Big bites on Lake Ouachita, across West-Central Arkansas

News from the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission

By Jim Harris

Arkansas Wildlife Editor

West-Central Arkansas doesn’t always get the credit it deserves as a destination for great fishing but as of late there have been some great reports out of the area that make it a fantastic idea for some early fall fishing.

Shane Goodner, owner of Catch’em All Guide Service, reports that water temperature is 63 degrees with clear conditions in the tailrace. Entergy has scheduled 8-hour generation times during the week with special periods of flow on the weekends for downstream activities. Tailrace conditions are very good for this time of year as moss and grass growth has been kept at a minimum by the consistent flow of water from the dam.

Rainbow trout fishing hit rock bottom with experienced guides recording zero catches around the dam to the bridge.

This occurs every year around this time, but was forced earlier by the spring flooding that displaced thousands of trout downstream that never returned. Trout fishing will return to the area in November when the stocking schedule resumes for the fall season.

Striper and hybrid bass activity has been observed in the early morning times, which intensifies during times of generation. Anglers can catch numbers of fish casting topwater lures into areas of activity, such as Zara Spooks and Alabama rigs that closely match the size of the shad.

Too large of a presentation has been ignored and rarely produces results. Feeding times are sporadic and can erupt anywhere from just below the dam to well past the bridge downstream.

Summertime fishing reports below Carpenter Dam usually resemble a broken record with the absence of rainbow trout and the walleye, crappie, white bass and catfish spawns complete. The doldrums of summer heat go on for months in Arkansas and it appears that a void is created in the area for catchable fish.

There will be times where good numbers of white and hybrid bass feed near the dam due to the huge numbers of shad present, and anglers will have to be diligent in search for these fish as action is short-lived and sporadic. Big stripers move in and out of the tailrace seeking cooler water and forage and can be seen feeding below the bridge in deeper water in the main channel. This environment changes completely with the influx of rainbow trout in November. Weeks and months go by without quality action of any kind occurring, but adding thousands of catchable trout creates a situation where anglers can be successful.

Always wear a life jacket when on the water and remember to follow all park and boating regulations as law enforcement is present and checking for violations.

• Lake Hamilton — Capt.

Darryl Morris of Family Fish-

See FISH, page A10 FISH

From page A8

ing Trips (501-844-5418) continues to fish both Lake Hamilton and DeGray Lake and says the fishing remains the same as it was last week.

He says bass of all species are breaking early in the morning at both places. A few may be caught on or near the surface, but most are feeding deeper.

The best results have “been on a spoon and counting it down deep and pulling that spoon past the feeding fish through the thermocline.”

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—Carter Cove Bait-N-More (479-2724025) reports that the Corps of Engineers drawdown continues and the lake level is being held at 10 feet below normal pool, or 337 feet msl — leaving only two ramps with any real accessibility, and of those, Carden Point is the access most being used.

Anderson Access is on the more difficult side to access, they say.

In their most recent report, they said that despite the drawdown, fishing was still going well and anglers are still catching crappie and catfish. The drawdown seems to have brought more catfish into play and they have been active for several weeks.

Some parts of the lake that are only about a foot deep.

Boaters/anglers are urged to follow the buoys and “go slow!”

• Lake Ouachita — Philip Kastner of Trader Bill’s Outdoors in Little Rock and Hot Springs noted Wednesday night on “The Wild Side” on KABZ, 103.7 The Buzz, that Lake Ouachita is 7 feet below full pool, Lake Ouachita is 7 feet below full pool and many of other lakes like it are well below full pool, from Greeson, to Nimrod and up to Bull Shoals.

“What all that math means, they’re all chasing little bitty shad. Topwater bite on all of our area lakes is incredible.

You’ve got to go out there as much as you can. Just make sure you’re throwing a small lure. A small spoon, a small topwater bait, a riser — anything that is small because they’re all chasing shad about the size of your thumbnail, and you can catch fish literally all day long as long as there is cloud cover. The first two hours and the last two hours are the typical answer; we had a lot of cloud cover because the hurricane came through last week. The reports I’m getting is, literally, you can catch fish all day long as long as you go out there on a cloudy day and throw a topwater bait.