Norfork Lake Fishing Report

The weather is finally changing for the better on Norfork Lake in the Arkansas Ozarks. We have had wind, wind and more wind the last 3 days with a couple of inches of rain. The rain is over for now and the wind is supposed to diminish this evening and get back to normal. The windy weather has actually been good for fishing for those that can take it and hold their spots, but it has definitely been a real challenge for our fishing guests as well as the guides. Robert Lee of Lee's Lite Line took a couple of our guests out on a striper trip Sunday morning and had a good day. They landed these five stripers/hybrids and numerous other smallmouth and Kentucky bass. They also had 4 other stripers break off before they could be netted. They were fishing with live shad in the dam area. Due to the wind they were long lining the shad as it was too windy to pitch the points.

The last time that I fished was last Friday evening. I headed to the Bennett's area at 7PM to hopefully find some top water action. As the sun set I saw 3 separate striped bass surface so I started to fan cast my spook. I was casting to the shallow water as well as to the deep water. I ended up landing two stripers and missed three others. They were not chasing the shad to the surface, but they still came up after my Zara Spook. The fish were all on the small size 6 - 8 pounds. As it got really dark I switched to a rogue and immediately got a good strike, but missed it. I fished this area for another 45 minutes without a hit, I moved to a point across from Bidwell and caught a bluegill, then I had a massive hit and it was pulling drag then just disappeared. (I have been getting a lot of that lately?) No more hits so I headed for home around 10:30PM.

We have had guests bass fishing since Saturday and doing very well. They have been throwing plastics with and without weights and are catching smallmouth, largemouth and Kentucky bass. Their big fish so far has been an 18.5 inch smallmouth. This fish was caught in our cove. All colors have been working for them. They have been fishing next to the buck brush, letting their bait fall to the bottom then slowly retrieving with a twitching motion. Most times the fish hit the bait as it is fell next to the buck brush. Last evening a few of them stayed out until after the sun set. The hybrids, black bass and whites started to erupt in the back of our cove in only one foot of water. They started throwing poppers and spooks and got the thrill of their life. They never landed a fish, but lost several nice ones in the brush. They told me that they have never gotten into top water action like this before, grinning ear to ear. One said his heart was still pounding.


The blue and channel catfish are starting to come into the shallow water and are hitting my shiners on a trot line. This morning I caught a nice size blue, but lost it as I was bringing it into the boat. (I forgot my net!!!)

No current reports on crappies, but I have several guests taking two crappie guides out on Friday. More to come later.

Watch for the top water action as the sun is starting to rise and after the sun has set. I am getting reports that the top action is just starting to take off. The full moon should really help, and of course the light winds.

The Norfork Lake level is rising slowly and currently sits at 555.31 with no generation. The lake is gin clear even with the rain several days ago. I would assume that back in the flowing creeks you should find some stained water. Our cove is clear. The surface water temperature is in the mid 60's.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report

Just got back in from fishing on Norfork Lake. The night bite for striped bass is still happening. The bite had slowed for a few days with the cold front that rolled through, but I think things have stabilized again. I caught two after dark and lost another big one that straightened two of my hooks. I guess I'm going to need to change the hooks on all of my rogues before I use them. What was exciting for me is that I caught my first two stripers before dark on a Zara Spook. I was sitting on a point in the Cranfield area and the fish started to erupt around me. My first catch was the 14 pound striped bass in the photo. The fish moved out to deep water then cruised back into the shallow water. My second catch was a 10 pound striper. They were not coming up at this time, but the fish attacked my spook three times before I finally hooked it. He came clear out of the water, then the fight was on. I missed two other hits that had the fish popping the spook about a foot into the air. I hope tonight is an indication that the top water bite is ready to start, both morning and evening. I also caught two Kentucky bass on the Zara Spook and a nice largemouth on a rogue. All fish were released. The stripers that I released were in the 10 pound range.

The Norfork Lake level is at 555.21 and falling slowly. Two generators are currently being run. The surface water temperature is still at 67 degrees. The water is gin clear, the clearest I have seen for some time.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report

Weather for the last week has been gorgeous on Norfork Lake in the Arkansas Ozarks. Air temperatures have been in the 80's during the day and the 50's and 60's at night. We had a small front move through last evening that is going to cool things off a bit for a few days.

Catfish are hitting on my trot line. I'm using large shiners and crawfish. I have been catching 2 a day. This morning I only caught one small channel catfish which I am giving the opportunity to grow a little bigger. The flatheads have began to cruise the shoreline looking for spawning beds. The small channel cats are just starting to come in. The blues will be next. They are typically the larger of the species.

