April 14, 2009 | FISHING REPORT - LITTLE RED RIVER
Little Red Fishing report: April 14, '09 The Little Red Fly Shop is hosting it's third annual charity benefit for Arkansas Children's Hospital of Little Rock called "Rainbows For Kids". The day long event will occur on Saturday, the 25th of April. All proceeds, including donations, go to benefit the hospital. Please make your checks payable to the hospital. This year, there will be a silent auction that is now on-line and ready for bids. Please go to www.littleredflyshop.com and click on the Rainbows For Kids link or go to www.biddingforgood.com and follow the path to our auction. The shop has a computer dedicated to the auction if you would like to visit us and put in a bid. Items on the auction block include fly fishing guide trips, lodging on the river, hand made quilt (you have to see it to believe it!), hand carved brown trout, Sage Z-Axis fly rod, TFO fly rod (any rod they make!), Ross reel, artwork and more. You will need to register prior to placing your bid. We also will have lots of great door prizes. Thanks to all the local businesses who have been so generous with their donations! We will also have a fly tying contest. The three fly categories are dry, nymph and streamer. It costs $10.00 to enter each fly and the winner will be announced mid-afternoon of the event. The winner receives a $100.00 gift certificate to the Little Red Fly Shop. The flies become the property of the fly shop and will be auctioned to benefit the hospital. Have your entries at the shop by 1:00 o'clock pm on the 25th. The casting competition will involve casting for accuracy, distance and through a hoop. The venue will be set up first thing that morning so you can come early and practice. The winner gets a new Sage ZXL fly rod (5 wt. 9'0" 4 pc.) valued at $695.00! Did I mention that there will be free food for everyone in attendance? They say there is no such thing as a free lunch, but, I'm here to tell you this is an exception to that rule. This event is all about the children so please participate and give generously. Anything you spend is a charitable donation because every dime of profit and all donations will go straight to the Arkansas Children's Hospital. Thanks for helping us.
The Greers Ferry Lake level is slightly above top power pool and water releases are occurring every morning at 6:00 o'clock continuing until 10:00 o'clock pm. This provides a wade fishing opportunity at Winkley Shoal (Swingin' Bridge) from dawn until about 9:30 am and until about 11:00 am at Libby Shoal. The lake level, as I prepare this report, is 462.1 feet above mean sea level. I suspect releases will continue at this rate until the lake level is back down to the preferred maximim of 461.44 feet above msl. With no rain, this could happen in 4-5 days.
For over a year, we have experienced more high water in the river than not. It has been estimated that for every day the Little Red River is not fishable due to water releases or storm water runoff, our county loses $100,000.00 in uncollected revenue! I am also told there is nothing that can be done about that.
The National Fish Hatchery at JFK Park on the Little Red recently got a bird net. This is a roof and walls of netting over the outside raceways in front of the offices. Hatchery manager, Sherri Shoults, told me that she was losing about 80,000 rainbows every year to bird predation. That's about $80,000.00 lost per year! In seems that great blue herons simply ate their fill of the growing fish with impunity. The vultures were also on hand to harvest any hapless trout that flopped out of the raceways. Sherri told me that, before the netting was sealed, a number of birds got in through the gap and had to be herded out before the job was completed.
The Little Red Fly Shop is conducting a beginners fly tying class on Saturday the 2nd of May. It begins at 8:00 o'clock in the morning and ends about 4:00 o'clock pm. For only $100.00 per person, the class will teach you the basics of fly tying and give you the skills to tie several flies useful in the trout waters of Arkansas. Many of the flies used to catch trout will also catch bream and bass. The shop will provide the tools and materials you will need during the class. Donnie Hyslip is the ever-patient instructor. Please give us a call if you want to join in the fun.
Aquatic insect hatches continue as predicted with midge, bwo, caddis and march browns being the primary players. Good dry flies to try include midge (#22-#28 cream), para adams (#18-#20), American march brown (#14), elk hair caddis (#16-#20 tan), blue winged olive mayfly (#18) or crackleback (#12). If you are fishing below the surface of the river, try a sowbug (#14-#16 tan, smoky olive, uv tan or peacock), chronic (#14), zebra midge (#16-#22 red, black or copper), green or red @ss soft hackle (#14-#18), copper john (#14-#16 red or green), egg pattern (#12-#14 roe or salmon), San Juan worm (#14 red or fl cerise) or woolly bugger (#8-#12 olive, brown or black).
If you have questions about anything in this report, please direct them to me at the Little Red Fly Shop of Heber Springs, Arkansas. My numbers are #888-442-4022 toll free or #501-887-9988. You can send an e-mail to me at shop@littleredflyshop.com. I'm Little Red Jed Hollan, mgr. <*))))><
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