Catfish are slow some are being caught oh live in the hickory creek area

Crappie are bighting minnows and jigs tipped with minnows 20 to 30 feet deep

Stripers ARE VERY GOOD RIGHT NOW in prairie creek 10 to 40 feet deep on live shiners and spoons there are a good number up in war eagle creek from 5 to 15 feet deep on live shiners also try free lines and balloons and in prairie creek on balloons and down lines

Largemouth Bass are bighting good with spinner baits and jigs from point 8 to war eagle

White Bass No Report

MEET THE PRO - Eric Olson and Joe Whitten from the FLW Outdoors Walleye
Tour will be at Wilderness Trail, Thursday, March 31st from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Come on in, have a cup of coffee, meet the Pros and ask questions

March 14, 2005
Follow the bouncing ball describes last week’s weather pattern. First it was in the 50’s, then the 40’s with cold rain, then along came some 60’s with a high of 80 on Saturday and then back into the 40’s by Sunday. The real story was the wind, 20 to 30 miles an hour for three days. That condition made it a little tough to spend any quality time on the water. The upside was the heavy winds drew up the conversion layer of water and mixed it with the surface layer, now if we can get some steady warm days the lake will start its spring warm up. The water temperature dropped, then rebounded to 49 degrees and even some 50’s by Sunday. Lake level this week is 654.00, just barely below normal pool. 

White Bass are holding in the first deep water (45 to 60 feet) drop offs at the back of the creeks. Spoons are the key bait to trigger a few and soon with some weather help the Whites will move to the backs of the creeks. Crappie moved off the brush piles this week and returned to the points at the entrance of the cuts and coves. The bite was very slow and the best bait was crappie minnows on a bare hook.

Largemouth bass have not made any change from last week. They continue to roam the banks and points feeding as they move. Wiggle Warts and Bandit crankbaits are working on windy days and Spider Jigs or football jigs in 20 to 30 feet of water is your best bet otherwise. 

Smallmouth bass were crazy this week. We caught keeper smallies from 3 feet of water out to 45 feet of water, there just is no pattern. Wiggle Warts and Bill Norman’s Little N’s work around northern points, Lucky Craft 78DD Pointers and Suspending Rogues work well along chunk rock banks that drop off into 35 to 40 feet of water , Spider Jigs and tube baits worked the best in 25 to 45 feet of water off points. 

Kentucky Bass continue to travel with the shad although more Kentuckys were caught around chunk rock secondary points this week than we have seen this year. They are feeding on or at least looking for crawdads around the chunk rock. Spoons will still trigger the Kentuckys with the shad and tubes or Spider Jigs will work on the bank roaming Kentuckys. Also try slow rolling a 3/8 oz. shad spinnerbait for shallow swimmers.

Lake Rating: Crappie are slow, White Bass are still deep, largemouth, smallmouth and Kentuckys are roaming and walleye – well who knows. This week we will call it fair.

Entry blanks for the PWT are available at Wilderness Trail and Bull Shoals Lake Boat Dock. Now is the time to get your entry in. Spots for co-anglers are filling up fast. The PWT tournament will be May 11 through the 13th. The PWT will once again operate from Bull Shoals Boat Dock and the weigh ins will be held every day at the dock. The weigh ins are very exciting and should not be missed.

Walleye were around secondary and main lake points in 32 to 42 feet of water. With the four days of high winds we have not been able to check them. So, if you get out this week start with Reef Runners or Glass Shad on lead core line in 32 to 42 feet of water around points. We will have an update for you next week. .

The FLW Outdoors Walleye Tour will be coming to Bull Shoals April 6th through the 9th. You can pick up more information and entry forms at R&H Marine in Bull Shoals and at Wilderness Trail. This tournament will coincide with the opening of the new Wal-Mart Super Center in Flippin. There will be lots of activity around Bull Shoals Lake. Two FLW Outdoors Walleye Tour Pros will be at Wilderness Trail on Thursday March 31st from 6:30 to 8:30 to answer questions on walleye fishing. Come on in, have a cup of coffee and talk to the Pros.

