Mike Worley

The fishing is pretty normal for this time of year. Water temp is pretty much the same from 0'-50'. On a cloudy day you might find fish at 30' if the next day is clear you might try 40'. Wednesday I had a tough day trying to catch walleyes, the day before which was cloudy the walleyes were biting well at 35' on crawler rigs. Wednesday morning we could only catch bass with 0 walleyes biting - not even a short- About 1:30 after trying about six different spots with spoons & crawler rigs and only catching 3 or 4 bass we put out a spread of 800 Reef Runners at 35'-40' and caught 8 - 10 walleyes with 3-4 keepers in about 2 hours. October can be a real ch allege what is left of the thermocline is very deep and the fish are moving up & down the water column. Try to find the shad, if you are not marking them in the same places they were in the day before they have probably moved off the bank to suspend over deep water and the fish will follow them. This time of year it's all about the shad, the active fish are following them into the creek arms. You will probably have to look for the fish about half way back in the creek arms on clear days and you might find them on mid-lake humps shallower on cloudy days or in the back of the creek arms in 30'. After a cold front moves though remember to really slow down your presentation if you were trolling crankbaits at 2.3-3.5 mph try 1.5-2.0. Spring & fall weather fronts really have a way of moving the fish and slowing them down.

Walleye are biting nightcrawler rigs and split shotted nightcrawlers at about 35' on main lake and creek channel points and flats. Bass are biting nightcrawlers and crawfish on drop offs and points 30'-50'. All species of Bass are following schools of shad and are blowing up all over the lake, grubs, crankbaits & spoons will catch a mixed bag of fish. Catfish are biting well about 30'-50' deep on bluff ends, main lake flats and coves on nightcrawlers and cut bait. The "restradification" process (formally called turnover) seems to be complete at least on the lower lake and with the cloud cover we had today the Walleye bite really picked up.

Walleye are biting crawler rigs on bottom bouncers at 35'-40' on main lake & creek channel points & flats. All species of Bass & Walleye are following the Shad and are biting spoons, grubs & crank baits. Crappie are moving shallow biting grubs along drop offs. Spotted & Largemouth bass are biting Split shotted nightcrawlers in 40'-60'. When the fish are blowing up on the shad try casting a grub or crankbait to them, when they go down a white 1oz jigging spoon will catch a mixed bag of fish. Keep an eye on your graph you can find fish working the Shad just about anywhere with little or no surface activity many times 50' down over much deeper water. Drop a 1oz jigging spoon down to them. Some schools of Shad are so large you can smell them when they are near by ....................................Mike Worley (ar.walleyes@yahoo.com)

The Walleyes in Bull Shoals tend to move off the bank and suspend in deeper water for a number of reasons such as falling lake levels, water temperature, shad movement and water clarity. When I mark fish suspended out over deep water in Bull Shoals that have a nice clean arc on the fishfinder I generally assume they are Walleyes. I have used my LCX's enough to have a pretty good idea as to what species of fish I am looking at. When you mark fish that are right on the bottom you are looking at inactive walleyes that are probably not biting, keep looking until you mark fish that are about 2' off the bottom. Keeper size walleyes are pretty large sonar targets that generally print a nice clean arc remember that a keeper walleye is at least 18" long and has a very streamlined body shape and air bladder than any other fish you will mark. Other species of fish are going to be shorter and thicker with a wider and shorter air bladder than a walleye which will mark differently on your electronics. When I am pulling bottom bouncers along a point I try to follow the depth contour that I am fishing which puts the bait parallel to the ledges and would have it longer in contact with fish that are near that structure. I have caught many walleyes as the boat has turned away from the bank to make a pass at or move to the next point, I think that is when a walleye is following your bait and it makes a move that the fish thinks is trying to escape and it triggers a response of attack. Thats is why it's a good idea to work your bait with the rod when you have marked a fish that you think is a walleye.

Water surface temperatures are falling with the cooler fall weather. Water surface temperature was 70 early Tuesday morning warming up to 74 by afternoon. I could see the starting signs of turnover at different places on the lake. Turnover starts at about 72 degrees and the larger Shad are moving back into the larger creeks. Walleye are still biting on the points about 35' deep on spinner rigs, gold & chartreuse seem to be the best colors. Some really nice size Bass are biting on Shad type crank baits fished 30'-40' on lead core as well as Walleyes & Crappies. Be sure to keep a jigging spoon handy you can really catch lots of fish on or near points that drop off to the main creek channel in 40'-70' of water. 4" grubs on 1/8 oz. jig heads will catch them when they are blowing up on the surface. Best bite is mid-day to late afternoon when water temp is rising, the schools of fish are following the Shad so watching your sonar unit with these two baits handy can really pay off with a mixed bag of fish. The larger shad 3"-4" move into the creeks to spawn & die this time of year and these seem to be the ones that gamefish are feeding on best. The smaller Shad are on the main lake and can be seen in large numbers surfacing in the late afternoon.

