A Touch of Lime Goes a Long Way

(Updated 11-18-2015) Bates Field and Stream (501-470-1846) said the water is stained and the surface water temperature is 67 degrees. The water level is high from the rain. Bream are fair on crickets and worms about 10 feet off the bank. Crappie are biting well on jigs and minnows fished around Highway 89 Bridge, Caney Creek and Gold Creek. Bass are fair on white spinnerbaits and topwater lures around the shoreline. Catfishing is excellent on limb lines and yo-yos baited with trotline minnows and goldfish.      

(Updated 11-24-2015) Daniel Zajac at Gold Creek Landing (501-607-0590) said crappie fishing is very good on minnows and jigs, but jigs are producing better than minnows. The best action has been in Gold Creek and back in the pond. No report on any other species.

(Updated 11-24-2015) Greg Seaton with Little Red Fly Fishing Trips (501-690-9166) said generation continues to be one unit about 20 hours per day. The river is clear after the big rain last weekend. Fishing has been slow due to the higher water. Drift fishing is the only option at this time. The lake is about 8 inches high in the flood pool, so the generation will probably stay the same until the lake returns to normal. Brown trout are moving up but still are not in the numbers you would expect at this time. The colder weather will probably start the spawning process. The rainbows are still trying to spawn and some large rainbows are being caught. Egg patterns, large nymphs and San Juan worms seem to be the best choices for flies.

(Updated 11-24-2015) James Dillard at Tailwater Fishing Company (501-207-1770) said fishing has been great. The water is clear and high with one unit being released around the clock. Wading opportunities are very limited. When fishing from a boat, make sure to fish deep. The hot flies have been sow bugs, midges, and San Juan worms.

(Updated 11-24-2015) Tommy Cauley of Fish Finder Guide Service said the water level is 0.43 feet above normal pool and falling. Fishing for black bass is pretty good shallow using spinner baits, small crankbaits and jigs. The water clarity is not so good for the deeper fish, but is improving. Crappie are getting settled back down from the 4-foot rise. They are suspended in 12-25 feet of water in the guts and points of the main lake and all secondary points in the pole timber. No report on catfish. Walleye are on the move and are hit-and-miss. Try trolling big crankbaits around points in 15-40 feet of water over 80-100 feet. Bream have shut down. The hybrid and white bass bite is so-so  with the dirty water. As it clears the catching should be great on topwater baits, spoons and in-line spinners.

(Updated 11-11-2015) Cody Smith of www.fishgreersferry.com said the water level currently is holding steady 4 feet below top of seasonal pool. Recent rains have helped stabilize the water level and cool temperatures to seasonal averages. A lot of fish that had been deeper in the water column and holding on to typical summer patterns have finally started to move. This in turn has spread our game fish out a bit more. Silver-sided minnows, bream and crawfish are the main types of forage here, concentrate on mimicking these and you should find a few fish.

(Updated 11-11-2015) Harris Brake Lakeside Resort (501-889-2745) said the water is down a little and is pretty clear. Bream are fair. Crappie are beginning to bite in about 10 feet of water. Minnows and white jigs are the best bets right now. Bass are biting fairly well on shallow-running, shad-imitating crankbaits fished in 6 feet of water in the mornings and evenings. Catfishing is good on live bait throughout the day. 

(Updated 11-24-2015) Whiskers Sporting Goods in Perryville (501-889-2011) said the crappie are biting on minnows and Bobby Garland Baby Itty Bit Swim’Rs in monkey milk, pennyback shad, blue ice shimmer and Cajun cricket in 6 to 10 feet of water. Catfishing is good on worms, shad and minnows. Bass are biting buzzbaits and worms. White bass are biting well on Johnson Silver Minnows and Bobby Garland Itty Bit Swim’Rs. Bream are biting on crickets and worms.  

Overcup Landing had no report.

(Updated 11-4-2015) Jan Johnson at Brewer Lake Bait Shop (501-354-4108) is closed for hunting season.

(Updated 11-4-2015) Charley's Hidden Harbor at Opello had no report.

