy another Barlow pocket knife that I would always lose. The rest of the money went for snacks. One snack that I remember always wanting was a full roll of Lifesavers in the Wild Cherry flavor. I would buy one just about every time we visited the Big Lake Store. When I took my daughter to the store just recently they still had the rack I remember, but it was covered up with a hand written sign for some other popular candy of today, but behind the sign was the original Wild Cherry slot. I still bought a roll of Life Savers of multi flavors and just savored the flavor as I stared out across Big Lake. That’s what brought the most emotion out of me.

Just had to get a pic by the Big Lake sign. It was pretty emotional visiting this area. All the memories that stirred in my brain. I hadn’t been her since my brother died in 1999. I shed a tear or 100 as I walked around and reminisced and shared with my daughter some of my memories.

I know that might have got a little sappy, but it was fun to share a few of my memories with you on why I love trout fishing. Trout fishing has such a strong tie in all my earliest memories. I love trout fishing and I especially love fly fishing for trout.

Thanks for reading and hope to see you for a fly fishing trip in Northwest Arkansas.

Erik

Fly Fishing Health Benefits

There are tons of articles, pictures, videos and social media posts about fly fishing pertaining to where to fish, how to fish, what species to fish for and when to fish for locations around the world. What you don’t see as often is what are the benefits of fly fishing. I’m referring to the health benefits such as physical, mental, spiritual and social health. I personally know of many benefits I receive that I’ll give my non-medical observation on in this article. There are also links at the bottom of my observations to many great articles others have studied and observed as well.

Continue reading “Fly Fishing Health Benefits”

Learn To Fly Fish This Year

Fly fishing can seem intimidating, but with proper teaching and guidance by NWATROUT Fly Fishing as your guide, you will learn and experience the basics of fly fishing and create memories that will last a lifetime. ALL experience levels are welcomed and you can fish solo or with your family, friend or loved one.

I fish the White River near Eureka Springs Arkansas which is in Northwest Arkansas. It’s a beautiful setting nestled in the Ozarks where beauty abounds.

I provide all the equipment you need for an outing; waders, fly rod, and flies. Fishing license and trout stamp is not provided. I prefer to wade fish, but I have a river boat to use as well.

A typical outing starts around 7am where I meet you at Beaver Dam Store. We will validate or purchase your licenses here and then head to our destination on the White River. Our drive will be less than a mile to our destination. Once we arrive we will suit up in our fishing waders and make sure everything fits correctly and that you have the appropriate clothing for the heat and/or cold. We will then go over the basic mechanics of fly fishing and have you practice the base motions. We will then walk a couple hundred yards to our fishing location where we get in the water and start our catching.

Make sure you check the weather and water generation schedule before your trip to have a safe and happy trip and to help you make sure you have the appropriate clothing for the climate.

Continue reading “Learn To Fly Fish This Year”

Fly Fishing Builds Bonds

Had the privilege to take so many different groups of people out this year. It is so much fun watching you clients learn how to fly fish and catch some rainbow trout on the White River or Roaring River.

Father son trips are so awesome.

Father son trip with your 10yr old even better.

Always great just fishing with a good friend of mine.

Take the whole family out.

Spend the day with a work buddy

Love taking couples out for a trip.

Take an trip with a great group friends.

Fly fish with your 8 yr old daughter.

Fly fishing is a great activity for anyone. Contact me to book your trip.

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Mountain Biking and Fly Fishing

Coler Mountain Biking Park

Mountain biking in Bentonville and all around Northwest Arkansas is absolutely epic. There are trails for all experience levels across the different parks. Most of the local bike shops also rent top level bikes.

Add a fly fishing trip to your itinerary for a great vacation. A 1/2 day guided fly fishing trip on the White River would make a complete trip. All equipment is provided and all experience levels are welcomed. We would be fishing below Beaver Lake Dam which is only 8 miles from Lake Leatherwood that arguably has some of the best mountain biking in our area. We would fish from 7a to 11a.

Contact me to book your fly fishing trip. There are links below to help with the mountain biking.

