When Dave Whitlock visited and tied a fly on my fly tying bench it was such a great honor!
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One of the questions we get asked often at the White River Inn is, “Why did you build the inn?” In this video, we answer that question.
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Categories : White River Inn FAQ's
Springtime On The White River is a great time of the year for many reasons. As a fly fishing enthusiast, sometimes I tend to focus on that aspect alone. With all the hatches coming off the fish start keying on midges, then on caddis, and finally on mayflies through May and early June. The fishing is usually fantastic! But Springtime On The White River is about so much more than just fishing. Life begins for so many things in the spring it is truly a phenomenal place to live. I count my blessings most every day!
Two of the six babies
A baby armadillo
Three evenings ago we had some guests out on the back deck. When we looked down and across the river, there were four baby red foxes. They were running around all over, just playing by the river. They acted like little puppies jumping on each other and biting each others tails. We watched them through our telescope and binoculars for almost half an hour. They were too far for the lens on my camera to get good shots, but it sure was entertaining watching them! When a young Labrador puppy got within about 100 yards, they all ran back to their den. I’ll enjoy watching them play til they grow up and leave the den. This is the fourth year we have had the pleasure of watching this fox family raise its pups.
Yesterday, as I was returning from my daily 8 mile walk, I heard some rustling in the bushes. Always curious about what’s in the bushes, I began to try to figure out what it was. Much to my surprise, I spotted a softball sized, baby armadillo rooting around. It was oblivious to my presence as it searched for insects in the leaves. As I walked a little further, there was more noise AND more baby armadillos! There were six of them following each other around and crawling on each others tails. Yes, I know they are a nuisance animal as far as animals go, cause they dig up my yard just like everybody elses. But nuisance or not, they are cute little guys. So when I got home I told Tina there was an Armadillo “hatch” I wanted her to see! She loves baby animals. When we got there, they were still rooting and crawling around so I got some great “baby dillo” pictures.
A beautiful little fawn
Today, Tina and I left out for our walk and had only gone a few hundred yards when I heard a faint bleating noise. As I tried to see into the trees to determine the noise maker, out wobbled a brand new whitetail fawn! It’s little legs were wobbly and he was unsure of his footing. He was probably only a day or so old! He continued to bleat, and I was fearful a coyote or dog would hear him. As he walked into the grass bleating, he stopped and laid down. I slowly approached his hiding spot. His camouflaged coat was perfect in the leaves as the sun glistened down on his back. I slowly crept away from him and ran back home to get my camera. When I got back, Tina had marked the spot precisely where he laid down. After some looking around, I found him curled up motionless. I was careful not to touch him or alarm him as I snuck in for just a few photos. He is truly one of God’s most beautiful creations, and I am so lucky to get to witness the beginning of his life. I am sure soon enough he will be in our yard with his mother eating under our feeder and enjoying the abundant foliage and browse here on the bluff .
A close up!
As I reflect on everything Tina and I and our guests get to witness here at the lodge, it’s no wonder that Springtime on the White River isn’t just about the great fishing. I hope you enjoy looking at the the photographs as much as I did taking them.
Tight Lines to You All,
Moose
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Categories : White River, wildlife
A White River Caddis Hatch of epic proportions happened last weekend on the upper stretch of The White River! And as luck would have it, we just so happened to have three fly fishing couples up from Florida. Two of the couples were total novices and one couple has fished many of the worlds greatest trout waters from New Zealand to Patagonia to all of the West’s famous rivers. It should go without saying, that with that mix, we were hoping to pull the “Great Fishing Rabbit” out of the hat! Our guides did a great job, and nature provided all the rest of the excitement. It was truly an unbelievable weekend of fishing!
Of course with beginning fly fishermen, we always want them to get off to a great start. A White River Caddis Hatch would usually be just what the doctor ordered, so to speak, to get someone started with a bang! With trout popping on the surface virtually everywhere, and the subsurface fish being even more active, it is fly fishing pandemonium. A couple hundreds of hungry trout feeding ravenously where you can visually see and cast to them, and four excited first timers, and a dream comes true for everybody! After the first day of fishing, the chatter and bragging on the back deck was a sight to see. The scary thing is, it was the women doing most of it. When you put lifelong friends, good wine, great fishing and perfect weather together, being a fishing lodge owner doesn’t get much better. After all the camaraderie, we enjoyed a fabulous dinner by Tina and got ready for the next day!
Kevin and maureen with one of many doubles.And their browns!
