NWA FISHING REPORT

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Beaver Lake: Night owls are doing well on catfish at Beaver Lake, reports James Whittle at Hook, Line and Sinker in Rogers.

Liver is the best catfish bait, Whittle said. Try liver, nighcrawlers or stink bait for channel catfish. Use small sunfish to target large flathead catfish.

Striped bass are biting brood minnows 25 to 50 feet deep between points 5 and 6. Walleye are biting nightcrawlers rigged on bottom bouncers 25 feet deep.

Black bass fishing istough. Try top-water lures at daybreak. Fish 20 to 25 feet deep with plastic worms later in the day.

Jason Piper at J.T. Crappie Guide Services said crappie fishing is slow, but should improve as the water temperature cools through the 70s.

Look for crappie to be suspended over brush piles or timber that is close to a bluff.

Target water that is 20 to 40 feet deep.

Try minnows 12 to 18 feet deep under a slip bobber or fish from the bottom up withcurly-tail grubs. Good colors are electric chicken, black/ chartreuse or pearl/chartreuse.

Garland Villines at Hickory Creek Marina said a few small catfish are being caught with stink bait or liver.

For crappie, troll a Bandit 300 series crank bait or use jigs 20 feet or deeper around brush. Black bass fishing is slow, he said.

Beaver Tailwater: Nancy Rose at the Beaver Dam Store said trout are biting Power Bait or worms.

The top lures are gold/red or gold/blue spoons. Roadrunnersin silver/white are working, too.

Best flies are black woolly buggers or blue dun midges.

Lake Fayetteville: Dolly Black at Lake Fayetteville boat dock said fishing is slow, but some of everything can be caught.

Try worms or crickets for bluegill. Use small jigs for crappie. Go with liver or stink bait for catfish.

Lake Sequoyah: Mike McBride at Lake Sequoyah bait shop said fishing has improved in the cooling water.

Black bass fishing is good

on all types of lures. Crappie

are biting jigs or minnows 5

to 8 feet deep.

Catfish should bite liver,

shad or small sunfish. Use

crickets or worms for bluegillat any depth.

Lake Elmdale: Lucky Key at Duck Camp Fishing Retreat said catfish are biting liver.

Try minnows for crappie 2 feet deep under a bobber.

Bella Vista: Harvey Horne at Hook, Line and Sinker in Bella Vista said black bass

are biting bass jigs 5 to 89

feet deep at all Bella Vista

Lakes.

Bluegill are biting worms or

crickets 15 to 20 feet deep at

all lakes.

Swepco Lake: Kenny

Stroud in Siloam Springs said

black bass are biting plasticworms 2 to 20 feet deep.

Siloam Springs Lake: Stroud said black bass are biting shallow-diving crank baits or plastic worms.

Illinois River: Stroud suggest using tube baits or plastic worms for black bass.

Upper Table Rock Lake:J.D. Fletcher said black bass are biting spinner baits worked along any shoreline.

Crappie are biting jigs around timber in coves or along bluffs. Start at the bottom and work up.

Easter Oklahoma: The Oklahoma Department ofWildlife Conservation reports fair largemouth bass fishing at Grand Lake on crank baits and spinner baits.

At Lake Eucha, crappie are fair in minnows or jigs 15 feet deep. Largemouth bass are fair on jerk baits.

Outdoor, Pages 6 on 09/26/2013