Mountain Biking Resources and Articles for Northwest Arkansas:

https://www.oztrailsnwa.com/

Great bike shops:

https://www.phattirebikeshop.com/

https://www.mojocycling.com/

http://www.highrollercyclery.com/

https://www.playtrirogers.com/

https://gooutandplay.com/

https://www.bentonvillebicyclecompany.com/

Great articles:

https://www.outsideonline.com/2405323/bentonville-arkansas-mountain-biking

https://reviews.mtbr.com/bentonville-arkansas-mountain-bike-utopia-in-the-making

https://bikerumor.com/2020/09/02/where-to-ride-could-bentonville-arkansas-be-the-mountain-biking-capital-of-the-world/

https://mbaction.com/bentonville-arkansas-leaders-stake-claim-as-mountain-biking-capital-of-the-world/

https://www.21cmuseumhotels.com/bentonville/blog/2020/biking-in-bentonville-experience-the-mountain-biking-capital-of-the-world/

https://www.outsideonline.com/2414015/cycling-guide-northwest-arkansas

https://www.twowheelingtots.com/biking-with-kids-in-bentonville/

https://twowheeledwanderer.com/posts/complete-guide-to-mountain-biking-bentonville?format=amp

https://leisurlist.com/feed/article/why-northwest-arkansas-is-the-new-mecca-for-mountain-bikers-and-gravel/details

https://www.velonews.com/news/mountain/qa-with-gary-vernon-on-building-mtb-trails-for-the-walton-family/

https://www.bikeworldnews.com/2020/11/05/bentonville-arkansas-a-new-american-mountain-bike-town/

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/bentonville-arkansas-leaders-stake-claim-as-mountain-biking-capital-of-the-world-301086939.html

https://gearjunkie.com/bentonville-trail-lab-mountain-biking

https://mbaction.com/all-star-crew-rides-northwest-arkansas/

https://www.singletracks.com/mtb-trails/come-for-a-job-stay-for-the-trails-how-mtb-lures-employees-to-relocate/

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4th Year Guiding Recap

Wow, what a year 2020 was!!! The global pandemic with COVID-19 really made for some interesting times. I started working from home in March with my corporate job, and probably will continue at home until late fall 2021. I really like working from home now. It did take some getting used to, but know I really enjoy it.

The pandemic was really good for the fishing industry. Lots of people took to the outdoors for something to do outside the house where you were mostly able to social distance. They bought fishing poles and bait at all the local stores, but the people I love are the ones that booked a guided fly fishing trip. This year was great!!!

Wanted to say Thank You to all my great clients I have met over the years. Each trip is so special to me. The experience of watching them catch a fish and the great conversations with have make each trip unique and memorable. So Thank You!!!!

Hope to see you soon on a guided fly fishing trip on the White River near Eureka Springs, AR.

Be Trout Tough!!

Erik

Talk/Txt: 479-426-6827

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Third Season Guiding – Fly Fishing

As I finish my third summer in 2019 of being a fly fishing guide I wanted to reflect on my experiences thus far. I really guide all year, but consider Labor Day the end of summer like many. Since beginning this journey of officially being a fly fishing guide in Northwest Arkansas, I have learned so much and have truely treasured the experience.

1- I have loved my clients. The clients I have taken fly fishing have been absolutely amazing and a pretty diverse group. I’ve taken men on solo trips, family members, father and sons, father and daughters, moms and sons, 3 generations of family men, and husbands and wives. A few have had some level of experience, but the majority have never really fished before and just a few had ever fly fished before. Each trip has been special and memorable to me and I absolutely love the experiences each one of these trips has brought. The joy it brings my heart to see each of these people catch a trout fly fishing is so rewarding. I get just as excited about them catching a fish as they probably do.

2- Everyone has a story. I’ve found everyone brings a different life story to the river and has a unique journey in their life. I’ve had rocket scientists, corporate people, small business owners, stay at homes, retirees and teenagers just to call out a few examples. Each trip is like a box of chocolate, I never know what the next client will bring to the river. I love talking with them and learning about what they do, where they come from and where they are going in life. By the end of trip I consider them friends because we have learned so much about each other. Fishing in a beautiful and peaceful environment really seems to let your guard down and be friendly. Each interaction and conversation is just so different that I feel I don’t repeat my same story over and over and I definitely don’t hear the same story. Everyone I have met has been just so amazing.

3- Don’t take it for granted. The one common theme that all clients mention is that the river is so beautiful and peaceful. They love the environment and love the experience it brings. It constantly reminds me to stop and see the beauty in what I find common. Deep down I am drawn to fishing because of the beauty and peace, but I take it for granted because I am there so often. The awe is not as strong, but they remind me to treasure it and appreciate it. I am tremulously thankful for that. The river, trees, mountains and fish are all so beautiful and amazing!

