The Conclave Is Dead….The Fishing Is Not.

October 17, 2012 by MattTucker

2012-10-06pic001(edited)(resized) Two weeks ago I made my first trip of the fall season south to the White River. October is the time of year that the pilgrimages south begin for me, and the Natural State never ceases to disappoint. This trip was something I had been looking forward to for a couple of weeks; as I was finally going to fish with some new folks and hit up the conclave between floats. It was going to be a busy as shit weekend, but it had lots of potential, and with that (and the boat in tow) I rolled out of St. Louis around 6pm on Friday night pointed towards the River Rock Inn in Mountain Home.

The plan was to hook up with Chance Maxville from the Chasing The Dream blog and Jimmy “T” Traylor from FlyFishArkansas.com and do a quick float on the White River before heading over to Conclave and checking it out. Chance rolled in from somewhere in Oklahoma around midnight and we hung out bullshitting until about 1am or so, before I headed back to my room to grab a few hours sleep. Generation was weak and we didn’t have many short float options, so we opted to float from Dam to White Hole and after dropping the boat in and running shuttle we were on our way. The fishing was slow, as we were throwing big streamers, but fish were caught although no pigs gave us any love. The morning was filled, like any good first date feeling out of a new fishing buddy, with stripper stories, beer, and political jokes. Any day in the boat with JimmyT is a good day, and Chance fit right in. Hell, we even had JimmyT on the oars for a bit (the sucker volunteered to row through Gaston’s hole…just as the wind kicked up…). We finished up about 11:30am and pulled the boat out and headed towards Conclave.

This was my 2nd time (maybe 3rd) at Conclave and I have absolutely no interest in going back. Just walking around, the average age of the attendees was close to two decades above my own age and as a 35yo, that is unfortunate. I don’t care to sit and watch fly tyers tie or take part in many of the seminars (although there were a few I would have maybe went to)……so I may be the exception; I want to meet people I correspond with over the internet for some beer, fishing, and food and try and solve the world’s problems (like why there is not a bustling adult entertainment business in Mountain Home or why the hell won’t the Corp of Engineers keep their page updated more frequently or perhaps more USGS gauges along the river to tell you where the flows are at and when). I have never been to the banquet, so I can’t offer any input on that. But as I looked around…..the place was smoky as hell from the kitchen and the hall was empty (at least on Saturday…..and it was a cold, wet day)…..I hope everyone was on the river.

I was hoping that more of the success of the Fly Fishing Film Tour would have rubbed off on the SCFFF, but it doesn’t look like it did. Make it a place where fisherman can congregate after a day on the river and toss back a few beers while listening to live music and bitching about their problems. But don’t call it a banquet……or an auction…..I won’t go to those until I get an ARP card. Why not combine it with an even like the Cotter Trout Festival. Why the heck wouldn’t they make this a Film Tour stop is also beyond me. I got in to town late on friday night and the hotel I was staying in was packed with young guys and drift boats….they were holed up in their rooms drinking and bullshitting….they were looking for a party….and had to throw their own. About midnight they walked back to their rooms with coolers in hand. For those under 40, I say conclave misses the target completely.

The issues facing the Southern Council of the Federation of Fly Fishers (SCFFF) is simple. It is member engagement. This is the same issue facing its member local clubs within the fly fishing industry and this is nothing different than what every other volunteer organization and association faces on an annual basis. Sure there may be other issues such as conveying value, identifying future leaders and leadership development, but at the end of the day membership engagement will help to solve the other issues. So the question that should be asked is, how do we get more of the members we do have involved and how do we get the younger members involved. In my past experience with a large local construction organization, the answer was simple, give members what they want. It was an organization that struggled to get 70 members to a monthly meeting, we were able to get monthly meeting attendance to over 110 members by giving them what they wanted and breaking from the mold of the association and providing them with networking opportunities and not monthly educational meetings. Suddenly, identifying future leaders of the association was easy because as the participation grew so did those willing to help because we created something they valued.

I like to bitch about things as much as the next guy, and have absolutely no interest in helping plan an upcoming event until someone can tell me what the Southern Council of the Federation of Fly Fisherman actually does for Matt Tucker. Tell me that the Southern Council FFF or the National FFF is being instrumental in having CFS Flow Gauges placed every 10 miles down the White River so anglers can get real-time flow data that means a damn, or that it was instrumental in helping establish additional smallmouth management waters, or how they have a lobbyist working towards minimum flow in the state of Arkansas? But I haven’t heard any of those things, so for me the FFF is just another organization with its hand out. About the only thing I can tell you about the FFF is that they offer fly casting certifications…………and at the end of the day fly casting isn’t fly fishing.

