The Little Red and Little Missouri rivers can't match the mighty White for sheer size, but they more than make up for it with bragging-sized catches of trout.

For 17 years, the Little Red held the brown trout world record until a Michigan river yielded a 41-pound, 7-ounce behemoth that bested the late Howard "Rip" Collins' legendary lunker by 3 ounces. Nevertheless, the Little Red continues to display trophy potential.

In contrast, fishermen on the Little Mo' frequently tangle with 50 or more robust rainbows per day, a feat that's easier in winter, but entirely possible at this time of year with some finesse.

Public accesses on both these Arkansas rivers feature an accommodating mix of boat ramps and shorelines for armchair anglers and waders. The Little Red and Missouri flow below hydroelectric dams on reservoirs, and so they rise and fall in rhythms set by the electrical grid or by floodwaters. Wading anglers with fly rods or spinning gear covet low water, but boaters can ride the rising water that triggers heavy feeding when the generators go online. Johnboats are fine on most sections of the Little Red, but canoes are best for navigating the Little Mo', where motors are banned above State Route 27 to protect drinking water.

Whether you're bound toward north-central Arkansas and the Little Red or on a southwesterly course to the Little Missouri, we know you'll have a big time on these fisherman-friendly trout streams.

ROLLIN' DOWN THE LITTLE RED
Heber Springs, the Cleburne County seat, is the general base of operations for catching stocked rainbows and wild brown trout in the Little Red. It's just over an hour's drive from Little Rock and a great alternative for north Arkansas fishermen when conditions on the White are tough. Before you go, call the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at (501) 362-5150 and Southwestern Power Administration at 1-866-494-1993 for recordings about water releases.

Excellent fishing begins below Greers Ferry Dam in John F. Kennedy Park, off State Route 25 northeast of Heber Springs. The sweet spot is upstream, where effluent from a federal fish hatchery empties into the river -- but everyone between Memphis and Muskogee knows about it.

Instead of elbowing your way into the campground crowd near the handicapped-accessible fishing platform, park at the ramp and take the well-beaten trail to non-crowded water downstream. Or wait until sunset, when hungry campers depart to cook their day's catch. Cast softly with light line and your tiniest lures when you see trout puckering the surface as dusk nears. Boaters float downstream, casting jerkbaits to logs and weedbeds or drifting red worms, corn or other bait near the bottom.

About 5.5 miles downstream off State Route 210 is the famous Cow Shoals access, where the Arkansas Fly Fishers Club of Little Rock planted the seeds of the river's thriving brown trout population in the 1970s. At river mile 10 on State Route 110, the Barnett Access (Swinging Bridge to most folks) features a huge hole bracketed by deep pools and riffles that accommodate every type angler. Boaters head upstream, while shorebound bait-anglers cast corn, worms and marshmallows into the hole, and flyfishermen wade shallow runs downstream.