White River
(updated 2-23-2023) Dave McCulley, owner of Jenkins
Fishing Service in Calico Rock, said the recent storms
caused both Bull Shoals and Norfork Lakes to rise
above the conservation pool. As a result both Bull
Shoals and Norfork Dams have been releasing a lot of
water. Over the last week they have seen water depths
of 8.5 to 10.5 feet with a strong current. “Once the
lakes reach the conservation pool levels of 659 feet
msl for Bull Shoals and 553 feet msl for Norfork, I
expect both dams will reduce how much water they
release allowing the river to drop to more normal
levels.”
With the increased water flow the fishing has been
marginal. Drift-fishing with silver inline spinners
with Power Eggs and shrimp continues to work best. Add
a little bigger sinker to allow the bait to get to the
river bottom. If you use artificial lures try
deeper-diving lures. Look for something in the water
that gives the fish a break from current. The fish
will hide behind the obstacle to rest and watch for
something to eat to float by. Fishing in the creeks
feeding into the river can result in some nice bass or
catfish.
(updated 2-23-2023) Cotter Trout Dock (870-435-6525)
said Bull Shoals Lake elevation has fallen slightly
over the last week due to the drier weather “but the
upcoming rains may put us back where we were.” The
lake on Wednesday was at 660.35 feet msl, which is
very near the seasonal power pool level. The
Southwestern Power Administration has dictated power
generation at nearly five generators (14,000 cfs)
pretty much round-the-clock this week, so be very
careful motoring in these higher water conditions.
Wading might need to wait for a while.
The ample brown trout bite has proven that late winter
is a great time to visit the White River, and the
rainbows aren't ignoring the bait either. Shad and
sculpins are the preferred meal for a hungry brown;
try also egg patterns (light yellow peach colored)
with an orange leading bead.
“This week we've seen a significant shad kill on the
lake. The overflow of that food source into the river
sets off the famous voracious feeding pattern and the
easy trout catch, which anglers love. Think white for
baits and flies this week: shad patterns, white egg
patterns, white-bellied stick baits – the water level
will support deep-diving jerkbaits – white jigs and
minnows. In addition, add lots of flash to white,
olive or olive-and-brown streamers, sparkling collars
on your jigs, or toss out a shiny silver spoon.
“Winter probably isn't through with us yet, but we
will take advantage of this early spring-like weather
while it's here! Keep anglin' and we'll see you at the
river.”
(updated 2-23-2023) John Berry of Berry Brothers Guide
Service said that during the past week they have had a
half-inch of rain at Cotter, warmer temperatures and
moderate winds. The lake level at Bull Shoals fell 0.4
foot to rest at 1.5 feet above power pool of 659 feet
msl. This is 34.5 feet below the top of flood pool.
Upstream, Table Rock Lake rose 0.1 foot to rest at 1
foot below power pool and 15 feet below the top of
flood pool. Beaver Lake rose 0.4 foot to rest at 1.4
feet above power pool or 8.2 feet below the top of
flood pool. The White has had no wadable water and
heavy flows. Norfork Lake fell 2.3 feet to rest at 0.9
foot above power pool of 553.75 feet msl and 25.3 feet
below the top of flood pool. The Norfork tailwater had
no wadable water.
John said, “We have had a shad kill. There have been
numerous shad coming through Bull Shoals Dam. Use
large white shad imitations in floating and sinking
versions.
“Streamer season is upon us. The brown trout that have
been spawning for the last three months are now
working their way back downstream. Anglers are now
targeting them by banging the bank with big streamers
on sink tip lines.
“The hot spot on the White River has been the
catch-and-release Section below Bull Shoals Dam. We
have had higher flows that have fished well. The hot
flies were Y2Ks, prince nymphs, zebra midges (black
with silver wire and silver bead or red with silver
wire and silver bead), pheasant tails, copper Johns,
pink and cerise San Juan worms, gold ribbed hare’s
ears and sowbugs. Double-fly nymph rigs have been very
effective. My favorite has been a cerise San Juan worm
with an orange egg dropper.
John also offers an explanation for choosing the right
fly: “Fly selection is a big deal in fly-fishing. It
is the choice of the fly that you are going to use to
catch fish. Hopefully you choose one that the trout
wants.
“My first choice is usually the flies that I fished
the last time I was out – especially if it has not
been so long since I fished. If it worked yesterday,
it should produce fish today. If it has been over a
week or two you need to put some more thought into it.
Conditions are constantly changing. There could have
been a new hatch, or a serious rain or temperature
change that triggered another food source since your
last trip.
“Another source of information is asking others.
Anytime I am in a fly shop I ask what the hot fly has
been recently. The people there talk to a lot of
guides and anglers and often have good information. I
went to the San Juan River in New Mexico without a
clue of what to fish. I stopped at Abe’s fly shop and
asked for the fly. I bought six flies, tied one on and
never changed a thing, I caught 60 good trout.
“Some of the best information I ever got on fly
selection was from a guy I sat next to in a bar in
West Yellowstone, Montana. He told me the fly he used.
