Arkansas Fishing Report

(Updated 5-16-2018) White Oak Lake State Park (870-685-2748) had no report.

Felsenthal

(Updated 5-16-2018) Sportsman’s One Stop in El Dorado (870-863-7248) said bass should be starting anytime.

Bream and crappie a little slow. Water still 6 feet high.

SOUTHWEST ARKANSAS Lake Columbia

(Updated 5-16-2018) Sportsman’s One Stop in El Dorado (870-863-7248) said bass are a little slow.

A few crappie are being caught on the stickups.

Heard some good reports on bream.

Millwood Lake

As of Monday night, the Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation at 259.58 feet msl (normal conservation pool: 259.20 msl).

(Updated 5-16-2018) Mike Siefert at Millwood Lake Guide Service said the lake level continues falling, near normal, and on Monday was about 5 inches above normal conservation pool and falling at 259.6 feet msl; the discharge was near 1,700 cfs in Little River according to the Army Corps of Engineers.

The tailwater as of Monday was about 228 feet msl.

Water temps continued improving over the past week, and Monday’s surface temps ranged near 69 degrees early to 77 degrees later under full sun, depending on location.

Continue to use caution in navigation on Little River and Millwood watching for random, broken, or floating timber.

Be sure and check the most recent lake level of Millwood Lake on the guide service’s website or at the Army Corps of Engineers website for updated gate release changes and inflow rates with rising and falling lake levels and conditions.

Clarity and visibility are improved over the past week, but remain stained in places, especially upriver.

The main lake and lower sections of Little River are not quite as stained or muddy as the upper regions of Little River and Saline River.

As of Monday on main lake structure away from current, clarity and visibility was moderate stain, ranging 10-18 inches.

Little River's visibility ranged 10-15 inches with heavy to moderate stain, depending on location and current.

The oxbow's clarity ranged 15-20 inches depth of visibility depending on location. Clarity and visibility can change dramatically on Millwood in just a few hours with high winds, rain, or thunderstorms.

Mike says largemouth bass continue recovering from post-spawn blues. Most largemouths have finished their spawn, though a few stragglers can be found near Millwood State Park and Beard's Bluff and Saratoga sections of the lake.

Largemouth bass have been excellent over the past few weeks from around 3 pounds each up to around 11 pounds each. Many bass tournaments over the past few weeks on Millwood Lake have given up numerous largemouths at weigh-ins from 7 pounds to over 11 pounds each.

Best baits continue to be spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, soft plastic frogs and Bass Assassin Shads on a light wire hook working in new lily pad growth. Best colors of frogs have been black, pumpkinseed pearl, watermelon and June Bug worked in new lily pads. War Eagle Spinnerbaits in white/chartreuse or Firetiger colors continue working randomly, fished around flooded brush and new emerging vegetation, for 2-to-4-pound bass.

Mike noted the better-quality largemouths have pulled out to slightly deeper depths on points and creek mouths, from 7-11 feet, recovering from the spawn.

Males can still be caught relatively shallow around new vegetation and lily pads. StutterSteps, Spit 'n Images, Ken Pops, PopR's and buzzbaits are beginning to draw good reactions from post-spawn largemouths; work them around vegetation and new pads.

Shallow-running squarebills, 2.0 S-cranks and Echo 1.75s fished by deflecting and banging/deflecting them off stumps from 5-9 feet deep have been taking some random, post-spawn bass around 14-to-17-inches in length.

War Eagle Spinnerbaits, Zoom Trick Worms and chatterbaits have been working near cypress trees for the last couple weeks as well as near stumps, new lily pad stands and vegetation, all in 6-10 feet depth.

In the clearer water of the oxbows, better reactions were being had on Spot Remover, Mouse or Hot Mouse colors for spinnerbaits and chatterbaits.

In the more stained areas, the white/chartreuse and Firetiger were drawing best reactions. Best color of cranks in the oxbows, like the 2.0 S-cranks and Echo 1.75 squarebills, have been the Bold Bluegill, Millwood Magic and Ghost.

Rat-L-Traps in Millwood Magic and White Smoke continue to get random reactions from 15-to-18-inch bass over the past couple weeks in creek channels leading in and out of spawning flats, and worked slower and deeper in the creeks.

Soft plastic lizards, Brush Hogs and Beaver Bugs have worked well near bedding flats, but now are better moving deeper into the creek channels.

Best lizard colors for the past couple weeks have been South African Special, PB&J, Watermelon Candy, black/blue and June Bug.

Heavy, big, bulky 10- to 12-inch worms are beginning to pick up reactions from largemouth bass in creek channels, creek mouths dumping into Little River, and points along Little River.

Berkley Power Worms and Zoom Ole Monster 10- to-12-inch worms in black, black grape, blue fleck, plum, June Bug Red, Watermelon Candy, blackberry and Red Shad colors have been drawing good reactions from lethargic, post-spawn largemouths.

Mike had no reports on white bass from the past week.

Being the nomads they are, no telling where the whites will turn up next, or when, he said. Crappie are on the move in the oxbows up Little River away from current, away from cypress trees, to standing timber and planted brush piles.