(Updated 11-4-2015) Jolly Roger’s Marina said the water is 3.2 feet below the spillway. The surface water temperature is 65 degrees. Black bass are biting well on wacky-rigged worms, spinner baits, buzzbaits and jerkbaits in 10 feet of water or less. Spotted bass are excellent on crankbaits and jigs in 10 to 15 feet of water. White bass are excellent just west of Jolly Rogers Marina and east trolling with deep-diving Bandits and Bombers about 15 feet deep. They also are being caught on CC spoons, white jigs and Rooster Tails when schooling. Crappie are biting well in 15 to 25 feet of  water around brush. On minnows and jigs. Bream are excellent on crickets and live worms in 15 to 20 feet of water around brush. Catfish are biting well in 10 to 15 feet of water on stink bait, small bream and chicken livers.

​(Updated 11-18-2015) River Valley Marina (501-517-1250) said the water is muddy and running swiftly after the rain. Before the rain, crappie were biting excellently in 8 to 9 feet of water on minnows and jigs fished around boat docks.   

(Updated 10-28-2015) The folks at Fish ’N Stuff (501-834-5733) said the water is stained to slightly muddy. Surface water temperature is in the high 60s to low 70s and the water level is rising from the rain. Bream have about stopped biting lately. Crappie are still slow as well. Bass are biting well in 3 to 6 feet of water lately. Catfishing is slow.  

(Updated 11-24-2015) McSwain Sports Center (501-945-2471) said the water is a little high and muddy right now. There haven’t been many fishing reports come in to the shop. Be aware that duck hunters may be on some of the sandbars and islands in the river.   

As of Wednesday, the Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation at 660.72 feet msl (normal conservation pool – 659 msl).

(Updated 11-11-2015) Bull Shoals Boat Dock said the water is mostly clear, and finding some dirtier water can help find the bite. As water temperatures cool, the fish will move up to the shallow water briefly to follow the shad. Anglers can catch fish anywhere from 22 to 2 feet deep from secondary points upstream to the creek ends. Bass are biting well on Zara Spooks, wake baits and buzzbaits. If it’s cloudy, the bite could last all day. On bluebird days, try moving to points with gravel and chunk rock once the sun is out. A 7/16-oz Jewel shaky head with a Zoom finesse worm or beaver-style bait or a ½-oz. swinging head jigs in brown or green has been doing well in 15 to 25 feet of water around submerged brush. A Keitech swimbait or smoke grub also has been working well in these areas.  (Updated 10-14-2015) K Dock Marina (417-334-2880) said the lake is about 7 feet away from being back to normal. We are looking forward to getting our launch ramp back for the fall.  Shad have become very concentrated on the flats. Many anglers are catching good numbers of white bass near K Dock. Once the lake stops dropping 6 inches per day, the fall bite should be great for all species. The surface water temperature is 70 to 72 degrees, and the water clarity is clear. Black bass are biting well on a variety of baits. Topwater lures are working well in the morning. Spinnerbaits are producing on windy days. Jigs and crankbaits (particularly squarebills) are producing well around points and high rock bluffs, however zebra mussels have moved in at many areas and will tear up your line, so check it often. Many anglers have resorted to fishing with braid to save their line from being cut. Walleye are fair on bottom-bouncing night crawlers.  Trolling crankbaits will improve once the lake stabilizes. Crappie are fair on live minnows. White bass are biting well on lipless crankbaits, Rooster Tails and small spinnerbaits.  Follow the surfacing shad and you’ll find the fish. 

(Updated 11-11-2015) Sportsman’s White River Resort (870-453-2424) said the water is low and crystal clear with two generators running. Trout fishing is excellent on pink plastic worms, shrimp and flies. 

(Updated 11-11-2015) Berry Brothers Guide Service (870-453-2424) said the catch-and-release section below Bull Shoals Dam will close Nov. 1, 2015-Jan. 31, 2016, to accommodate the brown trout spawn. The state park will be seasonal catch-and-release for the same period. All brown trout must be immediately released. In addition, night fishing is prohibited in this area during this period. The White had much lower water generation this week with marginal wadable water. Fishing has improved with the lower water. The hot flies were olive woolly buggers (size 8-10), Y2Ks (size 12-14), prince nymphs (size 14), zebra midges (black with silver wire and silver bead or red with silver wire and silver bead, size 16-18), pheasant tails (size 14), ruby midges (size 18), root beer midges (size 18), pink and cerise San Juan worms (size 10), and sowbugs (size 16). Double-fly nymph rigs have been very effective (my current favorite is a hot fluorescent pink or cerise San Juan worm with a black midge suspended below it).

