LAKE OUACHITA
Hot Springs, Ark.
The cup host city is hot
Springs, Ark., a city best known
for the 47 hot springs flowing
from the town’s namesake moun-
tain and the 143-degree water
that feeds bathhouse row, a
national historic Landmark
District.
Shallow Wood
Stumps, laydowns, root wads and
brush offer shallow targets in this area.
iLLUSTrATion by ron FinGer
The Rivers
The ouachita and South Fork converge at big Fir recreation
Area’s housley point. The area east of this juncture is generally
considered to be the main lake.
What’s in a Name?
“ouachita” is derived from the language of the original
inhabitants of the region, and is believed to be a French
adaptation of the word “wishita,” which means “good
hunting grounds.” it’s been applied to a native
American tribe (usually written Washita), ouachita
mountains, ouachita national Forest, which covers 1.8
million acres in Arkansas and oklahoma and surrounds
the reservoir, as well as the ouachita river, which now
flows into Lake ouachita. other landmarks and com-
munities in the region bear the name Washita.
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Brush Piles and Timber
Sunken brush and timber
are almost always players
at ouachita in the summer.
FLWFISHING.COM I JULY 2018