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North Arkansas Fly Fishers

Mountain Home, AR


Fly Fishing Community/Education/Conservation

HomeSowbug Seminars

The schedule below is from the 2024 show that is left as an example

Check back in Feb. 2025 for the March 2025 show!

2024 Sowbug Logo

Workshops, Seminars, and Demonstrations

Interesting and timely topics presented by local, national and international instructors. Topics include fly fishing strategies and techniques, where to go, what to throw, conservation and more.

Thursday March 21st, 2024Seminars



10:30 am

When Where and How To Fish Our Local Rivers
 
Let John Berry, a legendary local guide, tell you when, where and how to fish the White and Norfork Rivers. Whether wading or in a boat, he will tell you what you need to know.

John Berry, a long time fly fishing guide in Cotter, Arkansas is a life member of the Fly Fishers International and the Mid South Fly Fishers and is a member of the North Arkansas Fly Fishers, and Trout Unlimited. He teaches fly fishing for Arkansas State University and has also taught at other colleges and groups such as State Technical Institute in Memphis Tennessee and Mississippi County Community College. He has presented seminars for the Federation of Fly Fishers, the Ducks Unlimited Great Outdoors Festival, the Sowbug Round Up, Becoming an Outdoors Woman, Casting for Recovery, Fly Fishing Clubs and corporate groups throughout the region. John is a fly fishing columnist for the Baxter Bulletin and wrote a substantial portion of Home Waters, a local fishing guide published by the Mid South Fly Fishers. He has written for several sporting journals such as Drake. He currently serves as the Chairman of the Sowbug Roundup fly tying contest. John was awarded the Charles E. Brooks Memorial Lifetime Award by the Fly Fishers International. Recently he has been featured in the book, The Guides Speak.



1:00 pm

The Spring River - The Secret of the Ozarks

The Spring River is one of the most unique and oldest trout fisheries in Arkansas. Get an insider view of this beautiful
fishery from the person who has more days on this river than anyone else - Mark Crawford.

Mark Crawford has been a guide on the Spring River for over 20 years. During this time, Mark has been dedicated to promoting the Spring River as the next trophy dream stream.

Mark is the owner of Spring River Flies and Guides in Mammoth Springs, AR



2:30 pm

Christy_Graham.jpg

Christy Graham


Arkansas Trout Waters

AGFC Trout Management Program 

During her presentation, Christy will update attendees on the current status of the AGFC Trout Management Program. Highlights will include an overview of the program activities in 2021 and 2022, plans to revisit the statewide Trout Management Plan, and successes related to the Trout Permit fee increase that was implemented in August 2019.

Christy Graham is the Trout Management Program Supervisor for the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC).  Christy has been with AGFC for almost 14 years and has spent her entire career in the Trout Management Program.  Prior to being supervisor, she was one of two assistant biologists in the program.  Her primary responsibility as the supervisor is to oversee all trout management activities in the state.  

Friday March 22nd, 2024 Seminars



9:30 am

Ed Heist

Ed Heist

Professor of Zoology

Associate Director of the Center for Fisheries, Aquaculture & Aquatic Science

at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.



Are Missouri Blue-Ribbon Trout Direct Descendants of McCloud River Rainbows?

Results from the Missouri Trout Genetic Study.

Rainbow trout from the McCloud River in California were transported via rail cars to the Missouri Ozarks in the late 1800s.  Some Missouri streams have had self-sustaining populations of rainbow trout since those original stockings.  There is much confusion about which if any streams contain “pure McClouds”and which have been overstocked with different genetic strains.  Two Missouri chapters of Trout Unlimited (TU) funded a genetic study of Missouri trout.  TU anglers collected fin clips from Missouri blue ribbon streams.  Missouri Department of Conservation provided fin clips from shocking surveys on some streams and from hatchery strains used in Missouri.  DNA analyses were used to compare the Missouri streams to each other, to hatchery stocks, and to current rainbow trout populations in California.  In this presentation, the results of this study will be revealed and discussed.  



11:00 am

The Skills of Fishing the Wet Fly 

Davy Wotton is originally from Wales and now lives and guides on the White River in Arkansas. He is considered the ultimate expert on swinging soft hackles and wet flies. Davy's global expertise comes from his British traditions and his local experience comes from years of guiding on the White River in Arkansas. These experiences uniquely qualify him to discuss this type of fishing, which can be both challenging and subtle. Come learn from one of the world's foremost Wet Fly expert!



