Dr. Ben Garner’s Arkansas Wild depicts his homecoming to the storied Little Red River yet highlights the conservation challenges and economic impacts stemming from the river. The Little Red River supports a self-sustaining wild brown trout population and produces some truly XL-sized specimens, including Rip Collins’ 40 lb brown three decades ago. Ben’s film tells the story of the Little Red River and follows local guides, businesses, and biologists to dig deeper and understand the river’s importance to the local community and how to ensure it remains sustainable as more people find it. The film was aired on PBS stations across the country and can now be rented. Follow along for our interview with Dr. Garner!
Flylords: Ben, tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got into filmmaking
Ben: I grew up in Arkansas and started fly-fishing when I was about 12-13 years old, and the Little Red River was just up the road from my town. It was just a 20-minute drive from my house, and I learned how to fish for trout on this river. Fast forward to 2010-2014, and I was working on my PhD in Communication at the University of Kansas. While I was there, I took extra classes in film production so I could learn the craft of filmmaking. At KU, I was able to take classes from my mentor, Madison Davis Lacy, who worked with Ken Burns and others at PBS. I also got to take classes from Kevin Willmott, an Oscar winning screenwriter. So my education on the fundamentals of visual storytelling was really solid.
Flylords: How did you first learn about the fishery on the Little Red River? And then decide to make a film about the river and its challenges?
Ben: I grew up fishing the Little Red River. Like is so often the case, I took a local resource for granted. I didn’t quite realize what a unique place it was until I moved away. I lived outside of Arkansas for 11 years, and then finally in 2021 we moved back. I reconnected with my friend and fishing guide Lowell Myers, who at the time was the President of the Little Red River Foundation nonprofit organization. He told me about how the Little Red faced an epic drought in 2012 that killed many of the wild brown trout, and how it faced uphill battles. I was interested to learn more and rediscover the river in a deeper, more meaningful way. My hope was to inspire others to help others see this river for what it is – an amazing resource that needs our protection.
Flylords: What are the conservation challenges facing the Little Red and its trout fisheries?
Ben: For those who aren’t aware, the Little Red is a tailwater created in the early 1960s for hydropower and flood control. As a result, those twin issues still seem to be the top priorities for those in charge.
Water Releases & Summer Heat. One of the challenges is water management. From my interviews and observations, most people feel they release too much water in Spring all at once and then have no water in July-September. This creates very warm conditions and low oxygen for the trout in late summer and early fall, which of course isn’t good. But this is a federal issue – I was told that it literally takes an act of congress to pass any federal-level water changes with the Corp of Engineers. Some of the lake level mandates, I was told, are very old. I’m hoping they’ll review those and make some changes.
Development & Regulation. Another challenge is a lack of regulation on the river. From my interviews, it seems that permits aren’t required for home owners to put up new docks, and those can appear overnight blocking boat channels. There are also many derelict docks, and I was told sometimes they break loose and cause problems for others downstream. Likewise, new homes are built that spills sedimentation into the river. People may not have silt fences and also cut all the vegetation down by the river. From what I can tell, there’s no requirement to have a riparian buffer between the home and the river. From my research, there are as least 7 different organizations or agencies that have some jurisdiction on the river. These need to communicate more effectively.
In summary, summer heat, drought, water management issues, communication among agencies, and lack of regulation surrounding development are some of the main challenges this river faces.
Flylords: What is the Little Red River Foundation, what has been their goal?
Ben: The Little Red River Foundation was a nonprofit that sprang up to be a voice for the river after the 2012 drought and subsequent fish kill. Lowell Myers served as the President for many years, and its mission is to preserve, protect, and promote the Little Red. They’ve partnered on some habitat restoration, special stocking programs, and similar projects.
Flylords: Ok, let’s talk about the fishing on the Little Red River–what are the primary species, tactics, etc?
Ben: When I grew up fishing in the late 1990s and early 2000s, everyone would have told you to fish with sow bugs. They used to be everywhere. But now we’re seeing very few of these, and people don’t really know why. That may be part of the challenge also – fewer nutrients in the river. Today, midges work really well, we have some caddis hatches, and of course streamer fishing for browns early and late. Unsurprisingly, if you want to catch numbers of fish, you’ll nymph all day and catch mostly rainbows. You’ll pick up the occasional brown, too. But more rainbows. Up by the dam where it’s the coldest people catch brook trout occasionally. During the middle of the day, I mostly catch rainbows. Dusk and dawn are when I’ve caught browns.
Flylords: Clearly, fishing dependent businesses rely on healthy habitats and abundant fish populations. What does the future look like for Arkansas’ local fishing communities and businesses?
Ben: Arkansas’ trout fishing communities are very strong. We have reliable sources of water from the lakes, and we have multiple large rivers that are world-famous (White River, Little Red, etc.) and produce newsworthy fish. I think for the Little Red, some of the groups and biologists nearby (Steve Lochmann, UAPB, Little Red River Foundation, Arkansas Game & Fish Commission) are hoping to do more studies to look at factors like the food supply, nutrients, etc. So, I believe the productivity will continue to be strong. The question really will be, can we as a state handle more tourism and visitors in a way that is sustainable.
Flylords: Any good stories fish or other from the production stage?
Ben: I think one of the funniest stories (and also the most difficult production day) was when I went to fish for browns with Jamie Rouse. Bear in mind, I self-funded this entire project, so I had no budget to pay even myself, much less a second camera operator. I had my nephew George arranged to come hold a camera to film me fishing, but he had to go to work. So I got my two cameras, 4 sand bags, and set up two camera set-ups with tripods: one facing Jamie rowing the boat and one facing me, fishing. We got there at 5:30am, so not only was I hoping my two cameras didn’t fall over in the river, but I had to also intermittently check to make sure the video wasn’t over exposed. In the film you can see me casting over my left-hand shoulder (I’m right-handed), so that I wouldn’t hook the tripod and send it flying. That was tough! But thank goodness it came out in the end, and that sequence has been one of audiences’ favorite. So it worked out in the end.
Flylords: How can anglers learn more about the Little Red River or get involved?
Ben: If people want to learn more, they can visit my website benjaminrgarner.com and click through to my Vimeo to rent the film. That is the quickest way they can really learn about this river. If people are local to Arkansas, they can volunteer for the TU chapter in Heber Springs, Arkansas or support the Little Red River Foundation. People also volunteer to pick up trash throughout the year.
However, I am assuming that most of your readers are not from Arkansas. My call to action for them is to get engaged with their local river or lake. The challenges facing the Little Red (heavy tourism, water management, drought, communication among agencies) – these are problems other rivers, lakes, and forests are facing, too. In the end, I hope people watch my documentary and see their own local place in the film.
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