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 550.90 and is rising slowly with 1/2 generator running for 2-hours in the last 24. The White River at Newport is 5.30 feet and very low. They are not releasing much anywhere. We missed today's rain but are to get some Saturday morning. We are very dry. The surface water temperature is 59-degrees and has not budged much in a couple of weeks. The wind has been incessant during the day and does not lay until late evening. Another front is coming through now with wind and it is very cloudy. Scuba Steve does not like wind but the fish are biting.  The Crappie are scattered and are around the docks in Middle Pigeon. They want to spawn. Bluegill are under cover and pre-spawn feeding with some nice ones being caught. Several spawned out Walleye are moving back down stream and are in Blackburns Creek area and can be caught part way back in the creeks on shadowy banks in the evening where the wind is blowing into on soft plastics.  There are some nice ones in the 20-24 inch range but most are 17-19 inches. The night bite for Stripers is slowing way down and the top-water bite should start in a couple of weeks. There will be short periods of time when the Bass come up before then at sunrise and sunset. Keep a spook puppy handy.  Bass fishing is the best with a lot of Kentuckies being caught with a few Largemouth and Smallmouth. They bite all day on cloudy days on a variety of baits. Scuba Steve is getting a lot of questions about Catfishing. He does not target them until late April or early May when the Flatheads move part way back into Blackburns Creek. Unless we get a lot of rain and a quickly rising water level there will be no limb lines this year. Most of the green near the shore has died anyway due to persistent high water. The next step is a throw line baited with live Bluegill. I do not use jugs much but if you know how to set one up properly they will work. Go to www.norfork.com and click on the article on how to catch Catfish on Norfork lake. Most of the Bluecats are gone for some reason but the Flathead population is good along with some big Channels. This is a good time of year now that March is over and the next three months are the best fishing. Blackburns Resort and Boat Rental continues to have the best place with the best price on both cabins and boat rentals in the Ozarks. The $ you save by staying here will go a long way toward offsetting the high gas prices and still allow you to have an affordable vacation. I am not seeing a lot of motor homes or big travel trailers going up and down the road. Give Debbie a call at 870-492-5115 for a reservation. It is nice here and the price is right. We especially welcome Veterans and Police. You can save money by cooking in our kitchen cabins or outside on our Webber BBQ grills. We are 3-miles to a super Walmart with a Dollar general closer. No long drives to get to town and a free stall for your boat comes with a cabin rental of two days or more. No hidden charges.