White River
(updated 9-21-2023) Cotter Trout Dock (870-435-6525)
said, “We’re starting to see some nip in the air —
autumn's finally popping out. Cool mornings, warm
days, perfect weather for float fishing on the White
for trout. Bull Shoals Lake reads 656.89 feet msl, or
5 feet below power pool for this time of year.
Generation continues to be low, minimum flow in the
mornings followed with increased releases in late
afternoon for 5-6 hours averaging around four units
(12,000 cfs).
“The rainbow catch has been fabulous: They're snapping
up the shrimp and egg combo, and we’re continuing to
see success with X-Factor bubblegum pink worms and
mice tails – good sizes among the catch, too — several
rainbows measured at 16 inches and above. The hopper
season is slowing, but your red-silver and Zebra
Midges should be kept close — they're a necessity for
fly tackle.
Keep a variety of live bait on board for the browns.
Sculpins, red fin minnows and crawdad tails will work
well. Baits should be kept close to the bottom and to
the sides of the main channel. Best bet this past week
was the one-sixth-ounce red/gold Thomas Buoyant Spoon;
the blue/silver was close behind. Find a
rainbow-colored bait (a Buoyant Spoon or a smaller
floating Rapala, size 5 or 7) to keep things
interesting. Just for grins, try jig fishing in the
deeper holes with olive or orange jigs; fun and often
victorious.
“Come out and spend some time with us on the river! I
think it's going to be an early and very colorful
season. (Don't put any money on my predictions.)”
(updated 9-21-2023) Dave McCulley, owner of Jenkins
Fishing Service in Calico Rock, said the last week
they have seen water depths below 2.5 feet in the
mornings and rising to near or above 5 feet before
starting to drop again. Drift-fishing with Uncommon
Bait UV Orange with shrimp has worked best. Early in
the mornings quarter-ounce Colorado Spoons in
nickel/gold have been effective in addition to the
Rapala Countdown CD7 in silver. Fishing
one-sixteenth-ounce dark color jigs with a splash of
color has resulted in some nice brown trout.
The weather front moving through on Tuesday and
Wednesday caused fishing to slow down and anglers had
to work a little harder to catch their limit. The
cooler weather has made it comfortable to spend all
day fishing.
“This week we had one stocking of 540 rainbows from
the AGFC’s Jim Hinkle Spring River Hatchery. Once
again in the stocking was a few nice and fat
15-inch-plus rainbows.
(updated 9-21-2023) John Berry, angler and retired
guide/owner Berry Brothers Guide Service at Cotter,
said that during the past week they had about half of
an inch of rain, cooler temperatures and moderate
winds. The lake level at Bull Shoals fell 0.7 foot to
rest at 4.2 feet below power pool of 661 feet msl.
This is 38.2 feet below the top of flood pool.
Upstream, Table Rock Lake fell 0.1 foot to rest at 4.1
feet below power pool and 18.1 feet below the top of
flood pool. Beaver Lake fell 0.1 foot to rest at 6.1
feet below power pool and 14.7 feet below the top of
flood pool. The White has had wadable water every day
with heavy flows in the afternoon during peak power
demand. Norfork Lake rose 0.1 foot to rest at 2.4 feet
below power pool of 555.75 feet msl and 26.7 feet
below the top of flood pool. The Norfork Tailwater has
had wadable water. All of the lakes are well below the
top of power pool. Expect wadable water in the coming
days with heavy flows in the afternoon during peak
power demand. On the Norfork, all turbines are
inoperable for the foreseeable future. Minimum release
is being made through the siphon at continuous flows
of 185 cfs and additional flows are made through the
flood gates.
John said, “On the White, the hot spot has been Rim
Shoals. We have had lower 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 pheasant
tail (size 14) with a ruby midge dropper (size 18).
John also said, “After what seems like years, we
finally have a low water year. This is the thing that
wade fishers have hoped to come this year. I, like
many anglers, really prefer to wade. Several years of
high water combined with the implementation of minimum
flow have pushed many fly-fishers to fish from boats.
Guiding wading fly-fishers is a tough job. Walking in
and out is work. Then when they are fishing (if there
is more than one angler) they are often separated by
quite a distance. A guide working two clients is
constantly trooping the line dealing with problems. As
a result, few guides do wade trips anymore. I joke
that I was the only guide in Baxter County that owned
a pair of waders. This new low water has caused
several guides to postpone their trips to the
afternoon when the Corps of Engineers is running water
during peak power demand. The lower water has been
wonderful to me. Both rivers have been on the bottom
for long periods every day for months.
“The low water on the Norfork is a bit problematic.
All of the generators at the Norfork Dam are down for
major repairs. We do not know when they will be back
online. They are able to achieve minimum flow by
drawing water through the siphon. To control the lake
level, they have been releasing water through the
flood gates. The problem is that the water releases
through the flood gates are not included on the
Southwestern Power Administration’s projected loading
schedule (this is an online schedule that tells you
when the dams will come online and how much generation
there will be). This means you do not know when the
water will come up. You must be ever vigilant to
detect rising water and get out of the river as soon
as you see it or limit your fishing to the area just
below the dam. Here you can hear the horn they blow,
before they begin releasing water.
