Norfork Lake Fishing Report by Lou of Hummingbird Hideaway Resort 870-492-5113

Norfork Lake fishing has been pretty good for me over the last week. Striped bass is the one species that was slow to bite during September and the first part of October, but the bite has now improved dramatically. A slower bite for stripers in the latter part of summer is not uncommon, since warm water is not what the stripers want, so they just go deep to the cool water and wait for their preferred water temperature of 60 – 70 degrees. We are to that point and they are starting to become aggressive. There is a good after dark bite for striped/hybrid bass and the morning bite is starting to take off. Various Norfork Lake flats have been the areas where fish are being found. The best depth for the after dark bite has been anywhere from 25 to 33 feet of water. Trolling crank baits that dive roughly 16 feet has been productive for a couple of our guests. Last weekend, several other guests found nice fish feeding early in the morning on a large flat. The fish were in roughly 32 feet of water and vertical jigging a spoon worked best. I have been graphing various flats and have found feeding stripers each morning since last weekend. The fish have been in 30 to 35 feet of water cruising around at all depths.  Some fish are suspended 15 feet down to the bottom. I have noticed that the larger fish seem to be suspended up in the water column and the smaller ones are laying on the

bottom. In the same areas you will also find large schools of white bass. Most are on the bottom feeding, but some may be suspended. The news even gets better, feeding along side of the striped/hybrid and white bass are many channel and flathead catfish lying on the bottom. It will not be long until walleye move into the same area. Vertical jigging a 1-ounce spoon has been my best method to catch all of the above species. In order to catch these fish, I have had to experiment with presentation methods. I have caught fish casting the spoon out and letting it drop to the bottom. I then retrieve the spoon in a jerking motion, usually trying to keep the bait close to the bottom. Vertical jigging has been productive, but on a few occasions, I had to move slowly with the trolling motor and let out more line until the spoon hits the bottom. I then give it a hard forward jerk and then let it settle back to the bottom. Sometimes the fish hammer the bait as I am jerking it and a few times they have picked the spoon up on the fall and the line goes slack. You’ll need to reel the slack up very fast until you feel the fish and set the hook.

Norfork Lake surface water temperature this morning was close to 70 degrees. The lake has become fairly stable with just slight variations either up or down and currently sits at 553.26 feet MSL. The lake is slightly stained from the mid-lake area and heading north. The lake continues its slow progression to a total lake turnover. I am starting to mark lots of bait a little below 60 feet telling me the good cool oxygenated water is continuing to fall lower and lower until eventually it will reach all depths and the lake will be totally turned over. Some years it is an obvious abrupt turnover, but typically it is a slow unnoticeable process.

Happy Fishing and enjoy Norfork Lake.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report by Lou of Hummingbird Hideaway Resort 870-492-5113

The bite for all species on Norfork Lake continues to improve as the lake temperature drops. This morning the lake temp was about 72.5 degrees.  Currently the largemouth bass bite has been best for me. You can find this species in several different areas. My best location is in 28 to 36 feet of water, on the outside edge of large shallow flats. The fish are schooling and when you find the school you can catch multiple fish in the same area, as they are in a feeding frenzy. My preferred method to catch them  is to vertical jig with a ½ to 1 ounce spoon. They seem to hit the spoon on the fall or when it hits the bottom. Be ready to set the hook. The other location is up shallow either on the shallow shore lines or up close to the deep bluff lines. The best bite for these shallow fish is either right after sunrise or before sunset. Shallow diving crank baits long plastic worms have been

working the bests. Spinner baits and buzz baits are working on the windy days.

Walleye are still biting, but seemed to have scattered out a bit. I am still catching a few on the bottom in 30 feet of water on main lake points or along a shallow shoreline. I am catching this species by vertical jigging a spoon or by trolling a #7 Berkley Flicker Minnow. Either way you need to get the bait down to the 30-foot depth.

