Crooked Creek: Harmon Rd to Arkansas Spur 62/Foster Rd Bridge

 Crooked Creek: Harmon Rd to Arkansas Spur 62/Foster Rd Bridge 

    Some Boston Mountain streams have a blueish hue that makes the water less clear. The upper White River, the Mulberry, and Big Piney Creek all have this characteristic. However, Crooked Creek is among a few select Ozark streams in Arkansas that are clear without any hue. Although not as clear as the Baron Fork, there is still plenty of classic Ozark beauty to appreciate on the stretch from Harmon Rd to Arkansas Spur 62/Foster Rd Bridge. My theory as to why Crooked Creek is not quite as clear as the Baron Fork is it is not as rocky. That is not to say that because it is less clear, Crooked Creek isn't as good for smallmouth fishing. I would argue that if Crooked Creek is not the best smallmouth fishing stream in the state, it is certainly close.

 

    As I mentioned before, Crooked Creek is not as rocky as the Baron Fork. But even with more mud banks and less gravel, there is still plenty of habitat for fish. What makes it so "crooked" is the way it meanders through the north Arkansas countryside. The sharp turns the stream makes create an abundance of deep plunge pools as well as long narrow pools that are the perfect depth for bass to thrive. These pools have plenty of cover and overhanging trees, adding to what makes the bass fishing so good. Smallmouth seem to inhabit these places but are not limited to them. The "in between" areas that connect pools can produce as many smallmouth as the pools themselves. Although these "in between" smallies are generally not as big as the ones caught in pools. 

    Of course, the quantity of fish that can be caught is somewhat dictated by the time of year. When I floated this stretch in the late spring, I caught more smallies in the 15" range then I have anywhere else. I have fished this stretch in the summer and caught good numbers, but not nearly as many in the 15" range. However, my biggest smallmouth from Crooked Creek did come in the early fall. When picking lures, its hard to go wrong. The best advice I can give is to go simple, particularly if your goal is to catch as many as possible. Curly-tailed grubs that are watermelon colored were deadly, probably because of how well they imitate bullfrog tadpoles. Although there is no way to be certain what lure will work best for the big fish in any given stream, my motto is "go big or go home". This usually leads me to using jigs. I like throwing jig and pigs in the deep pools to see if that 20 incher will go for it (spoiler alert, it hasn't yet). But overall, it seems like the bite is so good during late morning into the afternoon that it really doesn't matter what you use.

    Crooked Creek has a small basin so it flows best around 200 cfs. The gauge to check is at Kelly Crossing at Yellville. When deciding exactly how far to float, there are some options for where to put in and take out. McDonald Rd crosses the creek a mile upstream of Harmon Rd which is a slightly easier place to access if you don't mind adding another mile to the nearly 9 mile float. You can also takeout another mile downstream from Arkansas Spur 62/Foster Rd at Highway 62 bridge. Also, there are no outfitters nearby so self shuttles are a must.

  

    The float is not difficult by any means. Any "risky" areas can easily be avoided by getting out of the craft and walking it through whatever rapid or tight spot. By "tight spot" I mean where overhanging branches cannot be avoided (AKA strainers). I would go as far as to call this a leisurely float where it is easy to focus on fishing. However, it is important to make progress because before you know it, there could be 2 miles left and its dark.

     

    Below are a couple of videos that show just how beautiful Crooked Creek is. Hopefully this post has been helpful! Now get to fishing!