NWA Fishing Report

BEAVER LAKE

Most anglers are getting on the water early in the morning, in the evening or at night. Summertime patterns are kicking in.

Mike Whitehouse at Hickory Creek Marina said crappie fishing is spotty on the south end of the lake. Use jigs or minnows 10 to 20 feet deep in the shade of docks. The Nelson Hollow area is a good place to try.

Catfish are biting well on jug lines baited with hot dogs or liver. Try crank baits for black bass.

John Newlun at Hook, Line and Sinker in Rogers said black bass can be caught at dawn or dusk on top-water lures. Good lures to use are buzz baits or Whopper Floppers. Use deep-diving crank baits for bass in the White and War Eagle river arms.

Striped bass fishing has slowed. Stripers are still being caught near the dam on top-water lures at dawn. Go with brood minnows of shad later.

Crappie fishing is fair in the middle lake area 8 to 15 feet deep. Try minnows or jigs around brush and docks.

BEAVER TAILWATER

Carl Caso at the Beaver Dam Store said trout are biting Power Bait. Good colors are white, chartreuse, yellow and orange. Fly fishermen are catching trout with small jigs of one-one-hundredth ounce. Good colors are white, black or olive, Caso said.

Walleye and white bass can be caught by trolling Flicker Shads between Spider Creek and Houseman Access.

On the lake side of the dam, striped bass are biting top-water lures, including Zara Spooks and Pencil Poppers, near the day-use area north of the dam. For deeper fish, use shad or brood minnows 30 feet deep.

Some nice-sized smallmouth bass have been caught with plastic worms.

LAKE FAYETTEVILLE

Angela Perea at the lake office said minnows are working for black bass, catfish and crappie. Bluegill are biting crickets. Black bass are also biting plastic worms.

LAKE SEQUOYAH

Mike McBride at the lake bait shop said black bass are biting well at dawn on buzz baits. Bluegill are biting well on crickets or worms. Catfish are biting well on liver or shad.

SWEPCO LAKE

Kenny Stroud in Siloam Springs said black bass are biting plastic worms 2 to 20 feet deep. Any way a fisherman likes to rig a plastic worm should work. Try top-water lures at dawn.

SILOAM SPRINGS LAKE

Stroud recommends using crank baits for black bass.

ILLINOIS RIVER

Stroud suggests fishing for black bass with tube baits, plastic lizards and buzz baits.

EASTERN OKLAHOMA

The Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation reports fair crappie fishing at Grand Lake with minnows 10 to 20 feet deep around docks and brush. Catfish are biting shad or stink bait.

TABLE ROCK LAKE

The Missouri Department of Conservation reports good bluegill fishing with worms around docks and rocky banks. Black bass are biting fair on top-water lures early. Try deep-diving crank baits around docks and shelf rock. Use jig and pigs or grubs along gravel points.

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