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

The bite for most species has been good. The never-ending changes in the weather have definitely affected the bite by not allowing it to become consistent. The fish keep moving around as their comfort zone changes. But with a little looking each day you will find the fish. The largemouth bite has been the best with crappie, walleye and striped/hybrid bass all being a close second. Most of the species in our lake have spawned or are in the process except for bluegills. Catfish are close to their spawn cycle if not already in it.

Largemouth bass have started their post spawn feed. Topwater action can be found most early mornings and late evenings. I have found them surface feeding both back in creeks and coves as well as out on the main lake especially near long brushy points. It’s prime time to start fishing with flukes and you can catch a lot of bass up inside of the newly sunken brush. Swim baits and spinner baits are also working very well. If a cool front moves though, the fish do seem to move off of the shore

line, but can be found nearby in 10 to 20 feet of water, and will move back into the brush very quickly.

Crappie are also on their post spawn feed. You will find them schooled up, roaming from brush to brush, out in 20 to 30 feet of water. A great way to catch these roaming fish is to troll Berkley Flicker Minnows in size # 7. Some of this species are relating strictly to brush and the brush is usually in less then 20 feet of water. A few crappie are still spawning and can be caught by casting the shoreline with small grubs, a small swimbait or a roadrunner.

Striped/hybrid and white bass fishing has been good, but the fish seem to be continually moving. You need to find the shad and the stripers will be nearby. One day I found them back in creeks close to the shore line and the next day they were out on main lake points that have a lot of sunken buck brush. The lake is getting more and more buck brush under water due to recent rains and the rise in the water level. Threadfin shad are getting very close to spawning, if not already

spawning in some areas of the lake. If you can find spawning threadfin the stripers will be close to them in very shallow water. Cast out a topwater bait, a swimbait or a Kastmaster and hang on.

Walleye fishing has also been pretty good. The best bite for me has been early in the morning prior to sunrise. Find an area with bait and cast out a small 3.5-inch swimbait with a 1/8 or 1/4 ounce jig head. The walleye will be near the surface feeding on the shad. You will also find them in about 18 to 25 feet of water on the bottom. Vertical jigging or dragging a crawler harness will pick up some fish. Or you can troll a hard crank bait that gets down to 15 to 18 feet to catch some nice ones. Back in the coves and creeks are a good place to find walleye.

The surface water temperature has been keeping fairly consistent, ranging from 63 to 65 degrees. The water level is

rising due to recent rains. The current level is 563.37 which is about 9 feet over normal seasonal pool. The water is fairly clear, but may stain up a bit with the most recent rains and runoff.

If you are looking for almost daily fishing reports and to see what species are being caught, check out Hummingbird Hideaway Resort’s Facebook page. Give us a like and start seeing what is happening on the lake.

Happy Fishing and enjoy Norfork Lake.

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

At this time the best bites on the lake are for largemouth bass and white bass. Crappie, walleye and striped bass are improving each day and if we can get some stable weather, the bites for these species should take off.

There has been some good topwater action for largemouth, spotted and white bass over the last couple of weeks. You can find topwater action most mornings and an hour or so before sunset. The best areas have been back in larger coves and creeks, typically anywhere from 8 feet out to 25 feet of water. On occasion I have found fish blowing up in the deeper parts of the coves in 40+ feet of water. Of course, you need to the find the coves that have bait in them. These coves have typically been in the areas where the wind has been blowing into. As of late we have had a lot of wind to push the bait all the way to the backs of the coves. Various baits have been working; topwater lures, such as a Zara Spook, Kastmasters and smaller swimbaits with paddle tails. Even if you don’t see any topwater action in

the coves cast the banks with a suspending jerk bait and you will pick up some nice largemouth and a few crappie and walleye.

Striped bass has been one of the hardest fish for me to locate consistently. When you find them, they will be in the same coves as the other species feeding on shad. They have been scattered out due to the rise in the lake level a couple of weeks ago, compounded by the hard and fast draw down of the lake to evacuate the excess water. The lake is currently fairly stable at this time and with some consistent warmer weather the striped bass bite will

explode.