Keeper Walleyes are showing up more on crawler rigs. Contour trolling bottom bouncers with slow death spinner rigs in 30-40 FOW is working well. Walleyes are positioned on the main lake and creek channel points and seem to be most active in the afternoon till just before sunset which might be due to the past weeks full moon cycle. Some of the main lake brush piles are also holding good numbers of all species of fish and we have been catching them on spoons. Trolling shad type lures in the zone on leadcore is still catching Walleyes, Crappies & Bass. White Bass are schooling and blowing up on some days but spooning them is working just about any time you mark a school on your depth finder with most being in 30-70 FOW. Split shotting nightcrawlers has worked this week in 60'+ for some really nice sized Spotted Bass. Water temps this past week creeped back up to the lower 80's due to some pretty warm weather & south winds. Looks like a weather change is arriving this week with fall like temps & north winds which should get the water temp back in the 70's which should get the shad moving shallower and into the creeks and larger coves and bays again.

Lake current looks pretty similar to a thermocline on the screen. The current will show up as a speckled band at depths of more than say 50 foot or deeper in Bull Shoals you can pretty much predict where to look for current by visualizing a river flowing though the deeper areas of the lake. It will be strongest where it is narrowed by the topography of the lake channel (not the old river channel) look in areas where it will take the path of least resistants. The downstream side of a main lake flat or where the lake makes a real sharp bend. The current is not detectable everyday or in all locations. But when it is it can be a major factor remember that you do not have to get your bait down into the visible current which is very strong to be detected with your electronics, The water above it will also be flowing and will hold the fish. My favorite spooning technique is vertical, my favorite spoon is the color & weight that fits the depth & species of fish I am working at the time.

After a slow day on Sunday I am happy to report the bite turned HOT yesterday. I took my boat out yesterday afternoon to check some adjustments and did a little fishing at the same time. I found White Bass & Walleyes biting jigging spoons very well and caught them on pretty much every drop for about 20 in a row. Then I switched over to B/B crawler rig and caught 2 Walleyes 23", 25" on a main lake point just before dark. The fish were again blowing up all over the lake chasing shad. I also caught Walleyes & Spotted Bass on shad type crank baits on leadcore.

The effect of dam generation on lower Bull Shoals has been debated for years. Some think it has little or no effect. I think that when they are moving many thousands of cubic foot of water per second (cfs) though the lake it really does have a positive effect and I always try to find the current during these periods. There is always current moving though the lake even when the generators are off line. This current is not visible on the lake surface but can be found in the deeper areas with a good quality fishfinder. As for advise on fishing be sure to bring jigging spoons in the 1oz size. The jigging spoon bite is HOT right now and you can catch Walleyes and all species of Bass on it. Crank baits and crawler rigs are catching Walleyes 30'-40' deep.

Fishing patterns on Bull Shoals are in transition from Summer to Fall. The shad are moving and can be found shallow some days and deep the next. The water temp had been dropping for the last 2 weeks but a week of very warm days has brought it back up into the lower 80's. Trolling with shad type lures is producing some nice sized Walleyes as well as Bass & Crappie. White or silver raps seem to be the ticket fished 30'-40' deep on leadcore line. Walleyes are also being caught on crawler rigs / bottom bouncers and jigging spoons. Al Denninger & I fished the Mid-South Walleyes tournament this weekend (2-day tournament) We weighed a 12LB+ 5 fish limit on Saturday to take the lead by 3+ pounds. We caught our fish on crawler rigs 30'-35' deep. Sunday the weather was hot & no wind and the Walleye bite slowed on the crawler rigs with most that we caught being in the 17" range. We did manage a 20"er on a jigging spoon outside a brush pile in 34'FOW. It was on the first cast or drop that we caught our only keeper Walleye of the day. We tried trolling Reef Runners in deep water and jigging spoons though out the day which all produced fish including some descent size bass but no more legal Walleyes. End result was being bumped out of first place by the team of McMatt & Brown by 1/100th of a pound. The winning weight was 15.29LBS we had 15.28LBS for second place with the big fish pot going to Bill Struthers. The winning bag of Walleyes were caught on the leadcore / rap pattern while Bill's big fish pot winner came on a crawler rig on Sunday. I think the results show that the Walleyes are pretty scattered though out the lake and can be caught on several patterns.