Secondly, it comes down to how I value my time. I am married 35yo guy with two daughters (ages 15 and 10). I am a partner in a small construction company in a midwest metro area and between work and family, I have very little time for anything else. For me, after choosing to spend time away from my family and my business, going to a “banquet” is the last thing I want to do. I have a hall pass and want to blow off some steam and fish. On Saturday night, while you a few were at the banquet, I was out at a bar living it up with about 12 others (many from the area, that chose to avoid the banquet as well). I have no incentive to plan something like this, because I will just grab my cooler of brew and find a party somewhere (I don’t need much…..but I won’t ever call it a “banquet”), but throw a party that I like a time or two and suddenly I want to become involved with it.

Sometimes the difference is in message and other times the difference is in content. Unfortunately for the Conclave I think the problem lies with both.

I can’t bitch about something, without offering up suggestions, so here you go:

Move the location closer to a river (one of the events that does this right is Trout Fest out in the Townsend area…..just a spot on great event and set in a beautiful area) — at the fair grounds, it doesn’t even feel like fly fishing.
Put up a beer tent / music stage with live music and tables / chairs for guys to sit in (and make sure it is going on after hours…when guys are on their way back to the hotel after fishing….hell serve up some BBQ for dinner)(you can either charge a ticket price or charge beer sales). There is a ton of great music in that area, why not help showcase it.
Make Friday Night a FFFT event and make it outside (The Toad Fly’s approach is spot on)…you could possibly do this at the State Park (think of all the potential walk-in from campers staying in the park). Weather sucks, I get that, so if that is a concern than do it in house….but give us something to hang out for after the shows are over.
Lose “Banquet” in the name of your Saturday night event. Nothing says “old” like “banquet”
I am intrigued by the Casino Night event (in the construction organization I was president of, we changed our annual “Christmas Party” to a “Casino Night” and were able to increase attendance and draw new members. But it took people talking about how much fun it was to do that. The key for us was getting the alcohol flowing. Lose the sit-down-dinner, the food at any of those types of events is hardly ever very good, and provide appetizers and cocktail tables throughout the floor along with live music (DJ’s are for weddings and raves).
Be family friendly (your future leadership has commitments to family), give the kids something to do during the day while dad is bullshittin’ with his buddies and both the kid’s and dad will want to go back next year (again, Trout Fest does this spot on). (I know it seems odd to say….make it a party….but make it something I can bring my kids to….but it can be done)
Promote what FFF does and show value. Why is it so damn important for me to be a member of FFF (I currently am not).
Promote the fishing and promote the fuck out of it

After saying a few hellos, Chance and I couldn’t get out of the Conclave fast enough, and Brian Wise (yeah, that Wise from Fly Fishing The Ozarks) was right behind us. As we “wadered up” (not really sure that is a phrase, but what else do you describe it) in the parking lot of the fair grounds and contemplated floating the Norfork on zero generation (I hope minimum flow starts soon), cooler heads prevailed and we floated the same stretch in the afternoon. The fishing was a little better than in the morning with Wise hooking into a good fish and getting tight on it, only to have it throw the hook. We took our time and picked up a few more fish than in the morning (all on streamers), and all in all it was another great day on the river. It was great to hook back up with Wise and to finally get on the water with Chance (something we had tried to do a few times in the past, just never been able to make it happen). We ended up pulling off the river about 7:00pm tired and exhausted, but the fun was just beginning.

We ended up heading into Mountain Home to a sports bar called The Arena to meet up with Larry Babin (Hogs On A Fly), Dominic Zametto (Two Rivers Fly Shop), Corey Dodson (Chasin’ The Dream), Steve Dally (Dally’s Ozark Fly Fisher) and his wife, and a guy from Tailwaters Fly Shop out of Dallas, whose name escapes me. I can’t even begin to describe the evening at the bar. Phrases such as “Bitch don’t you know who I am”, the owner of the restaurant wanting to show me his meat (and me subsequently buying it), lots of beer, talks of motorboats, and deep conversations about the paths we are headed down filled the evening. It was the way a day on the river is supposed to end, and for that I was grateful and reset. We ended up leaving the bar around 12am and headed back to the hotel for a good nights sleep; for me, it was everything the Conclave wasn’t this year and that made me happy. Early rise on Sunday morning, as I am fishing with Larry Babin and Dominic Zametto.

