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White River fly fishing guide, fly shop and lodge.
White River Arkansas Fly Fishing
Expert Guides and Riverside Lodge for Groups or Individual
Anglers.
Clint Wilkinson, owner of Wilkinson Outdoor Adventures, lives in the Twin Lakes area of North Central Arkansas, in the beautiful Ozark Mountains. He has fished the regional waters for over twenty years, and has established a reputation as one of the top fly fishing guides in the area.
Clint enjoys working with fly fishers of all skill levels and strives to make each fishing trip an educational and memorable experience.
Wilkinson Outdoor Adventures is a full service fly fishing outfitter, providing lodging on the White River, a full service fly shop, and guided fly fishing for groups or individuals. The area waters offer four species of trout. Also, fly fishing and spin fishing trips are available for small mouth Bass.
Clint, and all other contracted guides for Wilkinson Outdoor Adventures, are licensed, insured, highly experienced, fly fishing guides. We strive to provide a quality learning experience even on the slow days.
It is the primary goal of this web site to provide everything visiting fly fishers will need to know to make their experience as simple and as memorable as possible.
The White River Tail Water System
Prior to the 1940's, the White River and it's tributaries were productive smallmouth and largemouth bass fisheries. Then in the late 40's, the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers began developing flood/hydropower projects on White River Basin rivers. Norfork Dam was the first impoundment constructed, and over the next 20 years, four other dams would be built in the White River Basin. These dams "pull" water from deep in the lakes behind them. Consequently, the dam releases are cold and clear. There is no doubt that the first cold releases at Norfork Dam forever changed the dynamics of the regions biggest rivers.
Local anglers were initially upset when they lost their warm water bass fisheries, due to the dams. So to mitigate the loss, the Federal Government created several trout hatcheries in the region and began stocking the tail water rivers. Biologists also introduced cold water minnows, plants, and invertebrates from the nearby Spring River. This proved successful as the trout habitat began to flourish almost overnight, and the trout grew from 1/2 to 1 inch a month.
Our guide trips are done on the tail water stretches below Bull Shoals (The White River) and Norfork (North Fork River) Dams. These trout waters have become world renowned for both the numbers and size of the fish they can support. These rivers have produced countless state and world record fish. Four species are available to fly fishers. They are Rainbow, Brook, Brown, and Cutthroat trout. It is not uncommon, in certain areas, to catch all four in the same day, achieving the coveted "Arkansas Grand Slam".
Because water is drawn from the same levels at all times, water temperature changes little from season to season. As a result, trout grow FAT all year long on the abundant scuds, sowbugs, midges, crawfish, sculpins, minnows, and other forage fish. Insect hatches can be great in the Spring when we see caddis, crane flies and sulphur mayflies. Although the fish do not depend on these food sources, they will look up and slurp if there is a hatch. This adds some variety to the to the productive nymph fishing that we normally do.
White River Arkansas Fishing Lodge
Wilkinson Outdoor Adventures offers riverside accommodations at the White River Trout Lodge. This three level A-frame is located approximately three miles above the Wildcat Shoals access area, on the banks of the White River. The lodge caters to fly fishers and may be rented by the level, or as a whole. It is the perfect choice for groups or individuals. Owners, Bill and Joanna Smith, provide luxury and comfort at a very reasonable price. Among the greatest features of the lodge is its view of the White River and it's bluffs from the three thousand square feet of deck space. Absolutely Breathtaking!
Questions? Click below for more information
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