Ozark Area Trout Fishing

If you think great trout fishing can only be found in the Rocky Mountain West or the East, think again. More specifically, some of the very best trout fishing in the United States has developed in the Ozark Mountain Region of the Midwest. Nestled in an area mostly contained in Southern Missouri and Northern Arkansas, some outstanding fishing opportunities are out there for rainbow trout and brown trout, even a few spots where brook trout and cutthroat trout can be had.

Image via Wikipedia

Image via Wikipedia

Image via Wikipedia

Essentially, these regions can be subdivided into four categories. Thinking of the fishing opportunities in this way can help you zero in on the kind of fishing you are after. There really is, as you will see for yourself, a little bit for every kind of fisherman out there. As a bit of an aside, many of these streams and rivers also offer outstanding smallmouth bass fishing opportunities as well.

The first of these types of fisheries is the Missouri Trout Parks. There are four trout parks in Missouri, all in or bordering on the Ozark Mountain Region. These parks are managed by the Missouri Department of Conservation and are stocked for the most part with rainbow trout, but also have some brown trout as well. These parks are heavily stocked during the catch-and-keep season. During the catch-and-release season, the parks are less heavily stocked but there are still very nice populations, the fish are larger in general, and a fisherman has a bit of elbow room to him- or herself. If this is not your thing, perhaps one of the Ozark Region's tailwater fisheries might be more to your liking.

Perhaps the most famous of these is the White River below Bull Shoals Dam in Northern Arkansas. However, if maybe less famous, there are also awesome fishing opportunities on the Norfork Tailwater, the Greer Ferry Tailwater (Little Red River), as well as Lake Taneycomo. These fisheries are interspersed throughout the Missouri and Arkansas Ozarks. Popualtions and size of fish are world class in these fisheries. Browns over 20 lbs are not unheard of and until recently, the World Record Brown Trout was from the Little Red.

There are a few freestone rivers that give trout and smallmouth fishermen some outstanding waters to both float and wade fish. Perhaps the most famous of these is the Current River. It can be a bit (okay a lot!) of a party river, but this is only in the warm weather months. Additionally, for more solitude, try the Eleven Point River, barely a stone's throw away from the Current and with a small fraction the traffic. World class smallmouth fishing and some very nice rainbow fishing can be found on this river as it winds through the Irish Wilderness and then meanders down to the Arkansas border. The Meramec River and especially the North Fork of the White River should also be considered.

Finally, tucked into the rolling region can be found some smaller fishing gems that can be classified as smaller streams. With a bit of research, these streams can yield a very nice experience to the fisherman looking for wild trout fishing opportunities as well as a place to himself. These streams are beautiful and so are the fish taken (an hopefully released).

To continue researching these areas and for more specifics, go to Ozark Trout Fishing.