Striped bass fishing is starting to pick up. These fish are beginning to feed heavily again after a long hot summer. They are showing up in several different types of areas and at different times of day. I am finding them scattered out feeding along side of the largemouth bass, either after sunrise or before sunset. If it is a cloudy, windy day, it seems like you can find them all day long. I will find small schools cruising along the bottom feeding on shad. My 1-ounce spoon has picked up some nice fish. Hang on as they are getting energetic. If you are an in the dark type of fisherperson, this species is starting to feed after

sunset and all night long. Several of our guests are having good success trolling crankbaits that dive about 16 feet. They are trolling on large flats but trying to stay in 20 to 35 feet of water. The best times have been about 2 or 3 hours after sunset. This morning I caught a nice striped bass before sunrise trolling a # 7 flicker minnow. This bait dives about 13 to 15 feet. I caught one and missed another in about 20 feet of water off of a shallow sandy shoreline. Another area where striped bass are showing up is back in the major creeks. Look at very shallow water early in the mornings, then out in a little deeper water as the sun gets high in the sky.

Norfork Lake surface water temperature was slightly less than 73 degrees this morning. The lake has become fairly stable with just a very slight drop and currently sits at 553.15 feet MSL. It is lightly stained from the mid-lake area and heading north. The lake is currently in its slow progression to a lake turnover. The water temperature is the same down to 50 feet with great oxygen. The water temp cools off below 50 feet and the oxygen level basically is non-existent below this level.

Happy Fishing and enjoy Norfork Lake.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report by Lou of Hummingbird Hideaway Resort 870-492-5113

Norfork Lake has been a lot of fun fishing during the last week. Nothing has really changed much since my report last week except that the lake surface temperature has dropped another degree. The best bites on the lake have been for crappie, other panfish, largemouth and spotted bass and walleye. The striped bass are still scattered out all over the lake making it very difficult to come up with any pattern.

Crappie fishing has been really good. You will find this species on brush in 24 feet of water out to 40 feet of water. They can be at any depth over the brush. The last couple of days, I have been catching some nice slabs 30 feet down over 40 feet deep brush. The best bait for catching large numbers of fish is live crappie minnows. Find the depth of the fish and slowly drift over the brush and hang on. Small 1/8 – ¼ ounce spoons has been my choice of bait and I have been vertical jigging the spoon over the tops of the brush. A few days ago, I could only get a bite if the spoon touched the brush and as soon as the spoon hit the brush a crappie attacked it. Small curly tail or paddle tail grubs are also working and sometimes tipping

the grub with a small live minnow gets the fish a little more aggressive. I have mainly been catching white crappie on the brush with only getting a few small black crappie. This morning I started fishing a few 40 feet deep brush piles and only found a few crappie. I then started trolling a #7 Berkley Flicker minnow on a shallow shore line with many small cuts and points. I was getting my bait down to about 30 feet and was staying in 30 to 38 feet of water. I only made 2 passes of this shore line and landed 3 nice 14-inch black crappie. It appears the big slab black crappie are still scattered out, but they will move into the big brush piles shortly.

Bass fishing has also been very good. This species is mainly being caught in very shallow water, but can also be found out in deeper water. Texas rigged long dark colored artificial worms have been working the best. Pitch the worm up to a shoreline that still has sunken brush. The largemouth seem to be hiding next to the brush, then come out to ambush the worm as it

passes by. Other baits that are working in the very shallow water are square bill crank baits, spinners and chatter baits. Some topwater baits are also triggering bites on occasion. Two days ago, I was scanning a large flat that had some brush out in 40 feet of water. When I got into about 28 feet of water, I started to mark large schools of fish. I dropped a ¾ ounce white spoon and immediately the bait got hammered as it hit the bottom. It was a nice 17 inch largemouth. For the next 45 minutes I got to land many nice largemouth bass. The fish were spitting up very small thread fin shad and crawdads. This type of largemouth schooling in a feeding frenzy out in deeper water has been historically common this time of year. They do seem to move around, but when you happen to find them, you will have a blast.

Walleye can also be found feeding very close to the shoreline out to 40 feet of water. The depth they can be found in seems to change daily so it does take some graphing to find them. It appears for me, that 30 feet

deep on the bottom has been the best depth. My best method to catch walleye is trolling a #7 or a #9 Berkley Flicker Minnow. You need to get the bait down to 30 feet, so either use a down rigger, lead core line or an inline weight. Each method is a learning process.