–Matt Tucker

“Sometimes you eat the bear, and sometimes, well, he eats you.” — A White River Trip Report

February 7, 2012 by MattTucker

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“Sometimes you eat the bear, and sometimes, well, he eats you.” — The Stranger from The Big Lebowski

Saturday morning came early, after a late night. We rose and readied ourselves for our three boat drift on the White River. After plenty of discussion the night before, with me apparently being a little more vocal than most, we decided on floating Dam to Wildcat again on Saturday. The weather was much nicer this morning, with plenty of cloud cover and just some misting rain every so often. We were all fairly stoaked to begin the day, so we dropped the boats in at the Dam Site Ramp in the State Park and ran our shuttle to Wildcat Boat Ramp.

While dropping the trailers off at Wildcat, I had the chance to meet up with Corey Dodson, Chance Maxville, and thier group of guys from Oklahoma as they were floating from Wildcat Schoals Boat Ramp to Cotter (about a 6 mile float). It was cool to finally meet these guys and say hello; but there were fish to be caught (or so I thought), so we were on our way.

To say the drift boat craze has caught on in the Ozarks might be a bit of an understatement. Four years ago, when I would take my boat down there, you might see one of the other 4 guides (at that time) out in one but just on the shuttle drive we saw at least 6 other drift boats either at the ramp or on the road being trailered to a ramp. It is pretty cool to say the least.

Evan Muskopf and Brian Greer were in my boat, Dan Held and Paul Chausse were in thier boat, and Ray Riedy and Jeff House were in Ray’s skiff as we started the float. The fishing details are pretty basic and for every trophy fish grip and grin you see with a pig trout and a streamer hanging out of its mouth there are handfuls of trips like the one we took today. Meat was thrown in the wind to no avail and no hard chases in our boat. Paul / Dan managed to put a 20″ fish in thier boat, and the other two boats (ours included) managed to eek out some dinks but that was it. The streamer game is a nasty game at times, and sometimes dues need to be paid. Today we paid ours. Just like the quote at the beginning of this blog post.

Sometimes you eat the bear, and sometimes, well, he eats you.

–Matt Tucker

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Another February Day with Jimmy “T” on the White River

February 6, 2012 by MattTucker

2012-02-03pic002(edited)(Resized) Evan Muskopf and I headed south on Thursday (02-02-2012) to meet up with Paul Chausse, Dan Held, Ray Reidy, and Jeff House for a three day fishing trip on the White River. It is sort of an annual February pilgrimage for me, yet it had been a few years since JimmyT and I had fished together in February. With that in mind and despite the drift boat in tow, we jumped at the chance when JimmyT offered the opportunity to get Evan and I out in his boat for a day of fishing.

We arrived late on thursday night and after a little scheduling conflict (and my lack of procrastination in reserving my RV for an additional night), we grabbed a room at River Rock Inn in Mountain Home. We were up early and on the way to meet JimmyT, we stopped and picked up Ray Reidy and Paul Chausse at Wildcat Shoals Boat Ramp and shuttled them back to the Dam Site put-in for their 11 mile float. After some breif catching up, they were on thier way and we were on our way to meet up with JimmyT at his Wishes & Fishing Fly Shop in Bull Shoals.

We wadered up and dropped his boat in for a very wet day of fishing. The rain was fairly consistent throughout the day, with some downpours here and there. The fishing was consistent enough to keep us interested, but the big fish on the streamer bite wasn’t really there. We focused our efforts mainly on the catch and release area, doing several drifts and picked up the occassional rainbow; but the big browns eluded us. Perhaps it was the number of boats that were out there (at any time there were at least 12 boats within eye site). At JimmyT’s urging, we switched to one of his rigged up 11ft nymph rods and on the first drift I picked up a “barely 20 inch” brown trout. It was a good fish, and only on the White River can a guy be a little disappointed with a 20″ fish…..but I know better on this river. We got lots of love on the nymph rig, but our hearts were with the streamers so we switched back and threw more meat the rest of the afternoon with the same results. The thing is, though, that even with the weather being as wet / cold as it was; JimmyT was on his game keeping the boat positioned perfectly and giving us the shots we needed.

