The lake level is 569.46 and has risen 4-inches in the last 24-hours with one generator running continuously. The brown water is clearing and is about the color of the Northwestern Ontario lakes. Remember that the clear water is not always the best fishing. I like a bit of green stain that you can see your lure down about 3-4 feet. Bink likes a more of a brown stain with green mixed in. We both agree that we do not like chocolate brown with no visibility. Too clear of water is just as bad. People may want the clearest water for swimming and boating but that season is not here yet. We did have some people swimming off the dock Thursday. When the shad spawn and the top water bite starts it will make no difference what color the water is, just where the bait is. High water does not hurt fishing just changes how you fish for them. It pretty much forces trollers to change their methods and learn how to really fish. People taking pictures of dock floors full of small dead fish and bragging about it should take off their cold weather gear. It was 90 wednesday, 86 Thursday and 80 Friday and is 70 already today with cloudy skies. Most of the fish are still on the old shoreline just above the buckbrush as is the bait. There are reports of water clearing in the Udal area is good news for us here. One bass fisherman told me yesterday that he was catching 15-20 bass a day on a swim bait but several of them were small. That is the same for me. Jerk baits, 3-inch worms, soft plastics and spinner baits are catching about everything. I have had no reports on the night bite yet but will let you know. I do not fish after dark much anymore especially when the lake is changing almost daily with the rise and I can barely find my spots in the daytime. I have not caught a fish on a spoon in almost a week. I am heading up into east pigeon to look for some male crappie staging on the bank. Could be time. I need some more fish under the dock. It is to get windy later this afternoon. Things are about ready to break loose. Tom Kelly found some good water in Diamond Bay and caught some nice bass on his whacky worm. We are mowing the grass for the second time now and flowers are everywhere. The swallows are back and the Purple Martin scouts were here a few days ago and left. I sure hope they bring the whole clan back with them. We have a lot of wildlife here at Blackburns. Everything is pretty much on schedule. There was a case of the Virus reported yesterday in Baxter County but it was not in the hospital. Arkansas reports on what your address is not where they found it. You can social distance here and we will not charge you too much. If you are in town, stop and check us out. You will like what you see.
