The lake level is 553.45 and has dropped 3/4th inch in the last 24-hours with about 7-hours of running one generator in the afternoon. The White River at Newport is 6+ feet and dropping. We are to get some rain tomorrow night and hopefully the severe weather will miss us. It looks to go to the west so far. We can use the rain. I waited until the bass boats were going in for the day before going out yesterday afternoon but there were still several pleasure boats out there and the wind did not lay like I had hoped it would. It was sunny with temperatures in the mid 80's with a surface water temperature of 78-degrees. The water looked like it had cleared a bit but it always looks clearer in the sunshine. I could see my lure down about 6-feet. I talked to Rob Grovengoed who was coming in with several nice crappie and he reported catching them on a Blackburns Brush Pile in 18-ft. of water. He is a good fisherman. I wanted to see if I could catch some bass after the big boys went in. The 2-lb. Kentucky bass had been biting very well for me for several weeks and I expected the same. Not. I fished with both the jig and spoon from 3:PM to 4:30 hard and only caught two.bass and a couple of nice crappie. They certainly had slowed down. Maybe that is why the leader of the Phoenix Bass Leagure only has a two day total of 24-02. I had expected more. Some reports of local people catching big largemouth were contrary to my results of only catching a few ot them along with very few smallmouth. Most of mine were Kentucky Bass. I did not go to the weigh-in but I suspect most of the fish were Kentuckies with the low totals. I had thought the top-water bite would also have been better but maybe the fog had some influence on that. All of the fish that I caught were in 26-ft. on brush with none in the deeper water. All of my fishing spots had boats on them earlier and that also may have been a factor. Just the finalists are out today with many people leaving that did not qualify. It should be a shootout with all others following the leader closely. It will be interesting to see what the big bass is. It will take only a couple of nice largemouth caught to win if things stay as they were yesterday but it could be much better with the high pressure being around for a while now. That is why you have to be out there everyday to write an accurate fishing report on Norfork. Things change quickly. The Missouri boys take over next saturday for the Cystic and I expect higher totals. Those guys know how to fish Norfork no matter what the conditions.
