NWA fishing report

Fishing on the lake at sunset. Fishing tile / Getty Images
Fishing on the lake at sunset. Fishing tile / Getty Images

Beaver Lake

Fall tactics are starting to kick in for catching black bass.

Reese Jones at Hook, Line and Sinker in Rogers said black bass can be caught early with top-water lures. Try spinner baits or square-billed crank baits later in the day.

Striped bass fishing is best in the midlake area, between Rocky Branch and Prairie Creek parks. Brood minnows are the best bait, fished 20 to 40 feet deep. To catch crappie, work minnows or jigs 15 to 20 feet deep around brush and docks.

Southtown Sporting Goods in Fayetteville reports fair fishing for catfish with a variety of baits. Crappie can be caught with minnows worked around brush. Black bass fishing is slow.

Beaver tailwater

Beaver Dam Store said the White River is low most of the day and wade fishing conditions are good. Fly fishing with size 18 midges has been good. Red or brown are good colors. Size 12 woolly buggers in olive or black are worth a try.

Prepared trout baits are best for trout fishing with bait. Small jigs are tops in the lure category.

Lake Fayetteville

David Powell at the lake office said bluegill are biting 4 to 6 feet deep on crickets or worms. Black bass are biting spinner baits. Try for catfish with liver. To catch crappie, use minnows or jigs at various depths.

Lake Sequoyah

Angler Mike McBride recommends fishing for catfish with liver. Crappie fishing is slow, but he expects it to improve as the water temperature cools.

Bella Vista

Chip Wiseman at Hook, Line and Sinker in Bella Vista said black bass are biting crank baits, swim baits and Alabama rigs on all Bella Vista lakes. Top-water lures are working early.

Crappie can be caught 18 to 20 feet deep around brush with minnows or jigs. Catfish are biting well on all types of catfish bait.

Please note that fishing in Bella Vista is open only to POA members and their guests.

Illinois River

Kenny Stroud in Siloam Springs recommends fishing for black bass with grubs, 4-inch lizards or small jerk baits.

Swepco Lake

Fish for black bass with any type of soft plastic lure such as Ned rigs or plastic worms, Stroud suggets. Square-billed crank baits and top-water lures may also work.

Eastern Oklahoma

Stroud recommends fishing for black bass at Lake Eucha with Alabama rigs, swim baits or jerk baits.

The Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation reports good fishing for largemouth bass with Alabama rigs, crank baits or spinner baits around brush, rocks and docks. Crappie are biting fair on hair jigs around brush and docks. Blue catfish can be caught with chicken liver.

At Lake Tenkiller, black bass fishing is good with plastic worms, jig and pigs, jerk baits or plastic worms along points and rocky shorelines. Crappie are biting well on tube jigs around brush and docks.

Table Rock Lake

Focused Fishing Guide service recommends fishing shady areas with a jig and pig along gravel banks and gravel-rock points. Try small plastic worms on a drop-shot rig above tree tops or around rock piles, timber or docks 25 to 35 feet deep.

-- Compiled by Flip Putthoff


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