Last evening around 6PM I headed to a cove close to us to see if I could find any crappie. I started to work the banks of a finger in the cove with a chartreuse colored roadrunner. I immediately started catching large bluegill. They are a lot of fun on very light tackle. Every cast I had a hit or a fish. I caught two 10 inch crappie and 4 bluegill in about 20 minutes. The water was calm and the bait fish where starting to surface then all of a sudden the wind went from calm to 20 MPH. The cove I was in was acting like a wind tunnel. I tried to fish a little longer but was having a hard time moving against the wind even on high power. I ended up going back to the dock to wait out the weather.

I spoke with both crappie fishing guides yesterday to see what they have been doing on crappie. Both guides (Jay Smith of Crappies Only and Harvey Hall of Hard Times Crappie) stated that the spawn is in full swing. They have been catching many crappie in very shallow water, 4 ft or less. Harvey likes to go back in creeks and find the stained water and then find some wood along the banks. He is casting a small crappie jig tipped with a minnow, but a live minnow on a small slip bobber will also work. Jay was on the lake when I talked with him and was having one of those days. He was catching fish, but was having to move from spot to spot. He also has been catching crappie along the banks pitching a crappie jig. The spawn should continue for the next few weeks so get out on the lake and have some fun.

The night bite is still going strong for striped bass. One group of our guests had a good night even with the wind causing issues. Right as the sun was setting one was casting a bass assassin on a point. On one cast just as he was getting ready to lift the bait out of the water an 11 pound striper came up and just hammered it. He was lucky to land this fish, I usually lose them when they hit so close to the boat. GOOD JOB Terry! They also caught several nice stripers & hybrids after dark slow rolling a rogue. This morning they had another great trip catching smallmouth, largmouth, white bass and one nice striped bass. They were using live shad this morning pitching various points.

Another of our guests landed a 5 pound brown trout yesterday morning. This is the first brown I have seen in the lake. He was in the Bidwell area fishing for bass with a silver rattletrap. Last evening he caught a nice 5 pound walleye on the same rattletrap after dark. He release the fish to be caught another day.

Isn't fishing just great! I love it.

The Norfork Lake level is falling slowing and currently sits at 555.47 ft above sea level. Normal pool is 552 so we are 3 1/2 ft above normal. The lake surface temp is still in the mid 60's, but should fall a little with the cooler temps the next few days. The lake is gin clear as well as the coves and creeks. To get to the stained water you need to go deep into the creeks.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.

Norfork Lake Striper Fishing

The night bite for striped bass is still going strong on Norfork Lake. I just got back from a successful fishing trip. I "had" to make sure that the new hooks I put on my rogues would hold up. They did! This was a 8 pound fish, but fought more like a 15 pound fish. I caught another 8 - 9 pound fish and released it. The fish in the photo will be supper tomorrow. I fished the Cranfield area. Tried the same point as last evening not as many bites, but I finally started boating stripers again.

The lake conditions are still the same as my earlier report.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report

I spent a nice evening last night on Norfork Lake. I landed this nice 5 pound largemouth and several smaller Kentucky bass before dark. All bass were released. Once the sun set I headed to a point in the Cranfield area that I have not fished before. I was happy that I did. It was a great night for hooking fish, but unfortunately, the fisherman performed poorly on landing fish. Between 8:30 and 9:30 PM I had 6 striper or hybid bites, two that were pulling drag and one that dove to deep water. All three came unhooked. Each time I looked at my knot and bait to see if I needed to retie, but I guess I didn't pay enough attention to the hooks. When the last fish got away, I became frustrated and got out my flash light to check out the rogue really well and found that the treble hooks were mangled. I have replaced the hooks today with a little larger and stronger hook. I will try it again this evening to see if it helps. But it is possible that the problem may be the fisherman too! I was throwing two different suspending rogues, one a green with orange belly (looks like a sun fish/blue gill) and the other, a black top, silver on the sides and a white belly. The second lure was the one with the hook problems. I was casting as close to the shoreline as possible, then started to reel very, very slowly. I stopped occasionally and I have had many strikes when the lure is sitting still. Remember don't work the bait as a jerk bait, the striper are looking for this slow wobbling bait. The black bass were caught on a Zara spook (white with a chartreuse head). I was working the spook next to the shore line in very shallow water.