I started the day with that fly and did well at Three
Dollar Bridge on the Madison River.
“When I do wade trips, I talk to everyone I see in the
parking lot or pass on the stream as I walk in. If
they are or have been fishing, I ask them how they
did. If they did not do well, I moved on. If they did
well I asked what fly or flies they used. In general,
fly-fishers are quite willing to share information. If
they tied the fly and you do not have one, they will
often give you one and wish you luck.
“If I am fishing from a boat, I will ask every guide I
see at the ramp. We are all in this together and
freely share information. If I am struggling I will
ask another guide how he is doing and what he is using
as we pass on stream.
“When I rig my rod before starting, I take all of this
information and determine what flies would be the best
to use and I tie on as many as I can. When my wife,
Lori, and I go out, I rig our rods differently. Each
rod has two different flies (a lead fly and a
dropper). I do the same for my two clients when I am
guiding. As we fish, I pay particular attention to
which fly caught the trout. One fish is a fluke. Two
fish is a coincidence. Three fish is a trend. Once I
have identified the trend I make sure everyone has the
most productive flies.
“Gather as much information as you can before making
your fly selection for the best results.”
Remember that the White and North Fork Rivers and Dry
Run Creek are infected with didymo, an invasive alga.
Thoroughly clean and dry your waders (especially the
felt soles on wading boots) before using them in any
other water. Many manufacturers are now making rubber
soled wading boots that are easier to clean and are
not as likely to harbor didymo.
Bull Shoals Lake
As of Thursday, the Army Corps of Engineers reported
the lake’s elevation at 660.17 feet msl (normal
conservation pool: 659.00 feet msl; top flood
elevation is 695.00 feet msl). By midday Thursday the
flow was 16,745 cfs and has ranged 12,700 to almost
17,000 over the past 24 hours; tailwater elevation was
457.49 feet. The reported lake elevation at Table Rock
Lake was 915.88 feet msl (normal conservation pool:
915.00 feet msl; top flood elevation is 931.0 feet
msl).
(updated 2-23-2023) Del Colvin at Bull Shoals Lake
Boat Dock said that with Bull Shoals Lake level being
at 660 feet msl, the Corps of Engineers has been
pushing water through the dam. The water temperature
is ranging about 46-49 degrees. Fishing continues to
be up and down just like the weather. The warm rain
helped. Some fish will move shallower under the right
conditions and hold on swings, points and ledges.
Temperature and conditions over the next month will
dictate your game plan and success.
The shad are spread out. Some holding in the mouths of
the creeks and main lake and are over 120-150 feet and
have been suspended 90-100 down. While some warmer
creeks will hold them shallower, the fish are spread
out so you’re going to have to look for them. I feel
most of the largemouth bass have pulled off the deeper
shad and are holding in the 30-50 feet range on
ledges, tree tops, bluff ends or points nearby. We’re
capitalizing on the shad if they come up to feed early
or in the evening, or if the stripers and white bass
push them up in the column.
There has definitely been some shad kill. The shad
bite video gaming isn’t over yet. When they push back
in, try a Rapala Jigging Rap or Tater Shad on a Moon
Eye. Most of the bass are only 25-55 feet over the
shad.
Some fish are already staging early prespawn areas in
the creeks. The crankbait bite is getting better as
temps rise. The crawdads are becoming active. This
should improve with warm days and dirty water. Wind,
wind, wind and clouds will help. Parallel steeper
ledge 45-degree banks and steeper transition banks.
Cover water. Try Rock Crawler reds on the steeper,
clearer water; Wiggle Warts on mid; and a Chick Magnet
on the flat side in the stain. Using a jerkbait on
breezy day bluff ends over steeper swings and points
will fool a few.
The smallmouth are definitely grouping up if you can
find them; they are in roaming mode. A 2.8 McMinnow is
on deck. I’ve been getting bit on a Jewel football jig
or shaky head in green pumpkin on the points, ledges
and swings in the creeks. Fish slow if it’s flat,
clear and sunny. The drop-shot is a player in 30-45
feet. You’ll have to keep moving to find them but when
you do there’s usually a few. Each day is different so
Fish the Conditions.
Del regularly posts new YouTube videos. Visit his
YouTube site (Bull Shoals Lake Boat Dock) for more
information and tips on fishing Bull Shoals Lake.
Norfork Lake
As of midday Thursday, the Army Corps of Engineers
reported the lake’s elevation at 556.22 feet msl
(normal conservation pool: Sept.-April, 553.75 feet
msl; April-Sept. 556.25 feet msl; top flood elevation
580.0 feet msl). Flow below the dam Thursday midday
was 3,041 cfs.
(updated 2-23-2023) Steven “Scuba Steve” Street at
Blackburn’s Resort said the lake level was 554.51 feet
msl and the storm was just starting to enter the area
about 11:30 a.m. when he arrived at the resort
Wednesday. The wind came up and it started to rain
pretty hard. The surface water temperature was 49
degrees and the water was stained in the creeks but a
little clearer on the main lake. The White River at
Newport was 22.29 feet, indicating they are letting
out quite a bit of water out of both lakes. “We are
now just three-quarters of a foot above the top of the
power pool and 1½ feet above where we were on Feb. 7
before the 3-inch-plus rain.