The crappie bite has been fairly good. This species can be found in brush in 15 to 25 feet of water. Jigging soft plastics has been working the best. The fish are typically suspended over the tops of the brush 8 to 15 feet down. Some of the crappie have started to move back into the coves, but not all. The frequent cold fronts keep pushing them away from the shallow water. Here again with some consistent warm weather the crappie will move to banks to start their spawn.

The surface water temperature this morning was 56 to 58 degrees. The water level is rising slowly due to the storm we are currently having. The current level is 554.69. The water is stained, but is a great fishing color.

I post almost daily on Facebook. If you want more

frequent information please visit and like Hummingbird Hideaway Resort’s Facebook page.

Happy Fishing and enjoy Norfork Lake. 

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

Norfork Lake has had some fishing ups and downs due to the ever-changing weather patterns. But overall, the bite continues to be good for most species. Yes, you do have to look for bait to find the species that follow the bait fish, but typically once you find the bait the fish will not be far away. The bait moves from very shallow water out to deep water then the cycle begins again.

Striped and hybrid bass are being found all over the lake. Today I found them in the back of a medium size cove where the strong south/west wind was blowing straight in. There were big schools of bait

at the mouth of the cove, but once I passed the points of the cove, I found that the bait was scattered out. The fish were in 15 to 25 feet of water feeding on shad. The fun part of this area was that the largemouth, spotted and white bass were all feeding heavily on the surface. I also located a few scattered out striped/hybrid bass in 60 feet of water just outside of the main river channel. The bait was scattered out so, of course the fish were scattered out as well. I am catching the shallower stripers either by casting out a small 3.5-inch paddle tail swimbait or a Kastmaster with a feather trailer. I have been catching all species on these two baits when I find them in relatively shallow water. The deeper stripers I have been vertical jigging a 3-inch plastic jig, but you can vertical jig a spoon.

As stated above the bass are getting very energetic. Topwater action is starting and will only get better as the water temperature continues to warm. This will happen when the cool fronts stop and we start getting some stable weather. Crankbaits, swimbaits, spinners, A-rigs, and topwater baits are all working at this time. After a rain

head back into creeks that have some flowing water, you will find some nice bass.

Crappie have started to school on tops of brush and are starting to roam back into their spawning areas. This is the time when I start trolling Berkley Flicker Minnows in size #7 and #9. Find a cove that has a lot of brush piles and start trolling thoughout the cove. You will pick up some really nice fish. There will still be some crappie in the brush, typically on the tops of the brush. Use a small plastic jig. Live bait drifted over the brush is also working great.This is a great time of year to catch most species in Norfork Lake.

The surface water temperature this morning was close to 53 degrees. The water level is rising slowly due the rain last weekend. The current level is 553.38. The water is stained due to the rain, but is a great fishing color.

I post almost daily on Facebook. If you want more frequent information please visit and like Hummingbird Hideaway Resort’s Facebook page. Or call 870-492-5113 for cabin rental.

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

The bite continues to be good for most species in the lake, especially striped bass, largemouth bass and crappie. It really surprised me that after the lake temperature dropped about 3 degrees it didn’t affect the feeding habits of the fish. What the drop in water temperature did was to make the bait move to other areas of the lake, but not necessarily far away from where they were. The fish will follow the bait.

