Norfork Lake Fishing Report

Norfork Lake is in its summer fishing pattern with a few twists compared to prior years. The striped bass are schooling and when you find one of these schools you won't believe the numbers of fish, they are massive. The main difference over prior years is that the fish continue to move and they may not be in the same location as the day before. I guess that is why they call it fishing. Half the fun is finding the fish and the other half is learning what to do to catch them once you've found them.

Today was no different. I have not fished since a week ago Sunday so I decided to do a lot of graphing to see what I could find. I started my day at 3AM (with a huge cup of coffee) then went out to find bait. Baiting was very tough this morning. My first 3 spots produced 3 shad. At my 4th spot I found a few more then moved one more time and in one throw I had all the bait that I needed. It did take about 2 1/2 hours, but I had fun. I started to graph in the mid lake area. I checked main lake points and bluff lines. I graphed from 50 feet of water out to the channel. I found a few fish, but nothing really exciting. I then headed to the Diamond Bay area and again I marked a few fish. I continued down to the dam area and marked some good fish on the bottom in 60 feet of water. I fished this area for a while and had one hit, but no fish. I moved to several other points and finally I marked many fish. I ended up catching one, broke off another and missed a third. As quick as the bite started it stopped. So I headed out. I got a call from one of my guests who was starting to get some nice bites, but his electronics were out and he wanted me to graph the area. I set out two poles 60 feet deep and in about 15 minutes I was marking lots of bait and big arcs all though the bait. I landed this nice 14 pounder and Jeff was also fighting a couple fish. It was a good area, but was it was getting late for me to be out so I headed in and am hoping the fish will be back in this location tomorrow!

Live bait fishing for stripers is working very well, but once you find the school you can also vertical jig a spoon. I have been finding the fish 50 - 70 feet deep, either on the bottom or suspended in 80 - 150 feet of water. My fish have been found on main lake points and along deep bluff lines.

I have not done much walleye fishing lately, but I talked with Leslie Wake of Twin Lakes Guide Service yesterday and he stated the walleye on Norfork Lake are becoming very active. Leslie has found that the walleye have finally moved out of the brush and can be found in 25 - 35 feet. of water on main lake points and flats. He has been doing very well with crawler harnesses. If you looking to take a guided walleye trip give Leslie a call at 417-252-0906.

We have a couple of young guests that are very avid fisherwomen. They love to fish off of the dock and also from their Dad's boat. (Mom's boat too!). Their bait of choice is either nightcrawlers or crickets. Both are working great.

I have no reports on Crappie fishing.

Catfishing is still good with live bait either on trotlines or jugs. Dragging a crawler harness at dark is also starting to produce some nice fish.

The Norfork Lake level is still falling slowly and currently rests at 568.8. The lake surface water temperature this morning was 89 degrees at both ends of the lake. The main lake is clear and the creeks and coves are clearing.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report

Spring fishing on Norfork Lake is heating up and will only get better. The warm Ozark weather has helped to increase the surface water temperature which is making the fish more active. Top water action for black bass has been good at sunrise and sunset back in coves and creeks. Yesterday morning I went to check on the dock at around 6:30AM and when I got there the fish were popping all over. I always carry a rod with me when I go to the dock and of course I had a Zara spook tied on. What's the jingle? - Don't leave home without it- something to do with a credit card not really a rod and reel! In less than 15 minutes I landed 4 spotted bass in the 2 pound range. I was casting from the end of the dock. When the bass aren't breaking the surface I have been using a 3 inch curly tail grub with a 1/8 oz. jig head. I have had a lot of luck on deep bluff lines especially on bluff points.

Word has it that the crappie are starting to move to the banks. They have either started to spawn or are really close. The crappie in the photo were caught off of my dock. Several very good places to find crappie are on fallen timber that is close to the shore or brush piles in 10 - 20 feet of water. The crappies are suspended only 2 - 6 feet down. I like small twister tail grubs with a 1/16 or a 1/32 ounce jig head. Use very light line, just 2 - 4 pound test. Live minnows are also working very well.