Following a huge breakfast, we sent the couples out with the instructions ”catch more today”! Everybody laughed and said that was impossible. But as “The Fishing Gods” would have it, the wind laid, the caddis hatched earlier, the novices got their casting down, and the trout cooperated! That is actually an understatement! They whacked fish ALL DAY LONG. Kevin, my seasoned angler, and his wife said,” they had never caught fish like this ANYWHERE”. Kevin said they made over one hundred drifts and hooked or landed a fish on all but one drift. He also said they actually started trying for doubles and had more than they could count. If he hadn’t been so ”giddy”, like a little boy, I would have thought he was stretching it a little bit. Ben (his guide) confirmed the fishing was as he put it, ” as good as it gets”. If Ben says it, I am taking it to the bank!
Chad's helping Greg hold this one cause it's sooo big!
All in all, any day on the White River, or any river for that matter, is a great day! But every now and then,when all the stars are aligned, one little caddis makes its way to the surface and starts something that fly fishing dreams are made of! A White River Caddis Hatch!
If you would like more information on fishing the White River, or if you just want to talk fishing, give me a call at 870.430.2233.
Tight Lines To Ya,
Moose
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Here at The White River Inn, I consider myself extremely lucky to work with Arkansas’ Best Fly Fishing Guides on nearly a daily basis. These guys are not just one of the guides you hire and float down the river with, hoping for the best. They are truly experts in any and all aspects of flyfishing. The best of the best.
Ben and Kevin/A great fish!
Arkansas’ Best Fly Fishing Guides do so much more than just take you fishing. There are quite a few guides on The White River, as well as other rivers, who are very good flyfishermen. There are others with great personalities who are wonderful hosts and a lot of fun on the river. Then there are those who’s knowledge about their rivers and/or lakes is vast and they can also talk a “good line”. The problem is there are not very many who can do it all at an expert level. You can probably see where I am going with this. The fact is that a Great guide is sometimes very hard to find!
Chad and Greg Slavik with a beautiful male brown
I am going out on a limb here. I think that the single most evident trait that ALL the truly great guides have, in addition to their field of expertise, is that they care! They care about you, your safety, your vacation. They care about the value “You” put on the day spent under their care and tutelage! They are concerned with every aspect of your trip from start to finish, period.
After six years in the flyfishing and lodging business, and forty years of hunting and fishing all over the world and in the good old USA, I have crossed paths with and fished and hunted with lots of guides around the world. A few have been great, most have been good, and thankfully only a handful have done a dismal job. Looking back, I find that after all the trips are over, and the gear is stowed away, that the fondest memories I have are not the fish caught or the trophy animals taken. The best memories are about the friends and guides I get to spend those special times with that really stick with me.
A great guide with a mighty fine river smallie/Bens specialty!
Today, the reason I decided to write this particular post is a singular comment that I am hearing over and over from so many of our guests. It is not a statement I take lightly. More and more often I am hearing it from seasoned anglers who have literally fished all over the world. Many of our guests are beginning flyfishermen and would be easily impressed with a good bunch of fish and a great day on the river. However, when an advanced flyfisherman, who has fished all of the West’s famous rivers and from Patagonia to New Zealand (famous for great guides), and many places in between says it, I TAKE NOTICE.
“He is the best guide I have ever fished with, PERIOD!” Kevin said. I thought for a moment and began to consider how many times I have heard those exact words.
WOW! is all I can say. We are so fortunate to have some of Arkansas’ Best Flyfishing Guides right here on our stretch of River. What a pleasure it is to know that each time our guests leave our lodge for a day on the river, that they are fishing with truly great guides, who have our clients’ safety and best interests as their number one goal! I am honored to call these guys friends.
I probably should have mentioned this earlier. These guides that I am talking about are NOT my employees. They are all independent guides who work as guides, full time, for themselves. They are independent operators, without them we could not operate as we do here at the lodge knowing our guests are fishing with the very best the White River has to offer.
The Guides !!
To all of you guys who work hard with and for us, Thanks. You truly are the best of the best!
If you have any questions about Flyfishing The White River or just fishing in general, give me a call at 870.430.2233.
Keep your lines tight,
Moose
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One of the very best Arkansas wedding destinations I can think of would be close to one of Arkansas’ beautiful waterways or lakes. Of course it goes without saying I am an outdoorsy kind of guy. The Ozarks are full of truly great Arkansas wedding destinations with breathtaking vistas and views seemingly around every corner. Here at the White River Inn, we have a pretty spectacular view in our own right.