As the day wore on and the temerpature began to drop with the river level (the generation was letting up), I asked for mercy as I was wet and cold, so we headed back to the ramp and to Wishes & Fishes Fly Shop for some beers and catching up out of the rain. We headed back to the Bull Shoals State Park Rent-An-Rv and unloaded our stuff and plenty of food / drink were had as the entire group (Evan Muskopf, Brian Greer, Dan Held, Paul Chausse, Ray Reidy, and Jeff House) were present and recounted the day before more storms rolled in. It was a great way to start February, even though the truly big fish didn’t cooperate.

–Matt Tucker

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White River Scotch, Barley, & Fly-Fishing Social (10-26-11 to 10-30-11)

November 7, 2011 by MattTucker

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During one relentless summer, brimming with endless hours at the office and intense preparation for an AISC Certification at work, the pull of the river grew irresistible. So, I reached out to my Facebook fly-fishing community, sharing my yearning for an escape to the serene White River in quest of the elusive autumn brown. To my delight, this simple act of yearning turned into a rallying call, culminating in the inaugural White River Scotch, Barley, & Fly-Fishing Social slated for October 26-30, 2011, at the tranquil Bull Shoals State Park.

The call was heeded by about 10 kindred spirits, a motley crew of fellow anglers (names including Evan Muskopf, Craig Peterson, David Stinnett, and others), each drawn by the promise of camaraderie and the timeless dance between man and river. Yet, safety was never an afterthought — thanks to my cousin who works with a fire watch company in Lauderdale Lakes, their dedication mirrored in our venture. Her company, known for their immediate response and well-equipped personnel, ensured that just as we kept a vigilant eye on the drifts and eddies of the White River, someone trained and dependable watched over our temporary riverside abode, ready to coordinate with emergency services at a moment’s notice. It was this professional vigilance that allowed us to immerse fully in the embrace of nature, knowing we were guarded against unexpected perils.

The days were blissfully spent with lines cast into the flowing tapestry of the river, and the nights—alive with the crackling of campfires and the rich tales of river lore. The event, marked by the sharing of fine scotch and the mutual respect of barley’s craft, became more than a fishing trip; it was a respite for the soul. It was in this harmonious blend of passion, peace, and protection where we found not only the catch of the season but memories etched into the current of life, ones that would meander through our minds long after the hooks were stowed away.

Day 1 (10-27-2011)

The word for the first day was WET. It rained all day. The temps didn’t get out of the 40’s for very long. The only thing that was missing was wind, and this would have been the most complete day on the river. We decided to drop the two drift boats in at the base of the dam and float to Wildcat Shoals Boat Ramp (about an 11 mile float or so). With Evan Muskopf and Craig Peterson in my boat, combined with the overcast skies and rain the order of the day was streamers. We were not rewarded with many fish, but both Evan and Craig got some good follows throwing various Galloup flies (sex dungeons, circus peanuts, and peanut envy) with Evan recieving the biggest follow and eat twice but no hookup. The rain, combined with few fish made for a long day on the river. Dan Held and Paul Chausse floated the same section with us, and were throwing some meat to, and were rewarded with a brown just over 20″ or so very early in the trip — needless to say are expectations were high for the day. The photography would have been stellar except the rain kept the camera in the pelican case most of the day, except for when we pulled over at the Narrows and nymphed and swung streamers for a bit (with only dink rainbows the reward).

We pulled off the river and headed back to Bull Shoals State Park for a dinner of champions and to watch Game 6 of the World Series (Cardinals vs. Rangers). We were staying in one of the Rent-An-RV units at Bull Shoals State Park and had satellite TV to catch the game. Normally the “TV” during a fishing trip is the campfire, but this trip with the World Series had special meaning. As we seasoned up 24oz Porterhouse Steaks, sliced potatoes for the grill, and prepared the onions for the fire, we started watching would would become one of the most epic world series games of all time. As we ate like champions, our guest of honor arrived for the night in non other than uber Ranger’s fan David Stinnett. I am not sure what was more fun, fitting 8 guys in the camper around a 20″ television or the hooting and hollering that was going on after the Cardinals win. I think we finally hit the sack around 1:30am with an early morning just a few hours away.