White bass are schooling and can be found back in coves and creeks in shallow water, 10 - 20 feet. They also can be found close to brush piles. I haven't seen any top water action on whites yet, but it should start soon. Small spinners and spoons are working well.

Walleye are being caught in many different locations. They are typically being found in 10 - 20 feet of water and at night on the shoreline feeding. The same 3 inch grub I use for bass is catching walleye. Last night a suspending rogue cast to the bank was the ticket for this nice walleye. Crank baits being slow trolled along the banks are picking up a few nice walleye.

Striped bass fishing is starting to heat up. I just got back from a successful night fishing trip. I ended up catching 2 striped bass (15 pound and 10 pound), 1 walleye, 3 white bass and a couple of bluegill. I missed as many as I caught. I caught all on a Smithwick Rattlin Rogue, blue on the top, white on the sides with an orange belly. The bite really didn't start until around 10pm, but when it did the fish just started to explode around me. I could hear stripers and white bass breaking the surface all around me. As soon as I heard the splashes I got my first fish. They stuck around in the area for an hour worth of fun. I released all fish, the ones in the photo where released at my dock. The morning bite for stripers is also heating up. Stripers and hybrids are being caught all over the lake. Three of my guests from the Oklahoma area took a guided trip with Robert Lee of Lee's lite line and they landed these 3 nice hybrids and lost as many more.

The Norfork Lake water level is rising slowly and currently sits at 550.54 ft above sea level. The surface water temperature last evening was in the low 60's. The water is clear with some stained water due to the 1.25 inches of rain that we had the other day.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report

Linda and I are back at our resort after a long overdue vacation. We both had a great time. We are hard at work around the resort and I have also started fishing again on Norfork Lake. So far we have had a relatively warm fall and the fish are starting to bite. Yesterday I took some of my visiting family out striper fishing and we did Ok. We landed 2 stripers, one 15+ pounds. We broke off another and missed four other strikes. We were fishing up the river past point 8 with live shad. They were not the big jumbos so we were doubling up the shad on one hook. A couple of my guide friends have also been fishing the same area and are doing well. Yesterday Tom Reynolds of STR Outfitters landed 10 stripers and hybrids and the day before landed 14. I guess my boat missed too many of the strikes.

Today I fished with my brother-in-law and we slayed the bass. We ended up landing over 20 largemouth, smallmouth and spotted bass and lost over 5 fish at the boat. We limited out on spotted bass and released the largemouths and smallmouths. We started at sunrise and were throwing Zara Spooks around some docks. The fish were out in deep water (25feet) as well as right on the shore line. Next we headed over to the Big E area and switched from artificial baits to live bait. We used Carolina type rigs with a 1 ounce weight, then a couple of feet of leader with a number 4 kahle hook. I was fishing around some brush that is close to a point on the bluff line. The spotted bass were stacked. We landed 4 fish in this location then they seemed to turn-off. Next we headed to Panther Creek. I was graphing at different locations looking for striper without success. I stopped on a point and started to use live bait. We landed 3 spotted bass. Again the fish were in 20 - 25 feet of water. My third location was past Bidwell point. This was our most productive area. Again the bass were stacked and were very aggressive. We caught our first 3 fish in 8 - 10 feet of water and continued to catch fish after fish in 10 - 30 feet of water. I really think spinner baits and crankbaits would have worked great, but we were having so much fun with the live bait I could not get myself to switch. It was a great great day.

Two 17 inch smallmouth, a 16 inch spotted bass, and a white bass (all caught today) were given to an advertising firm that is photographing for 2011 fishing equipment catalogs for Northland and Frabril, both Minnesota companies. Arkansas is having over 19 nationally known reporters in the area fishing and exploring to see what Norfork Lake and Mountain Home have to offer. I am taking some of the writers out fishing on Friday and Saturday, My trip for today was cancelled.

From reports, crappie fishing is starting to get really hot. Small twister tail grubs tipped with a minnow and just minnows are working well. The fish are suspendied over brush piles anywhere from 10 feet to 20 feet down. Keep trying different depths until you find the one that works the best.