Norfork Lake surface water temperature was slightly less than 77 degrees. The lake has become fairly stable with just a very slight drop. We are currently at normal seasonal pool. The lake is slightly stained form the mid lake area and heading north.

Happy Fishing and enjoy Norfork Lake.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report by Lou of Hummingbird Hideaway Resort 870-492-5113

Norfork Lake is trying to cool off and by each degree drop the fish become more active. I am really looking forward to a little cooler air temperature, as well as, water temperature, which will bring on the fall fishing season. It appears that Norfork Lake is trying to transition and the thermocline, or at least the good oxygenated water is starting to drop. The good water has dropped to below 40 feet and the fish are already making this deeper water their home in the slightly cooler water. I have caught walleye, bass and catfish in 40 feet of water over the last week. Live thread fin shad is surviving at this water depth, if you are a live bait fisherperson.

I have switched to targeting crappie over the last week instead of walleye which I had been targeting since mid-August. The crappie bite has been excellent most days, on brush piles anywhere from 24 feet to 35 feet deep. The best areas I have found are on the main lake and not back in the creeks. The best brush comes up to 15 to 20 feet and the fish I have found are anywhere from 10 feet down to 25 feet deep over and in the

brush. I have mainly been using a small ¼ ounce spoon and vertical jigging it up and down over the
brush. I continually change how I am jigging from slow twitches, to quick jerks or a slow 5-foot raise and then letting the jig flutter down again. The slow twitches have worked the best, but most of my fish are sucking in the spoon as it falls slowly. Watch for slack line on the fall, you will more than likely have a fish and you need to set the hook quickly. I have had 2 excellent days of crappie fishing over the last 3 days. Yesterday (9/28) I could not beg a crappie bite, but the spotted bass bite made up for it. Today (9/29) was outstanding. I landed over 2 limits of keeper size fish. The crappie size that I have been landing have mainly been in the 10 to 11 inch range with very few short fish. I did land a nice 14 ¾  and 13 inch crappie this morning. Hopefully this means the big slabs are finally starting to move into the brush. I have been catching and releasing with only keeping the fish that get gut hooked or the treble hook has damaged their gills. These fish will not swim away, so it’s fish

sandwiches for lunch. Live bait is also working very well. Set your bait at about 15 to 20 feet and drift slowly over the brush. A little split shot should be used about 2 or 3 feet above the bait. If you like using a bobber, first mark the brush pile with a floating marker attached to a heavy weight. Cast your bobber (using a slip float is the best) over the brush and wait for the float to disappear.

Walleye fishing is still very good. I had been catching walleye in 30 to 32 feet of water, but when the oxygen level dropped down to 40 feet the walleye migrated to that depth. I was fishing on large rounded points that tended to have a large flat on one side of the point. I was using 2 methods of fishing to catch this species. I was vertical jigging a ½ ounce spoon touching the bottom each time I jigged the spoon up. I used this method in the dark until sunrise. At sunrise, I switched to slow trolling with my trolling motor using size #7 Berkley Flicker Minnows. To get my bait down to 30 feet I added a 1 ounce weight 50 feet from the bait

then let out another 50 feet of line. To get my bait down to 40 feet I had to add a 2 ounce weight. White colors were working the best as of late. I try to keep my speed at 1.2 to 1.4 MPH. I suspect the walleye bite will be the same until the lake turnover. Once the lake turnover happens, the fish will move to all depths, while still keying in on their food source. Find the bait you will find the fish.