Crappie were very aggressively hitting on both jigs and minnows over the past few weeks near the base of cypress trees from 1-3 feet deep.

They are now mostly post-spawn and on the move to deeper drops and timber.

They have been located by vertically jigging minnows and using Arkie Jigs in standing timber at 10-15 feet. No report on catfish for this week.

Lake Greeson

As of Tuesday night, the Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation was 547.02 feet msl (full pool: 548.00 feet msl).

(Updated 5-16-2018) Jason Lenderman with JL Guide Service (870-4900804) said the lake level is about a foot below full pool of 548 feet msl and holding steady.

Water temps have made it to the mid and upper 70s. Most of the bass have spawned but some can still be caught shallow due to the higher water and the bream and shad spawns.

Right now, a lot of these bass are on secondary points leading into and out of spawning pockets in search of bream.

They can be caught using Booyah Buzzbaits, Super Spook Jr’s, and the new Booyah Toadrunner. Windy days are good for Booyah spinnerbaits or Smithwick Rogues in windy pockets and points.

Super Spook Jr’s are starting to see some action on main lake points. Shaky head worms are working well on main lake points as well.

Night fishing has been decent lately using Booyah spinnerbaits Yum Ribbontail worms. Crappie are great and can be caught in 15-25 foot brush with Kalin’s Grubs (Tennessee Shad or Rainbow Trout) or minnows.

DeGray Lake

As of Tuesday night, the Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation was 407.28 feet msl (flood pool: 408.00 feet msl).

(Updated 5-16-2018) Local angler George Graves said surface water is in the low 70s and the lake is clear throughout.

Overall fishing has really improved with the warmer water and stable lake. Bass fishing is good with the spawn over, and the fish are feeding heavily.

Look for fish in the spawning coves and throw medium-running crankbaits, both lipped and lipless. Use natural shad patterns in clear water and something with chartreuse when the water is stained.

Also try slow-rolling a double spinnerbait in white/chartreuse. During the bright part of the day, try a Texas-rigged worm in green pumpkin or red shad.

Look for fish between Edgewood and Shouse Ford. Crappie fishing is good with the fish returning to the attractors with the spawn about over. Look for attractors in the major coves at 16-20 feet and slowly work a 2-inch Kalin's Grub on a 1/16-ounce jighead across the brush at 10-15 feet.

Make the cast and count the lure down to the desired depth and just slowreel it back. In the clear water Tennessee Shad is hard to beat.

Look for fish at mid-lake between Caddo Drive and Shouse Ford. Hybrid fishing is picking up, with quite a few fish now schooling in the abundant shad schools.

Look for feeding fish around the mouth of Yancey Creek, Lenox Marcus and Woodall Cove at Shouse Ford. Most any small topwater lure will work.

If the "breaking" fish ignore the topwater lures, try a spoon or lipless crankbait. Early morning and evening are the best times.

(Updated 5-16-2018) John Duncan of YoYoGuideService.com at Iron Mountain Marina said, “Man, oh, may, things are happening at DeGray. Fishing reports keep rolling in with good news. Water temperature has jumped from 68 degrees nine days ago to the 80s now. This is Arkansas, you know.”

John says water levels are settling out at 407.28 feet msl. Water is clear with some vegetation floating around.

Black bass have been on fire in the shallows. Buzzbaits, walking baits and frogs are good in the shallows early and late.

Texas rigs and Carolina rigs are both producing

good catches fished on points.

These big boys are in the shallows early and on the points as the sun comes up. Bass of all types are beginning to school.

White bass are surfacing across from State Park Marina and some hybrids are beginning to break the surface in the same area.

Crappie fishing is going, also. Crappie are being caught in brush from 8 feet up to 20 feet deep over the brush piles.

“I have found I like the jigs in cooler winter/spring months and before the spawn. After the spawn, as the crappie return to the deep, I prefer minnows. Regardless, now is the time to hit the brush piles. I am getting good reports from midlake

to Point Cedar. They are ready for the picking; get your basket ready and fill it,” John says.

Dierks Lake

As of Monday night, the Army Corps of Engineers reports the lake’s elevation was 530.67 feet msl (flood pool: 526.00 feet msl).

SOUTHEAST ARKANSAS Arkansas River (Pool 2)

(Updated 5-13-2018) Webb’s Sporting Goods (870-946-0186) in DeWitt said catfishing on the Arkansas River has been very good below Dam No. 2 near Dumas.

Fish are being caught on catalpa worms, shad and stick baits. Flathead catfish are running and being caught on the river on live bait.

We are selling a lot of minnows, crappie are biting in the Arkansas River on small oxbow areas out of the main river channel.

Reservoir fishing is excellent right now, for bass, crappie, bream and catfish.

Lake Monticello

(Updated 5-16-2018) Angler Chris Van Duren at Lucky’s of Monticello says bass fishing is fair, but you need to be fishing in the early morning.

Bass are being caught in a depth of about 20 feet, with most activity near the creek channel.

Use a crankbait or fish with shad or XD-22s. There was also some topwater action, Chris reports.

Crappie reports were poor, and no other reports came in.