Striped bass fishing continues to be strong. Yes, you will need to do some searching, but if you find some bait, I just about guarantee you will find striped bass nearby. The best areas to find these fish have been back in major creeks, deep flats and today I found them in the old river channel in the main lake area. In the creeks they have been on or very close to the banks first thing in the morning. After the sun gets over the tree line, they seem to concentrate more in the creek channel. Their depth will depend on the depth of the bait. The deeper flats have

started to hold more bait in the 40 to 50 foot range. The fish again relate to the depth of the bait. I have found that the stripers seem to be on the flats late morning. The bait that I found today was in the old river channel which, in this area, was roughly 70 feet deep. The bait was 20 to 40 deep and varied. The fish were at the same depths. The striped bass that I found today were in large schools that appeared to be feeding. My bait of choice for the shallower fish, say from the shoreline out to 30 feet down, has been casting a Kastmaster blade style bait. I do replace the hook with a feathered treble hook. I think that gives it a closer resemblance to a injured live shad especially if you work it in a twitching motion. I reel back to the boat very slowly letting it sink more as it is being retrieved. For deeper fish, I have been vertical jigging with a spoon or a small 3-inch plastic jig with a 3/8 ounce jig head.

Crappie fishing has also continued to be very good. Of course,

crappie as most species go through a feeding cycle. If you find them and they are not feeding, you will need to wait them out until they get energetic again or move to the next brush pile. Small spoons or small crappie jigs and of course live minnows are all working very well. The best brush has been in 20 to 25 feet of water and the fish will be on the tops to buried within the brush. You will just need to keep working different depth until you find that magic area.

I have not done a lot of bass fish lately, but they do appear to be going shallow.  Crank bait, wiggle warts, soft plastics, and a-rigs have all produced some nice fish. As the water temperature continues to rise back in the creeks the fish head back to the warmer water. Today I fished a brush pile to see if crappie were there. No crappie, but the brush pile was inhabited by some nice size largemouth bass. They loved my Tater Baits Electric Monkey crappie jig. The bass were buried inside of the brush

towards the bottom. I can’t believe I could pull these beasts out of the brush with 4-pound test.

Norfork Lake surface water temperature is rising very slowly after the 3 degree drop from last weekends storms. The lake temperature was 48 - 52 degree this morning. The lake level has been stable with a slight drop with intermittent power generation and currently sits at 554.05 feet msl. The lake is clear to stained depending on where you are at in the lake. If our current forecast holds true, we have another deep freeze arriving Friday afternoon. I guess I will be out seeing where the bait moved to next Sunday.

I post almost daily on Facebook. If you want more frequent information please visit and like Hummingbird Hideaway Resort’s Facebook page.

Happy Fishing and enjoy Norfork Lake.

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

Striped bass, largemouth and spotted bass, and crappie continue to be the best bites on the lake.

Striped Bass Fishing: Over the last week there has been a definite change in where to find the bait and then the fish. The bait had been concentrated out on the main lake in the deep-water channels, but they have recently made the move back into the major creeks and some of the smaller coves. With this movement of the bait the striped bass has been following. Some of the bait is also starting to move close to the shoreline. The bait movement has currently created 2 totally different areas to fish. I have found bait near the creek channel in 40 – 60 feet of water. The stripers have been very close to the bait, either above it or below it. Several methods of fishing have worked for me, so far. I have had luck vertical jigging a 1-ounce spoon or vertical jigging a 3-inch soft plastic jig. I’ve been using a mini version of a fluke called a Tater Shad, which is made locally,

with a 3/8-ounce jig head. Both the spoon and the Tater Shad need to be worked slowly with just slight twitches for the deeper water fish. The most important tip is to get your bait at the same depth as the fish to get the most bites. Another method is trolling A-rigs, crank baits or 5-inch swimbaits. Here again get your bait very close to where you are seeing the fish. Fish have also been found tight on the banks, especially at sunrise and at sunset. Some of the bait has moved very close to the shoreline or the fish have started to push the bait tight to the bank. Yesterday (3/1) I found feeding striper right on the bank. I casted out a Kastmaster (blade bait) and worked it back to the boat very slowly with a jerking motion. I replace the treble hook with a feathered treble hook which seems to attract more fish. You should also be able to use long minnow type crankbaits and swimbaits. 

