MonticelloLive

Fishing Tip:  Here’s a tip from bass fishing pro Kevin VanDam’s video “Strategies for Changing Conditions” to help you out with cold-weather bass:
Cold water slows down a fish’s metabolism. They won’t expend a lot of energy chasing baits they can’t see. For this reason, some of the best fishing during fall and winter is in clear-water lakes. Jerkbaits, spoons and other flashy lures work well because the fish are able to see them from a great distance and approach. If you must fish muddy water, use loud, rattling crankbaits and jigs or spinnerbaits with a lot of vibration to help bass find the food. 
 
Arkansas River Levels: According to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, as of Wednesday the Arkansas River stages are:
Trimble Lock and Dam (Lock and Dam 13): Headwater –391.31 feet, Tailwater – 371.64 feet, Flow – 0 cubic feet per second
Ozark Lock and Dam (Lock and Dam 12): Headwater – 372.22 feet, Tailwater – 337.96 feet
Dardanelle Lock and Dam (Lock and Dam 10): Headwater – 337.64 feet, Tailwater – 287.36 feet
Ormond Lock and Dam (Lock and Dam 9): Headwater – 288.14 feet, Tailwater – 266.48 feet, Flow – 28,971 cubic feet per second
Toad Suck Lock and Dam (Lock and Dam 8): Headwater – 265.22 feet, Tailwater – 251.95 feet
Murray Lock and Dam (Lock and Dam 7): Headwater – 249.23 feet, Tailwater –231.46 feet, Flow – 26,180 cubic feet per second
Terry Lock and Dam (Lock and Dam 6): Headwater – 231.15 feet, Tailwater – 213.28 feet, Flow – 13,730 cubic feet per second
Sanders Lock and Dam (Lock and Dam 4): Headwater – 196.07 feet, Tailwater – 183.15 feet
Hardin Lock and Dam (Lock and Dam 3): Headwater – 182.16 feet, Tailwater – 164.20 feet
Mills Dam (Dam 2): Headwater – 162.20 feet, Tailwater – 122.32 feet, Flow – 12,119 cubic feet per second
White River Levels: According to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, as of Wednesday the White River stages are:
4.1 feet at Calico Rock (flood stage – 19 feet)
6.4 feet at Batesville (flood stage – 15 feet)
0.5 feet at Newport (flood stage – 26 feet)
11.6 feet at Augusta (flood stage – 26 feet)
0 feet at Georgetown (flood stage – 21 feet)
11.1 feet at Clarendon (flood stage – 26 feet)  
Statewide Family and Community Fishing Report: Hybrid striped bass are biting well on white, 2-inch Mister Twister grubs with 1/16-ounce jigheads and on spoons. White and silver Rooster Tails are also catching fish. Use a slow retrieve with occasional pauses for the best chance at a strike. Trout fishing has been excellent in Lake Atalanta, Murphy Lake, Wells Lake and Craighead Forest Youth and Senior’s Pond. Green or yellow Power Bait and corn are catching most of the fish. Central Arkansas locations are being stocked with trout and fishing is excellent. For stocking information, call 1-866-540-FISH (3474) toll-free. 

SOUTHEAST ARKANSAS
Lake Chicot: Bass Tracker Marine (870-265-5374) said the water is clear and low. Bream fishing is good on wax worms and crickets. Crappie fishing is good on minnows and jigs. Catfish are biting well on worms and large minnows.
Grand Lake: Koenig Bass Tracker Marine (870-265-5374) said the water is clear and low. A few crappie have been caught trolling.

