Imagine this backyard
The Spring River hosts one of America's premier trout fishing spots. The cool headwaters of the river are the perfect habitat for rainbow and brown trout which are stocked year round by the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission just a few miles up the river from Spring River Landing. Along with small and large mouth bass, catfish, crappie and more, the river also sports record sized walleye! 5 Acre Mini Ranch, only $99,500 MLS # 4152
Fishing: Trout and walleye fishing are rated tops, and floating between Mammoth Spring and Hardy is excellent for beginning and intermediate canoeists. Many areas of the upper Spring River are popular with fly fishermen. Outfitters and launch facilities are available along the Mammoth Spring-Hardy stretch (17 miles). Spring River is unique among Arkansas trout streams; its cold water comes naturally from a spring rather than artificially from deep within a man-made lake.
Who has backyard fishing? You do!
Brown Trout
Spring River is full of beautiful brown trout that trive at Sprin River Landing.
Walleye
The challenging walleye is native to the Spring River and many call Spring River Landing their home. They are daring you to catch them!
Every hour, Mammoth Spring releases nine million gallons of 58-degree water, and the river stays cold enough to support a good trout population for 10 miles downstream. Even though Spring River’s trout water area is short, it has a lot of personality. The three-mile stretch from Mammoth Spring to Dam 3 (an old hydropower structure) is ideal for wading or fishing from the bank, except for the deep section near the dam, which provides good boat fishing.
Bank fishing is limited below Dam 3, both by streamside topography and the fact that both banks of the river are privately owned. There’s a small wade-fishing/bank-fishing area alongside the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission’s Spring River Hatchery, but aside from this area, the best way to fish the river downstream from the dam is from a canoe. Rentals are available near the hatchery, or you can launch your own at the public ramp.
The first three miles below Dam 3 provide the best action and the biggest fish. One-pound to three-pound rainbows are fairly common, although most fish are recently released stockers. Brown trout provide a trophy-trout facet to the river’s fishing profile. Although you’ll find fish in deep-water runs, the best fishing is usually just below riffles and falls.
The Spring is hard to beat for stream walleye fishing. Some sampling surveys in recent years revealed more walleye than trout in the Spring River. Between Mammoth Spring and Hardy, try jigs in the foamy water below shoals and waterfalls. Farther downstream from Myatt Creek to the river’s mouth, walleye are scarcer but bigger, with several 12- to 15-pound fish caught in recent years. Boulders and riffle areas are the best spots for catching stream walleye
