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.
