Cody Smith

Hello All, November already? This year has really gotten the move on and before you know it we will be ready for another great spawning season here on Greers Ferry, but don’t let me get ahead of myself! Lake levels are currently resting at 455 ft above msl. and holding steady due to the simple lack of rain and the corp holding lake levels even in order for our other white river chain lakes to drop to comparable levels. These lower water levels and inflow rates really affected the shad spawn this fall. Most of the time the majority of our shad population will push up the main feeder arms and tributaries of the lake, this year our shad where very spread out due to the lack of current within these arms. Most of our shad spawned on main lake flats and pockets with wind current, the bait fish that decided to push in the arms held up ½ to 2/3 of the way back where stable water conditions where found, this in turn held most of the game fish up with them at these marks. During November I look for the bite on all species to remain good to excellent with location of our bait fish being key to having a successful day on the water. October provided us with a fair bite within our temperate bass species and I look for November to be even better. With the mild temperatures and little rain fall we experienced the previous month I look for November to really shine when looking into our Whites and Hybrids. In line spinners, spoons, spooks, stick baits and all the typical stuff will put good numbers of fish in the boat when presented in the correct manner and more importantly in the right location’s. Our Walleye’s will be making a big surge this month feeding up for the winter. Look at main lake points and ledges with deep water access to hold good numbers of keeper size fish. There will also be good numbers of our walleye population following the large schools of shad that are inhabiting our pockets, creeks and flats. Spoons, drop shot rigged crawlers and lead heads tipped with live bait will produce this month when presented in 12 - 32 feet of water. Windblown points, pockets and creek channel turns with forage will provide the best location’s for all three species of our bass populations. Let each days current condition’s dictate on where and how you will fish for this species. Minnow imitation’s like crankbaits, swimbaits and blade baits will be assets in locating large concentration’s of fish in short order by covering lot’s of water fast. Once you get bit slow down and cover that area thoroughly with the same bait and even different baits to get more bites within the same location’s. November can be a feast or famine month depending on current condition’s and weather patterns. During this month you can bet that our fish will be feeding up for what is to come. With surface temperatures starting off the month in the lower 70's and ending up the month in the mid 50's there will be drastic changes to be made in both your approach and methods used to locate and catch fish on any given day here on the reservoir. With warmer water surface temperatures at the beginning of the month run and gun tactics will work well and should be utilized to up your overall catch rate, as the water cools and metabolism begin to slow during the end of the month I can’t emphasize enough on how important it will be to slow down and really spend some time fishing thorough and waiting the fish out once located. Good Luck and I wish you a great fall of fishing! Good Fishin`

there is a shuttle service called "Grannies Shuttle Service" I believe. Call Chris or Whitney down at Lobo Landing, I know they have the number.

Hello All! Fall is officially upon us, well, at least that’s what the calendar says. One hot summer followed by one really warm autumn so far. Water temperatures are still hovering in the upper 70's and low 80's lake wide. I always look forward to that 10 degree drop in water temperature to really spur on a fantastic fall bite. This has happened a lot latter this year than in years past but October promises to bring about cooler temps and fantastic fishing opportunities for all species here on the reservoir. This year has been a banner year for catch rates amongst our hybrid and white bass populations. I look for this fall to be filled with very high catch rates and some really big fish showing up quite regularly, maybe even another world record being caught. Over the last two months we have seen a 22.5lber and a 25lber which was weighed by the game and fish. The 27lb. 5 oz. World record mark fish is swimming in our waters waiting to be caught. During the next month look at main lake flats, bays and channel swings to all hold decent numbers of bait and our temperate bass species. During this month there will be a big push of shad to the backs of creeks and the rivers with these fish pursuing them the entire way. In-Line Spinners, Spoons, Grubs, Sammy’s and Spooks will all take good numbers of fish when presented under the correct conditions. Walleye time is coming back around this month. Our cooling waters and shorter photo periods will be key in this bite getting kicked into gear. During the last couple of weeks of September we saw a slight increase in activity and I really look for the bite to get going in a hurry over the coming month with the peak bite coming in November. Live Bait along with the spoon option will be your two go too methods. Look at transition banks with shallow water directly adjacent to deeper river and small channel turns to be prime locations for boating our eyes. Another key deal will be following the large schools of shad and spooning below them for waiting hungry eyes. All three species of our bass population’s will be pushing to main lake points, secondary points in the creeks and small flats adjacent to channel bends in the creeks and rivers. Look for some type of cover in these areas to hold the largest concentrations. Top waters, Spinner Baits, Cranks, Swim Baits and any minnow imitation will get bit right now on through the fall. Let light penetration and current condition’s dictate the speed and depth you fish. October is one of my very favorite month’s to hit the reservoir. Greers Ferry and The Little Red River are wonderful fall fishing and camping destinations. Light traffic on the water and a Great Bite will be seen this month. Look for the last two weeks of the month for peak foliage colors and the very best bite to be seen on the reservoir. I look forward to fishing with each and every one of you in the future. If you have any question’s about the area or would like to book a day on the water please call or email and I’ll get back with you as soon as I can. (501)691-5701 fishgreersferry@gmail.com www.fishgreersferry.com Good Fishin` Cody Smith

