Fishing this week

LITTLE ROCK — HOT SPOTS1. ARKANSAS RIVER (LITTLE ROCK POOL) Bream are biting fairly well below Murray Lock and Dam on small worms. Crappie are biting well on pink minnows fished under a slip-cork rig and on salt-and-pepper jigs below Murray Lock and Dam. White bass arebiting well on minnows and jigs below the dam. Catfishing is good on shad or skipjack fished below the dam and on trotlines baited with shad placed away from current in thebackwater.

2. ARKANSAS RIVER (PINE BLUFF) Bream fish

ing is fair in deep water using red worms. Bass fishing is good using crankbaits and jig-and-pig combinations. Fising for catfish is fair using cut bait. Crappie are biting well on minnows.

3. DEGRAY LAKE Bass fishing is fair. The fish are

scattered on deep points, ledges and humps. The best tactic is to fish green pumpkin or red shad Texas-riggedworms or jig-and-pig combinations in 25-40 feet of water.

The area between Arlie Moore and Shouse Ford has seen the best fishing. Crappie fishing is good in the upper end of the lake. The crappie are holding around fish attractors in 28-35 feet of water. The best lure has been a Tennessee shad grub on a 1/ 16-ouncejighead. The lure needs to suspend in the thickest part of the brush, as the fish won’t chase the bait far. Bream fishing is fair around the edge of fish shelters in 25 feet of water.

4. LAKE OUACHITA Largemouth bass fishing is still very good. Fish can be

caught with jigs fished in brush piles on points or humps in 18-25 feet of water.

Deep-running crankbaits are working well fished near drop-offs and ledges.

Walleye fishing is slow with most being caught on jigging spoons or fluorescent jigs tipped with minnows on main-lake points or humps near deep water in 20-30 feet deep. Stripers fishing is still fair on live shad or trotline minnows. Main-lake points near creek channels or open water humps are the best areas.

5. SPRING RIVER Water clarity is good and water levels are low. Fishing has been very good. Many small fish are in the river, but many big fish are showing up as well. Y2K Bugs have been catching a lot of fish. Brownies and Cotton Candies have been hot and have been bringing in bigger fish.