I set my trot line a couple nights ago and have caught 4 flat head catfish. If I remember correctly the flat heads came into the shallow water before the blues and channel catfish did. I have my line set crossing a small cut in a cove with the deepest part being about 15 feet deep. I have caught fish on hooks on the shoreline as well as in the deepest part. It looks like catfishing is ready to take off. I have been using large shiners and crawdads as the bait on my line. We're glad to be getting catfish again as we need to get enough for a very large fish fry.

Hope to get out crappie fishing soon, but I have become addicted to striper fishing after dark. I usually get back to the dock around 10PM, sometimes later.

Currently the Norfork Lake level is at 555.55 and holding steady. One generator is being run, but it goes from 0 to 2 generators throughout the day. The lake is becoming gin clear as are the creeks and coves. Deep into the creeks you may find some stained water. The water temperature last evening was 67 degrees. I have been told that the water temperature at the dam is about 4 - 5 degrees cooler.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake. When you do see me on the lake stop by and say hi.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report

Whether you want to fish artificial bait or live bait, in the morning, afternoon or after dark the Norfork Lake spring bite is on and will only continue to improve throughout April and May. Striped bass, hybrid bass, largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, white bass and crappie are all hungry and frisky. The family of 5, my cousins from Wisconsin, went on a live bait guided fishing trip with Robert Lee of Lee's Lite Line. They had a fantastic time catching close to all of the species in Norfork Lake. They missed out on only walleye, crappie and catfish. They fished with live threadfin shad pitching various points in the dam area and long lined a shad. This was the first striped bass any of the family had caught and also their first time on Norfork Lake. They had a fabulous time and Linda and I hope to see them often.

The upper right photo was Randy's (future father-in-law for my daughter) first striped bass. I took him and my future son-in-law out for the night bite. We fished the Bennett's area and had a fair evening. We started out catching several Kentucky bass and a hybrid bass all on a Zara spook. The top water bite in the evening before dark is just starting. The fish are coming up, but still spotty. Have a spook tied on and be ready to go. We also broke off a nice fish and two others that were hooked and miraculously came unhooked during the fight. We had several other bumps, and we had a great time. Randy's comment after he caught his fish was that he can't believe we only use 6 - 8 pound test line to catch these stripers.

I also fished yesterday morning and last evening. Yesterday Jason and I caught 5 bass, (smallmouth, largemouth and Kentucky's) all on a Zara Spook. The fish were not surfacing, but they definitely will come up for the spook. We caught all fish in very shallow water either inside the buck brush or right next to it. A quick walk-the-dog retrieval was working the best for me. Last evening I went out for the night bite and right before dark the fish started breaking the surface. I ended up catching several white bass and several Kentucky bass. One of the white bass caught weighed in at 3.5 pounds, my largest yet. After dark I hooked into one striper and the fight was on. It darted back and forth and made several dives. I thought I had him whipped and got it close to the boat, but he or she gave one more dive straight under the boat and my drag just couldn't keep up. I broke off another fish. This was my only bite after dark. I was throwing suspending rogues in various colors.

I hope to have some good info on crappie and catfishing over the next serval days.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report

The Spring bite is in full swing on Norfork Lake and it is only going to get better. These Nebraska brothers had a great day on the lake with Tom Reynolds of STR Outfitters yesterday morning. The best part is that their fishing time has only just begun. They still have the rest of the week to test their skills against the Norfork Lake fish. The evening before their guided trip they caught this nice 5 pound walleye and have already caught many black bass. STR Outfitters was fishing the dam area with gizzard shad and the fish hammered the baits.

I had a busy day yesterday. I fished in the morning. I was on the lake at 6AM. I was hoping to find some top water striped bass action, but instead I found largemouth and Kentucky bass breaking the surface. I ended up catching 6 bass with the largest one weighing 3.5 pounds. I used a Zara Spook that was white with a chartreuse colored head. I fished in the Bennett's area and worked my way up to the main lake. I was back to the resort by 9AM to lay another pallet of sod in front of Cabin 3 and complete numerous other honey due jobs. At about 8PM I headed out again for the night bite in the Bidwell area. The wind was blowing pretty hard which made fishing in the dark even more difficult. I think I was on the shore retrieving my rogue from the buck brush more than I was fishing. I did have two fish on that were pulling drag. With the first one I found my drag was way too loose and I never got a good hook set. I lost that one pretty quickly. I was fighting the second fish for a good 5 minutes and on one of its dives it just disappeared. I still can't figure out how 3 treble hooks can come out of a fish that was hooked??? It's definitely not the fisherman's fault!!! Both of the fish came pretty early, I fished for another hour with nothing, but I could hear the fish breaking the surface. I headed home about 10PM. Needless to say I have been pretty tired today, but still got a lot of work accomplished. The wind is still blowing heavily so I think I will call it an early night tonight and get some sleep.