Hello folks! Greers Ferry is currently 5 feet below normal pool and falling slightly due to daily generation and a lack of any significant rainfall over the watershed area. Water Surface temperatures are ranging in the upper 80's at the time of this forecast, however temperatures will be falling into the mid 70's by the end of September and the bite on all species will skyrocket once we see a good 10 degree swing. August brought heavy lake traffic with the school kids getting in the few last trips to the lake before starting back full time. Overall we had below normal rainfall and above normal average temperatures for the month. I look for this trend to continue into the fall with the current weather pattern we are experiencing. Another factor to consider this month is tropical storms and hurricanes always bring us some rain during a typical September. If we see these storms occur this can bring the reservoir up multiple feet per day and change things drastically. I look for this September to be a great start to an awesome fall of fishing here on Greers Ferry. August was absolutely fantastic in regards to the whites and hybrids and I look for this bite to continue. Several 100 fish days reared there head and above average fishing was experienced over the last half of the month. Early mornings and late evenings have been and will continue to be the best time to pursue the surfacing schools until later into the fall when these fish typically put on a predictable show throughout mid day hours. Fish Dinner Lure custom 1/2 oz. in-line spinners and half to one ounce spoons are tops when pursuing these fish. Visit www.fishdinnerlures.com to place your order today. Fishing for this species is incredible right now and I look for this to continue on into the fall. The Largemouth bass population will start to push into creeks and pockets following the shad this month. Look along timber edges on flats with small to medium size rock, old roadbeds and secondary points in the 6 - 14 feet zone. We are starting to see some really nice 2 - 4 lber's showing up in these location's already. These fish are coming in fresh to these areas that have not been widely used since mid to late spring. These locations are now harboring bait and a bit more dissolved oxygen with the cooling water we will be seeing over the next month. Top waters early and late then transition into your swim baits and small profile crank baits as these largemouth are taking advantage of our shad pushing shallow this month. Medium profile swim baits, Large Pop-R's in natural colors, shaky head rigged finesse worms and Tubes will all play there part this month when pursuing these fish. Our small mouth and spotted bass here on Greers will still be a tad deeper than there cousin's the largemouth this month. Look for these fish to be really relating to wind blown points and bluffs, both in the creeks and on the main lake. Early morning and later in the evenings the fish will school up pretty tight, baby flukes and Pop-R type baits should be considered. Strike King’s Bitsy Bug, Tubes and shaky head will be top producers this month while the fish are deeper and holding tighter to structure during the peak of the day. Fish thorough and slow to maximize your bites in one location. If there is moderate to heavy wind blowing in on one of these key areas Jerkbaits and small to medium size crank baits can and should be utilized to mimic the shad there feeding on. Now for our toothy friend the walleye; they will be on the move this month. If we get cooler than normal water temperatures the bite will pick up fast and stay pretty consistent through the rest of the fall and into the winter. Look for here today, gone tomorrow type scenarios with our eyes as they will be with and staying with the forage.. Depths of 22 - 34 feet will be the major target zone. Location's to note when pursuing this specie are bluffy points with both rock and wood. Longer gravel points with chunk rock that leads into a main channel location and sharp channel swings along bluff lines in major creeks and on the main lake. With average rain, temperatures and condition's September will be a great time to be on the water. There will be a lot less recreational traffic this month and the fishing is already promising to be absolutely fantastic! If you have any question's about this report or would like to book a day on the water please contact me via e-mail or phone @ fishgreersferry@gmail.com or (501) 691-5701, www.fishgreersferry.com , Cody S. Smith