The bass bite continues to be very good. The best places I have found have a lot of bait in the area. The largemouth bass have been feeding up

tight to the shore line (I mean tight) and then move back in to 15 to 20 feet of water when the sun gets high in the sky. I have also found a few nice sized largemouth hugging the bottom out in 32 to 40 feet of water. These fish are still relating to the colder water as their coloration is a light green, but the shallower fish are a dark green. The spotted bass are relating to brush piles or areas that have bait in 28 to 32 feet of water. Yesterday when the crappie did not want to bite, I found schools of spots feeding on the bottom. I must have vertical jigged up 20 spots in the 12 to 14 inch range with a ½ ounce spoon. It was a blast. Largemouth are coming up for poppers and shallow running crank baits early in the morning. Deeper diving crank baits are working when the fish go a little deeper. Windy days go to the wind-blown banks and throw spinners or chatter baits.

The catfish bite has also been fairly good. You will find then on the bottom in or near brush, as well as out in deeper water chase bait fish. I have caught some nice size cats vertical jigging with a spoon, as well as on the Berkley Flicker Minnows while I have been trolling for walleye or fishing for crappie. Live bait is always a good choice in these types of areas.

I have not started to look for striped bass since they scattered to the 4 winds mid-September. You will start to find this species partway back in the major creeks early in the morning especially if we get some more cold early morning temps. Stripers will be feeding in shallow water in the early mornings back in the creeks. As the day wears on they tend to move out to deeper cooler water. This is very normal for this time of year until the lake totally turnovers with the water temperature being more constant in the 70 or less degree range.

The surface lake temperature is ranging from 78 to 81 degrees depending on time of day. The lake level is slowly dropping and currently sits at 553.85 feet msl. The main lake is clear to slightly stained and the creeks and coves are slightly stained.

If you are looking for a daily fishing activity report, go the Hummingbird Hideaway Resort’s Facebook page. I post almost daily what is being caught on the lake either by me or some of my guests.

Happy fishing and enjoy Norfork Lake  

Norfork Lake Fishing Report by Lou Gabric of Hummingbird Hideaway Resort 870-492-5113

Norfork Lake fishing is still in its summer time fishing pattern, but cooler nights are starting to slowly lower the water temperature. This summer has not been typical for some species in the lake especially striped bass. Typically, by this time of year the fish are in 80 feet of water and lying on the bottom. This year you can find striped bass cruising in the deep-water channels in the dam area and the fish are suspended 30 to 35 feet down. Trolling with down riggers, lead core line or snap weights have all been working very well to help get the bait down to the target depth of 30 – 35 feet. Swim baits, jigs with long trailers and crank baits have all been catching fish.

I have been mainly fishing for walleye for the last several weeks. Long main lake points have been holding walleye at 30 to 33 feet depths. I have been vertical jigging with a ½ ounce spoon starting around 5:30AM in the morning, then I switch to slow trolling Berkley Flicker Minnows. When you are vertical

jigging with the spoon you need to bounce the bait off the bottom. It seems that most of the fish have hit the spoon on the fall, or immediately as the spoon hits the bottom. Be ready to set your hook. My method of trolling is by using my trolling motor and traveling 1.2 to 1.4 mph. I cast my bait out about 50 feet from the boat, then I clip on a 1-ounce snap weight and let out another 50 feet of line. I use a #7 Berkley Flicker Minnow tied onto 8-pound test monofilament line. This method and bait is getting down to the 30 feet strike zone. Colors have varied for me depending on what the weather is like. On sunny days the white or the white & chartreuse lures have worked the best but on cloudy days a darker color, such as purple seems to work better. Walleye can be found all over the lake at this time as they do not migrate due to water temperature and oxygen levels like striped bass do.  Find long main lake points that have a deep side and a shallower side, especially if the shallower side leads into a large flat. In general, I have found a walleye on every point I troll, but some points seem to hold numerous fish while other points just a couple.

