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White River Arkansas Trout Fishing Guides
Posted on 9/26/25 at 2:26 pm
Posted on 9/26/25 at 2:26 pm
Does anyone here have any experience trout fishing the White River in Arkansas? Particularly, any recommendations for a good guide ? My wife and I are wanting to make a two day trip in February around Mardi Gras. We are both competent fishermen but we want to go with someone familiar with the river and maximize are potential for success.
11
Posted on 9/26/25 at 3:18 pm to UncleDuck
Matt Milner is the best up there right now.
Rising River Guides
He’s a fly fishing guide however. I don’t think he does spinning.
Rising River Guides
He’s a fly fishing guide however. I don’t think he does spinning.
Posted on 9/26/25 at 3:31 pm to UncleDuck
This board recommended Dustin Doss of Ozark Fly fishing and I was happy with him
Posted on 9/26/25 at 3:32 pm to UncleDuck
Cranor’s White River Lodge. We rented a house up river from them, they picked us up in the back yard on the river and we started fishing. After our catch they cooked them by their fire pit at the lodge. Was a great time and highly recommend!
Posted on 9/26/25 at 3:58 pm to UncleDuck
I would contact Cotter Trout Dock for spin fishing. That's a great time of year to catch big fish but it could be cold af
Posted on 9/26/25 at 8:13 pm to tigers84
If you’re not fly fishing, Cranor’s appears to land a lot of very large fish. Steve Dally is awesome if you’re fly fishing. He’s also Australian and entertaining as hell.
Posted on 9/26/25 at 9:29 pm to UncleDuck
If you’re wanting to fly fish contact Kyle at white river trout club. I’ll be up that way Thursday. Can’t wait
Posted on 9/27/25 at 7:32 am to UncleDuck
Steve Dally
Chad Johnson - Copiah County boy
Chad Johnson - Copiah County boy
Posted on 9/27/25 at 1:03 pm to UncleDuck
If you’re staying or fishing out of Gaston’s I recommend Paul Jones or Brandon Hudson. I’ve been fishing with Paul for 20 years. Just started fishing with Brandon 2 years ago. He learned the river from his father and Mr Paul.
Carl Jones (Paul’s brother) is very good too. I believe he’s independent. I fished with him back in the 1980s when I was a kid.
February is an amazing time of year to fish. It can be cold as hell. If there’s a big shad kill coming through the dam it’s lights out. We fished in Feb about 11 years ago during an ice storm. 6° lows and 18° highs. Foot of snow. Browns were going nuts on shad. We fished 3 days and landed 15-20 Browns each day. We fished in 1-1.5 hr increments and headed back to the lodge to warm up.
Carl Jones (Paul’s brother) is very good too. I believe he’s independent. I fished with him back in the 1980s when I was a kid.
February is an amazing time of year to fish. It can be cold as hell. If there’s a big shad kill coming through the dam it’s lights out. We fished in Feb about 11 years ago during an ice storm. 6° lows and 18° highs. Foot of snow. Browns were going nuts on shad. We fished 3 days and landed 15-20 Browns each day. We fished in 1-1.5 hr increments and headed back to the lodge to warm up.
This post was edited on 9/27/25 at 1:09 pm
Posted on 9/27/25 at 7:58 pm to UncleDuck
You can literally drift downstream in a canoe and catch your limit x5 with nothing more than powerbait.
Posted on 9/27/25 at 8:50 pm to UncleDuck
Went with cotter trout dock 5 or so years ago and caught 40 rainbows and a handful of brown / cutthroat
Posted on 9/28/25 at 8:27 am to RingLeader
I agree 100% with this. We have been making the trip to fish the White River for 30+ years and it is one of my favorite places to fish anywhere.
We have always stayed at Gaston’s but you do have some other options for lodging. Cranor’s is also very good.
As RingLeader said, Feb is an amazing time to go. A lot of it is dependent on the shad kill, but fishing is still excellent year round. If you are looking for big browns, this is a great time. It can get COLD but manageable with the right gear.
We are headed back there around the same time too.
We have always stayed at Gaston’s but you do have some other options for lodging. Cranor’s is also very good.
As RingLeader said, Feb is an amazing time to go. A lot of it is dependent on the shad kill, but fishing is still excellent year round. If you are looking for big browns, this is a great time. It can get COLD but manageable with the right gear.
We are headed back there around the same time too.
Posted on 9/29/25 at 11:48 am to tigers84
quote:
Cranor’s White River Lodge.
If you want to catch a big brown I suggest Cranor's. I've fished with Donald a couple of times and was very pleased. Also, February is the best time to catch the big browns.
If you just want a limit of rainbows, save your money and go with someone from either the Cotter or Norfork trout dock depending on where exactly you are staying.
Posted on 9/29/25 at 12:34 pm to UncleDuck
Cranor’s is really good…booked with I believe Donald a few years ago to learn how to catch big browns. We went in February and it was freezing but we caught a lot of nice fish and I learned how to do it on my own after that day trip.
Posted on 9/29/25 at 9:36 pm to Clyde Tipton
Cranors is the ticket if not fly fishing. I’ve fished with Donald several times and with quite a few of his other guides. Never been disappointed.
Posted on 9/30/25 at 10:39 am to UncleDuck
I used Rising River Guides last year and they were very easy and responsive. They did get us Alex Carr from Diamond State Outfitters and he was great with teaching my 13yr the art of fly fishing. Bryan Stark with rising river is pretty damn good and is from Rayne, Louisiana. this spring when I go back I will be staying at White River Trout Club.
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