The Norfork Lake level is falling slowly and currently sits at 547.45. The surface water temperature was 62 - 63 degrees today. The main lake water is clear and the creeks are cloudy but clearing.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report

It is a beautiful day on Norfork Lake in the Arkansas Ozarks. The lake is calm, the sky is blue and the air temperature in in the upper 70's. Definitely shorts and t-shirt weather if not your bathing suit. (Our pool is OPEN) I have fished the last two mornings and today did very well, yesterday was so so. We caught 15 fish with a mixed bag of white bass and Kentucky bass all in less than 2 hours. I arrived at my fishing spot at day break and immediately Jason caught a nice Kentucky. We were throwing Zara Spooks. A clear one and a white and chartreuse. The fish were surfacing and hammering the spooks until the sun moved over the trees, then it was like a light switch. The bite turned-off. That was fine as I had to get Jason back to the house so he, my daughter and granddaughter could head to Silver Dollar City in Branson. The white bass are also hitting spinner baits very well. You can find the whites in the backs of creeks in the Bennett's area, Float Creek and Panther Creek. Bass are also hitting crank baits and plastics worked close to the buck brush. Black bass, spotted Bass and smallmouth bass are being caught all over the lake. The bite slowed a little the latter part of this week due to a cold front that moved through, but it looks like the bite is back on.

Our guest's guided crappie trips with both guides (Jay of Crappies Only and Harvey of Hard times) had to be cancelled due to weather last Friday. The wind was blowing 20 -30 mph with higher gusts. Since they couldn't get on the lake they decided to head to the river and had a great time catching rainbow trout. The crappie are biting at least today under our dock. One of our guests has caught 12 crappie so far in the last 2 hours. He is using live minnows and the fish are only about 4 - 5 feet down. He should have his limit by now. The best part is that while he is entertaining himself with fishing, his wife is laying in the sun in her bathing suit on our swim platform. A vacation made in heaven!

The Norfork Lake level is rising slowly and currently is at 555.75 with no generation. The surface water temperature was 65 degrees this morning. The lake is clean and clear. It is so much fun and a pleasure living and vacationing on such a beautiful lake.

Have a great day filled with lots of fun and of course fishing. 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 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

We ended up having a nice & warm evening yesterday on Norfork Lake. After the sun set the lake calmed to a quiet ripple. Today, however is a different story, windy, cooler and rainy. We have had about three quarters of an inch of rain since midnight, but it does look like the end of the rain is in sight. It is still suppose to be windy this evening, but it should be dry.

I started fishing yesterday evening around 6:30PM hoping for a little top water action, but found nothing. The bass were still hitting OK, but not great. I ended up catching 4 undersized largemouth bass during the time up until sunset, then I caught two nice Kentucky (Spotted) Bass (18 inches) after dark. I usually don't catch a lot of black bass after dark. No bites other than the black bass. I was fishing in the Cranfield area, but from reports that I heard today I was definitely in the wrong place. I got two other night bite reports from people that said they just slammed the striped bass. One report was from the Float Creek area and the other was in the Bidwell area. I, as well as my other friends, were using suspending stick baits and were slow rolling them back to the boat. If the weather calms a little I hope to get out this evening.

I just love being on the lake after dark. It is so quiet and peaceful. I did say quiet, but last night in the Cranfield area there had to be a hundred Canada Geese surrounding my boat. They were making such a racket that I think this might be why I didn't catch any stripers. The geese spooked them. (At least I have an excuse!!)

Nothing new on crappie fishing, people are still catching over brush that is 20 - 30 feet down and the fish are suspended 10 - 15 feet down. They seemed to have moved a little deeper with the cooler water, after our recent rains.

The catfish should be far coming into the shallows before long to spawn. I plan to start setting a trot line next week to see what's willing to bite.

The white bass are still in the backs of creeks in shallow water. Throw a spinner bait, small crank bait or a small twister tail. Once you find them you will have a blast.

