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

Norfork Lake fishing has been exciting as always. There have been fantastic days of catching along with some mediocre days, but it is always a great day to just be able to be out on the water. If you have been following my blog, I am sure you have noticed that I enjoy fishing for striped and hybrid bass the most whether they are located in deep water or shallow water, but I do fish for other species in order to keep up with their movements and patterns.

The striped and hybrid bass bite is really starting to improve. They are being caught in several different types of locations at varying depths. Yesterday (12/10) I spent the day checking out various areas, but mainly concentrated on the deep water channels. Bait is starting to move into the 80+ feet channels on the main lake and the stripers are either buried inside of the bait balls or are following. This is a typical winter pattern and as the water continues to cool, more and more bait will move into the deep water and suspend 40 - 60 down with the striped and hybrid bass hanging out close by. I did end up finding several large schools of fish following bait, which were suspended 50 - 60 feet down. I managed to land a nice hybrid and broke off a second fish. I was vertical jigging with a 1 ounce spoon. Another good fishing method at this time to target these suspended fish is to troll with umbrella / Alabama rigs or with just a single large swim bait. The main key is to be able to get your bait down to the fish at 50 - 55 feet. Using live bait has also been very productive. Today I was checking out various flats on the lake. I started at the 101 bridge flat and worked my way west to the Cranfield area, then headed northward to the Seward Point and Briar Creek flats. I found fish on all the flats, but it was mainly scattered white bass. At about 10:30 I was checking out a final flat and found a few arcs in 48 feet of water. I stopped and started to fish and my fish finder screen lit up like a Christmas tree with all kinds of fish. For the next 2 hours I vertical jigged with my 1 ounce spoon and also casted out a 1/2 ounce Kastmaster. I ended up landing a couple nice striped bass, a few hybrids, flat head catfish, largemouth bass and lots of jumbo sized white bass. I dropped my spoon and let it sit about 1 foot off of the bottom then place it in the rod holder, I then would cast out my Kastmaster and let it sink to the bottom and then retrieved it slowly with a stop, jerk and reel retrieval method. I would glance at my spooning rod on occasion and find that it was buried with a fish on. I had a great time with a great big grin on my face. :-)

The largemouth bass are also starting to move towards deeper water as the water continues to cool. This is normal for this species, as well as, for all the species in the lake. I have been catching some nice fat largemouth while vertical jigging for stripers in 50 feet of water. You can also jig around sunken brush piles in 30 - 40 feet of water and catch some nice fish. The third location is along the rock bluff walls. Cast out a worm, crawdad or a jig & pig to the shoreline and let it sink down the bluff wall. Most of the fish caught on plastics are in the 20 - 30 foot deep range. There are still a few fish up shallow, but most are deep following the bait, which is going deeper.

Crappie are still in their normal habitat for this time of year and will be found buried in brush during the morning and daytime in 30 - 40 feet of water. In the evening they will come up in the water column and may be only 8 - 15 feet down. You need to test different depths until you find that magic area where they are feeding. I have actually caught a few nice keepers on 50 foot deep brush piles over the last week, so don't hesitate to check out the deep areas for crappie.

Norfork Lake level is holding fairly stable. Generation has been sporadic. The current depth is 552.94. The main lake surface water temperature this morning ranged from 48.5 degree - 51.5 degrees. The lake cooled as I traveled northward. The main lake is clear with a very slight stain and most coves and creeks are stained. The lake is in excellent condition as are the fish.

If you would like to see a more frequent update on fishing activity on Norfork Lake, follow Hummingbird Hideaway Resort on Facebook.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.

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

As promised spring has arrived. The water temperature is rising and the lake is clearing up nicely. If you like stained water it is becoming harder to find. The forecast for the next ten days looks like late spring type weather, highs in the upper 70's and lows in the 50's and 60's.  The best news is that the bite has started and will only get better. Crappie and bass have started to spawn. Top water has definitely started for largemouth and spotted bass. Shad should spawn any day now, so everything will heat up. I am getting excited!

If you are looking for top water action, it has started. Be on the lake as the sun starts to rise and the largemouth bass will start erupting. Head back into coves and the major and secondary creeks until you start seeing the shad on your graph, typically in about 20 - 25 feet of water. I was in an area a little before sunrise and started throwing a Smithwick Rogue up to and inside of the shoreline brush. I would jerk twice and let it sit for about 10 seconds. As soon as I started to crank my reel a bass would hammer it. As the sun started to rise I could see the shad starting to flip on the surface and then the feeding frenzy started. I started casting a Zara Spook and had a blast. The top water action only lasted about 30 minutes or until the sun got above the tree tops then the fish shut down. I moved to a different creek and in the similar type area found shad jumping out of the water. Could not see any fish so I switched to a Kastmaster (blade type bait) I casted into the shad and let it sink about 10 feet down. My retrieval method was jerk, pause, reel then start over again back to the boat. This method was very productive for bass and hybrid bass. The fish were right outside of the sunken brush. Today a guest found good top water action at noon then again later in the day in the same creeks as I had fished the day before. Things are really starting to heat up.

