Cotter Trout Dock Weekly Fishing Report

  June 3, 2026

More reports and other videos are on the Cotter Trout Dock Youtube Channel Page.
Below is the Arkansas Game and Fish Fishing Report June 3, 2026.
 
White River

Cotter Area
(updated 6-4-2026) Cotter Trout Dock (870-435-6525) said, “Looking for the perfect blend of peace and lots of fishing action? You’ll find that at Cotter in the Arkansas Ozarks, where the White River flows from Bull Shoals Lake with cold, clear, trout-filled waters.”

Bull Shoals Lake elevation at midweek was 659.74 feet msl, around 2 feet below normal power pool, and rising just a little. The White River water level has been variable with minimum flows (670 cfs) in the morning to mid-afternoon, climbing to almost three units (9,000 cfs) in the late afternoon/early evening.
“We’ve been catching the tar out of the rainbows, mostly lured in with sunrise or orange PowerBait tipped with shrimp (don’t use anything much bigger than a size 6 hook). Our favorite spinners and spoons were making a splash, too: The copper/gold quarter-ounce Colorado and the red/gold Thomas Buoyant hooked a fair share of trout. Wouldn’t hurt to tie on a Vibrax Blue Fox spinner, gold or silver with a red blade. Perfect water for jiggling a jig, too. Experiment with the new D2 colors offered by Trout Magnet or go with the tried-and-true brown and pink-and-white marabou jigs.
“As expected, the browns are pooled up in the deeper holes and might be a little finicky, but if you can anchor near a deep spot, or drift across one with a sculpin, you’ll have success. The mighty midge has been working for fly-anglers all week.

“Visit Cotter and find out why we’re called ‘Trout Capital USA.’ Hope to see you at the river.”

 

Calico Rock Area
(updated 5-28-2026) Dave McCulley, owner of Jenkins Fishing Service in Calico Rock, said at midweek, “The good news is we received a stocking of 2,000 rainbow trout -last Thursday. The not-so good news is the rains Thursday caused the Buffalo River and creeks feeding into the river to get muddy and rise. We went from 4 feet Thursday morning to almost 15 feet by Friday morning. With the muddy river, the few people who attempted to fish were frustrated. 

“The good news is by this Wednesday morning the river at Calico Rock had cleared enough to be fishable. Fishing was good using silver inline spinners with two Uncommon Bait UV Neo Pink eggs and shrimp. It is in these dingy water conditions where the UV eggs are much easier for the fish to see than non-UV eggs. We do have more rain coming over the next week, and I hope it is spread out enough that the river isn’t significantly affected.” 

 

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 6-4-2026) Fishing guide Del Colvin at Bull Shoals Lake said Wednesday that Bull Shoals Lake’s level is on the rise with some more water coming. It’s 659 feet now, 3 feet higher than a week ago. Water temperature jumped with the heat, showing 77 degrees in the morning, or thereabouts. The power fishermen are enjoying some flooded bushes and are doing fine on the right day (wind/clouds/rain/stain) deep-cranking in 2-15 feet with a spinnerbait or Chatterbait on shallow ledges and transitions banks in stained water. 

Better get up early for the topwater bite, covering water with a Zara Spook-style lure or poppers. Once that bite slows, try a small Tater Swimbait or Mayor 2.5 in natural shad imitation colors. 

“I’ve been using the Big Spoon or Jewel Shad Spoon if they are busting the surface, or try your favorite minnow to shake around the shad. If the conditions are post-frontal, flat water, high pressure, blue birds, hot and sunny, just go home and mow the grass. It will get tough. I will drop-shot and slow down, downsize, and get off the bank and look at deep ledges and brushpiles, then bomb-cast with lighter fluorocarbon line. You can try a finesse Jewel Pee-Wee jig in green pumpkin orange. Or a Bass Whacker is working in a green pumpkin, and also a shaky head, 

“It’s time for summer areas, so start looking at long points, ledges, brushpiles and bluff ends with deeper water close by. Time for the big worm. The post-spawn fish tend to be finicky, and some will move deep and suspend (30-40 feet) to recover, especially if there is shad around. Graph time pays off, as usual. Remember: ‘Fish the conditions.’”

(updated 6-4-2026) Southernwalleye Guide Service said walleye fishing this past week has not changed and has been very good depending on that day’s weather. Summer fishing patterns are in play. Some fish are moving with the shad in the old river channel and creek channels, and more seem to be holding on flatter points with deep water on one side.

Look for fish on long points close to the channel swings. Main lake and secondary points have been producing a few fish during the day.

Fish shallow during the early mornings and on cloudy days in 20-25 feet of water, and deeper in 35-45 feet water if there is little or no cloud cover. Casting jigging spoons in white or chrome color and jigging Rapalas in the blue and chrome half-ounce size into 15 feet of water and working it back out into 35 feet has been working.

Bottom-bouncing spinner rigs and crawlers around points close to the channel are producing a lot of short fish as well as some good 18- to 23-inch walleyes.

If trolling, try shad-style and small banana-style baits like No. 7 Flicker Shad or No. 9 Flicker Minnow in natural colors. Trolling them in 25-35 feet of water at speeds of 1.8 to 2.2 mph seems to work best. 

The open-water trolling bite has been slower this week, but some bigger fish are still being caught. If you can find the shad, fish deep-diving crankbaits like Bandits, Rapala Tail Dancers size 11, or Reef Runners a couple feet above where you mark them on the graph. Trolling over the flooded forest along the old river channel will get some nice fish this time of year. 

(updated 6-4-2026) Crappie 101 Guide Service says crappie are still hanging on brush in that 15- to 20-foot range in the creeks, still definitely mixed up in most places. Minnows have been working well, and on certain days the one-sixteenth-ounce jigs are working as well.