Bass Fishing: The largemouth, spotted and smallmouth bass have moved up tight to the bank especially early in the morning and late afternoon. Other times they move off a little and will be 10 to 20 down. Various lures are

working such as swimbaits, crankbaits (rock crawlers and wiggle warts). On windy days don’t hesitate to cast a spinner or chatter bait. You will find them in both the clear water as well as the stained water. I found some nice ones the other day that had corralled some bait on the bank and I was getting hits on my Kastmaster 3 to 5 feet from the shore.  We have some rain coming up this weekend, so after the rain head toward the running water coming into the creeks.

Crappie Fishing: This species is starting to school up and roam out in deeper water. They are still 10 to 25 deep. I have found this to be true with the white crappie. The black crappie still appear to be holding a little tighter to the brush. Trolling crank baits have started to work and will get better as the water warms a little more. Plastic jigs, spoons, and live bait are producing some nice fish.

Norfork Lake surface water temperature is rising very slowly

and is the 45 to 48 degree range. The lake level has been stable with a slight drop with intermittent power generation and currently sits at 554.19 feet msl. The lake is clear to stained depending on where you are at in the lake.

I post almost daily on Facebook. If you want more frequent information, please visit and like Hummingbird Hideaway Resort’s Facebook page.

Happy Fishing and enjoy Norfork Lake.

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

There are currently 3 good bites on the lake making fishing Norfork Lake fun for everyone. Striped bass, largemouth and spotted bass, and crappie are the 3 best bites on the lake at this time.

You can find largemouth bass in several different types of areas. Bluff walls have been very productive. The fish can be up tight to the rocks or suspended out from the bluff. Most of these fish are 10 to 20 feet down either on the bottom or suspended over deep water. A-rigs are working great with white swimbaits. You can judge how heavy of a jig head you need

depending on the depth you want to get the bait to. Typical ¼ ounce works great. If you are using an A-rig that already has added weight to the center piece you may only want a hook with no weight. Crank baits, jigs and spinners are also producing some nice fish. There are still some nice fish hugging the bottom off of long rocky points from 30 to 40 feet down. My best way to catch these deep fish is to vertical jig a spoon slowly right on the bottom.

Striped bass are still in their winter pattern. Basically, this is saying that the bait has moved out to the deep-water river channels or very close to the channel. You will find streams of bait 10 to 30 feet thick and the stripers will be very close by. I find the striped bass on top of the bait, at the bottom of the bait or some are even buried inside the bait. If there is a deep flat next to the channel you may find large schools of stripers cruising through the flat, but they always stay close to the large streams of bait. The bait is typically suspended 30 to 60 feet down. This depth will vary, and the thickness of the bait will vary. The fish will be found suspended at the same depths as the bait. There are various methods to fish for this species. Live

bait is a tried-and-true method, vertical jigging a one-ounce spoon, vertical jigging a 3-inch swim bait with a 3/8-ounce jig head or trolling swimbaits, umbrella rigs, or hard crank baits. The key is to get your bait at the same depth as the fish. This pattern will stick around until the water temperature starts to warm, which should be in the next couple of weeks. With the warmer water the bait tends to start to move back in the creeks or farther upriver. When the bait moves the stripers will be chasing.

Crappie are on brush. Find brush in 20 to 40 feet of water. The fish will be at all depths depending on the time of day. Early and late in the day they are typically suspended on top of the brush and on occasion only 5 to 10 feet down. Mid-day they tend to drop a little deeper. Of course, the weather plays a big role on how the bait acts in the brush, and just like all fish species they tend to follow their food

source. This morning I hit a couple of brush piles. It was a very cloudy windy day and the fish seemed to be deeper and buried inside of the brush. Live bait, small twister tail grubs with a 1/16-ounce jig head and a small 1/8 – ¼ ounce spoon are all working great.

Norfork Lake surface water temperature is holding in the 45 to 46 degree range but may start to rise slowly with the spring type weather we are having. The lake level has been rising slowly with minimal power generation and currently sits at 552.75 feet msl. The lake is trying to clear but still remains slightly stained.

I post almost daily on Facebook. If you want more frequent information, please visit and Like Hummingbird Hideaway Resort’s Facebook page.

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 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.