Fishing for trout on the White River has been good this past week. When there is not much generation, Berkley Power Eggs in yellow and pink have done well. With generation the Buoyant spoon, Little Cleo’s, and Super Dupers are the bait of choice. The fly fisherman has done well on olive Woolly Buggers, sow bugs, scuds, peach egg pattern and San Juan worms. The Brown trout are being caught on suspending rogues, Shad Raps 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.

}><(((º> Millwood Lake Fishing Report 3/14/05 <º)))><{

Millwood Lake Guide Service reports water temps 57º-63º ; approx 4 inches above normal pool, falling, improved clarity and reduced current. Release rate at dam as of Monday: 4 gates open at 1 foot, release = 1,570 CFS.

Largemouth bass remain in a pre-spawn pattern with the water warming. Bass are excellent on various red or orange Rat-L-Traps. A 10lb-8oz, and an 11lb-12oz, Largemouth Bass were caught, photographed and released within the last 2 weeks on Millwood, and many seven to nine pounders have been caught and released in the last 2 weeks. Red Rat-L-Traps and the bleeding brown/orange craw, red chrome and red shad patterns, continue working very well. Cloudy days, use the suncraw, gold, or black shad color patterns. Fish the Rat-L-Traps slowly and deliberately on points in Little River, creek channels, flats, and around stumps in 2-6 feet depth drop-offs, close to deep water. The lipped, Divin-Rat-L-Traps in orange craw and various craw-colored crankbaits are still taking good keeper bass on points in Little River. Jig bite has subsided in the last few weeks, as the bass are beginning to roam around and move in and out of shallow areas close to deep water, beginning to spread out horizontally, rather than vertically, as the surface temperatures continue climbing. In addition, Black bass remain fair to good on Carolina rigs with Zoom lizards in green pumpkin or pumpkinseed with chart tail. 10-12" power worms in red shad, june bug, or blue fleck continue taking keepers along the river drop offs.

Brush Hogs and lizards in black and blue, blackberry, and Castaic choice colors, and War Eagle white & chart spinner baits worked slowly approx 9-14 feet deep, are catching decent size bass on stumps along the edges of the river, and on points in 8-10 feet depths in the same areas where the red Rat-L-Traps are working. Along the river, back off the edges of the river bank to where you find stumps and timber in approx 8-15 feet depths or drag a Carolina rig across the points dumping into the river. Carolina rigs in these areas of the river seem to be working better in the last week. Crankbaits and Rat-L-Traps are working equally in these same areas. Fish are beginning to transition from winter haunts (depths greater than 10 feet) to spring time, pre-spawn positions around the lake, and in the river.

When we have been fishing a heavy, 5/8 oz to 3/4 oz War Eagle Spinnerbait in white/chart or fire tiger color patterns, along the river edges on scattered stumps in 8-10 feet depth areas with some success, later in the day, once the sun is up and has warmed the top 2 feet of the water column. We have found once the water warms up later in the day, the bite becomes much more aggressive and pronounced. We changed out the spinner bait's factory blade configurations, and are using a large # 7 thumping Colorado or Indiana blade on the rear hanger, in gold, to attract their attention on sunny days or muddy water. The larger blade configuration puts out much more "thump" in the stained water, and the bass seem to be relating to the additional vibration from the large Colorado, rather than the factory willow blade configurations. The larger bass remain slightly deeper in the creeks, and closer to the deeper haunts of the river or creek channel drops, however, these heavy weight fish are moving in and out of shallow flat areas several times during the day. The majority of the bass patterns remain very constant this time of year. Over the last 2 weeks, with daytime highs in the upper 60º and lower 70º range, this has allowed the surface temps to rise up to 15 full degrees compared to only 3 weeks ago, and the bass are relating to the warmer water by becoming much more aggressive, and moving up to more shallow areas, chasing baitfish. Just 2 weeks ago, water temps ranged from low 40ºs to upper 40ºs. Over the last 2 weeks, the surface temperatures have risen to upper 50º and low 60º range.

This time of year can be feast or famine for large bass. Cold fronts are particularly frustrating this time of year when bass fishing. One day the ambient temperature will be 25º and freezing your line guides on your rod and the wind blowing 30mph and muddies up the entire lake. Few bites. Next day sun is out and high is near 65º, water clearing and shallow areas warming, cant get a hook in the water quick enough, and good, decent bass bites on every pitch with a tube or 10" power worm. Sharp hooks in soft plastic or crankbaits, are a must for those slow and deliberate (few) bites! Also, slowing the crankbait retrieve to a mere crawl seems to have the best results in this colder water climate.

