Big bites on Bull Shoals this spring

Spotlight on North Arkansas fishing waters

By Jim Harris

Arkansas Wildlife Editor

•

— Cotter Trout Dock (870-435-6525) said springtime temperatures are finally here – for good we hope – and the fishing is hot on the rivers here in the Arkansas Ozarks. The water level on the White River below Bull Shoals Dam has continued to stay steady: high. How to fish this high water?

Use a heavier weight to float your baits nearer the bottom in this water; cast near the banks where the trout don’t have to fight the current and always keep some wiggly worms on hand. This is great water for sinking Rapalas, even as heavy as a CD9 or maybe even an 11. We’re hearing that the best-kept secret is the brook trout Rapala.

Worms work very nicely with the high water level. The brown trout have been biting anything from minnows to sculpins and some silver flash lures. Some browns have even been caught on the old standby of PowerBait and shrimp.

The kids enjoying spring break on the river are staying busy catching rainbows with shrimp and bright fluorescent orange or yellow eggs. You can begin your catching day with a quarter-ounce silver and blue hammered spoon, and finish up with a Rapala Rainbow CD5. “We’re sending them back to school with some great fish tales. Come test the waters and enjoy a spring day in the Ozarks.

Bring some rain protection – it’s March in Arkansas!”

Dave McCulley, owner of Jenkins Fishing Service in Calico Rock, said that again this week in Calico Rock they are seeing river levels near 11 feet. Both Bull Shoals and Norfork lakes are releasing a lot of water. Norfork Dam reopened 10 spillway gates.

Current weather forecasts predict another 2-plus inches or rainfall on Friday. “Although the river continues to be high, it seems like the fish have gotten accustomed to the high water and fishing has picked up. With Norfork opening the spillway gates we continue to see the trout gorging themselves on shad. Drift-fishing with shad has proven effective as has a silver inline spinner with yellow or orange Power Eggs and shrimp. There was one trout stocking this week with the AGFC using their pontoon raft to stock fish downriver of Calico Rock.”

John Berry of Berry Brothers Guide Service at Cotter said that during the past week they saw a few minor rain events (combining for a half-inch here), colder temperatures and heavy winds. The lake level at Bull Shoals fell 1.1 feet to rest at 6.5 feet above power pool of 659 feet msl. This is 29.5 feet below the top of flood pool. Upstream, Table Rock Lake fell 0.8 foot to rest at 0.5 foot below power pool and 15.5 feet below the top of flood pool. Beaver Lake rose 0.3 foot to rest at 5.8 feet above power pool or 3.8 feet below the top of flood pool.

The White has had no wadable water and heavy flows.

Norfork Lake fell 1.5 feet to rest at 3.5 feet above power pool of 553.75 feet msl and 22.7 feet below the top of flood pool. The Norfork tailwater has had a lot of wadable water the last few days. All of the lakes in the White River system are now above power pool. We can expect higher flows on the White and some wadable water on the Norfork.

Streamer season continues.

The brown trout that were spawning for three months are working their way back downstream. Anglers are now targeting them by banging the bank with big streamers on sink tip lines.

• Bull Shoals Lake — Del Colvin at Bull Shoals Lake Boat Dock said Bull Shoals Lake level is 665 feet msl, or 6 feet above normal pool level. Water temperature is 50 degrees give or take. The cold rain and cold nights didn’t help this fishing this week.

Temperature and conditions will dictate your game plan and success. Bass fishing is up and down like the weather; there are some fish moving up. While some warmer creeks have a wave of fish up skinny, they are mostly bucks with an occasional big.

Windy, dirty, cloudy and warm rainwater calls for power fishing with crankbaits, Chatterbaits, a square bill.

You’ll have the watch the Rock Crawler or Wiggle Wart

See FISH, page A9

Photos courtesy of AGFC FISH

From page A8

with all the bushes. Try on the last couple of swing banks or in or around the pockets. Cover water. Sunny, flat water and stained conditions try slowdragging a Jewel half-ounce Special Ops football jig in green pumpkin. If you have clear water try a green pumpkin three-sixteenth-ounce shaky head or a Ned. Also go with the ol’ Wobble Head with a menace, slowbanging on the rocks, ledges and points in 5-15 feet early; look in 15-20 feet by midday, outside spawning areas.

The fish are in prespawn mode. It’s getting to where you can beat the bank and run into a few targets staging early prespawn areas in the creeks, as well as swings and points outside the spawning areas. A Chick Magnet fished on flat sides are putting a few in the boat; fish the dirty rocks. A Megabass Jerkbait on breezy day on bluff ends over steeper swings and points with shad nearby will fool a few, but has been hit or miss. I’m not a rig guy, but they are set up for that.

The shad are moving up again, and video gamers everywhere from main to backs of the creeks look for bigger

See FISH, page A8 FISH

From page A9

spreads shallower than 30 feet. Gulls and loons can help or hurt; if they are over deep water, expect drum and walleyes.

Throw around the ol’ McMinnow 2.8 Swimbait in white or shad colors; this has been the deal for me.

The bass are definitely grouping up if you can find them. They are in packs! Whites and walleyes are spawning or in prespawn, so early or late in the day is the deal to fool them. Each day is different so Fish the Conditions.

•

— As of midday Thursday, the Army Corps of Engineers reported the lake’s elevation at 556.56 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 8,198 cfs, with constant generation in that range for several days.