The Norfork Lake level is still rising slowly and currently is at 556.21. One to two generators are being run throughout the day. The lake surface temperature was 57 - 59 degrees. The lake is clear and the coves are becoming clear.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report

Happy Easter to all.

Here is another happy couple that had a successful fishing trip on Norfork Lake. Jim & Joann fished with Robert Lee of Lee's Lite Line a striper guide on Norfork Lake. They ended up landing these 3 nice striped bass and over 8 Largemouth and Kentucky bass. The black bass were all given their freedom to be caught another day. Two of the stripers are headed to the frying pan. The third (largest) striper, caught by Joann, (figures the wife get the biggest one) is going to become a wall mount. The fish were caught on live shad back in the Bennett's area yesterday morning.

I fished last evening. I didn't get on the lake until about 8PM and arrived back at the dock around midnight. I had a fantastic evening. I was pitching a bone colored rogue and a rogue with purple on top, chartreuse on the sides and a white belly. I caught and lost equal amounts of fish with each. I ended up landing 5 stripers, 2 hybrids and a white bass. I fished the Cranfield area first then headed to the Bidwell area around 10PM. I caught and lost more fish in the Cranfield area, but they were smaller than the fish in the Bidwell area. My largest fish was 11.5 pounds the rest were all under 9 pounds. All fish were released after being weighed.

That is all the new news that I have for you today. There is just not enough hours in the day to fish all that I want to and also do all the work around the resort. I want (NEED) to start fishing the morning bite. I have heard there is some top water action starting early. It is just a little difficult for me to work during the day, fish til midnight and get up early enough for the morning fishing! I'm just not as young as I used to be.

The Norfork Lake level is rising slowly with the rain we had the other day and currently sits at 555.64 above sea level. The is 3.64 ft above normal pool. One to two generators are being run throughout the day. The lake surface water temperature was at 56 degrees last evening. The main lake is clear and coves are clearing.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report

The Striped Bass bite is improving for both morning and night fishing on Norfork Lake. These are a couple of our Chicago area guests Guy & Jerry and yes, they were happy. They were one fish shy of their limit. The limit could have included a 25 + pound fish that was up along the side of the boat, but decided to take one more dive. Their line was cut immediately. Several other fish hit their baits but escaped. They fished with Tom Reynolds of STR Outfitters using gizzard shad in the dam area. They had six lines out, two long lines, two on balloons and two outside poles on planer boards. All baits were free swimming with no weights.

I fished last evening in the Bidwell area. I started on a point back by 101 boat dock, had two light bumps and lost a nice fish that was pulling drag. I guess I didn't set the hook. At about 10PM I started to head home, but once I got across from Bidwell I was tempted to try fishing near the docks with lights on. I casted several times and had one light bump. I heard fish breaking the surface and headed out to the main lake points to find them. I ended up landing two 11 pound fish and a third got away after straightening three hooks on two of my treble hooks. I saw the fish and know it had to be over 20 pounds. That's my story anyway and I'm sticking to it!! I lost 3 other nice bites, but just didn't get a good hook set. I was using a suspending rogue and slow rolling it back to the boat. I headed home around midnight. For last night at least, the bite was much later than what I have found in the past. For morning fishing try using a fluke or bass assassin with or without a weighted hook. Cast main lake points and secondary points back in the creek channels.

I haven't had a chance to get out fishing for other species, crappie, bass, catfish and so on, but what I am being told that the crappie bite is starting to take off and the bass bite is still as good as ever. No news on the catfish. I am going to try and set a trot line this evening.

I am starting to see bluegill, crappie and bass under my dock for those dock fishing guests.

If any of my followers have any good updates on fishing Norfork Lake please feel free to add your comments. This will help all to have a successful fishing trip on the lake.

The Norfork Lake level is 554. 92 and falling ever so slightly with one generator being run. This level is only about 3 feet above normal pool. The lake is holding steady, but if we get the forecasted rain this evening it will rise again. The lake surface temperature last evening was between 54 and 55 degrees. The main lake is gin clear and coves and creeks are clearing very nicely.

Have a great day and see you on the lake.