NWA FISHING REPORT

Beaver Lake: A high lake level has catfish on the prowl, reports Mike Whitehouse at Hickory Creek Marina.

Catfishing has been good with liver, stink bait and hot dogs fished on rod and reel or with jug lines. Bluff areas are good places to fish, he said.

Spider-rigging has been productive for crappie. Use minnows 10 to 12 feet deep.

John Hodge at Hook, Line and Sinker in Rogers said top-water fishing for black bass is good at sunrise and sunset or all day if it’s cloudy.

For midday bass fishing, try spinner baits, Zoom Flukes or plastic worms.

Areas that transition from gravel to chuck-rock are good spots to fish, Hodge said.

Trolling crank baits has been good for catching crappie and walleye. Or try minnows under a float 8 to 12 feet deep.

Striped bass have been caught with top-water lures at sunrise and sunset from Rocky Branch park to Point 5. Red Fins and Pencil Poppers are good lures to use. Try trolling an umbrella rig for midday striper fishing.

Bluegill fishing is excellent with crickets or worms fished around docks, Hodge said.

Average water temperature is 73 to 76 degrees.

Jason Piper at J.T. Crappie Guide Services said suspended crappie can be caught around pole timber or over brush piles 5 to 15 feet deep in 20 to 40 feet of water. Curly-tail grubs or tube jigs are good to use.

Productive areas include Pine Creek, White River arm, Eden’s Bluff, Monte Ne and Ventris.

White bass are biting around fishing lights at night around bluffs, Piper said.

White River below Beaver Dam: Lisa Mullins at the Beaver Dam Store said trout are biting nightcrawlers.

It’s best to inject them with air, she said. A combination of orange and white Power Bait is working as well.

The top lures are Flicker Shads and gold/red Colorado spoons. Top flies are woolly buggers in olive, black or red/ white. Size 18 pink/pearl scuds are working in deep water. Try midges in shallow water.

Lake Fayetteville: Dolly Black at Lake Fayetteville boat dock said bluegill fishing is good with crickets or worms 5 feet deep. Crappie are biting minnows 3 feet deep.

Try various lures for black bass.

Lake Sequoyah: Mike McBride at Lake Sequoyah bait shop said black bass fishing is good with spinner baits and crank baits. Lots of 4- and 5-pound bass have been caught this week.

Crappie fishing is slow. A few can be caught with minnows or jigs 2 to 6 feet deep.

Catfish are biting liver or shad near weed beds.

Lake Elmdale: Lucky Key at Duck Camp Fishing Retreat said bluegill fishing is good with a small white jig and red worm combination fished 6 feet deep.

Crappie are biting jigs under a bobber 6 feet deep. Good jig colors include watermelon and red/chartreuse.

Limb-lining for catfish is good with small sunfish. Black bass are biting top-water frogs.

Prairie Grove Lake: Dennis Kruse, lake manager, said black bass fishing was good last weekend with top-water lures.

Bluegill fishing is good with crickets or worms. Catfish are biting worms.

The lake is open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Only paddlecraft or electric motors may be used.

Swepco Lake: Kenny Stroud at BW Outdoors in Siloam Springs said the Flint Creek Power Plant is back online and the water is 94 degrees.

He recommends using plastic worms presented slowly.

Siloam Springs Lake: Stroud recommends using plastic worms for black bass.

Illinois River: Stroud suggests buzz baits or small tube baits for black bass.

Bella Vista: Justin McClelland at Hook, Line and Sinker in Bella Vista said black bass fishing is good at all Bella Vista lakes with spinner baits, shallow-diving crank baits, plastic worms, soft jerk baits and Bass-X jigs.

Upper Table Rock Lake: J.D. Fletcher at Eagle Rock Mo., recommends using tube baits or wacky worms around boatdocks to catch black bass.

Use buzz baits for bass around lay-down trees and standing timber.

Eastern Oklahoma: Kenny Stroud at BW Outdoors in Siloam Springs said black bass at Lake Eucha are biting topwater frogs or chugger-style surface lures. Try small crank baits for crappie.

The Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation reports good largemouth bass fishing at Grand Lake with spinner baits or crank baits fished 5 to 10 feet deep.

Crappie fishing is good with minnows or jigs around brush and structure.

Outdoor, Pages 6 on 06/06/2013

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