As of Wednesday, the Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation at 557.89 feet msl (normal conservation pool: September-April – 553.75 msl, April-September – 556.75 msl).

(Updated 11-24-2015) Tom Reynolds of STR Outfitters said Norfork Lake went through a lot of changes last week. We had more than 4 inches of rain that raised the lake about 5 feet above normal pool. The cold weather and water rise has changed the whole striper pattern. The stripers are now feeding in the Blue Lady area in the 50-foot range along the channel heading toward Crystal Cove. They are also in Float and Panther creeks. Again, stay in the 40- to 50-foot range with your baits set 35 feet deep. Also set out a free line with just a split shot 50 feet behind your boat. There are very large bait balls all the way up to Fout Boat Dock. For all you live bait users, the shiner bite has started. Shad are still working well, but shiners were catching stripers the whole weekend. 

(Updated 11-18-2015) Lou Gabric of Hummingbird Hideaway Resort said fishing has been fair during the last two weeks. All species are biting once you find them. Large schools of stripers, hybrids and white bass are cruising the lake feeding on shad. Crappie and bluegills are hanging around brush piles. Largemouth, smallmouth and spotted bass are starting to move to the banks, but a lot of the larger bass are still suspended, chasing shad. Catfish are hitting worms and small bluegills very aggressively. Stripers, hybrids and white bass have schooled up and are starting to fatten up for the upcoming cool winter months. You can find large schools of fish roaming large flats in 40 to 50 feet of water. It takes time to locate the fish, but when you do, they're a lot of fun. I have also found large schools of stripers in the mouths of coves, late afternoons in 70 feet of water suspended 20 to 30 feet down. Find a cove that the wind is blowing directly into, then if you find suspended bait start looking for the stripers cruising and feeding. For some reason these large schools of stripers are hitting my spoon only when I reel up through them. Trolling is also working in the afternoon. One of my stripers this evening came from trolling a swim bait about 20 to 25 feet down. Not a lot of change in largemouth bass fishing from my last report. I am still catching these fish in 27 - 33 feet of water. Work a jig and pig or any plastic bait along the bottom. I have been casting out my spoon and bouncing it back to the boat along the bottom, this method is catching some nice fish. I am starting to mark some nice suspended bass along bluff lines down 15 to 20 feet deep. Crankbaits should start to work before long. Catfish are biting very good on green worms and small bluegill. Jugs and trotlines are working the best. Some crappie and bluegill can be found in and around sunken brush piles 25 to 30 feet deep. The fish will be suspended over the brush, but at midday look deeper in the brush. Small grubs or a small spoon jigging in and around the brush will catch you a few nice fish. Crickets are the best for the bluegills.

(Updated 11-18-2015) Guide Steve Olomon said Norfork Lake has finally been drawn down to winter pool of 556.3 and the water temperature is in the mid-60s. The bite should begin improving. The main lake is clear, and the creeks are starting to clear up. There are a lot of baitfish in the creeks that will start moving out into the main lake as the water temperature drops more. I have seen baitfish on the surface and down to 40 feet. Look for stripers around the balls of bait. Bass are hitting Wiggle Warts along the bank out to 10-12 feet deep. Some also are hitting jigs in 10-35 feet of water. If you mark a school, drop a jigging spoon or a drop-shot with a 4-inch worm to them. The night bite will get better as the water temperature drops.