Crappie are currently spawning and can be caught close to the shoreline, anywhere from 3 feet to 10 feet of water. Small jigs tipped with a minnow are working great. Cast your jig next to the sunken brush and let it sink. Work your bait along the bottom very slowly and the the crappie will suck it in. One of my current guests has a basket full at the dock that he had caught earlier.

Flathead, walleye and big white bass are also in the creeks. 15 - 25 feet of water is the magic depth for these species. Vertical jigging with a spoon has been working great. I have been using a 1/2 to 3/4 ounce spoon. The fish will mainly be on the bottom, but some of the big schools of whites are suspended 10 - 15 feet down.

Shad are really close to their fist spawn of the year. Once the spawn begins you will start seeing the fish come out of the creeks and move to the main lake points. But don't ignore the creeks as there will also be shad spawning in the sunken brush  all over the lake.

Norfork Lake level is fairly stable and currently sits at 562.61. The lake surface water temperature is rising and is in the low to mid 60's. The main lake and most creeks are clear. You can still find some stained water way back in some of the creeks. The lake is in great shape. I think we can look forward to an exciting May fishing season.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.

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

The beginning stages of Norfork Lake's spring fishing season have begun. It is a little behind prior years due to the continual unseasonable cool fronts, but it is coming. Forecasts for the next few days is great, but another cool front is possible later in the week. The bait fish are moving toward shallow water to get to warmer water, and the predators are following to feed. Shad will be going though a spawn very shortly. The cool fronts do affect the fish, but if you adjust a little and move out to a little deeper water you will find the feeding fish.










I have had a very good week of fishing. Today was outstanding. I caught well over 30 fish this morning. The majority were the monster 2.5 - 3.5 pound white bass. I caught one that went over 4 pounds. Mixed in with the whites were the medium sized hybrids going about 5 - 6 pounds. I ended up landing 5 hybrids. All of my fish were either released on site or at my dock after the photo op. I was finding fish on main lake points in 18 - 25 feet of water. My method of fishing this morning was vertical jigging a 3/4 ounce white colored spoon.  I was fishing northwest of Hummingbird Hideaway Resort's cove.The striped bass I have caught by either casting out a 5 inch swim bait with a 3/8 ounce jig head or with live bait. The stripers have been in 15 - 30 feet of water and suspended at all depths. I have caught fish on down lines set at 15 and 20 feet, as well as with free swimming baits with a small split shot or no split shot. Most of the stripers  are 8 - 12 pounds on the average. I am finding striped bass northeast of my resort.

I would like to welcome all of the Bass Cat boat owners that are arriving to Mountain Home, AR to fish in the Bass Cat Owners Invitational Tournament. The warm weather forecast for the rest of the week should make for a great bass bite. Some of the larger bass had moved off of the shore, but will be returning very shortly. There are signs that some of the bass are starting to make their beds.  Have a great tournament.

Norfork Lake level is falling slowly with one generator running full time and spillways partially open, releasing enough of water to equal using  a second generator. The current level is 559.74. The lake surface water temperature this morning on the main lake was 53.5 degrees and back in a creek was 55.5 degrees. These temperatures will be increasing though out the week. Most of the areas I fished this morning were a greenish stained.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.

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

January has brought our normal significant weather pattern changes. About 12 days ago we went from the 50's to single digits for about 6 days and even had several inches of snow. Over the last several days we were back in the mid 60's but here we go again with a slight cool down. All of these changes in the weather affect what the bait and fish do. On the 10th of January large schools of fish were feeding in about 60 feet of water, but after the cold snap the hybrids and stripers disappeared, even though the bait was still hanging around. Normal winter time striped bass fishing would have the fish out in the deep water channels feeding on suspended bait in 40 - 60 feet down. The bait is there, but only scattered fish are showing up. With the cold weather and snow, the water temperature dropped about 3 - 4 degrees, but over the last several days the surface water temperature has risen 2 to 3 degrees. All of the changes confuse the fish as well as the fishermen, including me.

We had several fisherman staying with us over the weekend all fishing for stripers, a few were caught, but it was tough going. The areas where I found fish were in the Henderson area close to the bluffs. Big balls of shad were being pushed into the bluffs by the west wind and there were a few stripers hanging around 30 feet down. Both spoons and live shiners caught fish. Yesterday, I was out fishing from the 62 bridge area all the way down to Fouts Marina and only marked a few lone fish. I did more looking than fishing. I heard from a friend that he found  stripers in very shallow water a few days ago, so I guess I am going to need to think outside the box and look at areas that I would typically avoid this time of year. The last two days the wind was howling so I elected to stay at the resort today instead of fish. I will be back at it in the morning and start the hunt again.