The weather patterns are changing from summer into fall and the fishing patterns are changing also. Water temps have dropped into the lower 80's & upper 70's. The White Bass are working the surface all during the day and are biting well on just about any shad type lure when they are up. The bluff ends are holding a variety of fish, Bass, Walleyes & Crappie can be found in the 30'+ range and will bite jigging spoons and split shotted nightcrawlers. Walleye can be found out on the ends of main lake points and are biting crawler rigs & jigging spoons in the 30'+ range. Trolling crank baits is still producing Walleyes & Bass at times.

Keeping walleyes alive in your livewell in the summer is not impossible but is not real easy. If surface water is above 90 degrees it gets pretty tricky. You need to cool the livewell water temp down to below 80 degrees to have any reasonable chance at success. I carry frozen bottles of well water and add 1/2 gal or gal jugs to the livewell water as early in the trip as possible. Be sure to turn your livewell to recirculate when it fills up. I pretty much just go by feel to check the temp (which should feel cool but not cold) but I also carry a aquarium floating thermometer to be sure (NOT a good idea to leave it in the livewell as they are made of glass and break very easy) I also use a 12V air pump & air stone which seems to help. Fizzing will extend how long walleyes live in your livewell but it has to be done pretty soon after the walleye goes into the livewell but you have to let the fish calm down before it's even safe to try it. If you really want to keep them alive for very long (Like to weigh in at a tournament) you have to start when the fish is first hooked if fishing very deep (30'+) by trying not to reel the fish to the surface quickly which is not easy when you hook one trolling at 2-3 MPH+. I have noticed that the larger fish that take longer to bring to the net seem to do much better that say a 18"er that reels right in. If you slow the boat down while fighting a hooked fish it seems to help also.

Fishing Report 9/7/10 The bite on Bull Shoals is good. Walleyes, Crappie & Bass are following schools of shad out in the main lake and larger creek channels. Trolling large deep diving crank baits in the 30'-40' range is catching the most keeper fish. There is also some surface activity so keep a casting rig handy. Some fish can be found on deeper brush piles and will bite jigging spoons, grubs and split shotted night crawlers. The Bluegills are bedding 30' deep and large Bluegills are bitting well on crawlers when you find them, creek banks and pockets seem to be the best place to look. You really need to cover water right now to be successful. Look for schools of shad suspended out in the middle of the channels in 80'+ and troll big noisy baits like 800 Reef Runners at 2.2-3.2+ MPH when you find the big balls of shad the game fish are under them. The bottom bouncer/ crawler rig that has been so successful all summer has really slowed down as the fish have pretty much just moved off the banks.

The bite on Bull Shoals is good. The water level and temperature is slowly falling. Bass are in 15'-30' and bitting on plastics & jigs . Some large crappies are showing up suspended over brush piles and bitting on spoons, grubs & crank baits. Walleyes are 30'& deeper and still biting well on any type of crawler rig or trolled crank baits, Striped bass are also being caught. I fished yesterday afternoon and found the spoon bite to be the most productive with main lake points holding the most fish in 30'-45'brush piles out on the points and drop offs held the best fish. 1oz spoons and vertical jigging 4" swinnin minnow grubs caught a nice mixed bag of Walleyes, Crappie, KY's & white bass. Smallmouth Bass are very active at night on jigs in shallow water.

If you still need a GPS antenna I have a used 3000 LGC that I would sell for $70. email (ar.walleyes@yahoo.com)

We have been catching Yellow Perch on the lower end of Bull Shoals for 8-10 years also. Last year it seemed every brush pile was loaded with them in early spring before the water level came up after the spring rains. Still were catching them this year, fewer numbers but larger perch. I believe someone recently caught a new Arkansas state record that was weighed in at Bull Shoals Lake boat dock. I have caught Yellow Perch as far south as Howard creek,. Last year Music, Big, Spring & Coon creeks all held Yellow perch in large numbers that we caught on the brush piles with jig & minnows and jigging spoons while crappie fishing in the spring and again in the fall.

This unit has been SOLD.

For Sale Minn-Kota Co-Pilot remote control unit & handheld remote that fits older Minn-Kota Powerdrive trolling motors(with the flat conector plug) I purchased it new in 2006. I know it fits 24 volt models and may also work with 12 volt models. Price is $100. email me at (ar.walleyes@yahoo.com) or call 870-321-3705.