Bass fishing has been improving daily. I have been catching some big spotted bass while trolling for walleye with the Flicker Minnows. Over the last couple of days, I have been finding small schools of big largemouth bass in the same walleye areas, but they are in 34 feet of water. Vertical jigging with a spoon for these deeper largemouth is picking up a few really nice fish. This morning (9/14) I found one of these schools. I hooked into and lost 4 nice fish before I finally got one of them to the surface. It proceeded to jump clear out of the water next to the boat and shake off the hook. At least I found out what I was hooking into. 😉 I have also found largemouth pushing shad back against a bluff wall and feeding heavily. You will find largemouth, smallmouth and spotted bass in shallow water early and late in the day. Crank baits, jig and pigs, spinners and chatter baits are all producing some nice fish along with working a worm along the bottom. A final area where I have found largemouth and spotted bass is out in deep water

chasing shad on top. What you will find is a group of fish feeding heavily on the surface for a very short time, then they go down and come up again 100 feet away. This bite seems to be happening mid to late morning. I went to an area where I found topwater action about 4 days ago and they were still there. I looked around saw an area where the fish seemed to be coming up more frequently. I sat and waited and the fish kept coming up. Most were smaller largemouth, but I did get to land a nice 4 pounder. I was throwing my silver Kastmaster with a feather trailer. I like this bait because I can cast it farther than any other bait that I have.

Crappie are moving back onto brush. I have not done a lot of crappie fishing, but I have checked out several big brush piles, back in creeks, as well as on main lake points. The fish have been suspended from 10 to 20 feet down over brush that is 30 feet deep.  I was jigging with a ½ ounce and a ¼ white spoon and both caught fish. Fish were all in the 10-inch range. The bigger slabs might still be roaming out in

their summer time rock ledge hideouts. It will not be long until the brush is full of big slabs. W need a little cooler water temperature.

The surface water temperature this morning was 82 degrees. The lake level is currently at 555.84 ft MSL and continues to fall slowly. Main lake is mostly clear and the creeks and coves are slightly stained.

For a frequent fishing update on Norfork Lake go to Hummingbird Hideaway Resort’s Facebook page.

Enjoy Norfork Lake and have a great time fishing.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report by Lou of Hummingbird Hideaway Resort 870-492-5113

Norfork Lake is transitioning from the spring bite to the summer bite. In essence, the fish are going deeper as the water warms. This morning the surface temp was 84, but I don’t think this temp extends too far down at this time. As the warm water goes deeper a thermocline will form and continue to go deeper as the water temp continues to rise.

Overall, the fishing for most species on Norfork Lake has been very good. There is still a very good topwater bite for largemouth bass, as well as for striped and hybrid bass. I would assume the topwater activity for striped bass will not last much longer unless we get some cooler weather. It does not look like that will happen. I have mainly been using two different baits for topwater activity; my Kastmaster (blade type bait) and a Zara Spook Jr. Today I strictly used the Kastmaster as there was a lot of small debris floating and that is not conducive to using a Zara Spook. When I see fish chasing shad on the surface, I try to cast my bait just past the activity. When the bait hits the water. I count down 2 seconds then I start the

retrieval with a jerk, then pause, then reel, then pause and start it all over again back to the boat. You have to see what the fish are looking for speed wise. The topwater activity for the striped bass starts around 5:30AM and may last until about 6:30 to 7:00AM. Once the fish stop chasing shad on the surface they start to going deep. I am marking fish anywhere from 30 feet to 80 feet deep. 40ft down seem to be a good place to set up your bait. Live bait is definitely working the best, but vertical jigging a ¾ to 1 ounce spoon is starting to pick us some nice fish. If you like trolling, an umbrella rig is working really well. Keep the bait 35 to 45 feet down and you will catch some nice stripers. A-rigs, deep diving crank baits and large swim baits are also working well, but you will more than likely need to add some in-line weight to get deeper. Using a down rigger would be the easiest.

The largemouth bite has been very good. There are lots of fish

up in the sunken brush, but many of them are shorts. The top water for this species also starts at sunrise and typically has lasted longer than the striped bass topwater activity.  I have found that the fish chasing shad close to shore are predominantly shorts, but if you look out in the same area in deeper water and notice fish chasing shad, you’ll find the bigger fish. Today I caught some real nice bass in 120 ft of water, roughly 50 yards away from the bank. The bass also are going deeper as the sun gets high in the sky. Start working the bottom when they go down, in 15 to 25 feet of water

Best areas for me have been main lake points in the mid lake area. I have always had the best luck finding fish on the points that have a deep-water channel swinging in close to the point. The fish are also back in several of the major creeks that are located in several different areas of the lake.