Day 2 (10-28-2011)

The alarm went off early on Friday morning, we were up at 7am and ready for breakfast at Gaston’s by 8am. Gaston’s breakfast has got to be the best thing going for hot breakfasts on the river, perfect for a hangover cure. We were going to float from Wildcat Boat Ramp to Cotter, a float of about 7 miles or so. We dropped the boats in, ran the shuttle and were on the water by about 10:30am. We spent Thursday cursing the rain, but would spend Friday cursing the crowds and the high bright sun and bluebird skies. The fishing was a bit slow today, although fish were caught on the usual suspects, Craig Peterson and David Stinnett tried to stick with streamers in my boat as long as they could. When Craig tired, I turned the oars over to him and I pounded the bank with not even a follow. We pulled off the river about 3pm and headed back to Bull Shoals State Park. There was enough light left, and Dan Held and Paul Chausse were looking to try out the motor they bought for their drift boat so we decided to drop the boats back in at the Dam. My boat was going to float from Dam to Gastons Boat Ramp and Dan and Paul were going to do multiple drifts in the State Park area. Craig, David, and I had a great float and fish were caught. I got to toss some streamers again with Craig on the oars and got some eats in the State Park with no fish landed before getting back on the sticks to float the rest of the way out with Craig and David fishing. Craig was getting constant action on a Circus Peanut as soon as he was back in the game and it was an enjoyable way to finish out the day on the water.

We finished the day back at camp with bacon wrapped pork tenderloin, grilled potatoes, sweet corn, and an apple pie washed down with plenty of beer around the campfire. All in all a great fall day on the river.

Day 3 (10-29-2011)

We got on the river early on Friday, having been talked into floating the Norfork River at the base of Lake Norfork Dam. At the time we decided to do the float, they were running 1 unit of generation. They were running 1 unit of generation for the early part of the float, but once we got through the Dock Hole, they shut the water off.

The Norfork was a new river for me to float, particularly at low water. It was interesting to say the least. Everyone caught fish and the fishing was better than it had been on the White the previous two days. The river is more of a “river” in the traditional sense with riffle / run / pool type structure. It was interesting to float in a few places and we definitely left a few new scratches on the boat bottoms from some direct hits on some of the rocks and chutes. We actually had to get out and push the boat on 3 different occasions. But again, the fishing was spectacular. Craig was a brown trout shy of the Grand Slam having landed numerous cutthroat and rainbows, and picked up his lone brook trout in what used to be McClellan’s Hole (wow did that change from how I remember it…..need some streambank stabilization there).

They turned the water back on just as we were getting to the islands above Handicap Access and we were greeted by an easier float out and fish as well. What was supposed to be numerous trips down the 4 1/2 mile river turned into 1 float that lasted about 9hrs. It was a long day, but it was a good day.

Day 4 (10-30-2011)

With everyone having longer drives than us back to St. Louis, most everyone left early on Sunday morning. Craig, Evan, David, and I used the opportunity to nurse some hangovers and sleep in, pack up, hit Gaston’s for breakfast and then head back to St. Louis (with David driving back to the Dallas area). I am not sure how much was drank this weekend, but this trip was about fellowship just as much as it was the fishing.

It was a good trip, the kind that we used to do on an annual basis down on the White River. I am fairly certain it will be a trip that is more frequent in the making based upon the comments from everyone this weekend. Until the next time on the river….

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White River (10/25/09)

October 29, 2009 by MattTucker

We had reached the final day of our 4 day trip to the White River, and on most last days we generally fish around wherever we are staying until about 9am or so and get on the road; but we opted to float from the Dam to Gaston’s boat ramp again this morning.

We rose early and filled our bellies with the last of Gaston’s Biscuits & Gravy that we will have this trip and headed off to the boat ramp, we were fishing by 6:40am (little did we know that David forgot the keys to our shuttle vehicle inside of the rig at the ramp) and had a fish on the very first cast / drift.

The fishing was very similar to what we had seen the previous days. Enough “dink” rainbows to get bored with it on Tungsten B.H. San Juan Worm and Glo Ball Egg under a Thingamabobber indicator. Craig did throw a B.H. Wolly Bugger into the mix later on the drift and picked up an aerobatic rainbow or two. The wind picked up as we reached the bottom of Cane Island, and that was enough for us to essentially reel end and row out to the ramp (when we discovered we didn’t have keys for the shuttle vehicle). Big props to Jim @ Gaston’s who works in the maintenance department as he gave us a ride up to get our rig as Craig stayed with the boat. I know Gaston’s sometimes gets a bad wrap on the White River, and their drink prices and non-breakfast food is expensive as all hell but thier customer service is spot on and i was really impressed with the response I got when I asked a cleaning crew staff member what the chances were of hitching a rid up to the Dam. Kudos to them for sure.

All in all it was a great 4 days on the White River, as Craig and I headed for St. Louis around 11:15am or so and hit rain by the time we got on Hwy 63 and drove in it most of the way. I can’t wait to do this trip again.

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