New Patterns for Late Fall Fishing

Fish still biting if you know where to look

Arkansas Wildlife Editor Dan Hicks landed this nice walleye (below) while fishing the Rambo area of Beaver Lake in Northwest Arkansas last Saturday, Nov. 20. A lot of anglers are finding the walleye a little tougher to catch there now, but that didn't stop Dan. Guide Jon Conklin, who provides a weekly Beaver Lake report in the Fishing Report, says that stripers and crappie are really beginning to turn on now, and the lake turnover appears complete (Del Colvin at Bull Shoals Lake says the same about that far-north fishery, too). Jon has guided anglers who have caught anywhere from two to four stripers per trip. 'They will stay from Monte Ne well up into river arms. This will be where you need to fish for striper from now and well into spring,' Conklin says of the striper fishing. Also, Beaver Lake continues on its slow drop below normal level with the lack of rain the region has seen.

Meanwhile, largemouth bass at Millwood Lake in southwest Arkansas continue feeding randomly, as they have over the past few weeks. The best feeding cycles shifted over the past week or so, to midday and afternoon, according to guide Mike Siefert, and the prey fish, the threadfin shad, are roaming in the shallow flats with pads, while at other times over drops from 9 feet to around 15 feet of depth.

That's Eddy Craig (upper right photo) from Fort Smith, who on a recent trip with Millwood Lake Guide Service caught a nice 3.5pound healthy Millwood largemouth bass using a 4.5-inch Purple Smoke Southern Pro Tournament Tube.

Lots more good fishing news can be found around the state. Check it out in this week’s regional reports. And, if you have a photo to share with the readers of the email Fishing Report blast, send it to jim.harris@agfc.ar.gov and we'll run it. Hope you all had a happy Thanksgiving and enjoy some good fall fishing in the weeks to come!