Arkansas Fishing Report

SOUTH-CENTRAL ARKANSAS White Oak Lake

(Updated 4-4-2018) White Oak Lake State Park (870-685-2748) reports the fish are slowing down.

Since the flooding, crappie have slowed, but they’ll bite on minnows and jigs in deeper water ranging 5-7 feet.

The bream are starting to bite on crickets and worms now as the weather becomes warmer.

As we get into April, the bass are starting to spawn. Worm and lizard lures are working occasionally with spinnerbaits.

With the weather producing rain this week, expect to see the catfish moving toward the shoreline to feed.

Felsenthal

(Updated 4-4-2018) Sportsman’s One Stop in El Dorado (870-863-7248) said water is still 15 feet high. Not much fishing going on.

A few spawning bass are being caught.

SOUTHWEST ARKANSAS Lake Columbia

(Updated 4-4-2018) Sportsman’s One Stop in El Dorado (870-863-7248) said bass are biting well on stick worm and flukes. A few crappie being caught on shiners.

WEST-CENTRAL ARKANSAS Lake Atkins

(Updated 4-11-2018) Lucky Landing (479641-7615) said the water is clear and about a foot above normal.

The surface water temperature is ranging 59-63 degrees. Bream results have been poor, anglers say it’s been slow.

Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs. Black bass are picking up, however.

Go with a spinnerbait or crankbait, as anglers say bass are good. Catfish are fair on trotlines; bait with shad.

Lake Catherine (Below Carpenter Dam)

For weekly flow releases from Carpenter Dam, visit www.entergy.com/hydro.

(Updated 4-11-2018) Shane Goodner, owner of Catch’em All Guide Service, reports that Lake Ouachita is very close to being out of flood pool, but could rise again with the forecasted rain for Friday of this week.

Heavy generation is still the norm in the Carpenter Dam tailrace and this flow is scheduled until lake levels are brought into normal parameters.

For over a month - open flood gates and very high flows have kept boaters and anglers alike off the water due to the treacherous conditions.

As soon as Ouachita and all area lakes are stabilized, a much safer generation schedule will be implemented below Carpenter Dam. Rainbow trout fishing is what Lake Catherine is known for and thousands of quality trout are present in the tailrace and will be feeding consistently as conditions return to normal. Bank fishermen can catch limits of fish using PowerBaits, waxworms and mealworms, redworms, and corn fished just off the bottom with a marshmallow floater.

Spin fishermen casting small jigs, Super Dupers, and Little Cleos in sliver or white will record limits of trout during periods of current or slack water.

Fly-fishermen can still access areas that hold good numbers of rainbow trout and can be successful presenting trout magnets in white or pink, micro-jigs in black, or San Juan worms in red or hot pink with a strike indicator.

The walleye spawn is still underway with the majority of fish caught by trolling shallow running stickbaits that imitate small minnows or crawfish.

Carolina rigs tipped with nightcrawlers have taken the largest fish at night. White bass are making a run towards the dam with numbers being taken from the bank by fishermen casting flukes and Rapala jerkbaits in a black/silver combination.

Crappie will soon migrate into the tailrace with the smaller males arriving first to prepare the spawning beds. Live minnows and small jigs will give anglers the best chance to catch good numbers of fish in the next several weeks.

As conditions improve and safe fishing returns to Carpenter Dam, more reports will be available to the public.

Anyone navigating the Carpenter Dam tailrace should be aware of the generation schedules and must always follow all boating and park regulations.

Lake Dardanelle

(Updated 4-11-2018) Charles Morrison at Classic Catch Guide Service (479-647-9945) said water temperature is 55 degrees warming to 58 with some areas of the river being warmer. River clarity is poor with creeks clearing, and some creeks are clear.

Largemouth bass fishing has been good on the warmer days and the storm fronts. Jigs with bamboozie crawls and chatterbaits have been working well around trees and rocks, while scam shad and chiselers have been working really well around the coon tail. Brush Hogs and lizards have been working really well in the creeks.

White bass and stripers has been fair in the creeks on white Bucktail jigs, spinnerbaits and swimbaits. Crappie have been hit-or-miss but definitely improving with the shallow bite on chartreuse jigs.

Black, pink and chartreuse have been good colors. Bream have been fair on crickets and minnows around dead grass and rock in the river and around trees and stumps in the creeks; use crickets and worms.

Catfish have been good on cut shad around the mouth of the creeks and channel swings. Some of the smaller catfish are moving up on the flats and into the creeks.

(Updated 4-11-2018) Reagan Brown on the Trader Bill’s Fishing Report on US97 in Hot Springs says she was not surprised that Lake Dardanelle “came out swinging” for the Arkansas Bass Team Trail event there last weekend.

There were 153 teams, and the top five finishing duos caught no less than 20.46 pounds. Adam Wright and Brad Snodgrass topped all teams with 24.93 pounds, and 59 teams caught five-bass limits.

