Fishing
Tip: It’s always a good idea to carry a sport bottle in your boat
filled with information. Boat insurance cards, fishing regulations,
emergency cash, a small first-aid kit and flashlight can all fit
inside, and the bottle will float if dropped overboard.
White River: Gaston's White River Resort
said last week saw many changes. The temperatures dropped and the water
level went up. There have been as many as six units from the dam
running, although the average generation is two units. That is a great
water level for fishing from a boat, as you can get up and down the
river without much trouble at all. The trout love the water generation
and have been going crazy this week. The hottest lure is the Flat Fish
X-4 in gold. The Rogues and Husky Jerks are very popular, as usual, and
1/16-ounce white jigs will do very well in high or low water right now.
Fly fishermen will enjoy using egg patterns or the Y2K bug, San Juan
worms, and Hank's new Shad Fly on high water. Low water fly-fishing can
be done with olive, brown, or black woolly buggers, sow bugs, and tan
scuds.
Wilderness Trail
said fishing for trout on the White River has been good on Berkley
Power Eggs in yellow and Sunrise or Rainbow Nuggets. Buoyant Spoons,
Little Cleos, Super Dupers and Rooster Tails are working well during
generation. The fly fishermen have done well with very little
generation on olive woolly buggers, unreal eggs in peach and white,
scuds and sow bugs. The Brown trout are being caught on Rogues,
Jointed Rapalas and sculpins.
North Fork River: Norfork Trout Dock
said the river is running clear with up to five generators running in
the mornings. Rainbow trout and even a few cutthroats are being caught
on corn when the generators are off, but during the generation, the
trout seem to be uncooperative.
Bull Shoals Lake: As of Wednesday, the U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation at 644.71 feet MSL.
Wilderness Trail
said with the cool nights the lake temperature has dropped to 46.8
degrees in the lower and middle lake areas and down to 45 degrees up in
the Theodosia Arm and in the upper lake. The game fish haven’t changed
much with the cold front, although the bass, crappie, and walleye that
were up close to the banks have slipped deeper. Graph the deeper water
in front of planted crappie cribs to find the fish. Fish crappie
minnows on chartreuse or pink jigs either on a slip bobber or straight
line at the depth the crappie are suspended. Also fish the pole trees
along the bluff walls with the same bait set up. Largemouth bass became
a little sluggish as the week wore on, but they should rebound with the
warm up by mid-week. Fish the back of the creeks and pockets with
crankbaits and suspending Rogues. If the largemouth aren’t up on the
banks, move to the first drop off and fish jigs, tubes or brush hogs.
Main lake largemouth are using bluff walls and transition swings. Jigs,
deep running crankbaits and spoons are the best baits to trigger a few
bites. The smallmouth bite is on the slow side. Most of the smallies
are in 30 to 38 feet of water along bluff walls, off points, suspended
under shad and in the middle of channel swings. The best lures to try
are football-head jigs, tubes, spoons and Bandit or Wiggle Wart
crankbaits. Kentucky bass are doing their thing swimming with the
food (shad) and cruising around the bluff walls, channel swings and
chunk rock points near the creeks. Finding Kentuckies is not a problem,
getting to them to strike is. The two best techniques and baits
are vertical spooning (silver, white or blue spoons) and drop shot rigs
with finesse worms or Zoom Meatheads. Walleye did a good job of hiding
last week. Most of the walleye are in 45 to 48 feet of water. About the
only ways to catch them are by jigging a spoon directly over their
heads or dragging a jig and minnow along at their level. Suspending
Rogues were working around the banks in the upper lake, and that bite
might pick up again mid-week if it warms back up.
Sugar Loaf Harbor said the lake is low and the fishing has been
hit-or-miss. Crappie are holding in 30 to 35 feet of water and are
biting decent on minnows and jigs. Bass are still deep. The only
success lately has been in 45 to 50 feet of water on drop-shotted soft
plastics. Walleye are beginning to show up in the shallows of some
creeks.
Lake Norfork: As of Wednesday, the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation at 539.44
feet MSL.
Cranfield Junction Quik Stop said the lake is about 14
feet below normal pool still. The water clarity is around 12 to 14 feet
of visibility. Crappie are biting fairly well on jigs tipped with
minnows. Bass fishing has been good, but the bass are still all over
the lake. Anywhere from 6 feet deep to 50 feet deep is a possibility.
Jerkbaits, paddletails and curly-tailed grubs are all working well on
both largemouth bass and Kentuckies. Stripers are fair on Rattlin’
Rogues trolled along major creek turns. White bass are biting well
upstream on spoons fished on the edges of the creek channel.