4- People learn differently. Some clients are ready and eager to learn a new skill and some are apprehensive about the unknowns of the whole process. I’ve learned that I have to quickly read what type of learner they are and form my words to ease their stress or frustration. It is my job to bring them peace while they learn the beautiful skill of fly fishing because there is going to be quite a bit of issues as we get started. Most are easy to get calmed down and progress nicely. For others it takes a little more time and reassurance that they are progressing just fine. The hardest balance I find is how much to teach and correct versus just let them fish. If I can get them to a descent casting form I usually go with it and focus on the catching and the overall experience.

5- Confidence. It is remarkable how much people change from that first introduction to the final fish they bring in on a trip. The confidence, contentment, happiness, and fulfillment they exude at the end just brings absolute joy to my heart. The ear to ear smiles are a rewarding sight. We talk together like we are pro anglers and friends and shake hands like we are family. It is such a great feeling to finish a successful trip and have everyone happy, content and confident.

Final thought- I love fly fishing and I love teaching other people how to fly fish. My contentment is equal in whether I am catching the fish or helping someone catch a fish. The satisfaction I receive in both situations keeps me looking forward to that next experience.

Thanks for reading and hope to see on the river. To book your fly fishing experience call or text me
479-426-6827

Thanks,
Erik

Buffalo River – March 2019 -Centerpoint Trail

I always love a trip to the Buffalo National River located in North Central Arkansas just south of Harrison. It is a real outdoor jewel in our area and so thankful for all the hard and deliberate work that went in to keep this River from being dammed up decades ago. There are several different ways to explore and enjoy this area. The Buffalo River system is over 150 miles in total with well over 95,000 acres of land around to explore. You can camp, fish, hike, bike, float or trail ride various sections along the River and up into the canyons and mountains.

For this trip we decided to hike the Centerpoint Trail down to Sneeds Creek for a 3 day / 2 night backpacking trip. This section is about 4 miles down hill, 1100 feet. My pedometer said it’s about 65 flights of stairs down. We strapped on our nearly 40 pound packs and took off Friday around noon from the Centerpoint trailhead which is north of Ponca a couple miles on Hwy 43. The trail follows an old road most of the way down that is easy to follow. It’s all down hill, with a couple sections quite a bit steeper than others.

At about the half way point, 2 miles, you can stop and drop your packs and take the trail to the right and slack pack along the Goat Trail to Big Bluff. This is a little over a one mile spur out and back that gives you a very rewarding view of the Buffalo River and the river valley. It is breath taking for more than one reason. It’s not for the faint of heart as you are out on a Bluff over 300 hundred feet above the river floor. The entire Bluff is over 500 feet and is said to be the tallest sheer Bluff face between the Rockies and the Appalachians. The walking area is fairly narrow out on the Bluff, so please be careful. All the literature has warnings about the possible danger in this area, and I echo that as well. I wouldn’t take kids on this spur. It’s just too easy to have a problem and would have just about any parent a nervous wreck the whole time. It’s hard to believe that school kids used to use this trail to go to the school house at the bottom of the Bluff which you can see hidden in the trees down near the river. It’s beautiful and worth it, but please be careful.

After taking a break out on the Bluff and taking in the views we walked back and picked up our packs and headed down the hill. The next great stop is at Granny Henderson’s cabin about 1.5 miles further down the hill. It is said that she was the last person to live within the park boundaries in the river valley. The cabin is so neat to explore and to stop and think about the life this place lived. So primitive and awesome. We took a break here to take it all in and just think. So nice.

From Granny’s we hiked a half mile thru the trees down to where Sneeds Creek enters the Buffalo River. Sneeds Creek is a small seasonal Creek that doesn’t have water flowing that often. After a good rain it will be flowing and even then it’s usually minimal. It was flowing about 6 inches max when we were there. The Buffalo River was at flood stage just a day before to give you a reference of the water flow difference between this Creek and the Buffalo River. But as always, use caution if you know rain is expected in the area as the drainage area these tributaries support are pretty large and they can have flash floods. As I mentioned before, the Buffalo River is over 150 miles long, so depending where you are you need to be conscience of the potential rain hundreds of miles away. It may be perfectly sunny day where you are, but there could be a huge rain storm 50 miles away that is draining right down into these canyons your hiking. It is a pretty weird phenomenon that can be dangerous if you don’t pay attention.

