BULL SHOALS -- One exhibit at Bull Shoals-White River State Park's James A. Gaston Visitor Center would stir a bit of envy in any devoted fisherman.
It displays life-size replicas of six fish mounted on pedestals to depict the largest catches of their species in Arkansas. The biggest, a brown trout, weighed 40 pounds, 4 ounces. The others are a walleye (22 pounds), a rainbow trout (19 pounds, 1 ounce), a lake trout (11 pounds, 5 ounces), a cutthroat trout (9 pounds, 9 ounces) and a smallmouth bass (7 pounds, 5 ounces).
This is an apt setting for such trophy fish. As the park's brochure truthfully boasts, "Bull Shoals Lake and the White River create an anglers' paradise. In addition to lunker bass, crappie and bream in the lake, the clear cold-water river is nationally known for record-setting rainbow and brown trout."
The 45,440-acre lake, with its 720 miles of shoreline extending from Arkansas into Missouri, exists thanks to the immense dam completed in 1951 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. A newspaper clipping from July 1952 reports on President Harry S Truman's speech at the dam's dedication.
Sweeping views of the dam, 2,256 feet long and rising to a maximum height of 256 feet, can be enjoyed from a deck at the back of the visitor center or atop a two-story observation tower.
The 1,720-square-foot center, opened 12 years ago, is a showpiece of the state park system. It was built at a cost of $4.7 million, provided by the 1/8-cent state conservation tax. Hanging from a gallery ceiling is the very first craft built by Ranger Boats, the Flippin-based company to the south that makes nearly three-fourths of the bass boats sold worldwide.
A video titled "White River Stories," shown every 30 minutes in the Johnboat Theater, tells the story of the White River from bygone American Indian cultures through the arrival of the first Europeans at the end of the 18th century to the building of the dam and the resort development it spurred.
The name Bull Shoals stems from the French word "boill," used by early hunters and trappers to mean a large spring of fresh water. The first English-speaking visitor pronounced "boill" as "bull," and that usage prevailed. As for "shoals," they were the river's swift and shallow stretches before it was tamed by the dam.
Bull Shoals-White River was the seventh Arkansas state park when it was taken into the system in 1955. At first, the site consisted mostly of a cleared field for camping and one light pole. There are now campsites, picnic areas, playgrounds, marked trails, a boat ramp and a trout dock that rents boats.
Programs led by park rangers include basics of trout fishing, guided nature walks, lake cruises and demonstrations of Dutch-oven cooking. On May 4-5, during Eagle Awareness Weekend, visitors will be guided within viewing distance of bald eagles as well as other birds of prey and migratory species.
The visitor center now carries the name of Jim Gaston, proprietor of nearby Gaston's White River Resort until his death in 2015. He was a determined advocate of tourism's importance to Arkansas' economy and culture. The resort continues to be a highly regarded lodging for fishermen and other visitors to the Bull Shoals area.
The visitor center at Bull Shoals-White River State Park is open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily. Admission to the park is free. For details, visit arkansasstateparks.com or call (870) 445-3629. For information on Gaston's White River Resort, visit gastons.com.
Style on 05/01/2018