NWA fishing report

Rusty Pruitt of Bryant catches a fish on a fly rod last Sunday on the Buffalo River. More photos available at arkansasonline.com/1018fishing.
(Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Bryan Hendricks)
Rusty Pruitt of Bryant catches a fish on a fly rod last Sunday on the Buffalo River. More photos available at arkansasonline.com/1018fishing. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Bryan Hendricks)

Beaver Lake

Try for striped bass and black bass on the surface by dawn's early light.

Aaron Jolliff at Hook, Line and Sinker said anglers report catching striped bass with top-water lures early in the Rocky Branch area between Point 6 and Point 9. Fish with shad or brood minnows 5 to 30 feet deep after sunrise.

Try for crappie around brush 20 feet deep with minnows or jigs. Black bass fishing is tough. Try top-water lures early, then use plastic worms after sunrise. Spinner baits may work in shallow water on cloudy, breezy days.

Average surface water temperature is in the mid to upper 60s.

Beaver tailwater

Lisa Mullins at Beaver Dam Store recommends fly fishing for trout with size 16 midges fished under a strike indicator. Black, copper or red and silver are good midge colors.

Micro jigs are working, fished with a fly rod or a spin-cast rod. Olive and orange or olive and black are good colors. Small spoons or small crank baits may also work for trout.

For bait fishing, try Power Bait in bright colors combined with a waxworm.

Lake Fayetteville

David Powell at the lake office recommends fishing for black bass with spinner baits or plastic worms. Try fishing for crappie eight feet deep with hair jigs. Good colors include black and yellow, red and white or blue and white.

Bluegill are biting worms. Use glow worms or nightcrawlers to catch channel catfish.

Lake Sequoyah

Mike Carver at the lake office said black bass are biting well on crank baits. Bluegill are biting worms all over the lake. Use liver or cut bait for channel catfish. Crappie fishing is slow.

Bella Vista

Chip Wiseman at Hook, Line and Sinker in Bella Vista recommends fishing for crappie eight feet deep at any Bella Vista lake with minnows or jigs. Bluegill are biting worms six to 20 feet deep at all Bella Vista lakes.

Try for black bass at dawn and dusk with top-water lures. Use Ned rigs or plastic worms for midday bass fishing.

Swepco Lake

Kenny Stroud in Siloam Springs recommends using plastic worms rigged any way an angler likes to fish them. Try top-water lures at dawn, dusk and cloudy days.

Siloam Springs Lake

Stroud recommends using top-water lures or square-billed crank baits at dawn for black bass. Use small plastic worms later in the day.

Illinois River

Fish for black bass with Tiny Torpedo top-water lures or small black buzz baits, Stroud suggests. Rooster tails and tube baits are also good. Work all lures in deep holes and around log jams. The river is very low, Stroud noted. Wade-fishing may be the best option.

Eastern Oklahoma

The Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation reports fair fishing for black bass at Lake Tenkiller with crank baits, plastic worms or spinner baits. Bluegill fishing is good with worms in shallow water around brush and docks.

At Fort Gibson Lake, black bass are biting well on crank baits and plastic worms.

Table Rock Lake

Focused Fishing guide service recommends using top-water lures for black bass early along banks of ledge rock. After sunrise fish along shady banks. Fish will likely be close to shore in shallow water.

The most consistent bite has been with a pee wee football jig combined with a craw trailer. Work these along points of mixed gravel and rock five to 18 feet deep. A drop-shot rig fished 30 feet deep along points may also work.

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