The striped bass are also starting to hit very well early in the morning. Most of my contacts have been using live bait and ballooning a free swimming minnow close to the bank. Rogues as well as flukes (either weighted or not) have been catching a few stripers on the banks, but also catching a lot of bass. The key to a fluke is to cast it out and let it sink then retrieve slowly with slight twitches stop then let it sink then repeat. Once the water warms and the fish become more and more aggressive a faster retrieval will work and at times skipping the fluke along the top of the water works well.

The Norfork Lake level is rising and currently at 553. 5. The Corps has been running one generator constantly. The lake will more than likely rise another 6 inches or so by the morning. The surface water temperature was 52 degrees last evening. The water was getting very clear last night, but with the rain today this should change especially back in the creeks and coves.

Have a great fishing day and see you on the lake.

Norfork Lake Striper Fishing

Yes, these fish were heavy and I was happy.

I have confirmation, the Norfork Lake night bite is on. Last evening I headed out to the Cranfield area and caught 2 Striped Bass in the 8 pound range and 2 Hybrid Bass one well over 9 pounds. I was using my bone colored rogue and casting into very shallow water. My retrieval method was very, very slow with an occasional stop. Two of the fish hit the bait when it was stopped. Once I set the hook, there was no fight as the fish headed straight back to the boat. It was all I could do to keep the line tight. Once they reached the boat and realize they were hooked the fight began. All of them just ripped off line (you need a good drag system on your reel). I am sure I have mentioned before, but you only need lite tackle and line on Norfork Lake. I only use 8 pound test on a medium action rod. I use a green line, but clear will work just fine. No other color or braided line seems to work well on our lake.

The other exciting thing that I found last evening was that there was a fantastic top water bite right at sunset. The fish just started to erupt all around me and in the whole area. Most were small whites, but I could tell there were some stripers and large bass coming up along with them. Unfortunately I didn't have any top water baits with me. My Zara Spook box was still at the house. I threw a fluke at the swirls and only got short bites. This is the earliest that I have seen this amount of top water action. I won't forget my spooks next time. Hopefully I'll have some fun with them this evening.

The Norfork Lake water level is at 552.06, fluctuating up and down a couple of tenths of a foot depending on generation. Very little generation has been happening and by the Corps' forecast there won't be much the next day or so. The lake is clearing and starting to get back to normal. The Norfork Lake surface water temperature was in the low 50's.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report

The weather is starting to improve and the wind is slowing down on Norfork Lake. I heard that the night bite is picking up so I gave it go last evening. I fished the Cranfield area, but I guess I was in the wrong spot. I only got one bite after dark and that was a 16 inch largemouth. I fished until about 9PM trying to find "night bite" action. But the bite before dark, from 6:30 to 7:30, was just fantastic for bass. I ended up boating 7 fish, 2 keeper spotted bass, 2 keeper size and 1 undersize largemouth and 2 short smallmouth bass. I also had 5 other hits that I missed. I was throwing a bone colored rouge on a deep rock bluff. I casted to the rocks twitched it twice and paused, then slow rolled the bait back to the boat with an occasional stop in the retrieval. Most fish hit the rouge when it was stopped. The exception to this was the small mouth, they wanted it moving. All fish were released, except the spotted bass. They may be lunch. I'm not giving up on the night bite and plan to go out again this evening if all goes well.

Crappie fishing has picked up. Fish are being caught over brush in 20 - 25 feet of water and are suspended anywhere from 5 feet to 15 feet down. Crappie minnows on a slip bobber has been the best bait. You can also troll or cast a small rapala with enough weight to get down to the right depth. I have been getting good reports out of the Pigeon Creek area and Red Bank area.

The white bass are still being caught in good numbers on the flats back in creeks. They are anywhere from the shore line to 5 feet deep. Check out the shallow water everyone. Baits that have been working are small rapalas, small spinners, and a 1/8 to 1/4 oz. jig head with a Berkley's gulp minnow. Pigeon Creek, East Pigeon and Bennett's areas have been reporting good fish.

I have heard, but not confirmed that walleye are being caught back in creeks with a grub and also on rouges. I am hoping the walleye night bite starts soon.

I am still looking for the stripers.

