The lake level is 553.77 and is the same as it was at this time yesterday with no generation for three days. The White River at Newport is 6.99 feet and dropping indicating not much water is being released anywhere. The surface water temperature remains at 55-56 degrees depending on time of day and has not changed much in weeks with the cold nights. The water is very clear on the main lake and as clear as I have seen it in years. It is too clear near the dam for fishing. You either have to go way back into Big or Brushy creeks or stay in Blackburns or in Pigeon or Bennetts. The creek water clarity changes from day to day and can be very clear one day and green the next but stays clear near the shore. The water level was 556.32 with a surface water temperature of 51-degrees on this date last year The White River was 23.28 ft. and they flooded us out later on in this Month but dropped it more quickly than in the past by using flood gates. It would have been easier to drop the lake in the winter and generate electricity and not waste the water potential but it is government and they have no accountability. Now after finally issuing Resort Dock permits and requiring us to post a $10,000 bond they now are mandating all Private and Resort docks get rid of their Overhead Electricity and remove power poles. They just sprang this on us with no public meetings and no imput. No wonder they wanted the bond money. They are pushing us toward solar which does not work on a big dock and is very expensive and unreliable. They wonder why they are hated. Overhead electricity is safe for Marina Docks but not for any other ones. This is just for Norfork and Bull Shoals Lakes. Some Marinas are putting in undeground electricity cables on both shore and under water. What could go wrong with that? I sometimes have to move my dock 100 yards or more to keep up with the fluxuating water levels. This was not the case several years ago. Only how the lakes have been managerd have changed. Again Government. It has become a swear word. I have six boat lifts and sometimes as many as a dozen or more big bass boats in my dock at a time. They have four batteries each and new high powered chargers that pull a lot of amps. Solar cannot handle this without a massive amount of pannels, batteries and inverters and battery storage boxes let alone the expense. There are 2,000 docks affected. Resort owners and private and community dock owners need to get together and fight this. We are being taken over by Communists. Fishing is all over the place. Many fish are still in open water on shad and the shad are following the plankton which blows with the wind. The fish are in one place one day and in a completely different one the next. Many are still in their winter pattern. You will see some fish surfacing but it is not a true spring top-water bite. The stripers should be on the bank at night on their spawning banks but I have been too busy to go out after dark. Crappie are showing up in Bennetts and Pigeon in about 23-feet of water near any wood and the males have not moved to the creeks yet but they want too. We just need a few nights in the high 50's or 60's to get the crappie spawn started. They have been full of eggs with bloodlines for a few weeks. Several Bass in the 2-3 pound range are being caught in the creeks on a squarebill. Some Bass are still with the Stripers. White Bass are showing up in the bays and are good sized. I am surpirsed they are finished spawning this early. Walleye are back from the rivers and big creeks and some nice ones too. They are not biting very well in the clear water but you can see them down there. It looks to be a good year for walleye on Norfork especially after the first shallow thermocline forms in early May. The lake overall is at a good level and in good condition. Blackburns still has the best prices on both cabins and boat rentals in the Ozarks. A free stall for your boat somes with the cabin. We are still the home of the $59/day 1-bedroom cabin. Call Debbie at 870-492-5115 for a reservation. We will not charge you too much and there will be no price increases for 2024.