1:00 pm

Tim Flagler Tying

Tim Flagler


Tightline Video



What Trout Eat and the Flies That Imitate Them

Tim Flagler is the owner of Tightline Productions, L.L.C., a video production company located in Califon, NJ. Although he produces video programs over a wide range of topics, his specialty is fly fishing. Tim is a well-known fly tying instructor. His YouTube videos are some of the best in the business and his YouTube channel, practicalpatterns.com currently has over 112,000 subscribers and 36 million views. Almost every week he produces a new fly tying or “how to” video which appear not only on his YouTube channel but on Midcurrent and the Orvis News fly fishing blog as well. They’re also featured on Trout Unlimited’s national website and in the Orvis Learning Center. In addition, he has a regular column “Beginner’s Masterclass with Tim Flagler” in Fly Tyer magazine, which selected Tim as their “Fly Tyer of the Year”  in their Winter 2022 issue. Many of Tim’s tying videos take the viewer well beyond just the tying of the fly and show what it looks like underwater, what natural it represents and how it can be fished.

Tim’s a fixture at the Fly Fishing Shows - giving presentations, teaching classes and often as a Featured Tier. He enjoys guiding year round for South Branch Outfitters (formerly Shannon’s Fly & Tackle)in Califon, NJ. and hosts annual trips to Patagonia in the spring and to the Kootenai River in MT in the summer. He’ll be hosting trips to Iceland starting in the fall of 2024 or 2025.

Tim's presentation will feature a lot of very cool underwater footage of trout eating, then discuss the flies and techniques needed to catch those trout!



1:00 pm

Class is limited to the first 10 students

Sign up at the Berry Brother's Guide Service vendor table

Bring your own rod, 9' 5wt suggested. There will be rods available for those who need one.

Intermediate Casting Instruction

This class is designed for the fly caster who wants to fine tune their existing cast and correct any troublesome faults.

Lori is one of a handful of female fly-fishing guides in the United States. Lori has an extensive background in counseling and corporate training that gives her a unique perspective that she uses in leading her popular ladies fly-fishing classes. Lori is an intuitive instructor who quickly brings her students to ease. A natural caster, Lori brings intensity to the stream that produces fish for clients in the most adverse conditions. A lifelong angler she now devotes her efforts to fly-fishing, teaching as well as designing fly- fishing programs. She is a popular instructor that has presented seminars for the Federation of Fly Fishers, the Ducks Unlimited Great Outdoors Festival, the Sowbug Round Up, Becoming an Outdoors Woman, Casting for Recovery, Fly Fishing Clubs and corporate groups throughout the region. She was Outreach Chair at the Federation of Fly Fishers Southern Council Conclave in 2005 and has taught fly fishing at Arkansas State University at Mountain Home for the last ten years. She is a member of the North Arkansas Fly Fishers, the Damsel Fly Fishers and is a life member of the Mid South Fly Fishers and the Federation of Fly Fishers. She was the Federation of Fly Fishers Southern Council’s Woman of the Year in 2006 and Federation of the Fly Fishers Southern Council’s Outreach speaker in 2013 and was International Federation of Fly Fishers Southern Council’s Woman of the Year for 2015. She was featured on the television show, Adventure Guides, on the Versus network (previously known as OLN).   She was the cover story in Living Well magazine. She was featured in Garden and Gun magazine in the December/January 2015 issue as one of the top ten guides in the South. She was featured as a fly fishing guide in the March 2018 Arkansas Life magazine and was a featured writer in the February/March edition of Marvelous Magazine.



2:30 pm

Mysteries of the 13 year Cicadas

Steve was raised on Australia’s island state of Tasmania, in Aussie fly-fishing terms the equivalent of being raised in Montana. In his late 20s he grasped a fly rod, and an obsession was born. He cut his teeth on the challenging wild brown trout and rainbows of Tasmania’s wilderness lakes and streams before moving to the US in December 2000. Steve’s fly-fishing experience includes writing, photography, running fly shops, and guiding. Eventually he landed in Cotter, AR running Dally’s Ozark Angler Fly Shop and guiding on the world-famous White River. He started the Streamer Lovefest, an annual streamer fly event in January, and most recently Dally’s All Species Odyssey event. 

 

Steve has put together a unique presentation that discusses the 13 year cicadas and how they can be important to the fly fisherman.

Mysteries of the 13-Cicadas - Hatches of the periodic, or Magicicadas, are a fabled, even mythical happening, far enough apart to gloss over the warts leaving only memories of big fish eating big bugs. Brood XIX returns to the White River in spring 2024, after 13 years, and Steve Dally gives an insight from experiences in 2011, netting a 30" brown trout, and the most up to date science. 

Detailing the life cycles of the bugs, where they live and breed, and what triggers the emergence. Plus, how to find the bugs, the best patterns and how to fish them.


Saturday March 23rd, 2024 Seminars



9:30 am

Bass Fishing in the Oxarks

A great presentation from one of our local experts - Ozark Smallmouth bass, Largemouth bass, Temperate bass, What to Use and How to Catch Them.

 

Chad "Mississippi" Johnson is a native of Crystal Springs, MS.  His love for fly fishing began after he first visited the area in the Spring of 2003. Chad moved into the White River area in July 2006. He has guided the White River system since 2007. He has also guided out of Rocky River Lodge in Port Graham, Alaska in 2007 & 2010, for both Salmon & Dollie Varden seasons.