(Updated 11-11-2015) Berry Brothers Guide Service (870-453-2424) said the Norfork has fished much better now that the lake level has dropped enough to prevent the leakage around the flood gate that was being repaired. It has had wadable water. The boat traffic has been reduced with better fishing conditions on the White River. The most productive flies have been small midge patterns (size 18-22)  like ruby midges, root beer midges, zebra midges (black or red with silver wire and silver bead) and soft hackles (size 14-16) like the green butt. Egg patterns have also been productive. Double-fly nymph rigs have been very effective. Try a small bead-headed nymph (zebra midge, copper John or pheasant tail) suspended 18 inches below a brightly colored San Juan worm (hot fluorescent pink or cerise, size 10). There have been reliable hatches of small midges (try a size 24 Adams parachute) and caddis (try a size 18 elk hair caddis). The fishing is better in the morning and late afternoon and tapers off midday. My favorite combination has been a cerise worm with a Sunday special dropper. There construction project at the Norfork National Fish Hatchery is complete. Dry Run Creek has seen less pressure with school back in session. It still fished well. The hot flies have been sowbugs (size 14), Y2Ks (size 12) and various colored San Juan worms (worm brown, red, hot fluorescent pink and cerise size 10). 

As of Wednesday, the Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation at 1,120.05 feet msl (normal conservation pool – 1,120 msl).

(Updated 11-24-2015) Bailey’s Beaver Lake Guide Service (479-366-8664) said the water temperature is in the high 50’s. Stripers are using deep water next to road beds, gravel bars, tree lines and bluffs. The stripers in the White River and War Eagle arms are in clear water pockets or close to the banks and on the bottom along gravel bars. Use the mud line to your advantage, as it often concentrates schools bait fish and stripers. The bite will improve after this cold front gets settled and the weather gets back to normal. Striper fishing should be good on live shad taken on live shad fished from the surface down 25 to 30 feet deep. Also try trolling small umbrella rigs with white grubs (chartreuse for stained water) or plugs on flat lines or slightly weighted lines. Rapala no. 14 Husky Jerks in black back or purple back colors and 5- to 6-inch Smithwick Rogues in similar colors are working well. Striper are also being caught at night by trolling main lake points with large surface lures like Redfins and Rapalas on bottom bouncers or 3-way rigs, Don’t be afraid to go big for hungry striper. Indian Creek still has some stripers in it. Check past the marina near the power lines.  Be sure to check main lake structures and secondary points around Larue and Rocky Branch to catch Beaver Lake Striper as they make their way towards the river. The hot spots are Coppermine, Ventris, Shaddox Hollow, the Highway 12 Bridge, Prairie Creek, Coose Hollow and Beaver Shores. Horseshoe Bend, Monte-Ne and Hickory Creek are also hot right now, as are War Eagle and the White River upstream of Point 12. Most walleye have moved to the second drop and are being caught about 20-30ft deep they can be caught using a variety of methods. Three-way rigging Rapalas in natural colors for clear water or chartreuse/orange and clown colors in areas of stained water. Try shad raps in natural colors and rattle traps trolled at 1-2mph. Bink pro scale 1-oz jigging spoons in white or white/chart combo are producing walleye

(Updated 11-24-2015) Southtown Sporting Goods (479-443-7148) said the water is stained in the river arms, but is clear in the main lake. The water level has risen back to normal level from the recent rain. Crappie are biting very well. Red/chartreuse and black/chartreuse jigs and live minnows fished around brush in 8 to 12 feet of water are working the best. A few crappie also are being caught shallow in random brush and laydowns. Bass are fair on spinnerbaits, crankbaits and topwater lures early in the morning. Once the sun is up, spoons and jigs fished around deep ledges and cover are working well for the black bass. Stripers are fair at best with the recent rain. They are starting to hit topwater lures early in the mornings. White bass are biting well upriver on Rooster Tails. 

(Updated 11-24-2015) Beaver Dam Store said the store is only open Thursday through Sunday from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. during winter. Water releases continue each day at Beaver Dam. The bite has been good on red, white, chartreuse and pink Power Bait tipped up with a wax worm or piece of nightcrawler. Red/gold Buoyant Spoons or nickel/gold Colorado spoons are working, as are silver/blue Little Cleos. Fly-anglers hare having luck on egg patterns as well as midges and nymphs. PJ’s jigs are also a good choice to catch some good rainbow trout.

(Updated 11-18-2015) Austin Kennedy of Busch Mountain Fishing Guide Service (479-640-8733) said fishing has been good this past week. The generation schedule is allowing for more bank fishing as well. Trout are being caught on light terminal tackle baited with Power Bait. Spoons in ¼-oz. size have also been working well. Water temperatures have been in the mid 40s to low 50s from Spider Creek Island to Houseman Access.