The Norfork Lake water temperature last evening was 49.6 degrees. The water is clearing nicely. The Norfork Lake level is holding fairly steady at around 551.8. Generators are being run sporadically.

Have a great fishing day and see all of you on the lake.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report

Spring is finally here on Norfork Lake in the Arkansas Ozarks. The daytime air temperature has been in the 50's and the forecast for the next week or so is for the upper 50's and even 60's. It is time to get serious about your spring time fishing trip. With the warmer air temperatures, which will raise the lake water temperature, the spring bite should start to take off. I'm looking for 50 degree water temperatures to bring the big bass shallow, begin the crappie spawn and start the night bite for stripers and walleye.

I fished yesterday for the first time in about two weeks. I have been busy in the resort remodeling, painting and just starting to get things ready for all the spring time fishermen and women. Our big remodel job for this winter has been to convert cabins 1 - 3 into a three bedroom three bath unit that will be able to sleep 12 to maybe 14 people. I took out a wall between the kitchen and a bedroom of cabin 3 and turned that space into a spacious open living room and kitchen area. The kitchen will have plenty of counter space and will be able to sit 12 - 14 people comfortably for meals. The living room will have two futons and swivel rockers with a wall mount LCD flat screen TV. I have added new lighting and fans. I should be getting in the new counter tops today so I guess I'll have a busy work day. But the newly remodelled cabin 3 should be a nice cabin for all to enjoy.

I fished with Robert Lee of Lee's Lite Line yesterday. He has been prefishing for upcoming striper trips. We did a lot of looking for striper and marked many big arcs, but we mainly had fun fishing for black bass and white bass with artificial baits. I started throwing a bone color rogue (jerk bait) on a point leading into a major creek back in the Bennett's area. We caught plenty of Kentucky bass, largemouth bass and one smallmouth bass. They were all under size so I think the bigger fish are still in deeper water. The jerk bait is working, but the key for cold water is a slow movement if not completely stopped. Most hits came close to shore after I got the bait down 1 - 2 ft then stopped every thing. The fish would hit the rogue when it was suspended.

After checking out the points we headed to the shallow flats. Ed, my guest from Wisconsin, fished these flats on Wednesday and caught over 50 large whites and small hybrid bass. It was a sunny day, but very windy. The wind was pushing the bait fish onto the gravel shore line and the whites were in a feeding frenzy. He was throwing a small tube jig with a 1/4 oz. jig head and dragging it on the bottom. He got a fish on nearly every cast. Most fish were on the shore line in 1 - 2 feet of water. Yesterday was not as powerful as Wednesday, but we did catch 3 whites and one small hybrid all in a short period of time. I was using a Berkley's gulp minnow with a 1/4 jig head. The fish were not on the shore line, but were still in 4 - 5 feet of water on the flats. Ed was also fishing the same area and caught some nice whites and a few small hybrids. He was using a #7 sinking Rapala and also a small spinner bait. The whites are spawning or almost ready to spawn. The white bass were all big 1.5 - 2.5 pound fish and fought like a freight train.

I talked with a guide who was crappie fishing yesterday back in Bennett's and he had caught 12 nice size fish over brush in 20 - 30 feet of water. The crappie are suspended anywhere from 5 - 15 feet down over the brush. Live minnows with a slip bobber is working the best for the guides.

Norfork Lake water temperature was in the mid 40's. The lake level is steady at normal pool of 552. The lake is still stained, but should start to clear with the lake maintaining a consistent level.

The great fishing weather is here finally. I hope old man winter is gone for good this year. It has been one of the coldest and snowiest winters that I have seen in my 8 years as owner of Hummingbird Hideaway Resort.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report

Recently I have been dreaming of the up-coming warm weather and a great spring bite. Crappie, Walleye, Stripers look out.

The weather on Norfork Lake has really not been conducive to fishing lately. We had around 4 - 6 inches of snow the other day and the daytime temperature has been hovering in the low 30's. With all of the cold weather I have not been on the lake, but instead have been working hard on my current remodel job. I should have it complete in the next couple of weeks.