“I have chosen to wade the lower water on the White
River. My favorite spot is Rim Shoals. This is a
trophy zone and is catch-and-release. Trout Unlimited
developed a trail that Gary Flippin first established
years ago. It runs along the river and gives you
several spots to access the river and can offer a
solitary spot far from other anglers.
“My sister, Ernestine, and I donated a bench on the
trail in honor of our brother, Dan. It is near an
access to the river that is an easy and relatively
safe spot to cross the river to reach the island. This
is where Dan and I began fishing Rim over 20 years
ago. I just walk the trail and take a right at Dan’s
bench. I have enjoyed the solitude and caught some
nice trout. On the way out, I sit on the bench and
remember catching a spectacular hatch of sulphurs with
Dan many years ago.
“Take a moment and fish this lower water. It is has
been magnificent. It will not last forever.”
Bull Shoals Lake
For the Army Corps of Engineers’ real-time outflow
report from Bull Shoals Dam, visit the Corps’ Little
Rock office website.
(updated 9-21-2023) Del Colvin at Bull Shoals Lake
Boat Dock said Wednesday that lake level continues to
fall. The lake is now at 656 feet msl, while the water
temperature dropped to about 79 degrees. Bass fishing
has been fair. The early morning topwater bite
continues to be hit or miss. A small
walk-the-dog-style bait such as a Zara Spook or Lucky
Craft Gunfish will work. If they’re busting don’t put
it away, though; they can go to the middle of the day.
Typically September is junk fishing, covering water
with a Whopper Plopper or buzzbait. Wind and clouds
will definitely help that bite.
The shad have started their migration towards the
creeks. Graphing can pay off; the shad are getting
balled up way off deep points, channel swings, turns
and creek intersections. It seems 32-40 feet is a
consistent depth for the drop-shot. On the points,
brush piles, ledges, etc. a big worm or shaky head
worm and Jewel Jig are working. If the shad are
around, you’re probably going to get bit.
It’s hoped they will generate some water at the dam.
If you venture into the stained water in the backs
most days, you’re gonna have to work for them. Target
areas with shad. Use a square bill Chatterbait or a
big worm in the laydowns. Overall there’s a lot of
roaming suspended fish 20-35 feet over deep water
(60-feet-plus). Still, these videogame fish can be
tough to fool. Try a Damiki or Hover Rig with a Tater
Shad drop-shot with a Robo. Fall Fishing can be hit or
miss as conditions change. Walleyes stopped eating my
drop shot. Some guys are still catching a few
bottom-bouncing in 35-40 feet. Crappie guys are still
hopping brush piles and that’s working for them they
are starting to pile in. Every day is different; be
sure to 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
For the Army Corps of Engineers’ real-time outflow
report from Norfork Dam, visit the Corps’ Little Rock
office website.
(updated 9-21-2023) Steven “Scuba Steve” Street at
Blackburn’s Resort said the lake level was 553.34 feet
msl and had risen three-quarters of an inch in the
last 24 hours with a little over a half-inch of rain
as of 6:30 Wednesday evening. There has been no
discharge for the last five days and the generators on
Norfork Dam are still inoperable. The White River at
Newport is 2.57 feet and very low, indicating they are
not letting out much water anywhere on the area lakes.
The surface water temperature is 79 degrees and
dropping with the cooler weather. The thermocline that
was at 31 feet is gone and it gets a little cooler at
34 feet but is not pronounced. The fish are scattered
from shallow to 30 feet and the crappie have just
moved back into the main lake brush from 20-30 feet.
Kentucky bass are everywhere. The visibility is the
same from 0-30 feet, indicating the lake is in its
early stage of turnover, which is about 2-3 weeks
earlier than normal. The steady water levels have
contributed to this. Striper fishing is slow as is
walleye. The best bite is Kentucky bass and crappie on
main lake point brush using slip floats and live
minnows and creature baits on jigheads.
The lake overall is in excellent condition and at a
good level, but overall fishing is just fair at best.
Some good fish are being brought in every day, but you
have to work for them
Visit blackburnsresort.com and click on Scuba Steve's
blog for a daily report.
Norfork Tailwater
(updated 9-21-2023) John Berry, angler and retired
operator of Berry Brothers Guide Service in Cotter
(870-435-2169), said Norfork Lake rose 0.1 foot to
rest at 2.4 feet below power pool of 555.75 feet msl
and 26.7 feet below the top of flood pool. The Norfork
Tailwater has had wadable water. All of the lakes are
well below the top of power pool. Expect wadable water
in the coming days with heavy flows in the afternoon
during peak power demand. On the Norfork, all turbines
are inoperable for the foreseeable future. Minimum
release is being made through the siphon at continuous
flows of 185 cfs and additional flows are made through
the flood gates.
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-headed 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 cerise San Juan Worm and a Ruby Midge.
The fishing is better in the morning and late
afternoon and tapers off midday.
Dry Run Creek has fished a bit better despite a lot of
fishing pressure. School is back in session and
weekdays are not as 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.
Buffalo National River/Crooked Creek
(updated 9-21-2023) John Berry, angler and retired
operator of Berry Brothers Guide Service in Cotter
(870-435-2169), said Crooked Creek and the Buffalo
River are fishing well but are quite low. With warmer
temperatures, the smallmouths are more 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.
