The Ouachita National Forest wraps the Beavers Bend area in a thick blanket of color. Trails for hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding and even ATVing roam through the tall pines and hardy oaks of this oldest southern American forest. Who knows what you might find lurking just around the Beavers Bend in McCurtain County, Oklahoma? It might even be Bigfoot.

Beavers Bend is an angler’s dream destination, plain and simple. Whether you prefer to wade out into the river with a fly-rod looking for trout, or sit in the troller with a rod and reel pulling out bass, catfish and more, the fishing in southeastern Oklahoma never disappoints.

For the fly fishing enthusiast, the Mountain Fork River flowing down from the Ouachita Mountains is a tailwater fishery featuring 14 miles of trout habitat, stocked year-round, where rainbow and brown trout can be fished in abundance. A nearly four-mile stretch of the river is designated as a “trophy section” where boats and barbed hooks are not allowed. Curious how big a trout you might find on the end of your line? A brown trout of more than 17 pounds was pulled out of the Mountain Fork in 2008, nearly doubling the previous Oklahoma record.

You can also fish the Upper Mountain Fork and Eagle Fork Rivers for Neosho-strain smallmouth bass, as well as Kentucky spotted bass, largemouth bass, sunfish, and a seasonal run of walleye and sand bass.

Broken Bow Lake features 180 miles of shoreline and boasts some of the clearest water you’ll ever see, thanks to its rock-lined floor. The lake is known for its black bass fishing (largemouth, smallmouth, and spotted bass are all present), and other popular species include walleye, crappie, catfish, and various sunfish.

Pine Creek Lake also has a high ratio of shoreline length to water area and is conducive to good fish production. Principal fish species include crappie, white bass, largemouth bass, channel catfish, flathead catfish, and various sunfish.

The more remote Glover River, Oklahoma’s only free-flowing river, has protected areas for wade fishing, and anglers are known to catch perch, smallmouth and largemouth bass and other species. Fishing is best on the upper section of the river, above the rapids and faster moving waters. The Glover is also home to the Neosho-strain of smallmouth bass as well as the Kentucky spotted bass.

The Red Slough wetland area has species such as bass, sunfish and crappie in its streams, ponds and reservoirs.

McCurtain County is a hunter’s paradise, providing a wealth of native species roaming unspoiled public lands — from the pine forests to the wetlands and every nook and cranny in between.

The Honobia Creek and Three Rivers Wildlife Management Areas in and around the Ouachita National Forest are among the best destinations in the region for hunters, offering a wide variety of game, including white-tailed deer, wild turkey, bobwhite quail, dove, rabbit and more. A Land Access permit is required to enter the area, available at area hunting and fishing license vendors.

The Red Slough wetlands preserve and the Little River National Wildlife Refuge are home to some of the finest waterfowl hunting in the region, especially during the winter months, when a variety of ducks converge on the area. The Red Slough is also great for hunting deer, quail, dove, rabbit, turkey, and even black bear when in season.

Other popular hunting spots in the area include the Broken Bow, Grassy Slough, Whitegrass Flats and Pine Creek Wildlife Management Areas. Hunting in the McCurtain County Wilderness Area is not permitted aside from controlled hunts for deer and turkey.