Plan on fishing the Lisa Keathley Breast Cancer Benefit Tournament! Lisa Keathley Benefit Entry Form.pdf

100 + fish this morning~

Sorry to hear about your luck. The mornings have been better all summer long and I'm guessing this will continue into the fall. The fish are already starting to push in some of the creeks and flats, that should help you locate some active schools. The surfacing over the last couple of weeks has slowed some but the fish are still very concentrated in small areas and are willing to eat once you find them. We've had some really good days over the last week keying in on depths of 26 - 38 feet of water.

Greers Ferry is currently a foot and a half below normal pool and falling slightly due to light generation and minimal rain in the forecast. August already...The best part about this month is once we get through the half way point temperature averages begin to go the other way. This is always good news for the fish and fisherman. It’s been an extremely warm summer and it doesn’t appear to be showing signs of relief. Like the hot temperatures we have seen the bite has been just as hot or hotter on our Whites and Hybrid Stripers for the past six weeks! I look for this trend to continue throughout this month and into the fall. We saw very high catch rates all through the month of July with some days approaching the 200 fish number for my boat in as little as 3 hours of fishing. The main lake basin was and should remain to be the hot spot. Millions of shad are providing these fish with great meals each and everyday. Fish Dinner Lures In-Line spinners, flutter spoons and wiggle spoons took the largest numbers of fish last month while top water Spooks and flukes produced a fair number of bites as well. Another high note for last month was the 22.5lb 37inch monster that was boated by long time lake angler "SloPoke". The beast was caught on a large in-line spinner off of point 6. I suspect the bite on all three species of black bass to remain slow with mornings and evenings being best. Look mid range depths with lot’s of cover to harbor the majority of these fish. The kentucky’s and a limited amount of largemouth are schooling in the mornings and evenings over the old river channel. Pop R type top waters, Sammy’s and Flukes will all take these fish that are chasing minnows. As we get closer to fall look for the stick bait bite to return as well. As for the deeper fish look to Big Plastic’s and large football jigs to produce best along ledges and longer deep water points with some type of heavy cover. Our Walleye bite here on Greers is still a month or so away from heating back up. We have boated a few over the past month while fishing the whites and hybrids. Spoons fished in the 25 - 40 foot range are picking up a few when there actively chasing shad. We also managed a handful on a few select points that bottomed out in 38 feet of water before falling abruptly into 100 feet or more of water. Live Crawlers fished on Drop Shot rigs along with Fish Dinner Spoons should be used in these locations. During this month you will also see a few fish come in on bottom bouncers trolled on forty five degree rocky shorelines and flats in the 28 - 35 foot zone. These fish are scattered but the bite will improve significantly starting next month. Although August is typically hot there is still great fishing to be enjoyed. Get out early or late and fish during the low light hours for the best action. Night fishing is another option to consider this month as it will limit the number of anglers on the water providing you some peace and solitude on the water. I am expecting big things for this coming fall and look forward to fishing with each and everyone of you as you make your way up to the Ozarks! If you have any question’s or would like to book a guide date on Greers please email me at fishgreersferry@gmail.com or call (501)691-5701. Please visit my web-site for current reports and booking information www.fishgreersferry.com Good Fishin` Cody Smith