Arkansas wedding destinations
Tina and I have had the wonderful opportunity to host many weddings here at the White River Inn and each one has been very unique and special in its own way. A couple of the marriage proposals occurred here, and then they followed up with the wedding here as well. What an honor it is to be a small part of these very special moments. With our luxury jacuzzi tubs both in the rooms and on the back deck as well, we also play host to quite a few honeymooners here at the White River Inn.
One of the attributes that makes the White River Inn an exceptional Arkansas Wedding Destination is its location. Perched high on a 300 foot bluff directly above the White River, the views of the Ozarks are incredible both from the back deck and through the 10 foot tall wall of windows that surround the back wall of the 1,200 square foot great room. The layout of the great room and the deck also eliminate the worry about weather for outdoor weddings! A bride can plan for an outdoor wedding, but if mother nature has a different idea, we can simply move into the great room and enjoy the same great views through a wall of glass while staying dry and warm. With thirty-one very private acres, you feel like you are away from it all, even though Moutain Home, Arkansas is just a short twenty minute drive away.
With all of the amenities of a five star hotel without the crowds, The White River Inn is truly one of the premier Arkansas Wedding Destinations in the beautiful Ozark Mountains.
If you are planning a wedding and are looking for a truly special location with hosts that will put your needs at the top of their list, give us a call. It would certainly be our pleasure to answer any questions you might have, and if your going to be in the area, swing by and we will give you a tour.
Phone#870-430-2233
Arkansas Wedding destinations
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Categories : Arkansas Wedding Destination
The White River Floods in the past two weeks have been a major concern to many people who live on the White and Norfork rivers. We have experienced near record rainfalls for the month of April and Bull Shoals Lake has risen over 25 ft in two weeks. For most river systems in the US, this would “blow out” the rivers and make them unfishable or at least very difficult to fish at best.
trout fishing on white river
One of the points that makes the White River one of the most amazing trout fisheries in the country is that the top 30 miles of river is never blown out! Below Bull Shoals Dam, the first significant watershed that can affect water clarity and water or current level is Crooked Creek. Located approximately 30 river miles below the dam, when it floods anything below it and the Buffalo River are directly in mother natures path. This can be problematic at best for the trout fisherman dealing with water discoloration, high current level and floating and submerged debris.
This brings me to the earlier point. When the White River floods, the first 30 miles of river is virtually unaffected! Most certainly the water may cloud up or be muddy immediately after a torrential rain. But as soon as they open even one gate at the Bull Shoals Dam, within a few short hours the “bad water” is quite literally flushed down stream. Depending how many gates are opened, the river can clear as fast as 6 or 7 miles per hour. This is in stark contrast to our western mountainous rivers that can take weeks to clear up with a steady flood of snow melt or heavy spring rains.
As I write this note after the recent 15 inches of rain, the White River below the lodge is crystal clear and fishing very well all the way down to Crooked Creek. The sulfur hatch has not quite gotten started yet, but should begin in the next week or two and run well into June. The bite on midges under indicators and small streamers has been very good. And as always on the White River, the spinfishermen are wearing the trout out on twitch baits and small marabou jigs. Bait fishermen are doing well on power bait, minnows, and redworms drifted on the bottom on river rigs.
If trout fishing is your passion and is usually on your agenda, or if perhaps you need more info on the White River Fishery, you can subscribe to our Blog and check out our weekly report on the conditions of the river and hatch forecasts. In lieu of that, if you have specific questions, just pick up the phone anytime and give me a call at 870.430.2233, and I’ll try to answer them for you. Until next time, have a great week and take somebody fishing with you.
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Categories : Fishing, White River
Tags : White River Trout Fishing
White River Fly Fishing is most often times classified as nymph fishing at it’s finest. I personally feel that this is usually an accurate statement due to our predominant forage base of scuds and sowbugs, not to mention that we also have a year round midge population that seems to hatch out every day.
Turnin one loose,he'll get bigger!!
However, what many people don’t know, is that during March, April, May and June the White River Fly Fishing with dry flies can be world class! We have a caddis hatch here in March and April that rivals any other river I have fished, and is closely followed by a superb sulfur hatch that would make most any dry fly purist drool.
