The lake level is 556.70 and has risen 9-inches in the last 24-hours and is up over 2-feet since the last rain. The White River at Newport is 22.77 feet so there is not much that they can do about it. It is not where we are now but why we are here and it is because there was no draw down in the winter. I had a 60-degrees water temperature in Blackburns Creek last evening and 59 this morning. I set a short throw line baited with shiners about 1/2 way out of the creek and caught a nice flathead very quickly. When flatheads move into Blackburns, the dogwood bloom move past their prime and the red buds bloom, It means the crappie are spawning somewhere. The crappie and bass want to spawn bad but it is to get very cool later this weekend. The water is too dark to see any fish on the bank. As I have said for several weeks now the cold fronts just keep coming through. The shallow water in the creeks warms up faster than the deep main lake but also cool down more quickly. After it gets warm the fish move back in the creeks and then it gets cold again and they move back out. April 15th is usually the magic date for crappie and a good top-water bite. The water in this area is stained brown but not bad and the mud is settling out quickly in the creeks in this area. It is almost an instant replay of the big rain several days ago but the lake is getting higher and is about three feet from being a problem. Not for fishing but for access, parking and launching. People are catching fish everyday, mostly crappie, bass and white bass. Fish can come up on top most anytime on these cloudy days so be ready.