Once we reached this area we searched for an optimal camping spot that was shielded from the wind. The day we were there the wind had calmed down to 10-15 mph and the low temperature that night was expected to be in the 20’s, so we didn’t want to add wind to our potential misery. We found a nice place with an established fire ring and setup camp. We then took some time to explore along the Buffalo River and filter some drinking water. There were a few places along the trail down that had running water, but I’m not sure how long they flow after a rain. So if you’re only going to the Goat Trail make sure to have enough water for your round trip. After we got our water replenished we gathered some wood to prepare for a very cold night. It was about 4pm when we finally sat down around a nice warm fire and watched the sun set through the trees and marveled at how the temperature dropped as the sun dropped. We cooked our meals around the fire on our fuel stoves and had some great conversations solving the worlds problems. The fire was warm, but the temperature steadily dropped every hour. I eventually had to stand and rotate like a rotisserie chicken to keep my whole body warm. Whichever part of my body was away from the fire got pretty chilled. We finally decided to hit the hay around 10:30pm. My 20 degree bag was pretty warm to start the night which was comforting. At about 5:30am my feet got cold and not too much after that my right foot felt frozen. My feet always get cold, but this right foot was miserable. I was able to grind out another 2 hours of shuteye and rolled out of bed around 7:30am to my friend stocking up the fire. I got my stove going and got a nice cup of hot coffee going in just a few minutes. That was such a delicious and comforting cup of Joe. We sat around the fire and watched the sun rise over the mountains and fill the river valley with beautiful warm sunlight. In just over an hour or so the temp had raised considerably and felt a very comfortable cold. Temperature was still somewhere in the upper 30’s, but it felt good. We ate various breakfast items and planned out our adventure for the day.

On Saturday we decided to go view the Hemmed In Hollow waterfall. This waterfall is over 200 ft tall and is the tallest waterfall between the Rockies and the Appalachians. During the raining times there is a nice flow of water coming over the falls. Not sure of the rate, but it wouldn’t take very many seconds to fill up a 5 gallon bucket. During the fall time frame the water flow is just a trickle and would take several minutes to fill up a 5 gallon bucket, just to give you a perspective of the difference in the water rate. The falls are easily accessible from the top by way of The Compton Trailhead. It’s easy to get there, but a very strenuous hike from this trail. You can also access the falls from the Buffalo River as a great stop on a float trip which is the easiest hike. You can also access from the Old River Trail by taking a small spur over to the trail, but you will have a river crossing. If you are on the Old River Trail you will have several crossings no matter if you start up stream at Steel Creek or downstream from Kyles Landing so one more shouldn’t break the bank. Since the Buffalo River was up and the temperature pretty cool we decided we didn’t want to cross the Buffalo River. We reviewed our map and it didn’t seem to hard to get there without having to cross the River. We crossed Sneeds Creek by hoping on rocks and went looking for the trail. We took the trail up Sneeds Creek and the trail just kept climbing up and away from the falls area. So we all decided that wasn’t the right way. So we went back to the mouth of Sneeds Creek and the Buffalo River. We took the trail to what we think is the Centerpoint school house foundation and kept walking past that. The trail fairly quickly disappeared and then we began to bushwhack through the hills towards the fall. We should have turned back, but we pressed forward. Navigating through the Forrest was pretty easy with all the leaves off and all the under brush dead, but not the best idea. We finally intersected with the main trail into Hemmed In Hollow and followed it the rest of the way into the fall. The fall was beautiful. I never get tired of seeing this site no matter what the water flow is. After sitting around for awhile and taking in the site we decided to head back to camp. We stayed on the main Hemmed In Hollow trail and found the intersection to the trail we first were on that we thought was wrong. If you take a right going up you go to the Compton Trailhead and if you go left you go into Sneeds Creek. We took the left and followed it down into Sneeds Creek and hoped across on some rocks and headed to camp.

We got back to camp around 3pm and then filtered some more water, collected some more wood and just hung out and threw rocks and hit rocks like we were a major leaguer. Just good fun. We made a fire and cooked a nice hot meal and hung out. My pedometer said we walked over 6 miles and climbed 70 flights of stairs this day. That hike into Hemmed In Hollow is pretty steep and we didn’t do half of the climbing you do using the full Compton Trail. We all went to bed around 10pm, pretty tired from 2 days of hiking and a restless sleep from the cold the prior night.

Saturday night wasn’t nearly as cold with lows in the mid 30’s. It was much more comfortable to sleep except for the sore muscles starting to creep in. We all got to the fire around 7:30 am again and had some coffee and breakfast. We slowly broke down our camp and started back up the hill around 10:30am. We took it nice and slow and took several nice breaks and made it back to the Centerpoint trailhead covering the 4 miles in 2hrs. I was surprised it was that quick because we really took it easy and used a nice, slow and steady pace.

