"Fish on!" Red shouted. Wanda grabbed the rod and set the hook hard. The unseen fish responded by trying to pull the spinning rod out of her hand. "It's a big one!" the little blonde squealed with delight as she leaned into the rod while the fish headed for deeper water. After a few minutes we could see bright flashes of the torpedo shaped fish in the clear, deep water. Eventually the fight ended with a ten pound striped bass being netted and brought onboard for pictures and video footage before being released back into the frigid waters of Norfork Lake to fight again another day.
Though it was miserably cold, we were willing to endure the weather to have an opportunity to do battle with the landlocked stripers and hybrids. We were "ballooning" for stripers in deep water using fresh caught shad tightlined under balloons at different depths. We were also using downriggers to get some of the shad down to depths not possible without the cannon ball shaped downriggers.
On this trip and several others in the past Wanda and I were fishing with Red of Red's Guide Service while capturing the action on video for an upcoming television program. We were in hopes of catching one of the giant landlocked stripers that haunt the depths of the clearwater impoundments in north Arkansas and this time of year is an excellent time to do so.
February is often looked on as being a down time for hunters and fishermen, but I have come to look at this month as a great time to be out on the water or in a stand, with the water winning most of the time. Deer season except for bowhunting is gone until October, turkey season does not open until April 21 (very late for successful turkey hunting), often the weather is nasty which makes it unpleasant outdoors, and these factors tend to stop a lot of outdoor activities. But, the fishing is often outstanding during this turbulent month. Red is an excellent guide and Wanda and I enjoy fishing with him, but we also fish with Darrel Binkley of Bink's Guide Service as well. Red fishes a lot with live shad which he catches from the lake, but also fishes with artificial bait when the conditions call for a change of tactics.
Bink fishes exclusively with artificial bait, feeling that he can put as many fish in the boat with artificials as he could with the real thing. He is excellent at putting his fishermen on fish regardless of whether the fish are active in deep water or hitting top water baits. Finding fish in deep water, then vertical spooning is one of his specialties, which often fills the gap when fish are deep in cold weather or deep in the hot dog days of summer.
The reason that I mention these guides and the fact that Wanda and I have
fished with them many times is that catching stripers and hybrids is great sport and loads of fun, but if you are not familiar with fishing deep, clearwater lakes and you do not have the knowledge of how to find and catch stripers there is a good possibility that your fishing trip will end up being a bust.
Another fishing trip that I love to go on this time of year and which is not as technical as striper fishing, is a trout fishing foray to one of several rivers in north Arkansas. It seems that on a cold winters day you can find aggressive trout which are willing participants in a great day on the water. Since the first of the year the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission has stocked tens of thousands of trout in Arkansas streams to spike the fishing, but this is the time that the bigger fish that have been in the rivers for years are more apt to be caught. It seems that the fly fishermen are the ones who normally catch the biggest fish when the temperatures plummet. There are fewer anglers on the water, but the fishing can be smoking hot. Just remember that it can get very cold, so be sure to take more cold weather clothes than you think you will need and try one of these excellent fishing trips for yourself. Good Fishing!
reprinted by permission, Paxton Media Group