I ended my fishing excursion yesterday by doing a little bass fishing. I headed into a cove that the wind was blowing very strongly into. I stopped on a secondary point and found large balls of shad next to the the shore and a few shad  floating on the surface. I tied on a Rogue (a shallow running suspending jerk bait) and started casting to the shore. I gave the bait a couple of hard jerks to get it down, then let it rest for a few seconds, then start twitching the bait softly, then stopped. I did this back to the boat. On the second cast the bass started to get active and I landed 3 largemouth bass in a very short period of time. No monsters, but fun. The wind was blowing so hard that the waves were starting to splash over the boat so I called it a day. The other location where my guests were finding bass was along deep bluff lines. The fish were about 30 feet deep. Live bait was catching these suspended largemouth and spotted bass.

A few small shad are starting to die from the cold water, which is very normal for this time of year. If you can find a school of shad that are distressed, on the surface and close to the shoreline, there will more than likely be bass in the area feeding away. I started to see a little of this yesterday, but I really could not tell if the shad were distressed or just being blown into shore from the strong wind.

Norfork Lake is currently stable and sits at 546.46 feet above sea level. The lake surface temperature yesterday was around 45 degree (+/- one degree). The main lake if finally starting to show some sign of clearing as well as the creeks and coves. The weather forecast for the rest of the week is to be around normal, 40's to 50's in the days and high 20's to low 30's at night.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.

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

Norfork Lake fishing has been good, but different from prior fall seasons. Fish are located pretty much in the same areas as prior years, but they are much more scattered rather than schooled up in tight schools of feeding fish. When I find a school of fish they are located at all depths and not bunched up. This is not a bad thing, but does make me change my fishing tactics a bit.

Striped bass, hybrid bass and white bass are being found in several different types of areas. They are located on the flats and the striped bass are also scattered in deeper water back in the major creeks. I typically start out in the morning at sunrise and start checking out the flats near our resort, Hummingbird Hideaway Resort. I first check out the Mallard Point flat, I may go to the Cranfield Island flat, then head to the 101 bridge flat and if needed I motor over to Big Sandy flat a little past 101 Boat Dock. I am looking at depths from 25 feet of water out to 45 feet of water. What I have found the last couple of days is that the fish are in 25 - 30 feet of water at sunrise and  seem to stick around for an hour or two. As the morning wears on they move out to deeper water and yesterday (12/11) at around 11AM I found them in 42 feet of water. I have caught big hybrids and big whites on the flats, but the stripers that I have caught on the flats have been small. The bigger stripers will move to the flats very soon. The last couple of days I fished the 6B area and landed a really nice striped bass on live bait, but yesterday (12/11) I fished the same area and the bait and fish had disappeared. I believe the 53 degree water has gotten a little too cool for the shad so they are migrating out to deeper water, and the stripers are following. I marked lots of shad and many striped bass in front of Fouts marina as I was heading back to the Big Sandy area. The stripers are scattered throughout the area making them tough to catch with a spoon. Trolling or casting A-Rigs or swim baits may be the easiest method to pick up these scattered fish and as always live bait will work wonders, but you will need to keep moving around until you come across the fish that want to eat. The stripers that I have found in deeper water are still suspended from 15 feet of water down to 40 feet of water and typically near bait. You will run across that big school of fish so when you do, vertical jigging a spoon will work great. I have not been up to the Red Bank area, but I would think the fish that have been up in the Missouri waters are also migrating somewhat south to a slightly higher water temperature.

Largemouth bass fishing has been a little tough, but you can pick up some really nice fish in deeper water. For about the first hour as the sun is rising there are many bass up in shallow water. Many of the bass are small, but you will pick up the occasional nice sized fish. Shallow diving crank baits, jerk baits and topwater baits are picking up a few fish. As the sun rises the fish are going a little deeper. Start casting out a jig and pig in 15 - 25 feet of water along bluff line points and in areas where the channel is swinging in close to shore. Another good location is close to sunken brush. I was striper fishing with live bait the other morning and also jigging a spoon. I got into about 25 feet of water and started to pick up a few largemouth off of the bottom. On those windy days go to the wind blown banks and try casting a spinner bait.Windy days are always a great time to pick up some really nice fish.

Norfork Lake level is dropping slowly with some power generation going on and currently sits at 550.68. The lake surface water temperature is dropping slowly. It ranges from 55.5 degrees on the main lake to 53 degrees back in the major creeks. The water is clearing slightly on the main lake with maybe 5 - 6 feet of visibility to stained in the creeks and coves.

Happy fishing and see you on the lake.