Norfork Lake Arkansas near Mountain Home in the Ozarks Mountains Region Fishing Report and Lake Condition by Scuba Steve from Blackburns Resort and Boat Rental.

The lake level is 549.37 and has risen 1/2 inch in the last 24-hours with no generation. The lake is at normal level and needs to drop a little more going into the spring rains to help keep us from flooding out. The White River at Newport is 2.20 feet and about ready to dry up. It is the same at Calico Rock and they will not float a boat. The surface water temperature is 52+ degrees and stable and the water is stained and Scuba Steve could see his lure down about 3-feet on the main lake. Less in the creeks. It is very slow clearing this year and the visibility has diminished over the last several years. The days of being able to see the bottom in 20-30 feet of water are over but is still much more clear than other lakes.  Temperate Bass (Stripers, Hybrids and White bass) which Scuba Steve refers to as red meat fish because you have to cut the red meat out to make them palatable not leaving much to eat are schooled on Shad on the flats and in the bay across from Cranfield Campground. Spoons are the best but trollers (chuggers) are catching some on umbrellas and on weighted crank baits dragging stuff back and forth through Shad. Several schools of shad are not holding predator fish and a lot of the bigger Stripers are gone. Again as with the clear water, the larger Stripers, which 25-30 pounders used to be common, are rare now but there are a good number in the 3-7 pound range because a lot of them are being stocked and are put and take like the trout in the rivers. Some nice Bass are being caught daily but most are Kentuckies. I am disappointed in the number of big Largemouth but they may be there and I just cannot catch them so far this year. They somtimes hang with the Shad in open water and I think this is more common than it used to be several years before.  The same goes for Walleye. I am seeing more of them suspended on Shad and not on brush.  It depends on the time of year. Several years ago they stocked Black Nosed Crappie in Norfork and Scuba Steve caught a lot of them. They quit the stocking and there are less and less of them every year They do cross-breed but segragate. White Crappie, Black Crappie and Black Nosed Crappie all seem to hang out, when schooled, within their own species. When not schooled they tend to hang out according to size with smaller ones together and larger ones together. Once you find a place where the larger ones are located, they tend to be there year after year. That is why cover and brush piles are important. Right now Stripers, Crappie and Kentucky Bass are the best bites and spoons, grubs tipped with minnows and jigs are the best lures. Early morning and about 4:PM are the best bite times. Open water fish can bite any time. The weather looks great for the next several days and the lake not dropping with a small moon should make for some good fishing right up and until the high pressure moves in. Do not miss out on cloudy rainy days and fish the banks and cover that the wind has been blowing into with the above baits and you should catch some fish. Come on down to Blackburns and Scuba Steve will show you where his brush piles are located and not charge you too much. A free stall for your boat comes with a cabin rental of two days or more. You can launch and park right here. Give Debbie a call at 870-492-5115 for a reservation. We are open all year.