CENTRAL ARKANSAS
Lake Conway: Bates Field and Stream (501-470-1846) said water conditions are normal. Crappie fishing is good on minnows and jigs. Bass fishing is fair on spinnerbaits.
Little Red River:Lindsey’s Resort (501-302-3139) said the water is clear and the level varies. There has been little generation in the mornings. Trout fishing is still good on Power Eggs, wax worms and nightcrawlers. Fly-fishing is picking up.
Jed Hollan at the Little Red Fly Shop said The Greers Ferry powerhouse has been releasing water most days. Most often, one generator is being run for 2-3 hours beginning about 5 p.m. The temperature of the water driving the turbines has averaged 47 degrees with dissolved oxygen at 7.0 mg/l. Daily reports of anglers landing large brown trout in the Little Red are being heard in the shop. Jamie Rouse, an Orvis endorsed guide, had a client that caught and released a brown trout that was 33 inches long with a 21 inch girth. The estimated weight of the fish was 20 pounds! A 34 inch long brown trout was caught and released at Cow Shoal last week with reports of 24-30 inch long browns being caught regularly on other shoals. Most of the big fish have been on egg patterns. Except at Cow Shoal, where multiple hooking points are forbidden, most egg patterns also had a dropper fly. The droppers of choice have been hare’s ears, pheasant tails or San Juan worms. The most popular rig has been an egg pattern with a dropper 12-18 inches below with sink putty in between the two flies. Caddis fly hatches are beginning to wane but the blue winged olive mayfly and midge hatches are exploding.
Greers Ferry: As of Tuesday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation at 456.73 feet MSL.
Tommy Cauley of Fish Finder Guide Service said bass fishing is good shallow, but you will need to cover a lot of water. Rat-L-Traps, spinnerbaits, small crankbaits and whacky worms are working well. Deeper fish can be caught on football head jigs, Carolina-rigged lizards and Wiggle Warts. The crappie are doing better with the warmer afternoons. They are suspending in the tree tops and over brush piles in 15-20 feet of water. Catfishing continues to be good on jugs and noodles with a 17 foot leader baited with live bait. Walleye are starting to get settled on the route to spawning grounds and will get better with the warm afternoons. The hybrids and whites are still biting very well all over the lake with a lot of bigger fish showing their heads on top now. They could start up anywhere at any time, but to catch them good fish vertical with a Rite Bite spoon fished around 32 feet deep around shad schools.
Shiloh Marina said fishing is slow for all species.
Harris Brake Lake:Coffee Creek Landing (501-889-2745) said no anglers have been on the lake lately. No report.
Lake Overcup: Lakeview Landing (501-354-1470) said the water is clear and low. Bream fishing is fair on redworms. Crappie fishing is good on white Crappie Stingers. Catfish are biting well on trotlines baited with nightcrawlers. A few rod-and-reel anglers are also catching some catfish on worms.
Overcup Landing (501-354-9007) said the water conditions are normal. A few bream have been caught on redworms and crickets. Crappie fishing is fair on minnows. A few catfish have been caught on nightcrawlers and stink bait.
Brewer Lake:Overcup Landing (501-354-9007) said bream fishing is fair on redworms. Crappie are fair on minnows. Catfishing is good on nightcrawlers and Catfish Charlie.
Sunset Lake: Turbyfill’s Outdoor Sports (501-315-3061) said water conditions are normal. Bream fishing is fair on crickets. Bass fishing is good on top-water baits and watermelon-colored 5-inch lizards.
Saline River Access in Benton: Turbyfill’s Outdoor Sports (501-315-3061) said the water is clear and low. Crappie are biting well in about 6 feet of water on Tennessee shad-colored jigs around brush piles. Bass fishing is good on white 8-oz. spinnerbaits. Walleye fishing is fair on orange crawdad crankbaits. 
Arkansas River at Morrilton: Charley’s Hidden Harbor in Oppelo said largemouth bass are biting well in shallow water on dark-colored jigs. Kentucky bass are biting later in the afternoons around rocky points on Rooster Tails, hair jigs and bass jigs. Stripers are biting fairly well on spoons below the dam. A few sauger are being caught below the dam on red and yellow speck rigs. No report on bream or crappie.
Arkansas River in Little Rock: Vince Miller from Fish ‘N Stuff said the water is at normal levels and there has been little flow. Bass are biting fairly well on shad-colored crankbaits fished around rocky points and jetties.
Little Maumelle River: River Valley Bait (501-868-3279) said water conditions are normal. Bream fishing is decent on worms. Crappie fishing is good in 8 feet of water on minnows and jigs.
Murray Lock and Dam: Hatchet Jack’s Sport Shop said crappie fishing is good on minnows. Catfish and striper fishing are also good.

Terry Lock and Dam: McSwain Sports Center (501-945-2471) said the water conditions are normal, but fishing is very slow.
Clear Lake: McSwain Sports Center (501-945-2471) said the water is muddy and at a normal level. Bream can be caught in deep water on worms. Crappie fishing is good on minnows.
 
NORTH ARKANSAS 
White River: Angler’s White River Resort said the water conditions are normal. Trout fishing has been excellent on Power Bait and spinnerbaits. The average is about 40 fish per day and anglers are catching bigger trout as the water cools down.
Bull Shoals Lake: As of Tuesday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation at 648.60 feet MSL.
Lake Norfork:As of Tuesday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation at 546.48 feet MSL.
Cranfield Junction Bait and Tackle (870-492-5141) said the water is clear and 5 feet low. Crappie fishing is good on minnows and jigs. Bass fishing is fair on spinnerbaits, crankbaits and jigs. Stripers are biting well on stick baits. Catfishing is fair on liver.
Norfork Tailwater: Gene’s Trout Dock (870-499-5381) the water conditions are about normal with no generation. Trout fishing is still good on wax worms and corn.
 