Hello All and Happy Independence Day! July brings about great cookouts, picnics and fireworks for everyone to enjoy. I myself love the smell of burnt gun powder and the smell of meat cooking in the smoker. I have also been one to enjoy the early morning sunrise and fish breaking the surface chasing after this years shad hatches. Greers Ferry is currently hovering around normal levels and falling slightly due to the lack of rain we have seen so far this summer. Fishing overall has been good to excellent on most all species with few exception’s in between. The White’s and Hybrids put on a show during the last half of June and are continuing into July. Days of 50 - 100 fish in the boat have and will be almost common place pertaining to these fish specifically. I look for this trend to continue throughout the month with superb action to be seen overall within this species. Early mornings are the very best and late afternoons are coming in a distant second with the overall bite and surfacing activity. However, late evenings the larger fish seem to be showing there faces more often than not with the smaller fish appearing in the morning hours. In-Line Spinners, Spoons of all shapes and sizes, small profile walking type top waters and jerk baits will all earn you some strikes when presented in the right areas. Our Kentucky’s and small mouth are schooling along with the temperate bass early and late on main lake points, flats and ledges off the main river channel. Pop R style top waters and Flukes will get you a pretty good bite along with the in-line spinners. Once the sun gets high in the sky most all of the surfacing and chasing action ceases and the drop shot, shaky head and jig play a vital roll in boating some fish. Live bait rigging with whole night crawlers is hard to top. However, if you just can’t bring yourself to fish live bait small compact style artificial’s like 5" Zoom finesse worms, Strike King’s Bitsy Series Jigs paired with a good trailer will earn you some bites this month. The very best largemouth bite has and will continue to be deep. Deeper Ledges with brush, rocks and wood are holding and producing some very nice fish. Carolina Rigs, Big Plastics and Jigs are all picking up fish in the 3 - 5 lb. class most every trip out. Look at depths of 22 - 35 feet deep along the old river channel to produce the best fish along with the most action. During select times throughout the day there is a decent shallow water bite, however for the shallow bite to produce you have got to have some sort of forage in the area along with immediate deep water access. While probing and area look for scattering bait to clue you in on likely locations for your game fish. Wally's are being picked up here and there at depths from 12 - 45 feet depeding on time of day and amount of baitfish. The best bite has come from in and around the very large schools of gizzard shad that the temperate bass are feeding on. Our walleyes are simply playing cleanup. With these fish so keyed in on dead or dying baitfish this makes the spoon my go to bait, as it represents this forage perfectly. Fish up to 5lbs. have been taken using this method. 　 The catfish bite this year has been awesome and very consistent. Flat roll offs with deeper water adjacent and channel swings that touch shallow water bays are harboring lot’s of whiskered fish. Whole Crawlers, Prepared Baits and Live Sunfish are hard to beat when pursuing these fish. We have been having the best luck in 12 - 20 feet of water in these locations and I look for this to continue throughout the month. July is a great time to hit the water early to beat the summer heat along with the recreational boat traffic. There is a good bite to be had you just have to look for it and maybe switch gears to produce. Be careful out there during this time of the year. Drink plenty of water and stay hydrated. If you have any question’s regarding our area or would like to book a day on the water please email or call and I will get back with you as soon as I’m off the water. Good Fishin` Cody S. Smith (501)691-5701 www.fishgreersferry.com

My link Hope you all enjoy~

We have got good numbers of some really big fish here at Greers as well as some that I would consider Huge. Going back to an earlier post, your not going to come here or go to any body of water and just slay the 10+lb. fish. Those fish that are in that class get big for a reason.