Bass fishing starts to improve on both windblown banks
on crankbaits back in the creeks and on main lake
points near brush on grubs, and then another cold
front comes through slowing the fishing. Crappie
fishing is fair to poor on main lake brush piles on
both jigs and live minnows on a slip float just at
sundown to dark. When they quit, they quit. Some
larger white bass are up the river with walleye
spawning, and smaller ones have not spawned yet and
are still in open water on shad. Hybrids and smaller
stripers are still in open water on shad about 50 feet
down, no matter how deep the water is, and can be
caught dragging live bait or umbrellas through the
shad. Vertical-jigging a spoon or 3-inch grub on a
lead head is also working.
For a daily fishing report and lake condition go to
www.blackburnsresort.com and click on Scuba Steve's
Blog.
(updated 2-9-2023) Lou Gabric at Hummingbird Hideaway
Resort said the bite has been pretty good for striped
bass as of late. Lots of jigging soft plastics and
lead spoons. He said, “I had a much better day of
catching fish (Monday). The fish were being a little
more aggressive. I didn't get to head out on the lake
until 10 a.m., but as luck would have it, the bite was
on as soon as I got to the area that I wanted to check
out. I could see the birds feeding from a distance,
which made me smile really big. I knew what was going
on. I stopped the boat and looked at my graph and
there were fish all over the place.
“I was in roughly 80 feet of water just outside of a
channel swing with fish suspended 20-70 feet down. I
started to target the 30-feet-deep fish and found that
they wanted to chase my bait today. I dropped my bait
down to 50 feet, and when a small school of fish came
under me, I would reel up as fast as I could through
the middle of the school. I saw a couple fish turn and
follow my bait. At about 15 feet down they would
attack and then dive! These fish were hybrids,
stripers and white bass. I did catch a few fish on a
dead stick, meaning no motion at all except for what
the boat was doing.
“All species were out there feeding. I got to land a
couple of nice largemouth bass, a big 15-inch crappie,
a handful of white bass and 4 hybrid stripers. I
landed fish on a Bayou Magic Tater Shad with a
half-ounce white big eye jighead, as well as a
three-quarter-ounce Binks Many Shad white spoon. The
fish I was marking at 60 feet or deeper did not want
to bite. If you are out looking for striped bass, they
will be in an area from East Pigeon to the 101 bridge
and/or from the Highway 62 bridge back to the 101 Boat
Docks. Find the bait, then make sure you mark a few
fish before you start fishing. It does take some
looking, but once you find them it is a blast.
“With the rising water level, the largemouth bass bite
will become really good. Look for water flowing back
in creeks and coves and start casting a Wiggle Wart or
a Rock Crawler crankbait into shallow water.”
Water temp was 44-46 degrees. The lake is rising with
the current rains and sits at 553.5 feet msl. The lake
is slightly stained in most areas, but will become
more stained in the next day or so. Enjoy Norfork
Lake!!
Lou posts almost daily on his Facebook page with
photos and where the fish are biting and what’s
biting. Check it out.
Norfork Tailwater
(updated 2-23-2023) John Berry of Berry Brothers Guide
Service in Cotter (870-435-2169) said Norfork Lake
fell 2.3 feet to rest at 0.9 foot above power pool of
553.75 feet msl and 25.3 feet below the top of flood
pool. The Norfork tailwater had no wadable water.
The most productive flies have been small midge
patterns like zebra midges (black or red with silver
wire and silver bead). Double-fly nymph rigs have been
very effective. Try a small bead-head nymph (zebra
midge, copper John or pheasant tail) suspended 18
inches below a brightly colored San Juan worm (hot
fluorescent pink or cerise). John says his favorite
rig has been a size 14 pheasant tail nymph and a size
18 ruby midge. The fishing is much better in the
morning and late afternoon and tapers off midday.
Dry Run Creek has fished a bit better. Weekends can
get quite crowded. The hot flies have been sowbugs,
various colored San Juan worms (worm brown, red, hot
fluorescent pink and cerise) and white mop flies.
Small orange or peach eggs have been very effective.
Carry a large net, as most fish are lost at the net.
Remember that the White and North Fork Rivers and Dry
Run Creek are infected with didymo, an invasive alga.
Thoroughly clean and dry your waders (especially the
felt soles on wading boots) before using them in any
other water. Many manufacturers are now making rubber
soled wading boots that are easier to clean and are
not as likely to harbor didymo.
Buffalo National River/Crooked Creek
(updated 2-23-2023) John Berry of Berry Brothers Guide
Service in Cotter (870-435-2169) said Crooked Creek
and the Buffalo River are fishing poorly. With colder
temperatures, the smallmouths are much less active.
The most effective fly has been a tan and brown
Clouser minnow. Carefully check the water level before
entering Crooked Creek or the Buffalo River. There are
no dams on these streams. They both have large
drainages and are prone to flooding during and
following any rain event. The water can rise very
quickly.