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS
Beaver Lake: As of Tuesday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation at 1,113.11 feet MSL.
Southtown Sporting Goods (479-443-7148) said the water is clear and about 4 feet low. Crappie fishing is good in 5-15 feet of water around brush piles on minnows and jigs. Black bass are biting well on shad-colored spinnerbaits. Stripers are biting well on large minnows and ½-oz bucktail jigs.
Lake Fayetteville: Lake Fayetteville Boat Dock (479-444-3476) said fishing has been slow for all species.
Lake Sequoyah: Lake Sequoyah Boat Dock (479-444-3475) said the water conditions are normal. Bream fishing is fair on worms and crickets. Crappie are biting well in 4-6 feet of water on minnows and crappie tubes around stumps. Bass fishing is fair in 4-6 feet of water on spinnerbaits, buzzbaits and Rat-L-Traps. Catfishing is fair in 4-10 feet of water on liver and sunfish.
Sugarloaf Lake: Midland Minimart (479-639-9467) said water conditions are normal for this time of year. Crappie are biting well on minnows. All other species are slow.
 
NORTHEAST ARKANSAS
Crown Lake: Boxhound Marina (870-670-4496) said the water is clear and about 2 feet low. Crappie fishing is good about 8 feet deep on orange squirts. A few bass have been caught in 12-15 feet of water by slow-rolling a single Colorado blade spinnerbait.
Lake Frierson: Lake Frierson State Park said fishing is slow for all species.
Eleven-Point River : Woody’s Canoe Rental and Campground (870-892-9732) had no report because of lack of anglers. 
 
