Beaver Lake
Fishing for crappie has improved.
Reese Jones at Hook, Line and Sinker in Rogers said crappie are biting well 20 to 30 feet deep around brush piles and trees. Fish between Prairie Creek and Hickory Creek parks with jigs or minnows.
Striped bass are prowling the north end of the lake from Point 5 to Beaver Dam. Use brood minnows 20 to 50 feet deep. Walleye fishing is fair 20 to 30 feet deep with nightcrawler rigs or a jig-minnow combination. Fish along gravel or rock points.
Black bass are biting fair. Anglers say numbers are increasing, but they're mostly small fish. Try top-water lures at dawn and dusk. Go with plastic worms, crank baits, spinner baits or plastic worms later in the day. Average surface water temperature is in the low 70s.
Southtown Sporting Goods in Fayetteville reports walleye are still 20 to 30 feet deep. Troll with nightcrawler rigs behind a bottom bouncer with a crawler or minnow on the nightcrawler rig.
Beaver tailwater
Guide Austin Kennedy suggests working the deep pools for trout with trout dough bait or small spoons. Good fishing is reported between U.S. 62 bridge and Houseman Access.
Power generation is mainly at midafternoon, creating high water and faster flow.
Lake Fayetteville
David Powell at the lake office said black bass are biting plastic worms in shallow water. Powell recommends rigging them wacky style. Bluegill are biting well on crickets. Crappie fishing is slow, but they can be caught with jigs or minnows at varied depths.
Lake Sequoyah
Mike Carver at the lake office recommends fishing for black bass with top-water lures on the upstream portions of the lake. Bluegill are biting worms. Crappie fishing is slow.
Bella Vista
Chip Wiseman at Hook, Line and Sinker in Bella Vista said black bass are biting plastic worms, plastic crawfish or Alabama rigs on any Bella Vista lake.
All types of catfish baits are working for catfish, such as nightcrawlers, liver and stink bait. Use crickets or worms for bluegill.
Please note that fishing in Bella Vista is open only to POA members and their guests.
Swepco Lake
Kenny Stroud in Siloam Springs said black bass are biting plastic worms and other soft plastic lures in dark colors. Try top-water lures at dawn and dusk.
Siloam Springs, Crystal lakes
Stroud recommends fishing for bluegill with worms or crickets. Use square-bill crank baits or top-water lures for black bass. Go with minnows for crappie.
Illinois River
Black bass are biting tube baits, small jig and pigs, Rebel Wee Crawfish lures and Tiny Torpedo top-water lures, Stroud reports. Fishing is best in low water.
Eastern Oklahoma
The Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation reports good fishing at Grand Lake for largemouth bass with crank baits and plastic worms. Catfish are biting well on cut bait or live bait.
At Lake Tenkiller, fishing is fair for black bass with crank baits, plastic worms, spinner baits and top-water lures. Crappie are biting fair on minnows or tube jigs around brush and docks..
Table Rock Lake
Focused Fishing Guide Service reports black bass are biting along gravel points or a mix of rock and gravel.
Jig and pigs are working 12 to 20 feet deep. Fish deep on sunny days. Buzz baits and Whopper Plopper top-water lures are good to use along stair-step ledge banks, but the bite is good one day, poor the next.
Try a drop-shot rig 20 feet deep on cloudy days or 35 feet deep on sunny days.
-- Compiled by Flip Putthoff