AR Fishing 2013

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This was our 4^th year to return to Arkansas to fish with Forrest Smith, principal of Trout & Timber Outfitters (www.troutandtimber.com). He’s obviously one of our favorite guides plus he’s an excellent angler and a great coach. He’s able to improve our angling skills all while putting us on lots of opportunities to catch fish! Who could ask for more!?!

As usual, we had an excellent experience! We floated the White River for four days and the Norfork River for one day. We did a couple of different stretches on the White River based on water flow and conditions. Our days there were sunny and warm. We were able to catch & release so many rainbows, it was simply amazing! Then, we also had the opportunity for some 20+ inch brown trout. These are always a treat! And, true to form, Forrest put us on these big guys and each day we landed at least one beautiful brown trout of 20 inches or more in length. What a great producer the White River is when you have a knowledgeable guide! One day was a bit tougher than the others and while motor boats were roaring from spot to spot in hopes of landing a fish, we continued to catch trout and even had some anglers follow us in hopes of hitting the same pods of fish. Too bad, it takes more than that to achieve the same results.

Midweek we took time to fish the Norfork River. It was a cold and rainy day (a bit surprising for mid-May) but before leaving our hotel Forrest told us to bring along the waders. They were definitely needed as we enjoyed some excellent wade fishing for big rainbows. We didn’t bring up too many browns (and didn’t take any photos of them) but we all caught lots of rainbows. We say “all” because Forrest was showing Lindy how to stack mend when he hooked a good one (which Lindy refused to land; it was his trout). Then, while showing Ed another technique at a different wading spot, he once again caught & released a nice fish. Hey, we said it before…. Forrest is a great angler in addition to being a great guide.

Below are some shots of a few of the many trout – rainbow and brown – that we enjoyed catching. There are also some shots of the setting, some fun moments, etc. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

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	We decided to drive out to Norfork Dam on the Sunday before we began our five days of fishing
	The stream feeds in just below the dam and it's where the hatchery releases rainbow trout
	One of the many hatchery pens loaded with small rainbows
	These are some of the huge breeding stock used at the hatchery

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	Ed at a "put in" spot just below the Bull Shoals Dam
	Lindy & Forrest with her 20" Brown; What a beauty!
	While this Brown didn't make the 20" club, it's still a great trout
	Here Lindy & Forrest landed this beautiful Brown on the shoreline
	Ed and Forrest with a 20" Brown; Talk about a great catch!
	This Brown measured in at 16"
	A gourmet river-side lunch; Forrest really does it in style!
	Another 20" brown; amazing!
	We all get a kick out of this sign after our 2012 experience of wade fishing just below the dam (see, last year's trip to know why)
	Can you believe this guy taped in at 19.5"? Sure looks like at least a 20" Brown
	Ed's 21 inch Brown Trout; a really healthy, beautiful fish
	A fellow angler (also known as a Heron)
	It doesn't get much better than this.... Ed's beautiful 22" Brown!

[ T O P ]

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	Our day begins on the Norfork. It certainly doesn't look like the same river we visited on Sunday
	Lindy and Forrest with a really nice Rainbow
	Lindy casting while doing some wade fishing
	Now Ed has a beautiful Rainbow caught while wading
	Lindy lands another beautiful rainbow en route to our next spot for wade fishing
	Ed quickly follows suit with another Rainbow
	Now, it's really coming down. Ed & Lindy are okay in their waders but Forrest is doing this with only a raincoat, shorts & sandals
	The rain ends and Forrest lands his first Rainbow of the year (obviously, he's been very busy in 2013 since this is his first trout!)

If you're interested in exploring our other adventures with Forrest, just click on a link below to go to that year's trip