SOUTHWEST ARKANSAS
Millwood Lake: As of Tuesday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation at 256.93 feet MSL.
Millwood Lake Guide Service said main lake and Little River surface temperature is 53 to 59 degrees, depending on location and time of day. Main lake clarity and visibility is at 3-5 inches. Current is at 4,657 cubic feet per second. Use extreme caution navigating the lake and river because logs and stumps that are normally under the water are sitting at the surface from the drawdown. Largemouth Bass are biting fairly well with the most aggressive bite being in the afternoons. Shad-patterned crankbaits, 10-inch Power Worms, Jig’n Pigs and Rat-L-Traps are the baits to have rigged and ready for the winter bass at Millwood. Rat-L-Traps and crankbaits fished slowly from 6 to 10 feet deep, are catching a few decent bass, but the bite is much slower than the last two or three weeks. Most of the fish are coming from the deeper water, but the crankbait needs to be deflected off a stump to trigger a strike. Peanut butter and jelly jigs and Texas Craw jigs are working fairly well in 6 to 9 feet of water around laydowns and logjams. White bass have all but disappeared. The crappie bite continues to improve with the clearing, cooling water. The best crappie bite has been in brush piles or standing timber 15-20 feet deep on live shiners. The increased current during the drawdown has turned on the channel catfish and many good cats have been caught on trotlines and yo-yos set along the river in 6 to 8 feet of water.
Lake Columbia: Steve’s Marine (870-234-2222) said water conditions are normal. Crappie is the best thing going on minnows and jigs.
White Oak Lake:White Oak Lake State Park said fishing is fair to good. The weather has stabilized a bit, and bass and crappie are beginning to bite. Catfishing is fair to good on trotlines baited with nightcrawlers and small bream.
Lake Greeson: As of Tuesday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation at 536.10 feet MSL.
Darryl Morris of Family Fishing Trips Guide Service said Lake Greeson’s water temperature is in the low 50’s. Crappie are being caught on jigs and minnows from 13 to 18 feet deep on brush piles in 20 to 30 feet of water. Stripers and white bass can be found in the main channel. When they are not surface feeding, schools can be found suspended 20 to 30 feet deep off deeper points and humps.
Lakeside Grocery said the water is clear and normal at about 50 degrees. Crappie fishing is good in 6-12 feet of water on minnows and jigs. Bass fishing is very good on crankbaits and plastic worms. Stripers can be caught schooling on top-water lures and spoons.
Little Missouri River: Jeff Guerin of Little Missouri Fly Fishing said generation has been minimal and fish are very line shy. An A and W emerger is working well just under the surface. The action is steady, but the fish are very spooky.
DeGray Lake: As of Tuesday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation at 393.92 feet MSL.
Larry Hurley from Poorman’s Guide Service said fishing has been slow, but you can punch the grass with a large 1-ounce jig and catch a few very good bass. Be prepared to do a lot of work for the fish you catch, though. 
WEST-CENTRAL ARKANSAS
Lake Dardanelle: Bill’s Bait and Tackle (479-754-6354) said the water is murky and low. Crappie fishing is good in deep water on minnows and jigs. Catfish are biting on shad and large minnows.
Blue Mountain Lake: As of Tuesday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation at 384.22 feet MSL.
CNC’s End of the Line (479-947-2398) will be closed until Feb. 1. No report.
Ozark Pool: Lakeside Food Mart (479-667-5155) said water conditions are normal. Crappie fishing is fair in deep water on minnows and jigs. Catfish can be caught below the dam on cut bait and minnows. White bass are biting fairly well on jigs. Stripers can be caught around generators on jigs and minnows.
Lake Ouachita: As of Tuesday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation at 568.11 feet MSL.
Larry Hurley from Poorman’s Guide Service said fish are holding out on the deep sides of the points in the creek channels as deep as 50 feet. Largemouths, spotted bass and stripers are all holding together and can be caught on a spoon fished underneath balls of baitfish. Crappie are being caught on minnows and small jigs fished over the grass. It’s slow, but the crappie being caught are big. A report of a 50-pound catfish came in the other day. The angler was using live shad fished 25-feet deep to catch it.
Mountain Harbor Resort said the water temperature is 56 degrees and the water is clear. Largemouth bass are fair to good and these fish can be caught with finesse worms, spoons and Spooks on main lakes points and secondary points. Punching a big jig in the grass has been effective for some anglers as well.
Walleye are still fair and being caught on spoons over humps and main lake points fished around brush piles. Stripers are very good on live brood minnows and gizzard shad. Top-water action is still good early and late or with overcast skies. Bream are fair on crickets and worms in 18 to 25 feet of water. Crappie are very good and being caught over grass and brush. Try large moss flats and brush in water 8 to 15 feet deep.  Minnows or crappie grubs are still working best. Arkansas shad, Tennessee shad and white are still the best colors for artificial baits. Catfish are slow with reports of these fish being caught with live bait and cut bait in water 20 to 25 feet deep on jugs and trotlines.
Lake Catherine: Shane Goodner, owner of Catch’em All Guide Service, reports that rainbow trout fishing below the dam is better than ever before at this time of year. The low water has created pools that hold good numbers of fish without trapping or hindering their movement or feeding patterns. Trout over 15 inches have been caught which is unheard of this early in the year. The cooler weather is keeping the water temperature in the high 50s which is vital to the growth and good health of the trout. Fly-anglers are catching limits of fish casting olive woolly buggers in areas of current. Streamers are another good choice as small threadfin shad are being targeted as a food source. Spin fishermen are doing well using Roostertails and small crawdad crankbaits. Bank fishermen are hooking trout with wax worms and redworms floated under a bobber. Now that the trout are back in the tailrace, big stripers are now cruising the area feeding on the trout and threadfin shad schools. Large top-water baits in rainbow trout colors are the baits of choice as these predator fish are looking to feed. Wade fishermen should use caution as extremely slick rocks are the norm at Carpenter Dam.
Diamondhead Marina said the water is clear and about 8 feet low. Bass fishing is fair around stump beds. Stripers can be caught in deep water.
Lake Hamilton: Larry Hurley from Poorman’s Guide Service said fishing has picked up on crankbaits fished around points with brush. The bass fishing is good. 
Lake Atkins: Lucky Landing (479-641-7615) said the water is clear and low. Bream are biting well on worms. Crappie fishing is good on minnows and jigs. Catfish are being caught on worms.
Lake Nimrod: As of Tuesday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation at 341.89 feet MSL.
 
SOUTH-CENTRAL ARKANSAS
No report this week.
 
EAST ARKANSAS
Arkansas River (Pine Bluff): River City Sporting Goods (870-534-8303) said water conditions are normal. Crappie fishing is good on minnows and jigs. A few catfish have been caught on cut bait.
White River: Triangle Sports (870-793-7122) said fishing has been slow for all species.
Maddox Bay:Maddox Bay Landing (870-462-8317) said fishing has been slow for all species
Bear Creek Lake: Arkansas Outdoors (870-295-4240) said fishing has been slow for all species.
Horseshoe Lake: Local angler Clyde Gregory said the water is clear and low. Fishing has slowed down, but a few bream have been caught on wax worms and crappie fishing is fair trolling in deeper water.
Island 40 Chute: Daily’s Boat Dock (870-739-3478) will be closed for winter. No report.