(Updated 11-24-2015) Mark Crawford with Spring River Flies and Guides said water levels are 380 cfs at the spring and water clarity is poor.  A lot of rain last week has the river off color. It does not seem to matter to the trout. Really big trout are being caught over the last month.  They have been biting great on Y2K’s and bright woolly buggers. Gold-bladed Rooster Tails and hot pink Trout Magnets have been great for spin fishers.

(Updated 11-11-2015) Lake Chicot State Park said catfish are biting well on yo-yos and limb lines baited with live and prepared baits. No report on any other species.

(Updated 11-24-2015) Mike Siefert at Millwood Lake Guide Service said the lake level is 4.8 inches above normal conservation pool and falling. There is increased current with the gates releasing around 10,114 CFS Monday.  Use caution boating with increased current in Little River, and watch for floating debris. Surface water temperature ranges 50 to 59 degrees. Water clarity worsened over the past week to 3-8 inches of visibility in the main lake away from current. Little River's visibility ranges 3-5 inches. The oxbow's clarity improved over the weekend, ranging 12-20 inches. The best bet for bass has been crankbaits, chatterbaits, Rat-L-Traps and Echo 1.75 square-billed crankbaits in firetiger, chartreuse shiner, gold and red craw.  Real Deal Custom Tackle jigs in Texas craw, voodoo and Okeechobee Spice continue taking some good bass, as are magnum tubes in black neon and pumpkinseed/chartreuse. Large, slow-rolling War Eagle spinnerbaits in firetiger, peach or spot remover are working around dying or dead lily pads.  Tailspinners, such as Spin Traps, Little Cleos, Little Georges, and Rocket Shads are still catching all species of bass out of river current in breaks where huge schools of bass are following and chasing shad. The 

square-billed crankbaits and Rat-L-Traps worked well when fished slower out of the current in creek channel bends, deflecting off stumps and timber. Cordell Redfins in gold G-finish or ghost, Smithwick Rouges in clown or gold, and suspending jerk baits worked very slowly were catching some nice fish over the past couple weeks. Schools of white bass were found again in front of the second entrance to Mud Lake and Horseshoe Lake up Little River. These schooling Whites have been very aggressive on the crankbaits, chatterbaits, and squarebills from 5-9 feet deep. Crappie disappeared with all the recent inflow of muddy water along Little River over their planted brush pile condos. Catfish improved again on trotlines set along Little River in outer bends and creek mouths with flow into them.  The lines should be set between 8-10 feet and baited with chicken livers, hearts, gizzards and cut shad or buffalo.

As of Wednesday, the Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation was 542.18 feet msl (Flood pool – 548 msl).

(Updated 10-28-2015) Gary Lammers of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers had no report this week. 

As of Wednesday, the Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation was 399.68 feet msl (flood pool – 408 msl).

(Updated 10-28-2015) Local angler George Graves had no report.

Tri-County Lake will be undergoing a 5-foot drawdown until late fall. This is being done to compact the silt which has been building in the lake, reduce some of the aquatic vegetation in the lake, make repairs on jetties which have deteriorated over the years and address the lake's stunted crappie and bream populations by forcing these smaller fish into areas where they are more susceptible to the lake's predator fish. 

Local angler Jaret Rushing had no report.

(Updated 11-18-2015) Buddy Ham at Sportsman's One Stop in El Dorado (870-863-7248) said crappie are biting well in the upper and lower side of tree tops in the river on jigs and shiners. Bass are biting well on spinnerbaits and Texas-rigged soft-plastic creature baits. Catfish are biting well on live bait in the river. No report on bream. 

(Updated 11-11-2015) Lucky Landing (479-641-7615) had no report.

As of Wednesday, the Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation was 342.78 feet msl (full pool – 342 msl). 

(Updated 11-11-2015) Good Ole Boys Trading Post (479-272-4710) said the water is murky and rising again from the recent rain. A few anglers are catching some bass lately. Crappie are still running deep.  

