Fly and Gear ordering and delivery: We can get flies to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Please see the bottom of this column for ordering options.
We also have custom Perfect Fly selections in 3 different price ranges for this stream that come with or without fly boxes. They make excellent gifts. Click Here To Order or Call us at 800 594 4726 or email us at sales@perfectflystore.com.
Type of Stream
Tailwater
Species
Brown Trout (wild)
Rainbow Trout (stocked with
holdovers)
Brook Trout (stocked and wild)
Cutthroat Trout
(Stocked with holdovers)
Size
Large width but many miles of trout
waters
Location
Middle Arkansas
Nearest Towns
Heber Springs
Little Rock
Season
Year-round
Special Regulations:
Access:
Fair
Non-Resident License
State of ArkansasTVA Release Schedule
Click for information
Recommended Tackle & Gear
Fly Line:
5 or 6 weight
Leaders:
Dry fly: 9 & 12 ft., 5 or 6X, Nymphing:
71/2 ft., 3 or 4X, Streamers 0-2X
Tippets:
Dry fly: 5 or 6X, Nymphing: 3 or 4X,
Streamer 0-2X
Best Fly Rods:
Perfect Fly Superb Five or Ultimate Six
Fly Reels:
For 5/6 fly line
Fly Floatants and Misc Items:
Floatants, KISS Strike Indicators
Tools & Accessories:
Nippers, forceps, retractors, etc.
Fly and Gear ordering and delivery:
Email us at (sales@perfectflystore.com) with the dates you will be fishing and we will send you a list of our fly recommendations. We can get flies and gear to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Your can also call us at 800-594-4726 and we will help you decide what flies and gear to use. All orders are shipped free in the U.S. If under a $100 order requiring Priority mail is a charge of only $8.10. Orders over a $100 are shipped free via Priority Mail.
Copyright 2013 James Marsh
Norfork River, Arkansas – Fishing Report – April 18, 2024
The discharges and stream levels are near a normal range and the water is clear. Our pre-rigged midges, Little Black Caddis, Little Brown stoneflies as well as scuds and sowbugs are working good. Good hatches are taking place.
Rate: 6020 cfs
Level: 6.59 ft.
Afternoon Water Temperature: 52 (Downstream)
Clarity: clear
USGS White River Near Norfork
7 Day Weather Forecast: (click the link below for more detailed weather information)
Recommended Trout Flies:
Brown Sculpin and White Belly Sculpin and Articulated streamers, size 6/4
Black Matuka and Olive Matuka Sculpin, size 4/6
Blue-winged Olives: size 16, 18 nymph, emergers, duns and spinners
Aquatic Worms, size 12, pink, red, and others
Midges: Light Green and Red (Blood) midges sizes 20/22, larva, pupa and adult. Our larva and pupa midge flies, pre-rigged in tandem, are very popular here. You can fish them under a strike indicator keeping the larva fly near the bottom. https://perfectflystore.com/product/pre-rigged-tandem-midge-larva-pupa-tippet
Little Brown Stonefly: 12/14, nymphs and adults
Little Black Caddis, size 18, pupa and adults
Scuds: 14
Sowbugs: 16
Fly Fishing On The Norfork River In Arkansas (North Fork White River): The Norfork River is a tailwater below Norfork Dam on the White River in Arkansas. Although it is fairly short, only four and one-half miles in total length, it is one of the better trout streams in the Ozark Mountains. Fly fishing the Norfork River is usually very rewarding. This river holds world-record size fish. During the hot summer, trout migrate upriver from the White River into the cool water of the Norfork River. During the brown trout spawning season, many large brown trout move upstream from the White River into the Norfork River to spawn. The World record brown trout weighting nearly thirty-nine pounds was caught in this river. The water temperature of in the Norfork River tailwater stays between forty-eight and fifty-eight degrees year-round. The stream has a huge number of crustaceans, including sowbugs and scuds, that keep the trout well fed. This stream has a large number of trout in it. It’s the place to catch a true grand slam, or a brook trout, brown trout, rainbow trout and a cutthroat trout all in the same area. One reason for this fine river is the fact its headwaters, the North Fork River, is a limestone, spring fed river. This gives the water a higher than normal pH level and accounts for the plentiful amount of food and subsequent fast growth rate and size of the trout.The river is best waded when the water is low. It can be tough to wade when they are generating power at the dam and the turbines are running. When power is being generated, it is usually best to float the river in a drift boat.Prior to fishing any tailwater stream, including the Norfork River, you should call ahead and get the discharge schedule. You can save a lot of waist-ed time if you are aware of high discharge rates in advance of traveling there. The release schedule link in on your left. The Norfork is one of the few places in the state of Arkansas you can catch a grand slam. That’s a rainbow, brown, cutthroat and brook trout all in the same river.Access to the river is provided at Quarry Park, just below the Norfork Dam. It has a concrete boat launching ramp and public access for bank fishing and wading. You can fish the mouth of Dry Run Creek, which enters the tailwater in Quarry Park. The bulk of the North Fork fish is stocked rainbows. Most fish caught are rainbows from 10 to 14 inches long. The mile long section of the river from the mouth of Otter Creek to 100 yards above River Ridge Walk-In Access is regulated as a catch-and-release area.
