BEAVER LAKE
Striped bass fishing is good on the south end of the lake.
Mike Whitehouse at Hickory Creek Marina said stripers are biting brood minnows in the Point 12 area shallow and deep. One party visiting from Colorado caught and released several stripers during a trip last week. Their smallest fish was 25 pounds and the largest 46. They used brood minnows.
Crappie are biting jigs fished around brush. A good jig color is black body with a chartreuse tail.
Aaron Jolliff at Hook, Line and Sinker in Rogers said black bass can be caught with top-water lures early. Go with crank baits or spinner baits later in the day. Bass are 10 feet deep or shallower.
Crappie are biting best around man-made brush piles with jigs or minnows 10 to 25 feet deep.
Beaver tailwater: Lisa Mullins at Beaver Dam Store said trout are biting a variety of flies. Good choices include pheasant-tails, midges, Copper Johns and San Juan worms.
The top lures are micro jigs small spoons and Flicker Shad crank baits. Best bait is Power Bait in bright colors.
LAKE FAYETTEVILLE
Angela Perea at the lake office said black bass are biting well on plastic worms, crank baits and chatter baits. Crappie fishing is good with jigs or minnows. Bluegill are biting crickets or worms. Try worms or goldfish for catfish.
LAKE SEQUOYAH
Mike McBride at the lake bait shop said catfish are the best bet this week. Liver or small sunfish are the top baits.
Black bass are biting well on spinner baits. Crappie fishing is slow. They can be caught with minnows six to eight feet deep.
SWEPCO LAKE
Kenny Stroud in Siloam Springs said black bass fishing is good.
All varieties of soft plastics are working, fished two to 20 feet deep. Swim baits are a good choice. Try top-water lures early, late or on cloudy days. A key is covering lots of water, Stroud said.
ILLINOIS RIVER
Stroud recommends using marabou jigs or tube baits for black bass.
BELLA VISTA
Taylor Surly at Hook, Line and Sinker in Bella Vista said black bass are biting at night on spinner baits in a variety of colors at Lake Windsor and Loch Lomond. Try top-water lures at sunrise for bass. Use crank baits later in the day.
EASTERN OKLAHOMA
Kenny Stroud in Siloam Springs said crappie at Lake Eucha are biting minnows or jigs five to 15 feet deep. Try trolling crank baits for crappie as well.
TABLE ROCK LAKE
Pete Wenners at Pete’s Professional Guide Service said spotted bass can be caught 20 to 45 feet deep over long gravel points. Use single-tail grubs, jigging spoons or finesse worms on a drop-shot rig.
Good areas to fish include Baxter, Shell Knob and Campbell Point.