Reagan said she talked with Snodgrass Monday “and he gave me a little bit of an overview of what they were doing,” she said. Snodgrass and Wright were going in back of pockets and finding the big grass mats and they just kept punching them all day.

Their big fish come off of a bed and “was kind of a fluke deal,” she said Snodgrass told her.

“We know Dardanelle is known to be muddy and it was raining so it was extra muddy. They were using a Sea Craw and were flipping some soft plastics under the mats. They said had the best day fishing they’d ever had.

“Didn’t matter what they threw they were catching fish. Brad said he had a first, catching a bedded fish in the snow. It was snowing up there Saturday during the tournament.”

Lake Nimrod

As of Wednesday, the Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation was 355.64 feet msl ( full pool: 342.00 feet msl).

(Updated 4-11-2018) Andrews Bait Shop and More (479-272-4025) reported the clarity is dingy and the level is normal but rising. Surface water temperature is ranging 58-60 degrees.

Bream are fair and can be found in the deeper areas. Use worms. Crappie are fair on minnows or red jigs.

Largemouth bass are fair and are shallow. Anglers are finding them in 3-5 feet depth. Use a spinnerbait. Catfishing is fair on the trotlines baited with minnows.

(Updated 4-11-2018) Good Ole Boys Trading Post (479-272-4710) said the water is cold and clear. Nimrod remains high.

Fair reports have coming in from the crappie anglers. They’re using minnows and jigs. No one else is reporting any catches.

Lake Ouachita

As of Wednesday, the Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation was 578.30 feet msl ( full pool: 578.00 feet msl).

(Updated 4-11-2018) Phillip Kastner of Trader Bill's Outdoor Sports noted on US97 that crappie really are starting to hit a jerkbait really well right now suspended above the tops of these brush piles.

Kastner heard three or four reports in the last few days of guys catching crappie around brush piles throwing a jerkbaits.

Blue Mountain Lake

As of Wednesday, the Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation was 399.80 feet msl ( full pool: 384.00 feet msl).

EAST ARKANSAS Bear Creek Lake

(Updated 4-11-2018) Natalie Faughn, ranger at Mississippi River State Park (870-295-4040), said Bear Creek Lake has seen a sharp increase in crappie activity.

Plenty of anglers are reporting good fishing from the pier using live bait, and water-bound fishermen are seeing activity in the coves near Lone Pine Campground.

Some folks may notice materials beginning to appear near the boat ramp – the AGFC is moving forward with its contract to repair the boat ramp and Natalie said the state park folks are hoping this will have a positive impact on all who access the lake.

Storm Creek Lake

(Updated 4-11-2018) Natalie Faughn, ranger at Mississippi River State Park (870-295-4040), said there was no real news to report at Storm Creek.

Water still appears “muddier” than usual for this time of the year, which seems to be impacting fishing. Hopefully with clear weather comes clear waters and the activity will pick up.

SOUTHEAST ARKANSAS Cane Creek Lake

(Updated 4-11-2018) Park Interpreter Austin Davidson at Cane Creek State Park said a cold and wet week hasn’t kept the fish at Cane Creek Lake from biting.

Bass have reacted somewhat to the water cooling back down by going after live minnows and shad/minnow-colored crankbaits.

A crawfish-shaped soft plastic Texas-rigged and drug along the bottom in thicker stands of trees and creek confluences running into the lake will also grab a strike here and there.

As the water warms back up along with the temperature, make sure to keep spinnerbaits and Rat-L-Traps handy to run just beneath the surface of the water. Once temperatures reach the high 70s to 80s throw noisy topwater baits later in the evening.

Catfish are reacting to the higher water levels by getting active and aggressive looking for foodstuffs washed into the water by the rain. Cooler temps are also causing them to hunt a little shallower. Fish liver or chicken parts soaked in garlic mixtures toward the end of the day. Fish start biting later in the evening, after dark.

Crappie have started to finally slow down some after having the best run in recent memorable history here at Cane Creek. Snag the last few biters by fishing minnows along structure out toward the middle of the lake. Bream are still biting strong and will only improve as the weather warms and the spawning season approaches, causing them to bed.

Crickets are still going to get the best reaction for these early biters, but as the weather warms, fish smaller worms like red wigglers. Once the temperatures breach the 80s, start fishing bigger worms like nightcrawlers.

The later the season and the warmer the weather becomes, the more aggressive the bream will become. Quantity and quality of catches will only improve from here.

Lake Chicot

(Updated 4-11-2018) Brandy Oliver at Lake Chicot State Park (870-265-9705) said people are still catching a few crappie, but it’s slowed down.

The catfish are biting sporadically. Anglers are reporting poor luck with bream. The lake is still muddy but is beginning to clear up.