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.

Last evening. Image title

The lake level is 561.17 and has risen 2-1/2 inches in the last 24-hours with about 8-hours of running one generator. The White River is 23.74 feet and dropping. All of the area lakes are rising except Table Rock which is falling and is at power pool. It would be nice if all lakes were treated equal but it is all about the $. Norfok is holding in there at about 62-63 degrees but should rise with the higher ambient temperatures but we have a good chance of rain on and off until late this week. Do not expect the lake to drop any time soon but the rise has slowed a bit. I am finding crappie on main lake brush, back in the creeks on brush, on the bank back in creeks spawning and in open water on shad. Some are spawned out, some are in the process and some are still full of eggs. Catfish are full of eggs with blood lines except flatheads which are a month behind but there are a lot of them part way back in the creeks pre-spawn feeding. Stripers do not spawn but go through the motions and ingest their own eggs. This happened last month. Because you see green eggs inside of a striper when you kill it does not mean it has not spawned unless it is a small immature one and you should not be killing it anyway. Bass are about 1/2 way finished with several on beds back in creeks with a few finished and back on shad. These are the ones coming up in the mornings but there are not nearly as many as there were a couple of weeks ago. It will be more and more as the year progresses after the spawn. Bass spawn well into the summer here on Norfork, especially Kentucky Bass. Flatheads are the last sportsfish to spawn and go into ealy July. Bluegill and carp will be the next ones when the water gets to about 70 and that should not be too long. I have been diving Norfork for 27-years and the water temperature often reaches 70 by the first of May but it probably will take just a bit longer this year especially on the deep main lake. After that the thermocline will go down to about 16-feet and the walleye fishing really gets good then. It is pretty good now. They spawned in early March this year instead of late february. Everything is fine here. The lake is a little high but is not hurting fishing any in this area with nice ones being caught everyday. Blackburns has no diminished services and we can always get to the dock.  Come on down. The lake is in excellent condition and we will not charge you too much and your first boat stall is free.