For Sale is a 70 pound thrust, 24 volt- 54" shaft- Minn-Kota Powerdrive Trolling Motor. This motor works fine and is equiped with Auto-Pilot & Universal sonar (US)includes the foot control. It is a 2005 model so the Universal sonar is not US2. Price is $350(OBO) I also have a Co-Pilot remote control unit with wireless remote that fits this model(flat plug) I am listing for $100. If you buy both the price will be $425.(OBO) email me at (ar.walleyes@yahoo.com) or call 870-321-3705. This unit has been SOLD.

Mid-South Walleyes is having a two day tournament 9/18 & 9/19/2010 at Bull Shoals Lake Boat Dock. Two angler teams. Membership in MSW is not required, for details visit the Mid-South Walleyes website at (www.mid-southwalleyes.com). If you are looking for a local Walleye tournament circuit to fish and or qualify for the Cabelas' National Team Championship (NTC). You need to check this out.

Mid-South Walleyes is having a two day tournament 9/18 & 9/19/2010 at Bull Shoals Lake Boat Dock. Two angler teams. Membership in MSW is not required, for details visit the Mid-South Walleyes website at (www.mid-southwalleyes.com). If you are looking for a local Walleye tournament circuit to fish and or qualify for the Cabelas' National Team Championship (NTC). You need to check this out.

Mid-South Walleyes is having a two day tournament 9/18 & 9/19/2010 at Bull Shoals Lake Boat Dock. Two angler teams. Membership in MSW is not required, for details visit the Mid-South Walleyes website at (www.mid-southwalleyes.com). If you are looking for a local Walleye tournament circuit to fish and or qualify for the Cabelas' National Team Championship (NTC). You need to check this out.

wer Bull Shoals Lake Fishing Report: 8/23/10 The bite on Bull Shoals Lake continues to be very good. The Walleyes & Spotted Bass can be found on the main lake and secondary points in or near the mouth of the larger creeks and bays. Most of the Walleyes are being caught on crawler harnesses or a half crawler or slow death spinner rig. The most productive zone seems to be 32'-45'. Walleyes, Spotted Bass & Striped Bass are being caught trolling large deep diving crank baits like 800 Reef Runners . Bass are very active at first daylight pushing baitfish to the surface in a feeding frenzy and can be caught on surface or shallow running crankbaits as well as 4" grubs before the sun gets up. Jigging spoons are still catching a mixed bag of fish on brush piles, bluff ends, deep drop offs & cuts. Tackle Tip for Walleyes In the late summer & early fall Walleyes tend to form larger schools than in the spring & early summer. When you locate the areas that these schools are using you may find that switching to a larger blade like a #4 Colorado and working the deeper fish in the school will catch larger Walleyes than a #3 Indiana or Colorado blade which is standard on most crawler rigs. Also targeting the deeper fish in the school with a jigging spoon will often pay off with larger fish. Look for slightly deeper archs on your fishfinder to determine the best depth to work.

We fished the Pt. 9 to Pt.7 area yesterday. The weather was HOT and the walleye bite was pretty hot also. We spent most of the day trolling Reef Runners over deep water with the best two walleyes of the day (29 1/2" & 26 1/2") plus a few shorts & white bass being caught on 800's during the middle of the day. We switched over to b/b & crawler rigs to pick up 3 more keepers ( 21"-24" ). The 5 walleyes totaled 25.1 pounds on my digital scale. 35'-45' seemed to be the best zone for the crankbait fish & 30'-34' for the B/B with the sides on secondary points being where we caught'em. Here's a copy on my latest fishing report. The bite on Bull Shoals continues to be good. The Walleyes & Spotted Bass can be found on the main lake points as well as the creek channels and larger deep coves. Most are being caught on crawler harnesses with a whole crawler or a half crawler on a plain slow death hook or slow death spinner rig. The most productive zone seems to be 30'-40'. Walleyes & spotted Bass are still being caught trolling deep diving crank baits. Bass are very active at first daylight pushing baitfish to the surface in a feeding frenzy and can be caught on surface or shallow running crankbaits as well as 4" grubs before the sun gets up.

The walleyes are catchable pretty much all day. The middle of the day when the sun is directly over head is the slowest period. But if you move around and try some different techniques during the day you can put fish in the boat. If the fish quit biting on your nightcrawler rig on a main lake point, you may want to try a spoon on a deep brush pile or bluff end or troll crank baits over a deep creek channel. The walleyes are schooling up and moving into deeper water this time of year. Use your electronics to find the schools of fish and get something down there with'em they are very aggressive this year and they will bite.