Last week, Carl from Dallas, Texas, landed over sixty fish in one day on Elk Hair Caddis. He wanted dry fly action and boy did he get it! It was a personal best day for him, and he is planning an immediate follow up, if time off allows, for the sulfur hatch! Another couple from North Carolina enjoyed three very good days on the White River with a 100 plus fish day! They caught quite a few on dries, but found it difficult to move from a “take” on every cast to the relatively slow “rise or take” on every fourth or fifth drift with dries. It really was a “Pick Your Poison” kind of weekend as far as dries and nymphs were concerned. The Grubbs out of Heber Springs, Arkansas both had exceptional days as well, and were pushing the 100 fish mark on Saturday as well as having a great all around weekend.
A very respectable White River Brown!
For any fly fisherman who wants to experience great dry fly action, now would be a great time to try the White River. We have great guides here at the lodge, and there are many different packages we can put together for anglers of all skill levels. If you just want to talk fishing or have specific questions on flies, gear, or the usual hatch times, just give me a call at 870.430.2233, and I’ll try to steer you in the right direction!
Tight Lines To Ya,
Moose
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Categories : Fly Fishing, White River
White River Trophy Brown Trout - Nice and chunky.
Being rated as the top tailwater fishery in the United States generally requires the White River Brown Trout fishing to be at least good all year round. However, the last couple of weeks have been nothing short of world class!
Dick Hart of Dallas, Texas, brought a group of friends up last week to experience what the White River is famous for. Despite some high winds and dead low water they had a fantastic trip. They were all avid fishermen and enjoyed catching very high numbers of fish on both spinfishing and flyfishing gear. Two of the guys flyfished the entire trip {3 full days} and were fishing a very good Caddis hatch that continues to improve every day. Dick and his partner Travis started out spin fishing, but after putting around 30 very nice White River Brown Trout in the boat, they felt compelled to break out the flyrods and experience a fantastic bite on caddis emergers. Although the caddis hatch was very good, the trout didn’t seem to be keying on the caddis on the surface. When they switched to a size 16 emerger, the bite was on!! They easily boated 60 or seventy fish and admitted sheepishly to missing at least that many more.
Texas Fishing Legand, Dick Hart
Ansel and Don stuck to their preferred tools {flyrods} and whacked an incredible number of fish on pupa and emergers while wade fishing. Ansel caught a few on dries, but the bite was so good on the nymphs, it was difficult to stay with them. They both had stellar days that will long be remembered I’m sure.
As the spring weather continues to warm, this caddis hatch will continue until the end of April, slowly giving way to what is going to be a great Mayfly {sulfurs} hatch in the beginning of May.
Travis Hammer's 21" Brown Trout
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that Dick and Travis caught 27 very nice White River Brown Trout up to about 3 1/2 pounds on the last day while spin fishing. The majority of them were in the 18 to 20 inch range with a few sneaking up on the 22 inch mark. A great day by any measure!
If high numbers of fish and a special trip for some White River Brown Trout is on your bucket list, now is the time. Give us a call and lets talk trout fishing!
Phone: 870.430.2233
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Categories : Fishing, Fly Fishing
Tags : White River Brown Trout
Saturday,
March
26th,
2011
Are you looking for the best all inclusive White River fishing packages in Arkansas? Well, we’ve got em.
After more requests than I can count from our returning customers and corporate clients, we have decided to offer our popular all inclusive fishing packages to all of our new, and returning guests. These are specifically tailored to the people and businesses, or families, that would like a convenient one stop shop. Let us handle all the details, this is what we do.
We have actually been doing this since our opening in 2005, but we didn’t really publish it on our site and it has never been this easy for our guests. All the details are under the heading “Fishing Packages” on our home page. Just click on the title, pick the number of days you want to stay and fish and give us a call to pick your dates! For the executive or executive assistant who doesn’t want to plan out the whole corporate retreat, it doesn’t get much easier than this.
All of our packages include virtually everything you would expect from a luxury fishing lodge. Expert guides for both spin fishing and fly fishing for trout, 3 full gourmet meals a day, appetizers with wine and beer in the evening before dinner, and all the fishing gear you will need for the trip. Our guides will either pick you up at the lodge in the morning or you will be transported to the river by your hosts. The only things left up to our guests are waders {ask if needed},licenses,and tips.
We will of course continue to operate as a luxury bed and breakfast with the same services as always. Tina and I hope that putting these Fishing Packages together for you will just make it a little simpler for you to plan your trip.
Remember, you don’t have to travel to Idaho or Montana to experience some of the very best trout fishing in the lower 48. And in my opinion, we have the very best Brown Trout fishing in the United States right here on the White River In Arkansas.
For more info or reservations, go to our Fishing Packages page or call us at 870.430.2233.
Tight lines to everybody!!
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Categories : Fishing Packages
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