Hello Summertime on Greers Ferry Lake! With the Memorial Day holiday upon us it looks like summer is officially here! Although the solstice doesn't happen for another couple of weeks water temperatures and the electric bill are reflecting a change in the weather pattern. Lake levels are beginning the month a few feet above normal pool which is a direct result from recent rains. Water surface temperatures are ranging in the mid to upper 70's and will make there way to the 80 degree mark by the end of the month. Overall June should fish very well with early mornings and late evenings being the very best time to be on the water. During this month we will see a large portion of our bait fish population's begin to get organized out on the main lake and start making there push deeper in the column as surface temperatures rise. Game fish will be following them from the shallows and setting up at greater depths. June marks a transition period for our walleye population. As water temperatures increase, feeding times for our "eyes" tends to decrease. Look for our walleyes to start sliding out to greater depths and suspending with bait fish. They will still feed on our bluegills and sunfish however, they will really start to key in on our thread fin shad population. This means relying on your electronics and staying with the schools of bait in order to locate your wally's. During this month look for them below schools of Hybrids and Kentucky's along with Gravel and chunk rock points, small flats adjacent to deeper water and off shore humps with some type of cover. A great way to catch a mess this month will be with a half to one ounce spoon vertically fished under balls of bait. Keep it natural with colors, Fish Dinner Spoons are one of my favorites and can be picked up at Golden Outdoors in Heber Springs and Fish N` Stuff in Greers Ferry off of Hwy 16. Our Hybrids are going to be making a good push to the surface this month. Early morning hours and late evenings are going to be the best time to locate some surfacing fish for some fast action. Zoom Flukes, Zara Spooks, 3" Grubs and Large In-Line Spinners should all be considered when chasing these fish that are surfacing. If you want a more dependable and longer lasting bite, think deeper! Use your electronics once the school has gone down to catch back up with them. Use spoons or drop shot rigs with live bait. Mark your fish and drop your offering to the same level the fish are holding. With a well mounted transducer and today's graphs you should be able to watch your offering fall and be presented to the fish on your sonar's screen. This is a fun way to fish, you can actually see if the fish are reacting to your offering in a positive or negative manor. This will tell you if you are doing what is necessary in order to get a strike. If no hit or interest is shown to your offering after several presentation's you simply need to change, listed in importance; action, size or color. All three species of black bass will be hunkering down for summertime taking advantage of both major and minor feeding times during the day. As stated before, late evenings and early mornings will be best. Cloudy and even better yet, Windy days will offer a good bite throughout the day. Top waters like the Sammy and Jimmy, Pop R's, and The Ribbit will produce some really good fish this month. Flukes and In-line spinners presented to these fish while they are schooling will put some really high numbers in a short amount of time during June. During bright condition's and the middle part of the day look to drop shot plastics, shaky heads, jig and chunk combos and the carolina rig to all have there place. The limited amount of grass we have here on Greers Ferry is hard to find but once located will produce good numbers of fish this month. With the kid's out of school, the thermometer rising and Arkansas Free fishing weekend this month I can't think of any better time to gather up the family and head to the lake! I hope to see each and everyone of you here this summer. If you have any question's regarding this forecast or have question's about the area please call or email me and I will get back with you as soon as I'm off the water. Over the coming week I will be launching my new web-site which once completed will feature updated reports, pictures and information regarding our fine area, www.fishgreersferry.com

For all of you with a facebook page, here is the link to my FISH GREERS FERRY page, I hope you enjoy... Ton's of Photo's and updated reports and forecast as well. My link