Sharpen those hooks, get out there & deliberately slow down the retrieve, purposely deflect cranks off stumps, and HANG ON! This time of year can also yield the trophy Largemouth of a lifetime, full of roe and just waiting on warmer temperatures to move shallow!

Crappie also continue to transition to shallow spawning areas. We noted an improvement in the Crappie bite several weeks ago, since water began clearing and lake falling, back to normal pool, and with the increase in surface temps, the fish are stacking horizontally rather than vertical. Nice slab catches have been taken on live shiners and jigs in last few weeks, in 3-6 feet depths along Little River and its oxbows.

White Bass have begun their annual spawning run up Little River, and have been caught lately around Highway 71 Landing, mouth of Cossotot River, and further up toward Patterson Shoal areas. These White Bass are hitting Little Cleos, Rooster Tails, Chuck-N-Spins, Rocket Shads, Tiny Trap Rat-L-Traps (1/8oz), all in chrome/blue or silver/white color patterns.

Blue Cats remain good in Little River on trot lines, cut shad and chicken livers in current.

Lines set approx 15-18 feet deep, seem to be best depths in outside river bends, in the last few weeks.

}><(((º> Millwood Lake & River Conditions Report <º)))><{

For those fishing the river and below the spillway, as of Monday, March 14, the lake level has dropped over the last week approx 3 inches, and is continuing dropping again and currently is approx 4 inches above normal conservation pool, with improved stain, muddy in main lake areas, and close to Cottenshed or Saline River, and current is reduced. The lake elevation is 259.53, and falling, with 1,570 CFS being released at the dam. 4 gates are open this week at one foot each. Open gates are gate numbers 1, 2, 12, & 13. Water clarity in the river is approx 8-10". Clarity is somewhat worse on the main lake and around Saline inflow. Currently, clarity is around 7" toward the dam. Northeastern sector of the lake around Cottenshed and OK Landing remains extremely muddy with muddy water in the Saline River. Creeks and sloughs of Little River have begun clearing now with the lake falling.

The upriver oxbows such as McGuire, Horseshoe, Mud Lake, Cemetery Slough, etc, away from the current in Little River still have much better water visibility, estimated at approx 4-5+ feet in places. Water temperatures have increased in the last week due to unseasonably warmer ambient temperatures, and range approx 57ºF early to 63ºF later in the day, depending on area of the lake, wind and sunlight penetrations.

Per conversations with the USA Corps of Engineers over the past few weeks, the US Army Corps of Engineers operating Millwood Lake completed installing 22 buoys on Little River between mile marker #1 (open water) and #16 (White Cliffs) effective March 2. Additionally, USACE installed were 16 buoys between Jack's Isle and White Cliffs and 6 from Paraloma Trail to open water. Thursday and Friday plan to GIS the Little River channel buoys, remove old buoys from the river bank and those that have drifted into sloughs, bushes, etc.... per email from the Millwood USACE office, and through the USACE work on Millwood, it is very obvious & evident, that "We are committed to improving water safety for the boating public".

Use EXTREME caution while navigating Little River in low light conditions, and SLOW DOWN! Careful watch for floaters and debris in Little River's current is a requirement. The USACE is working to get any missing buoys replaced as soon as possible, and are working on the navigation daily. Millwood Guide Service and all the Millwood anglers, would like to take this opportunity to thank the US Army Corps of Engineers for their dedication to continual improvement and maintenance of Millwood Lake, continually fighting mother nature and the rising and falling level due to influx of run off from area lakes and rivers, and rain.

Don't forget, be safe, and respect the other guy's right to use the lake too. Release those big bass to spawn and fight again, and take home those little 16"ers to fry up! Use caution in low light conditions, wear your Life Preserver and SUNSCREEN! If you are suddenly thrown from your boat, or knocked unconscious, this time of year, hypothermia can set in as little as 5 minutes in 55º water, and your life preserver can potentially be your only hope to survive, so PUT IT ON!