NJ Hunting
The park includes some of the most popular canoeing water anywhere in the world. The Current and Jacks Fork River are heavily spring-fed, and are navigable throughout the year. Between the two rivers, the park provides about 120 miles of floatable water.
The rivers are crystal clear, cool, and have a blue-green color. Any float on either river will take you past mountains, springs, and bluffs. There are many gravel bars along the way that are perfect for picnicking, camping, or just relaxing. There are no rapids on the rivers that pose a serious threat, although fast riffles and shoals are common. Many canoe rentals service the river, so finding a boat and a shuttle is not a problem. Here’s a few of the most special floats.
The Ozark National Scenic Riverways provide a wealth of fishing opportunities. The most popular species include smallmouth bass, rainbow trout, brown trout, and goggle-eye, and green sunfish, but walleye, pickerel, and various rough fish are also available. The exceptionally clear waters of the Jacks Fork and Current River provide an incredibly attractive environment for fishing, and it seems that the world class game fish populations are just a bonus.
The Upper Current River is loosely defined as the water between Montauk State Park and Akers Ferry, also known by fisherman as the “trout section”. Between Montauk State Park and Cedar Grove, trophy brown trout are the main attraction, while there are plenty of rainbows around as well. Between Cedar Grove and Akers Ferry, the fishery is under put and take regulations, and 10″ rainbows are stocked about a dozen times each year.
The upper Current generally has a high gradient, but there are no real rapids to speak of. This is famous trout water, and the number of fisherman will reflect that. Float fishing and wade fishing are about equally popular, with the best wading conditions occurring above Cedar Grove. There is about 20 miles of water here, and it’s all good for trout. Smallmouth bass fishing is also pretty decent between Cedar Grove and Akers Ferry.
The middle Current River is home to the river’s classic smallmouth bass water. The middle Current is generally defined as the water between Akers Ferry and the junction with the Jacks Fork River (aka Two Rivers), a distance of nearly 40 miles. The first 12 miles from Akers Ferry to Round Spring provides a mix of coldwater and warm-water fisheries, with rainbow trout and smallmouth bass. Below Round Spring, smallmouth bass become king.
They hide in every pool and riffle in this part of the river, and fish densities are very high. Due to a lack of special regulations and extremely high fishing pressure, fish size is usually fairly small. Ten to fourteen inch bass are the norm, with some bigger and a few smaller. Goggle-eye and sunfish are also very common. There are some areas to wade fish, but a canoe will give you access to quite a bit more water.
The lower Current River, from Two Rivers to the Arkansas state line provides some 70 miles of very big water for fisherman. Smallmouth bass still reign supreme. Although there are still not any special regulations on the lower river, the sheer size of the river allows many to grow to trophy proportions, and the average size of bass is considerably larger than any other part of the river. The river by this point has slowed down considerably, which makes boat fishing much easier. There are still quite a few riffles, but they tend to be relatively short, and are separated by many long pools.
Below Van Buren, a few new species enter the scene, including walleye, crappie, and largemouth bass. Walleye fishing tends to be an on and off proposition, but generally they are common below Big Spring, and get even more common the closer to the Arkansas border you are. Crappie and largemouth bass also become common in the huge water below Big Spring, with the best populations in the slow backwaters. There are some productive areas to fish off the bank for smallmouth and panfish, but wade fishing is pretty difficult this far downstream. Most fishermen utilize canoes or river jon boats.
There are some excellent NJ hunting opportunities in the National Park. Unlike most areas managed by the National Park Service, hunting is allowed under statewide regulations. Deer, turkey, squirrel, rabbit, and a limited population of upland birds can be found. Black bear are becoming somewhat common in the park, but it’s not yet legal to hunt them.
There is a good diversity of habitat in the area, with both river valleys and mountains available to the NJ hunting. Also, it’s always a fun adventure to combine a day of fishing and hunting. Just remember hunting isn’t allowed in developed areas of the park.
Processing your request, Please wait....
