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Posted 02/25/2004
Rainbow Trout and Brown Trout the water is low and the generators are running during the week from daylight until about 10 a.m. The trout fishing is good using wax worms and Power Eggs. Report by Ripple Outfitters Fishing has really picked up in the last few days. Trout fishing in the Guion area is good and rainbow trout are being caught on a variety baits. Countdowns and Rouges are producing some nice fish. Spoons and inline spinners are working as well. Anchor fishing with Power Eggs, corn and worms is catching limits of fish too. Bass fishing from Guion to Lock #2 continues to get better. Largemouth are moving into the mouth of the creeks and the grass and structure around the mouth. Gitzits, finesse worms, jig and frog and hula grubs are the ticket. Smallmouth are beginning to more into some of the creeks, but most are still being caught from the river. Dark colored gitzits in watermelon and brown are the best colors. Walleye fishing is good from Lock #2 down.
In recent days fish in the 11 to 12 pound class have been caught between Locks #1
and 2. Lake Elevation at Normal Pool: 462.5 Temperature: Outflow: 1480 cfs. Level: 4.10 feet low Walleye No Report Kentucky Bass No Report Smallmouth Bass fair Whites Bass good in 40 feet of water using white spoons at Middle Ford and Devils Fork areas Largemouth Bass fair using jerk bait Crappie No Report Channel Catfish No Report Spotted Bass No Report Bream No Report Lake Elevation at Normal Pool: 1121.4 Temperature: Outflow: 20 cfs. Level: 8.91 feet low Crappie No ReportStripers No ReportLargemouth Bass No ReportWhite Bass No ReportCatfish No ReportReport by Ripple Outfitters No Report Temperature: Report by Ripple Outfitters No Report updated 01/22/04 Lake Elevation at Normal Pool: 657.0 Temperature: 50's Outflow: 1680 cfs Level: 7.03 feet low Fishing Report by: Bull Shoals Lake Boat Dock "Braggin Board" January, 2004 - updated every two weeks, or when fishing conditions change GENERAL CONDITIONS Lake Level: 650, staying steady Surface temperature: 50's on surface and dropping --------------------------------------------------------------------- Not many changes from last report. The water temperature is dropping with the cold temps we have had this last week. What a change!! Saturday January 3 it was in the mid 70’s, by Tuesday night it was in the single digits. Not may people fishing this week. With the water temp dropping, the fish should be in their winter patterns. They should be schooled up and slow to react. It seems that the largemouth are shallow as usual, the smallmouth are ranging from 10 to 30 feet, and the spotted bass are 40 to 60 feet. If the lake temperature gets down in the lower 40’s then we should have a good shad kill this year. I don’t expect the fishing to change until this happens. I will keep you posted on the water temperature. From what I am being told and have heard the best patterns have been spinner baits and crank baits for largemouth bass in shallow water. For smallmouth bass use a jig-n-grub combination, crank bait, or plastics in 10 to 300 feet of water. For spotted bass drag night crawlers or jigs in 40 to 60 feet of water. The rest of the patterns below will also work as they do every winter. Recommended Baits -SPINNER BAIT- good pattern to use on a cloudy or windy day. Mostly around the brush piles or chuck rock banks, anything with cover on it. -LIVE BAIT- Night crawlers are catching fish in the 35 to 60 foot range during the day. Main lake bluffs, bluff ends, lake flats, drop offs, timber and brush piles are the best places to look. -DROP SHOT- This pattern is working well with night crawlers in 35 to 50 foot of water. There are several places to look- bluff ends, timber bluffs, brush piles, channel swings, and main lake flat points. I know this is a lot of places but the fish are really moving around to find the quality of water they need. - SPOONING- This pattern is working well in 35 to 55 feet of water on the flats, drop offs and brush piles. The best thing to do is to try to locate the shad balls or bait fish and then drop your spoon around them. If there are any hungry fish around they should not be too far from the bait fish. The other thing to do is to look for bigger fish on your depth finder then entice them to bite by jigging a spoon in front of them. -PLASTICS- The old grub, gitzit, tube jig, hula grub and any other variation of these are producing fish. Also, the lizards, french fry, salt craw and small plastic worm. Especially the bluegill or crawfish colored ones. Drag these in 10 to 60 feet of water depending on where the fish are on your depth finder. This has been the hottest pattern for smallmouth bass especially on the gravel flats and chunk rock banks on the main lake. -JIG-N-FROG This pattern is working in the 15 to 25 foot range for smallmouth bass and 40 to 60 foot range for spotted bass -CRANKBAITS- This pattern is producing fish esp. on cloudy windy days around the brush piles. Any perch-bluegill-sunfish color is working. -TWIN SPIN- this pattern should also start to work on the timber bluffs any day. Recommendations for Specific Species WALLEYE - With the water temp increasing and the thermocline dropping the walleye are moving down past the thermocline. The old time fisherman will go way out on the gravel flats this time of year and look for the walleye hanging out there. They will look for shad balls and spoon around them or spoon around the blips on their fish finder screens. 