Woodard Lake Fishing in Ouachita County, Arkansas
Camden Area

One word to describe this lake, "DEEP". This is a deep lake. Sits off to the right of hiway 7 leaving out of Camden. I've fished here a few time but never caught nothing out of here other than the old Cypress Trout. One memorable trip was when my wife Brenda wanted to go fishing with her mother Ellen Reeves and I, and we were trying to discourage that since she was pregnant our first child. Well her persistance paid off and there we were a warm summer Friday evening tossing jumbo earth worms in Woodard Lake. We were fishing from the bank and as usual nothing was biting. Brenda was the only one really getting bites from the small breams, and that was good enough for her. She was feeding them as if she was practicing for the arrival of our son. She had even opened a dialouge with them as to say tell mama what you want.:) To the right of Brenda was Ellen, a true fisherman. Straw hat, boots, flannel shirt, she was no joke. Those of you not from this part of the country may not comprehend this attire, but after you've been hit two or three hundred times by a squadron of A-10 Tank Killers in this case Arkansas Mosquitos you don't know. Well between fighting mosquitos off and getting this constant tug on her pole, Ellen had started her own dialouge with the culprit at the other end of her pole. As for me I had a couple of hot beers in my tackle box so I was content with just being there with two women I loved very much. In the middle of my second hot beer the action took off. Ellen had finnally hooked her victim to the right of Brenda and was hollering, "Walter, Walter, come here, come here." Well, hell, the beer is hot. I threw it down on the ground and went to Ellen's rescue. Of all the rods and reels she had taken she would have to hook this thing on a "CANE POLE". Well she starts to back peddle, backing up from the edge of the spot she was fishing in an effort to drag the fish out meanwhile screaming to me "Get the line, Get the line". I grabbed the line and here comes the catch. The largest Cypress Trout-Griner I had ever seen. I had barely got him on the bank when Brenda screams out "Walter, Walter, Snake!!!!!" I turn and head to her and a long black water mocasin has decided that this pregnant lady needed company. Lucky for us he did not want any trouble because as I approached him beating his ass with that cane pole he decided that it was way too much action on this side of the bank. He hit the water and headed across the lake. By this time words were not needed, Ellen had begin to pack up her gear, Brenda was wrapping up her pole and I was trying to salvage what was left of the PBR I had drilled into the earth as I assisted my ladies. We gathered or belongings and headed for the car entertainning the discussion of that's why we did not want you (Brenda) to come with us. Snakes tend to find or follow pregnant women rather easily. One hellavu afternoon in Ouachita County. Oh yeah!! We took the Griner with us.

This is a privately owned lake now.