Norfork Lake Fishing Report

Happy Halloween all! Today was a Zara Spooktacular fishing day!

In my last Norfork Lake Fishing Report I mentioned that the big stripers and hybrids will move in shortly, well today I have confirmation! This morning was a day to remember. I caught 8 stripers and 4 hybrids all on a Zara Spook. Top water action galore and it lasted the whole time I was fishing. I found the fish heading back into a major creek on a shallow flat. The stripers were skyrocketing out of the water chasing shad. They were feeding on very small 1 inch shad, but had no problem hammering my Zara Spook Jr. (white with a chartreuse head). The schools of fish were roaming and feeding in 20 - 60 feet of water. When I got in deeper water I could see huge schools of fish under the boat so dropping a spoon and vertical jigging would have worked great. Get out on the lake at sunrise and if you find the fish, the top water action should last until the sun gets above the trees, but today was very overcast and lightly raining so the action lasted much longer. The same action should also occur in the afternoons around sunset time. Remember the clocks fall back 1 hour this coming Sunday. Other baits to try would be a blade bait such as a Kastsmaster or a spinner bait like a Rooster Tail. I like the blade baits a lot because you can cast them a mile. When the stripers go down start looking in the 30 - 50 feet of water, both on the bottom and also suspended in deep 100 foot channels.

Crappie have been biting pretty good lately. I have been using a 1/4 ounce jigging spoon in and around brush piles. The crappie are on the top and within the brush. What I have found is that after I catch a couple of crappie the bite stops, so all I do is move to the next brush pile and catch a couple more fish. You can limit out on nice 12 - 14 inch fish, but you do need to keep moving. Small swimming minnows and twister tail or paddle tail grubs will also work, tip them with a live minnow for better action. Live bait with a slip float will also work well. You will find the fish in 20 - 30 feet of water suspended from 6 to 25 feet down.

Largemouth, smallmouth and spotted bass are starting to move in to shallower water. I have caught some nice spots in the brush piles while crappie fishing. Today I found the largemouth bass along a deep water bluff line chasing shad on the surface. My Zara Spook did the trick. Once they go down try using crawdad colored crank baits or one of my favorites, a jig and pig. The after dark bite has been the better bite for bass lately.

The bigger white bass are starting to show up in similar areas as the stripers and hybrids. I got into some top water action a few evenings ago in a deep water channel close to the shoreline. I found several schools of fish that would erupt for a few minutes then go back down to erupt again in a different location in the same general area. I have also found them on a big flat in 30 - 40 feet of water. Early morning or late afternoons have been the best fishing times for me.

Walleye fishing ?? at this time. They should start to show up in shallow water once the water cools a little more.

It is looking to be a very good fall fishing season, so make your plans to get out on the lake and if you need a place to stay give Hummingbird Hideaway Resort a call 870-492-5113 and book a room. I will give you all the fishing information you need to help make it a successful fishing trip. The fall leaf color this year is also one of the best I have seen in years. Pretty scenery and good fishing, what more can you ask for!

The Norfork Lake water temperature was 67 degrees this morning and holding steady until the next cold front rolls through. The lake level is currently at 552.53 and is dropping very very slowly with slight power generation and small minimum flow releases. There has been a slight increase in the lake level today due the rain. The main lake is clear with the creeks and cove somewhat stained.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.