1. Spooning in 35 to 55 feet of water on the main lake gravel flats. 2. Dragging a night crawler. This can be done with a basic split shot and hook rig, or with bottom bouncers. The walleye seem to be in the 35-45 foot range. 3. Trolling with chartreuse crankbaits. Flat trolling with deep divers is producing fish later in the day when the sun goes down and the walleye come up. CRAPPIE- The crappie fishing is good. They are still coming in on small minnows, small jigs and small tube baits. Look around the sunken brush piles or standing timber in 30 to 40 foot of water. CATFISH- The catfish are being caught on jug lines and trot lines off the main lake pockets and coves around brush piles and stumps. They are mostly feeding at night, however some day fisherman are catching them on night crawlers in 30 to 40 feet of water. TROUT- There was a lot of trout caught on Bull Shoals Lake this last week. They are trolling spoons around the bluffs and deep water in the Bull Shoals Dam area and doing quite well. Most of the trout are in 55 to 65 feet of water. White River- Fishing has been good. All of our guides are reporting good catches and activity. Same baits as always- worms, salmon eggs, power bait, night crawlers, corn, for live bait. Rapalas, spoons, spinners for artificial. Report by Wilderness Trail
TROUT SEMINAR February 23, 2004 Largemouth bass have left the banks and moved off the bottoms and are suspending in 28 to 35 feet of water over the channel swings in the creeks and on the main lake. Suspending bass are always hard to catch, try drop shots, slip bobber with hair jig, deep diving suspending rogues and grubs until the turn over is completed. Smallmouth bass are also suspending over deep water off chunk rock points and banks. Even though there are smallies in the creek arms the bite is better on the main lake. Best baits are swimming grubs, Lucky Craft Staysee’s and drop shop rigs with Swimming Minnows or 3” grubs. Kentucky bass have been suspending all winter. The lake turnover has not bothered them as much as the smallmouth and largemouth bass. The Kentuckys are under the balls of shad in the creeks and off the bluff walls on the main lake. A week ago spoons and grubs were the baits to use and they still are working but hair jigs and marabou jigs are triggering more strikes this week. Use 4 pound test line and an 1/8 oz. jig and fish them down through the shad. Walleye are one fish that really shut down during the lake turnover. The silt gets into gill plates and affects their breathing. The catchable walleye are out over the top of flooded forests near the entrances of the creeks. Best baits are ball jigs tipped with shiners or grubs with a nightcrawler attached. Trout fishing on the White River has been great. Best baits are Berkley Power Eggs in yellow, purple and white, and white chrome domes have been working well with the generation. Buoyant spoons, Mepps and Little Cleos have also been working when there is some generation. The fly fishermen have been doing well on olive Woolly Buggers, gray sow bugs, tan scuds and San Juan worms. Browns are being caught on Suspending Rogues, Jointed Rapala floaters, and Countdowns. Remember to keep only what you can eat and release the rest for another day. Rick Culver of Wilderness Trail does the research for this report and the writing of this report. For more information call Rick or Sue Culver at Wilderness Trail at 870-445-2703, e-mail us at wtrail@bullshoals.net Lake Elevation at Normal Pool: 259.20 Temperature: 40 - 42 Outflow: 4196 cfs. Level: 0.33 feet high Please use extreme caution in the river. Report by: Millwood Lake Guide Service }><(((º> Millwood Lake Fishing Report <º)))><{ Millwood Lake Guide Service reports water temps 40-42º, and muddy. Largemouth bass are good in the 2-4 pound range,
best on stop-and-go retrieves of red chrome or white Rat-L-Traps and brown/orange Bandit
or Wiggle-O cranks, or jigs in black and blue. A nice 12.66 pound Largemouth was caught
and released last week on the jig, up river. Slow moving crank baits like the Bandit 300 size or the Cordell
Wiggle-O, in red or brown and orange craw, are taking bass along Little River stump lines
in 8-10 feet depths. Once you contact decent fish with the cranks, slow down and
saturate the area with your soft plastics or jig, by pitching to the stumps. *Tip*
This time of year, in cold or muddy water, add a rattle to your jig, or insert a
glass rattle in your soft plastics to draw attention to your presentations! If you fall in the lake, this time of year, hypothermia
can set in, in as little as 4 minutes! Your life preserver can potentially be your only
hope to survive, so PUT IT ON! """""""""""""""""""""""""GOFISH<º)))><{"""""""""""""""""""""" Lake Elevation at Normal Pool: 552.0 Temperature: Release Rate: 1810 cfs. Level: 4.88 feet low Report by: Ripple Outfitters No Report Back to TopReport by Ripple Outfitters No Report Back to Top
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