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By MattTucker, April 21, 2009 6:00 am

I am WAY LATE in getting this trip uploaded to the site.  Sorry, just been busy on the work front and what not.

My March 14, 2009 trip to Dry Run Creek had been building for ever, since my youngest has started to show an interest in going fishing with me.  The winter was too cold, and I was determined that she enjoy her second trip to Dry Run Creek as much as she did the first trip, so we waited until the weather was just right this spring / late winter and settled on this weekend, after consulting the weather several times.

I knew from our first trip down there, that the stream is more effectively fished if the kids wear waders.  It isn’t so much that they wade much, but in a few places it makes it easier for them to get closer to the fish.  Besides, as a kid growing up my dad always made sure I had all the hunting / fishing gear I needed…..and that was part of getting to go hunting / fishing with dad.  So with that I ordered her a pair of youth breathable waders from Cabelas for $70 and she was now outfitted with her own fly rod (a TFO 7′ – 6″ 5wt Professional Series) and Teton Tioga reel outfitted with Sharkskin (because that is what I had).  Besides, if I ever need a short 5wt rod for a trip to the smokies…I now have one to borrow.  Everything arrived in time and the waders fit her perfectly.  She was ready to go fishing.

Friday afternoon arrived, and Hannah and I left the office a little early (she needs to experience the full fishing trip, complete with sneaking out early) and headed home to load up and pick up my dad, who decided to make the trip with us.  The trip down was fairly uneventful as trips go, but realize that a 4.5hr trip to go fly fishing for a day is a little more than I think most 7 year olds can handle on a daily basis.  Luckily she slept most of the way down, once it was dark.  We rolled in to our hotel in Mountain Home around 10pm and hit the sack.

We were up early the next morning in an attempt to be the first ones on the stream, and as we expected we were.  Hannah and I suited up in our waders while my dad readied the video camera and other neccessities until we were all ready, and we were off down the concrete sidewalk along the hatchery headed toward Dry Run Creek.

The first section of the stream we fished (near the second stair case) was just full of fish and it wasn’t long before Hannah was rollcasting by herself and hooking fish (mostly by herself).  One of the first fish she picked up was a nice 18″ brown trout that came out of the water a couple of times while I went to get the net.  That was the only brown trout she landed on this trip, but she did manage to land several rainbows and even get hooked up with some pig fish.

As with most days on Dry Run Creek, the fly of the day was an egg pattern (a micro orange egg) under a yarn indicator with one small lead shot.  The fish were on it, just plain and simple.  We fished 4x tippit the entire day, and the fish did not seem to mind.  As fishing goes, it was a good day.  She was getting tired around 12pm, so we decided to break for lunch just as it started to rain.  We were going to drive back on Saturday afternoon anyway, so the rain simply made us shorten our stay on the stream (note to self, need to buy her a breathable rain coat before our next trip…), and with that we were in the car and on the way back.  In total, she landed about 30 fish in 4 hours or so, the biggest being an 18″ brown, so it was definitely a good day.

I could write all day about our trip, but my words aren’t near as exciting or meaningful as to hear Hannah tell people about her trip down there or the fact that I got to experience this with my Dad.  We managed to shoot about 3 hours of video while down there, and not near enough photos, that are below.  But again, it is was one of those trips that I hope every fly fisherman gets to experience.  If you take nothing at all from fly fishing, take the memories…..

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By MattTucker, September 22, 2008 12:44 pm

Dry Run Creek in Arkansas is simply an amazing fishery.  It is about a 1/4 mile long stream that is fed by the Norfork Federal Fish Hatchery outflows and it flows into the Norfork River near Mountain Home, Arkansas.  It is a stream that has several restrictions in place, including that the fishermen must be under the age of 16 or physically disabled in order to catch and release single hook barbless flies in the river.  It is without a doubt one of the hidden treasures in the Ozarks.

This trip was in the works for several weeks, when my 6 year old daughter interupted me tying a few flies to ask when I would take her on one of my overnight fishing trips.  She actually wanted to go that minute, but the weather wasn’t right and I didn’t want it to rain the entire trip if she went.  So a deal was struck that we would head out the weekend of September 20 if the weather was right.

The week leading up to the trip, we worked on casting in the front yard.  We tried casting with a 9ft fly rod, but it was too heavy and long for her to comfortably cast.  We moved to a very slow 7ft 3wt rod, but I thougt the rod wouldn’t provide enough backbone for someone new to fighting fish and for some of the bigger fish that Dry Run Creek holds.  So, I did what any father with a kid that wants to go fly fishing would do…..I bought her, her first fly rod (a Cabela’s Traditonal II 7ft 6″ 4wt w/ reel, line, backing, case for $80).  It was the first time I have gotten to buy either of my kids a fly rod, and I was extremely happy.  With her new rod, she worked on casting in the front yard throughout the week, trying to hit little pieces of glo-bug yarn that i threw in the grass.  She was on a mission, and by the end of the week she was doing pretty good if I do say so myself.

Friday rolled around and we were loaded in the car with our Kung Fu Panda Cheezits and ready to go.  We rolled into the Quarry Park campground at about 11pm, to find one empty campsite with a trailer that had several halogen lights burning bright outside and right into our Durango.  The light combined with the humidity and lack of airflow (even with all the doors / windows open on the Durango) resulted in a very restless sleep for the both of us.  So at 1am, after Hannah making a comment that she can’t sleep, I made the executive decision and we ran into Mountain Home to grab a hotel room and hopefully 5hrs of sleep before we were to tackle Dry Run Creek.  It was definitely a smart move, as we were both well rested and headed towards Dry Run Creek.

On the drive down, I called Brian Wise for some directions (the GPS had me taking a new route) and told him we were fishing Dry Run Creek in the morning and invited him down.  I got a text later that night saying he would meet us there around 7am.

The resulting photos are some of the photos from the trip.  There were several firsts on this trip, including my first fishing trip with one of my daughters, her first fish caught by herself, and the first time I have been asked by one of my kids when I will take them to Arkansas again.  It was very cool to say the least.
After we were done fishing (we only fished for about 3hrs) we headed over to the Norfork Federal Fish Hatchery to let the kids see the various stages of trout (they actualy had fry there that were still feeding off of the egg sack) including some HUGE trout as well.  The Friends of the Norfork Fish Hatchery had a visitors day at the hatchery that day and Mr. Davy Wotton and friends were on site to promote the hatchery and help generate positive funds for the facility.  They had various fly rods to cast, a fish tank for kids to fish in, a very well thought out visitors center with a short film, and local businesses with tents showing off their wares.  A little environmental / ecological education to end the time on the water.  The kids were amazed at how small the trout start out and what they grow in to.

We followed Brian and Parker back to Gainesville, MO to have lunch at the annual Hootin’ & Hollerin’ Festival where we dined on 2ft long Corn Dogs and Ribbon Fries and listened to some gospel music for a bit before taking the 4hr drive back to St. Louis.  I can’t think of a better weekend.

–Matt Tucker

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