Here in the Arkansas Ozarks, a grand slam is catching all four species of trout (rainbow, brown, cutthroat and brook) that we have here in one day. It is a rite of passage for fly fishers and the best way that I know of to cap off a great day of fishing.
Last week, I was guiding a group of fly fishers for The White River Inn, the most luxurious fishing lodge on the White River. They had flown in on a corporate jet from Arizona and were as a group very experienced competent anglers. As luck would have it they arrived in the middle of the Rhyancophilia Caddis hatch, one of our major hatches of the year.
The first day we fished on the White River and they did well. The weather was perfect. It was sunny with temperatures in the mid-seventies and no discernible wind. In the morning, we fished zebra midges and small olive scuds. About one o’clock the hatch started coming off. We quickly switched to size fourteen elk hair caddis with a green body and began picking up fish immediately. This was some of the best dry fly fishing I have encountered in some time. My clients caught maybe twenty-five trout apiece, mostly on the top, with the largest fish being sixteen inches long.
The next day they wanted to fish the Norfork to try something different. We walked far into the catch-and-release area. I put Kenny in a nice run and rigged him up with a size fourteen green elk hair caddis. He requested a couple of extra dry flies and a woolly bugger in case he either lost a fly or wanted to try something else. I then took his fishing partner, Ray, upstream to fish one of my favorite spots. Ray is a bit older and his vision is not as good as Kenny’s so he was fishing nymphs with a large strike indicator and catching plenty of fish. I split my time between the two anglers.
As I was walking up to Kenny, he motioned for me to hurry up. I picked up the pace and arrived in time to help him revive a fat, twenty-three inch rainbow. I stayed with him long enough to watch him to catch a nineteen inch cutthroat and a fifteen inch brown. These and the other dozen or so trout that he had caught previously were all taken on the elk hair caddis. I walked back up to where Ray was fishing and helped him land an eighteen inch cutt.
By this time, it was past noon and we walked back to the access for lunch. I quickly set up the table and over sandwiches, chips and cookies, we discussed the events of the morning. It had been one of the best days the guys had ever had. Moose Watson, the owner of The White River Inn, stopped by to check on us. Ray was tired from the constant action of the last two days. He returned to the Inn with Moose for a shower and a nap and Kenny and I returned to our spot and continued fishing.
We stayed with the elk hair caddis and were rewarded with several Cutthroats, the largest being seventeen inches long. It was almost time to go and Kenny made his last cast of the day. The fly gently settled on the water and drifted a couple of feet when a trout rose and nailed it. Kenny quickly brought it in and I gently picked it up to remove the hook and release it. It was a small (eight inch) trout. I looked at it and noticed bright red spots with bright blue circles around them. I turned it over and noticed worm like markings on its back and white on the leading edge of its fins. It was a brook trout and judging by its intense color and full fins a wild one! I took me a moment to realize that Kenny had just caught a grand slam. It was the first grand slam that I knew of that had been caught on dry flies. This was the perfect way to end a special day.
Since then, I have discussed this with other guides and anglers. I learned that my brother Dan had a dry fly Grand Slam some years ago and that George Peters, a local guide, had done it this year on the White River (they both favor dry flies and long casts.) We all agreed that this was the first time that they had heard of a client achieving this milestone. So if you want to set an angling goal for your self, think about seeking the elusive dry fly grand slam. I’m working on mine!
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John Berry is a fly fishing guide in Cotter, Arkansas and can be contacted at