Fly Fishing Guide to the Norfork River: The fishing tactics on the Norfork, as with most other tailwaters, varies with the discharge rates of flow. As mentioned in the intro, the river is best fished from a drift boat when the dam’s generators are running. The water will be high and there will only be a few places it is possible to fish it from the banks. Wading can be very dangerous with the water on. When the water is low, it is the perfect time to stalk its huge trout. There’s also special regulation fishing in Dry Creek Run. The discharge of the North Fork National Fish Hatchery provides the water for the small stream. It enters the river just below the dam in Quarry Park. It’s all catch and release with special regulations on gear. This is open only to children under the age of 16 and the disabled. One of the best ways to fish this river on low water is with a scud or sowbug imitation. Add some weight a few inches above the fly and search for trout using your polarized glasses. When you spot one, set up in the best possible position, so as not to spook the trout, and cast well upstream of it. Make sure you get your fly down near the bottom so that it doesn’t pass over the trout. There have been some very nice trout taken on the Norfork tailwater using the sight fishing method. Our Perfect Fly scud and sowbug flies also work well when fished blind in the runs and riffles. Streamers are favorite flies for this river. Large streamers that imitate sculpin and baitfish work great at times. Trout can be taken on high water from a drift boat using large streamers. They are also very effective in catching the migrating brown trout that come up the river to spawn.All things considered, most of the fishing should be done below the surface. This river has a few hatches and dry fly fishing can be good at times, but most of the time you will need to fish nymphs and larvae. Don’t forget the midges. Midge imitations work great year-round and even for the large trout.
Norfork River Hatches and Trout Flies: Our information on aquatic insects is based on our stream samples of larvae and nymphs, not guess work. We base fly suggestions on imitating the most plentiful and most available insects and other foods at the particular time you are fishing. Unlike the generic fly shop trout flies, we have specific imitations of all the insects in the Norfork River and in all stages of life that is applicable to fishing. If you want to fish better, more realistic trout flies, have a much higher degree of success, give us a call. We not only will help you with selections, you will learn why, after trying Perfect Flies, 92% of the thousands of our customers will use nothing else. 1-800-594-4726. The sowbug, or freshwater shrimp some anglers call them. It is one of the prime sources of food for the trout in the Norfork River tailwater. The water has a high pH and crustaceans are plentiful. Imitations of both scuds and sowbugs work great year-round. Crayfish, or crayfish if you prefer, are also plentiful on the Norfork River. Imitations of them work great for catching large trout. Sculpin and baitfish such as thread-fin shad are present and streamers imitating them are effective, especially when the water is high. I’m sure many locals won’t agree with me, but I think imitations of midges are among the most effective flies you can use on the Norfork. They hatch in large quantities all year long and the trout, and yes, even the large ones, eat them regularly. I suggest that you have imitations of their larvae, pupae and of the adults. Blue-winged Olives represent the largest population of mayflies. They hatch during the months of January and February and then again in September and October. This hatch brings on some good dry fly fishing. Other than that, Sulphurs are about the only mayfly that hatches in quantities large enough to be very important. They normally hatch during the months of April and May. Caddisflies hatch from March through May. They are both Cinnamon Caddis and Spotted Sedges. Other than Micro Caddisflies, that is about it. Craneflies are present on the river from about March through October. Imitations of their larvae and the adults can be effective. From about the middle of June throughout the summer until the end of September, you can catch trout on imitations of grasshoppers, ants and beetles. Dropper fly rigs, using large foam hoppers on the surface and nymphs dropped below them, are popular on this river. If you haven’t already done so, we ask that you give our “Perfect Flies” a try. We think we have the best imitations of scuds and sowbugs you can purchase. You will also like our line of streamer flies. Our crawfish streamer imitations, sculpin and other streamers have proven to catch trout on the Norfork River Tailwater. We are confident you will find them very effective.