 

With persistence & hard work, Chad has accomplished more than he could ever imagine.  He has been featured in several magazine publications such as Gray’s Sporting Journal, Eastern Fly Fishing, American Angler, Fly Fisherman, & Outdoor Life.  He has also been featured in book such as “Nymph Masters: Fly Fishing Secrets from Expert Anglers” & “Feeding Time: A Fly Fisher’s Guide to What, Where & When Trout Eat” both by Jason Randall & “Strip-Set: Fly-Fishing Techniques; Tactics & Patterns for Streamers” by George Daniels; "The Hunt for Giant Trout" by Landon Mayer; "Modern Streamers for Trophy Trout II" by Kelly Galloup and Largemouth Bass Flies by Drew Chicone.

 

He is a Simms Pro, RIO pro, Costa Del Mar Pro, Shawnee/Supreme/Predator pro staffer. 

 

As the Head Guide for Dally’s Ozark Fly Fisher, Chad guides more than 200 days a year and is widely acknowledged as one of the best streamer guides in the country by high-profile streamer gurus like Blane Chocklett and Kelly Galloup. He is a fly designer and an innovative and award-winning fly tyer who is sought after for his outstanding fly-tying demonstrations. 

 

Chad’s laid-back Mississippi accent and style make him a crowd favorite everywhere he goes.

 

"Bottom line is there’s no better place to be than in the boat with a customer sharing this sport. I love my job! I had no idea that my move from Mississippi would land me on such a fast track to such an awesome fly-fishing career. Thanks to all of the support of the fly heads out there." - Chad Johnson



10:00 am

Class is limited to the first 10 students

Sign up at the Berry Brother's Guide Service vendor table

Bring your own rod, 9' 5wt suggested. There will be rods available for those who need one.


Beginning Casting Instruction

This class is designed for beginner to novice casters. A simplified approach to fly casting to enable students to make a basic cast. I will explain forming loops, tailing loops and how to avoid them, and the importance of stopping the rod. Will also talk about fly rod selection.  

Lori is one of a handful of female fly-fishing guides in the United States. Lori has an extensive background in counseling and corporate training that gives her a unique perspective that she uses in leading her popular ladies fly-fishing classes. Lori is an intuitive instructor who quickly brings her students to ease. A natural caster, Lori brings intensity to the stream that produces fish for clients in the most adverse conditions. A lifelong angler she now devotes her efforts to fly-fishing, teaching as well as designing fly- fishing programs. She is a popular instructor that has presented seminars for the Federation of Fly Fishers, the Ducks Unlimited Great Outdoors Festival, the Sowbug Round Up, Becoming an Outdoors Woman, Casting for Recovery, Fly Fishing Clubs and corporate groups throughout the region. She was Outreach Chair at the Federation of Fly Fishers Southern Council Conclave in 2005 and has taught fly fishing at Arkansas State University at Mountain Home for the last ten years. She is a member of the North Arkansas Fly Fishers, the Damsel Fly Fishers and is a life member of the Mid South Fly Fishers and the Federation of Fly Fishers. She was the Federation of Fly Fishers Southern Council’s Woman of the Year in 2006 and Federation of the Fly Fishers Southern Council’s Outreach speaker in 2013 and was International Federation of Fly Fishers Southern Council’s Woman of the Year for 2015. She was featured on the television show, Adventure Guides, on the Versus network (previously known as OLN).   She was the cover story in Living Well magazine. She was featured in Garden and Gun magazine in the December/January 2015 issue as one of the top ten guides in the South. She was featured as a fly fishing guide in the March 2018 Arkansas Life magazine and was a featured writer in the February/March edition of Marvelous Magazine.



11:00 am

John van Vliet

John van Vliet

Discover the Driftless

Author John van Vliet will present his award-winning short film, “Into the Driftless,” and share his insights, advice and tips for exploring the 24,000-square-mile unglaciated Driftless Area that covers portions of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa and Illinois. This unique, beautiful and little-known region of the American Midwest is sometimes called the “Little Ozarks” for its deep valleys, high limestone bluffs and cold rushing trout streams. The Driftless has a mystique all its own and makes up one of the highest concentrations of trout streams in the world. If you’ve ever thought about visiting the remarkable Driftless Area, you won’t want to miss this presentation.

 

John van Vliet is the Midwest Field Editor for Fly Fisherman magazine and author of more than a dozen popular fly-fishing books, including Trout Fishing in Southeast Minnesota, Trout Fishing in Southwest Wisconsin, Trout Fishing in Northeast Iowa and The Art of Fly Tying. He has served on the board of the Twin Cities Trout Unlimited chapter, is an FFI certified fly-casting instructor and, with his partner Catherine Smith, organized the first FFI film festival. An avid fly angler, writer and filmmaker, he has fly fished around the world. The trout streams of the Driftless Area are his home waters.