Cotter Trout Dock Weekly Fishing Report

  March 18, 2026

More reports and other videos are on the Cotter Trout Dock Youtube Channel Page.
Below is the Arkansas Game and Fish Fishing Report March 18, 2026.

White River

Cotter Area
(updated 3-19-2026) Cotter Trout Dock (870-435-6525) said water releases from Bull Shoals Dam into the tailwater were pretty high during that cold snap (power demands increased) and have been a little variable since then. “I expect we’ll begin to see more minimum flows late this week and into next week due to the mild weather we’re promised. Bull Shoals Lake began dropping again after a slight increase with the rain last week. Water releases have usually been lower flows in the morning (minimum flow to one unit) rising to three or four units later in the day.
“Successful anglers have been casting various spinners this past week, especially the orange and rainbow trout Rooster Tails (dark skirts). The tried-and-true shrimp and egg pattern (orange, yellow and/or pink) is a great way to start the day. Transition to live worms or to drifting a pink or orange 2-inch artificial worm as the water rises later in the morning.
“The browns are consistent: demanding sculpins and maybe some shad for dessert; still remaining near the bottom and center of the stream during the higher water, in deep holes during minimum flows.

“The weathermen promise much warmer temperatures beginning Friday. Remember to keep your baits and line clean of sunscreen; trout don’t like it. Sunscreen is a blessing for anglers on sunny days but can sabotage your fishing day if mixed up with your tackle. Our wish for you is to be successful, safe and to enjoy your time in The Natural State of Arkansas.”

 

Calico Rock Area
(updated 3-19-2026) Dave McCulley, owner of Jenkins Fishing Service in Calico Rock, said, “The last few days we have seen varied water levels from as high as 7 feet or more to 4 feet. Fishing remains good with both artificial lures and drifting with bait, resulting in nice fish. 

“This week, Rapala Countdowns CD5 in brown trout, Dynamic HD in ghost brown and Thompson Colorado quarter-ounce spoons in nickel/gold worked well for better quality fish. Drift-fishing with a silver inline spinner, Uncommon Bait neo-pink or firefly UV eggs with shrimp worked well for larger numbers of fish.
“Weather has been crazy with freezing temperatures on Monday, with a high near 90 forecast for this Saturday and Sunday. Keep an eye on the weather forecast and prepare accordingly.”

 

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 3-19-2026) Fishing guide Del Colvin at Bull Shoals Lake said Wednesday that the lake level is on the slow rise so far to 656 feet msl. The water temperature dropped this past week to 49-51 degrees give or take.

“Fish pulled back a little with the cold front. I don’t expect it to be long before they’re moving back up on the bank. Look at early pre-spawn areas. Areas with deep water nearby where they can drop down when it gets cold.”
Powerfishermen are doing well on the right day (wind/clouds) cranking parallel to the bank. A little color in the water helps. A Wiggle Wart and SPRO Rock Crawler Red Craw are working, along with variants like the Mo Craw. Look at steeper, 45-degree, chunky, nasty rock and ledges and transition banks. If you’re in stained water, a Chatterbait and a spinnerbait will work. 

The shad are everywhere and spread out again. Graphing will pay off. A swimbait is working, or a Tater Shad fluke or your favorite minnow to shake around the shad. A Megabass Jerkbait is also working. 

If the conditions are clear water and post-front flat and sunny, get off the bank. The clear water has visibility up to 22 feet. Try a finesse Jewel Jig in green pumpkin orange. Also, a green pumpkin shaky head and a Ned rig are working. Target the points in 5-25 feet. 

The white bass are running if you’re into that. Remember: “Fish the Conditions!”

(updated 3-19-2026) Southernwalleye Guide Service said the daytime walleye bite seems to have slowed down some this past week partly due to weather as well as the spawning cycle starting to come to an end.

Fishing patterns are still the same. Look for fish on and around known spawning sites. Fish shallow in the early mornings and on cloudy days in 2-6 feet of water and deeper in 8-15 feet water if there is little or no cloud cover.

Hair jigs (1/8 to 3/8 ounce) and minnows or jigs and paddletails or ringworms work well after the sun comes up. Jerkbaits such as the 110 and 110+1 or +2 style in black and silver or clown colors are also good at this time.

If trolling, try stick baits like Rattlin’ Rogues in purple chartreuse or black and gold. Troll in 8-15 feet of water at slow speeds — 0.8 to 1.0 mph seems to work best this early in the season. If you’re into night fishing, now is the time to start going. Two hours before light and up to two or three hours after dark seem to be the best times. Fishing slow is the key. 

(updated 3-19-2026) Crappie 101 Guide Service says they have been finding crappie on all sections of the creeks. The crappie have been a little stingy with the water getting blown out. They’re seeing lots of small ones on brushpiles, but they’re finding some nice ones if you cover enough piles in 15-20 feet. Minnows have been working well and also Tater Bait jigs. There are a few roamers to look for.

Norfork Lake
For the Army Corps of Engineers’ real-time outflow report from Norfork Dam, visit the Corps’ Little Rock office website.

(updated 3-19-2026) Tom Reynolds guides out of Tracy Ferry Marina. He offered this pointers this week for spring fishing on Norfork:

“Starting in late February we typically will see the winds switch to the south and a gradual warm up of air and water temperatures. The stripers will begin to move from the deep water following the shad. There will be multiple opportunities to catch stripers at that time. Both live bait and artificial baits will be very effective. The night bite will begin once the winds blow from the south. You will want to fish the northern and northeastern banks of the bays and main lake and main arm points. Some excellent spots are the points near Norfork Dam, Koso Bay and Point, the Hudson area, Frog Pond, Diamond Bay, Cranfield Island and the points north of the Cranfield area heading toward Red Bank Access.  
“The best time to night fish is a half-hour before dark until about 10 p.m. The best bait historically is a 5-inch or 6-inch Rogues. The color of the Rogue varies, with black/gold, clown and blue/black combinations seeming to work the best, but experiment with the colors until you find the one that works best that night. Bone color has been hot the last few years. Make long casts parallel to the bank and reel very, very slowly. A lot of the bites will be right next to the boat, so always have a big net ready. Stripers, hybrids and walleye are all active during this time. Watch the water temperature. As it moves up toward 60 degrees, the bite will get stronger. 
“During this time of year, live bait, shad and shiners are also very effective. The stripers will be roaming the shoreline looking for food. I use shad, but everything I do can be done using shiners. Most days I will run a large spread of lines. I begin with two inside planer boards, one near the shore and other out 20 to 30 yards. These board lines will have large gizzard shad in the 4- to 8-inch range. Out of the back of the boat I will have two lines with floats, shad on the hooks, with no weight at various depths from 10 to 30 feet from the floats. These lines will be set back from the boat between 30 to 60 yards. I then set out two free lines with a split shot weight on one line and nothing on the other. Both will have large shad on them and will be set 40-60 feet from the back of the boat. The last outside line will have one planer board with a large shad out 40 yards from the back of the boat. I will put out a wake bait: It is a large shad about 1 foot under the water right behind the engine. The wake bait is very effective for stripers roaming shallow water.
“As the water warms, the stripers will continue to move into the larger creeks to spawn. The magic water temperature number is 60 degrees. Your tactic to catch stripers should be to keep moving with the fish and continue to experiment with your techniques.”