Linda and I are planning to attend another sport show at the Tinley Park High School this upcoming weekend, Feb 13 & 14th. Tinley Park is located south of Chicago and has been a really nice show to attend. We look forward to this show every year. Last year we had to miss the show due to the ice storm we had in Arkansas. So for all of those people in the Chicago land area please stop by and visit. We are looking forward to seeing many of our current guests in the area and will hopefully make many new friends.

Stop by and visit. Happy fishing. Hope to see you soon!

Norfork Lake Fishing Report

Linda and I got home from our Collinsville Sport Show Sunday evening. We met several of our old friends and made many new ones. Overall the show was a big success. I will be at the St. Charles, MO sport show this weekend. If you're in the area please stop by and talk about the your vacation needs for this year and of course get the latest fishing report on the lake.

The weather has greatly improved on Norfork Lake and the future forecast shows it is only going to get better. The freeze is over, finally! I have fished the last couple of afternoons and have been successful in catching largemouth bass and Kentucky (spotted) bass. I have been vertical jigging with a small spoon and also casting a small grub tipped with a minnow. The bass have been hanging out in my sunken brush piles in 30 - 45 feet of water. My guest from WI has also been doing well with bass. He has had his luck casting a jig head tipped with a Gulp smelt flavored minnow. He has been casting the rock bluffs. The bass seem to be hanging on ledges where there is a drop off from 20 to 30 feet.

I fished awhile this morning for stripers and only had 4 short bites. I was marking plenty of bait fish in the 40 - 60 feet range with some occasional big arcs. No big bites today. I fished Float Creek and Panther Creek. The fish were there, but I guess I wasn't presenting my bait the way they wanted today.

The Norfork Lake level has fallen to 554.11. The lake surface water temperature ranged from 42.5 to 44 degrees. The main lake is clear and the creeks and coves are clearing somewhat, but still stained.

Have a great day and see you on the lake next week.

Norfork Lake Fishing Report

Happy New Year to all and may the new year bring you many exciting memories of catching fish on Norfork Lake. The sun is shining with no clouds in sight. What a gorgeous day to start the first day of 2010 at Hummingbird Hideaway Resort.

The winter bite for striped bass, white bass, Kentucky bass, largemouth bass, and crappie is in full swing. Some undersized walleye have been caught recently, hopefully we'll see the larger ones soon. The striper bite has been fantastic. Since so many species are biting well it makes it difficult to decide what to fish for. I decided for my final catch of the year, I would striper fish. I headed out yesterday around 10AM to the same area my guests caught fish the day before. (check out the blog from 12/30/09, nice fish!)I ended up landing 2 - 10 pound stripers, broke off one other and had 4 - 5 short bites. I also caught several nice white bass spooning. The Stripers were caught on live shiners. I had the boat in 60 - 70 feet of water and the stripers were on the bottom to 25 feet down. When I drifted over a school of shad I started to vertical jig and found that the whites were feeding under the ball of shad. All fish were released except for this stiper in the photo. The white bass was released after he had his picture taken. The striper will make it to the frying or baking pan. Another striper fisherman, fishing near the same area pulled in several nice stripers and a monster Blue Catfish that weighed 41 pounds. I could hear him screaming during the fight that he had a monster. It was a monster!

Crappie, walleye, Kentucky bass, and largemouth bass are are hanging in the same areas. They are around brush piles on the rock bluff lines, in 30 - 45 feet of water. At least that is where I have been fishing and catching. I have been vertical jigging with a 3/4 ounce spoon, and I also use a small grub with a twister tail tipped with a crappie minnow on a 1/16 ounce jig head. The bite is light so pay close attention to your line.

We will see what today brings. The sun is shining and the wind is light. Who knows, I may be able to catch my first fish of 2010 today. What to fish for?? Decisions, decisions!

Norfork Lake is clear in the main lake and stained in the creeks and coves. The Lake level is starting to fall slowly and is sitting at 559.75 above sea level with normal pool at 552. The Corps is starting to run all generators again. The lake surface temperature is around 47 degrees.

Happy New year and see you on the lake.