We have received copious amounts of rain over the last couple of weeks yet our lake levels have remained lower in comparison to the last couple of Springs. Fishing has been going extremely well with only a handful of days over the previous two weeks that I would consider slow fishing. On the slower trips we have still been boating 15 - 25 fish and 5 - 9 different species. Overall if we are looking at it like a fishing thermometer I would say fishing is at a 7 on a scale of 1 - 10. The changing weather patterns we are experiencing are definitely something we all have to deal with and cannot change. However, we can control many factors that weigh into making a successful trip while on the water. One factor to look at is slowing down and covering an area thoroughly. When I say slow down, I mean spending up to an hour or two within a very small area (ie. 100 yard section of water) making sure you have had an opportunity to let the fish decide to eat before moving on. This is something you will want to keep in mind while your on the water this late spring and summer. The walleye bite is as consistent as it's going to be at anytime during the year. We have boated decent to good numbers of walleyes on every trip out with the exception of one trip over the last couple of weeks. Changing weather, no wind and slick condition's can make it tuff on you when pursuing these fish. However, it's Arkansas and the old saying goes "If you don't like the weather just wait a little while and it will change". This adage is very true and can make or break a day on the water. Wind, Clouds and even a little warm rain will definitely put these fish on a feeding surge. We have been the most successful under these condition's while dragging crawlers in depths of 6 - 18 feet just off of main lake points, flats and ledges. Crawlers are out producing all other forms of bait, although Berkley Gulp products (3" Smelt) have picked up a few good fish when presented on an 1/8 oz. lead head fished along the bottom. It's spawning time for our friend the catfish. Channels, Flatheads and even a handful of Blues have been boated in very high numbers over the last week. Next Thursday's full moon will signify the first peek of this summers catfish spawn. Main lake flats, humps and forty-five degree gravel/sand banks adjacent to deeper water are holding really strong numbers of fish right now. If you want to catch a mess of our whiskered friends now is definitely the time. Whole Night Crawlers, Liver, and Prepared baits fished in the previously mentioned location's will all produce really good numbers of eating sized fish now through the end of the month. Our Hybrids and whites are beginning to get organized and are schooling/surfacing at very select times and locations throughout the morning and late evening hours. We still have a lot of bait fish and shad forage up shallow using shoreline brush as cover. As water surface temperatures warm our shad population's will begin to really start schooling up and moving out of the shallows and into the depths of our reservoir where our temperate bass species will be waiting to start the heavy feeding before the depths of summer sets in. Over the last week the mouth of Higdon Bay has had some decent activity along with the hatchery outlet pipe at Mill Creek. The Mill Creek out flow pipe is holding decent numbers of quality hybrids as well as decent numbers of fisherman, get there early and you can definitely pick up a few good fish. Soft plastic jerk baits, Fish Dinner Spoons and Spinners, Live minnows and basically anything that resembles a small bait fish will get you some bites. As for the schooling and surfacing fish, The Glitter Spinner and The Super Fluke Jr. will produce the most bites. When It comes to our bass population they are spread all over the gamete. We currently still have pres pawn, spawning and post spawn fish amongst all three species. I would say 80% of the Largemouth, Small mouth and Kentucky's have spawned however there is that 20% that has not. I have not cut into any small mouth or largemouth however, I have cleaned some Kentucky's still presently holding eggs. According to averages they should have dropped these eggs over a month ago. These goes to show Mother Nature knows what she is doing and will not put all her eggs in one basket. With this being said you can catch these fish basically however you like right now in depths of 6"'s to 30 feet deep. I have found the best bite to be at the greater depths of 12 to 22 feet deep on main lake points and secondary points just inside the mouth of major and minor feeding arms and creeks. Carolina rigged plastics, Flukes and the drop shot are all catching some decent fish. With Spring coming to an end and Summer about to bust wide open over the next two weeks look for the bite to stay good and fishing success to follow. Although we will see more boat and recreational traffic on the water the weekdays will still be relatively quite and by far the best days to be on the water. If you have no other choice than to fish on the weekends do not let the recreators hamper your fishing as they are there to enjoy the great outdoors as you are! Good Luck and I look forward to seeing you on the water, Good Fishin`

Greers holds and has many hybrids in the "big fish range" however don't expect to come here, or go anywhere for that matter, and expect to just waylay the 10lb + fish. Fall would be an excellent time to look for schooling fish that are surfacing, however most of the Mega Size Hybrids (10+ lbs.) that you may find surfacing don't stay up long and from my experience don't show themselves out to often. From experience I find these fish on shallower flats and rolloffs into the main channel in 8 - 18 fow feeding aggresively sub-surface that time of year. Now the smaller, great catchable size fish in the lb. - 6 lb. class will put on quite a show. Sept. - December can be good and no one knows which weeks would be best, however I would suggest early to mid November for the larger fish. This reservoir can get quite choppy at times (I've seen up to 6 foot rollers). Being that you have never been here before I would suggest in hiring a guide for at least a 1/2 or full day to get your bearings and general location's as to where you will have the most sucess. My good friend and guide Jamie Rouse is an expert at catching these fish on the whipping stick as he is more of a flyfishing purist than I am. Let me know if you would like more information about his services and I will get you taken care of, Good Fishin`