(Updated 11-24-2015) Whiskers Sporting Goods in Perryville (501-889-2011) said crappie are biting on Bobby Garland Slab Slay’Rs and Itty Bit Swim’Rs in barbecue chicken, Cajun cricket, monkey mild and pennyback shad fished 6 to 10 feet deep. Catfishing is good on worms and minnows. Bream are fair on worms. 

As of Wednesday, the Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation was 569.79 feet msl (full pool – 578 msl).

(Updated 11-24-2015) Todd Gadberry at Mountain Harbor Resort said the water is clear and the surface water temperature is 56 to 60 degrees. Black bass are biting well on topwater baits and spy baits on points near structure. Drop-shot rigs with finesse worms are producing quality spotted bass when fished near brush. Walleye are slow, but a few have been caught on ¾-oz. C.C. Spoons jigged vertically near structure. Stripers are fair on live bait and hair jigs around main lake points and humps. Bream are slow. Crappie are biting well on small spoons, minnows or crappie jigs fished near brush in 20 to 30 feet of water. Catfish are slow and being caught with night crawlers, cut bait or stink bait.

(Updated 10-28-2015) Tom Duke and Phillip Kastner with Trader Bill's Outdoor Sports Fishing Report in Hot Springs said the fresh water that is coming in and cooler weather should help the fishing in the backs of the creeks lately. However, a lot of the water has been sucked up by the ground, and there is very little washing into the lake. Spinnerbaits and crankbaits in shad patterns should do very well for bass.  

(Updated 11-24-2015) Tom Duke and Phillip Kastner with Trader Bill's Outdoor Sports Fishing Report in Hot Springs said the water clarity is perfect for fishing. A customer came in with a nice limit of crappie. The customer said he caught them fishing about 8 feet deep over brush that was laying in 15 feet of water. He caught them in the basin area in the lower end of the lake, which makes sense with the lower end of the lake settling before the upper end.  

(Updated 11-4-2015) Darryl Morris at Family Fishing Trips said there hasn’t been much fishing activity on Lake Hamilton with the rains, but there have been random schools of bass breaking the surface around the main channel and Hot Springs Creek on the far eastern end of the lake. 

(Updated 11-24-2015) Shane Goodner, owner of Catch’em All Guide Service said water temperature below Carpenter Dam has dropped to 54 degrees with clear conditions in the tailrace. The winter drawdown is now complete for both lakes Hamilton and Catherine with a 5-foot draw in place until early March of next year. Rainbow trout were stocked into Lake Hamilton and Catherine at noon on Tuesday of this week, which marks the beginning of the winter trout fishing season. Fly fishermen casting olive-colored woolly buggers, micro jigs and San Juan worms under a strike indicator have taken fish in the 11- to 14-inch range. Shoals are a key area to target with schools of trout holding fast to the outside of current flows where shad congregate in numbers. Bank fishermen are having success using redworms and nightcrawlers fished just off the bottom or under a bobber. Crickets and small minnows will also work well presented in the same manner as hungry trout search for prey. Boaters are advised to use caution when navigating the tailrace as shallow conditions expose underwater hazards in numbers below the dam. Wade fishermen should also heed this same advice as fast flows and slick rock structure dominate the entire area. Trout fishing will begin slowly as the season begins this week and will become consistent as the stocking program increases in December and January. Walleye are being caught in small numbers in the main channel on Rooster Tails and Mepps spinners. These baits throw-off flash and vibration and nicely imitate injured shad. Late evening has been the most productive time for these fish. Striper and hybrid fishing has been very poor with few fish hooked. No topwater action observed this week. White bass action has also been limited with no fish reported being caught this week. Very heavy rainfall is being forecast for this weekend with amounts as high as 5 inches for central Arkansas predicted. Entergy will take action to control these amounts by heavy generation and possible flood gate openings. Anyone visiting Carpenter Dam must be aware of the generation schedules and rapidly changing water levels.

(Updated 11-24-2015) ​Mississippi River State Park (870-295-4040) said crappie are hitting on live minnows and jigs. Chartreuse jigs have worked well when fished off the bottom. Catfish have been good on chicken liver and stink bait. Largemouth bass have been hitting crankbaits off the points. Small black bugs have been producing bream.