Overall these 3 days we hiked about 16 miles with 8 of those with a pack. It was such a great trip and I enjoyed it so much, but I can’t remember having a bad Trip to the Buffalo River. Hope this information helps you on your next great journey.

Stay Trout Tough!

Erik

Time to Experiment and Explore

I took the opportunity the past few weekends to experiment with a few new patterns and fish a few sections of water I haven’t fished in a long time. I’ve been reading about the best Midge patterns for winter on several sites and wondered would those patterns work here in Arkansas on our White River Tailwater system. Most of the sites were referencing waters out west, so I was a little skeptical.

The first pattern I tried was a black Midge with blue ribbing with copper bead. Black is pretty standard on our waters especially in copper, but I haven’t tried with blue ribbing. After shopping a few locations I was able to find blue wire in BR size. This is a little larger than the small I like to use on size 18 hooks, but it would have to work. I tied up a couple and went after it. It didn’t take long to land that first fish. I managed to land 8 trout and had several LDR’s (long distance release) in about 30 min. I made sure to catch a good amount before switching to make sure it wasn’t a fluke. I would say the pattern is pretty productive. I tried it a second weekend and nearly the same results.

Next I tried the black snow cone Midge. It’s black thread with a white bead and copper wire. I bought white beads a while back, but don’t tie very many flies with them. Not sure when I last used them and not sure why I haven’t used them more. I was able to land 6 trout and again had several LDR’s in just over 30 minutes. Fairly productive fly, but a little slower than the black and blue. I didn’t fish this one the second weekend.

The next fly I tried was the red snow cone Midge. Same copper wire and white bead in size 18 but with red thread. It took a little longer to get that first hit, but managed to land 5 with several LDR’s and several misses. They seemed to hit this fly with more caution as it was harder to hook and land the fish. I tried a second weekend and had much better results. Fast to land that first fish and hardly any problems hooking. Probably the best performer the second weekend.

Overall I landed 19 fish in just over 2 hours that first weekend and similar results the second weekend. Overall the 3 patterns were pretty productive here on the White River. The weekend morning temps are in the 40’s and are warming up nicely by noon. Typical Fall weather.

It was great to get out and change things up a bit. One of the many things I like about fly fishing is the ability to try different flies and techniques and see if they work and to explore and find new areas or revisit a stretch you haven’t worked in awhile. It puts a little excitement in your step to experiment and explore and such a rewarding experience if you figure out something new.

Stay Trout Tough!!!

Erik

First Anniversary Fly Fishing Guide

In August I officially completed a calendar year of being a fly fishing guide in Northwest Arkansas. I primarily fish the White River below Beaver Lake Dam, but occasionally guide in Missouri at Roaring River. While I completed my first calendar year, I’m in my second season of guiding and I have loved every moment of it. Here’s some things I learned along the way.

– Clients love the environment. What I view as common and maybe a little boring at times, I find my clients are mesmerized by the beauty. The typical first response is “how beautiful it is here”. They love the beauty, the peace and the solitude of nature. It reminds me to stop and remember just how beautiful and awesome the environment really is. Don’t take the environment for granted.

– Clients love the experience. Personally I want them to catch lots of fish, but often I hear after their first fish that I have exceeded their expectation. I tend to put too much stress on myself with the catching part, that I down play the experience part. Since they are paying I think they are paying for catching rather than for the fishing. Reminds me to stop and treasure the experience with them.

– It is in art to talk and fish at the same time. Often we get to talking about some great topic and they lose focus on the fishing part. They either want to make eye contact and look away from the water or just get into the story they are telling and lose focus. I will then see the indicator bob below the surface and I have to remind them to set the hook. No matter what, it is still about the relationship and the experience.

– There is a lot to remember in fly fishing. It’s a balance when teaching someone for the first time on how much instruction they can take at any given time. I personally don’t want someone to pick at me for what I’m doing wrong for hours. So I’ve had to learn to balance the good and the bad instruction throughout the session. They want to learn, but they also want a great experience. So it’s a balancing act on what to say and when.

Overall I’ve had a blast taking clients out and I look forward to many seasons of guiding in the future. I’ve learned so much and have met some great people. Let me know if you would like a fly fishing experience in the great Northwest Arkansas area.

Stay Trout Tough!!!

Erik