Home - North Arkansas Fly Fishers

AGFC Emergency Order for Trout Streams

The Arkansas Game & Fish Commision has approved emergency order for trout tailwaters, fish limits have been temporarily curtailed. This is primarily due to poor water quality from Lake Norfork has resulted in the loss of millions of trout from the Norfork National Hatchery, which in turn results in a loss of stockable fish. The full story can be found at the following link:

AGFC limit curtailed

Member's Only Vote - donation to AGFC for brown trout monitoring

Many people have their opinions on trout behavior, but data collected by scientific research provides accurate information. In the next few years, the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission will be revisiting the trout management plan for the White and Norfork Rivers, and they want decisions regarding regulation changes to be backed by science.

Beginning this fall Arkansas Game and Fish Commission in cooperation with Dr. Steve Lochmann of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff will be conducting a year-long research study to analyze the movements of brown trout on the White River. Trout will be outfitted with radio transducers, and receivers along the river will pick up a unique signal from each fish every time it passes a receiver. The results of this study will be used by AGFC to help determine regulation changes aimed at better protecting brown trout in the White and Norfork Rivers.

AGFC currently owns 11 receivers which have been used in previous studies. To expand the capacity and accuracy of the study on the White the investigators need to purchase two more receivers at a cost of $7,500 each. Arkansas White River Trout Unlimited has already funded one receiver. At the last NAFF board meeting the directors voted unanimously to fund up to $5,000 towards the purchase of one receiver. Thanks to the generosity of NAFF members, $4,500 has already been funded or pledged, so only $3,000 is expected to be needed from NAFF to fund the receiver. The receiver will be the property of AGFC and can be used in future studies.

Because this NAFF expenditure would be a donation to another organization, we are asking members to vote on the issue. Please vote below. Voting will close on October 28th.

Click to Vote

NAFF Christmas Party

Big Creek Country Club

Thursday, December 4th, 2025, from 6pm to ???

This is a Member's Only event, so please assure you are signed into the website (upper right hand corner) , then click on the link below for more information and to register and choose your entree and dessert.

NAFF Christmas Party - 12/4/2025

North Arkansas Fly Fishers

Weekend with an Expert

Proudly Presents

DEVIN OLSEN

Gaston’s Visitor Center

Bull Shoals State Park

November 8th and 9th, 2025

9:00 AM to 4:00 PM Each Day

One Hour Lunch Break Each Day

Free Admittance to All!!

Come meet Devin Olsen! Champion Fly Fisher, Author, Educator, with degrees in Ecology and Fisheries Science. Devin started fly fishing in Yellowstone at age 9 and he has been a Fly Fishing Team USA member since age 21, competed in 13 consecutive World Championships, where he won Bronze Individual Medalist and a Silver and Bronze Team Medals.

He is both an acclaimed Author of Tactical Fly Fishing and creator of instructional films - Modern Nymphing, Modern Nymphing Elevated, and Adaptive Fly Fishing. Founder of TacticalFlyFisher.com

Don’t miss this opportunity to learn from one of the best in the world!

Registration is not required, but Requested, and it's FREE!

Please Register at the Following Link:

NAFF's Weekend with an Expert - Devin Olsen - 11/8/2025

October Meeting

Tuesday, October 21st, 2025

Jamie's Local Flavor Restaurant

1502 US-62E

Mountain Home, AR

All Members wishing to eat or socialize are encouraged to arrive around 5:00pm

Presentation Starts around 6:00pm

The “untold” story of Rip Collins

(and the world record brown trout)

Duane Hada and Greg Patterson (AGFC)

The True Story Behind the World Record Brown Trout

On May 9, 1992, Rip Collins of Heber Springs made fishing history on the Little Red River below Greers Ferry Dam. His catch — a massive 40-pound, 4-ounce brown trout — shattered the existing world record and put Arkansas on the angling map. But the fish is only part of the story. What happened that day — from the moment Rip set the hook to the weighing, measuring, and photographing of the giant trout — is the stuff of legend.

At our October NAFF meeting, you’ll hear that story firsthand from Duane Hada and Greg Patterson of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission — the two men who were right there when it all happened. They’ll share behind-the-scenes details, photos, and memories of a once-in-a-lifetime moment in Arkansas fishing history.

Don’t miss this special evening!

Raised in the Buffalo River country of the Ozarks, Duane Hada has built a career blending art and angling. Known as both an accomplished guide and acclaimed artist, his work has appeared on trout stamps, calendars, regulation manuals, and even the Arkansas Governor’s Mansion. His paintings have raised funds for groups like Trout Unlimited, FFF, and St. Jude’s Hooked on a Cure. He illustrated Ozark Trout Tales and designed the popular 2005 Arkansas Game & Fish Foundation license plate. Honors include the first fly-rod Master Angler Award from the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission and a silver medal as coach of the U.S. Youth Fly Fishing Team.

Clients often treasure his sketches and watercolors as lasting souvenirs of their time on the water. As one put it: “I may never own a Homer, but I’ve got a Hada.”

River Flow Data for the Fly Fisherman

Norfork Tailwater Flows

Bull Shoals Tailwater Flows

SWPA-Generation Schedule

AGFC Trout waters

AGFC Family & Community Stocked Fishing Ponds

How to Use This Water Flow Data

Gene's Resort North Fork River Cams

Fly Fishing Mentoring Program

If you are interested in learning to fly fish, and don’t know where to start, we offer a mentoring program. It is available to all skill levels. Whether you are new to the area and need to know where to fish, when, and with what, or wonder why you’re not as successful as you hope to be, this program can help. Click on the button below for additional information or to sign up for this program.

Mentoring Program

Fly Tying Classes

We offer two fly tying classes - a beginners fly tying class and intermediate fly tying class.

The beginner fly tying class is hosted through the ASU-MH Community Education Program - Click the button below to sign up for the class or for more information and schedules.

The intermediate fly tying class is hosted by NAFF and more information can be found by clicking the link below.

Fly Tying Classes