If you are looking for almost daily fishing activity on Norfork Lake, go to our Facebook page for

Hummingbird Hideaway Resort. I post daily fishing reports of what I am doing, as well as our guests.

Norfork Lake level is fairly stable at this time and is rising less than 1 inch per day. The level is currently 573.02 feet MSL. The surface water temperature was 84 degrees this morning and the clear is fairly clear.

If you are looking for a great vacation call Hummingbird Hideaway Resort at 870-492-5113. Norfork Lake is all about fishing, playing or just relaxing on the water.

Happy fishing.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report by Lou Gabric of Hummingbird Hideaway Resort

 

Norfork Lake is in the prime of the spring fishing season. Crappie and bass have both started their spawning process which will continue for several weeks, if not more. Cool fronts during this process do tend to slow things down. Walleye have completed their spawn and are starting to show up all over the lake. White bass should have spawned already, but from what I’ve seen with the few I have cleaned they are just starting to get ready. The cold February might have really messed with their cycle. Striped bass and hybrid bass will spawn soon if the water temperature rises a little more. Over all this spring is acting very similar to prior years which means a good bite for most species.

Crappie are currently being caught with three different methods.  Cast a small jig right into the shore line with a very light jig head. Let it fall slowly and twitch it out of the sunken brush until you feel a strike. Best areas are where there is dead wood sunken on the shore line or where the shore has a lot of sunken buck brush due the slight rise in the water level. You can also fish

brush piles that are 20 to 30 feet deep. The crappie have typically been on the tops of the brush or out along the sides of the brush. YA second method is to vertical jig a small spoon or a small jig with a very light weight jig head. Let it fall slowly and typically a crappie will pick it up before it stops falling. A live minnow with a slip float is also a good method for brush pile fishing. The third method (the one I prefer at this time) is trolling Berkley Flicker Minnows size 7 & 9. I slow troll with my trolling motor at a speed of 1.2 to 1.4 mph. I try and stay in 18 to 40 feet of water. There are schools of crappie out in the deep water staging for the spawn and when your bait goes through the school it gets hammered. The best areas to fish are back in coves and creeks that have brush pile throughout the cove.

Bass fishing has also been very good. The bass are up in shallow water feeding on bait fish and small bluegills. I have found them back in creeks and coves. A lot of the time they are all the way in the back in very shallow water. Try crank baits, soft plastic jerk baits and jigs worked slowly along the bottom. On

windy days spinner baits will work wonders. Top water action has started, but isn’t consistent at this time due the cool water. When I have found this action, it has been in the backs of creeks that the wind has been blowing into. Typically, you will find a lot of bait fish in the same area.

Striped bass and hybrid bass fishing is also picking up. Tuesday morning, I found some top water action for striped bass. The water was not boiling, but there were many fish individually busting the surface feeding on bait. I tried throwing a Zara Spook with no success and switched to a long 5 inch swimbait with a paddle tail and it was hammered. I did not let it sink very much, but only retrieved at a medium speed, letting it drop slowly as it came back to the boat. It is a blast when a big fish hammers the bait and just starts running in the opposite direction. All you can do is hang on until it decides it is tired of running. I have also found this species on main lake points early in the morning, as well as late in the day up in the sunken

buck brush feeding on shad. They tend to push the bait up to the shore line to make them easy pickings. Cast a swimbait or a fluke up into the brush with a steady retrieval to the boat and hang on.

The lake level has been falling slowly for the past week or so, but currently is stable due to power generation being reduced from 2 generators to just one. The current lake level is 557.72 Feet MSL which is only 4 feet over normal pool levels. The surface lake temperature ranges from the upper 50’s to low 60’s depending on the time of day. The lake is getting clear with just a slight stain. With the clearer water make sure you use clear or vanishing fishing line and as light a test line as you feel comfortable fishing with.

If you are looking for frequent fishing information on Norfork Lake, go to Hummingbird Hideaway Resort’s Facebook page. Daily posts of my fishing trip, as well as our guests. You will find some very helpful information.

 Happy fishing and see you on the lake.