Seeking Advice From Those Who Fish Beaver Lake

[Racker]

My wife are moving from PA to Beaver Lake AR to be near our 4 above average grandchildren. So far, we like houses from 2 general areas on the western side of the lake. One area is from the RT 412 Bridge to Hickory State Park and the other area is from Prairie Creek Park to Rocky Point State Park. So from you that fish the lake, which area is better fishing? Or should I look more carefully at another area of the lake so that I can live near some of the best fishing, or doesn't it much matter because there is good fishing nearly everywhere? I will fish for a variety of fish: the 4 basses; crappies; walleyes; and catfish.

[Blll]

My wife and I moved here from northern Illinois almost a full year ago and live near the Rt. 12 launch. First I learned there are no weed beds to fish on Beaver. 2nd I learned there are tons of fish to catch. Still learning each time out but only 1 skunk after March 15. Lots of walleyes which surprised me and white bass bigger than I thought they could get. From this forum I've learned about some seasonal movements and have fished from Hickory Creek to Rocky Branch and really haven't needed to go farther. You will probably fish deeper than before and will learn to troll. Just my 2 cents. Still a "new guy" so I'll let others address your question more specifically. Good luck and welcome to Beaver.

[Feathers and Fins]

From the fishing point of view, depending on your boat you can run from Rocky Branch to Hickory Creek in from 20 to 45 minutes big margin but im trying to cover most boats. Fishing on the lake is seasonal as to wear the fish will be, Summer you are looking from Rocky Branch to the dam Fall through Late winter Prairie Creek to way up both river arms. Spring is awesome and just about anywhere on the lake can produce.

As to where to live. The lake is Beautiful from any aspect but in winter time we have the WORSE road departments on this planet so you may want to look at areas closer to Rogers and be prepared to stock up before storms if you have any type of major hills between you and the stores.

[rps]

Welcome Racker! My wife and I live on the next lake down the chain, Table Rock. Feathers and Fins (Scott) works at the tackle and bait store for Beaver, Hook, Line, and Sinker. He knows whereof he speaks.

My advice would be to find some place that you and your wife find comfortable in or near Rogers. Anywhere will be minutes or less from the lake. You will discover the White River chain of lakes are a gift to mankind.

[J-Doc]

Yep. They all pretty much covered it. The 412 area fishes like a river. Because it is a river. The mid lake area between Hickory to Rocky Branch is a best of both worlds scenario which is why it's where I stay. Rarely do I venture up near the dam or past Clifty area.

Rogers is a good mid location and there are lots of property out by the lake. When it snows in winter, they shut the roads down for a while so there is that to deal with. Rogers is close enough to lots of things to do and places, shops, malls, food, etc. And there is the very popular Crystal Bridges Museum that rotates installations regularly. Now I'm no museum guy but.......this is a really cool place to visit. It's got something for all ages and some priceless artwork. If you like architecture, there is one of the Frank Lloyd Wright Usonian houses being relocated to the museum grounds as well. That should be completed in the summer.

Welcome read the fishing reports from years back as well as some of the history and fish facts above in the sticky section of this forum.

If you need a realtor, I know someone.

[1969Larson]

Buy both. Hickory Creek for the winter and Rocky Branch for a summer home.

[Racker]

Thanks so much for your prompt and insightful comments. It has given me a better understanding of the lake and nearby area. Perhaps when I get relocated we can wet some lines togeather.

[Champ188]

Racker,

If you are planning to primarily target largemouth, spotted or smallmouth bass, I hope you don't plan to limit yourself only to Beaver. There are times when winning tournament weights can be as low as 8-9 pounds, and I'm talking about two-man team derbies with guys who know the lake better than I know my backyard. A good day of bass fishing on Beaver is 10-12 fish total, with maybe half being tournament keepers (15 inches for LM and SM, 12 inches for spots). Recreationally, the size limit on spots has been removed.

As the guys pointed out above, there are plenty of white bass and stripers to be had, if you're into trolling. You can also catch them by casting at certain times of the year.

Crappie fishing is by far best in the very upper White and War Eagle river arms, where the stripers aren't often found.

There's definitely a growing population of walleye, which others can tell you how to catch better than I can.

If you are serious about bass fishing, look north/east to Table Rock Lake. It's one the country's best bass fisheries and is quite a bit larger than Beaver.

[J-Doc]

There are more bass in that lake than you could count. Lots of them. It's taking 16+ to win a tournament right now. The challenge is learning how to catch them. About 95-98% are bank anglers and never fish offshore structure. I myself cannot catch a 16lb bag if I tried. That's not to say it's impossible. It's not. Because people are doing it every week in the winter series and last year it was 20lbs.

There are probably more spotted bass in that lake than there is bait. And the bait population is crazy strong right now. So much that the AR Game & Fish are monitoring and tracking. We had a lot last year and again this year. Should see bass weights going up in the spring.

Crappie fishing is excellent. Lots and lots of crappie. Stripers like crappie and other forage but mainly gizzard shad. The larger bass are often found where the stripers are roaming around in open water chasing the same gizzard shad.

Walleye fishing is really turning on and it's no longer a secret. Now lots of people are catching them. Mostly bass anglers beating the shore with jerkbaits and swimbaits looking for bass. That's how I was introduced to them. It was aggregating too. Then I finally cooked one and now I target them often.

I watched every boat I saw last Thursday fishing the Polar Bear Tournament and they all fished the bank somewhere. I was out in the middle of the cove and fishing a specific spot (offshore structure) which is a style of fishing that's not for everyone. Saw several fish on the graph but never got the bite I wanted vs the other guys trolling 1 mile of shore line before racing to another area because they didn't get a bite. Point is, the fish are there, you just have to learn how to catch them. And that...........IS Beaver Lake. The most humbling place on the White River chain. It's a mystery and once it's solved, a whole new world opens up.

I myself am just peaking into the Pandoras box but plan on opening it fully in the coming years. I have logged sonar this winter and recorded new maps of areas I had no idea existed. And I understand now why they are so good. Now I want to find more of these magic areas and study it to learn why and how to catch better bass. The fish are there and lots of them. They just are not usually in 10ft of water or less. Not to say they don't, that's silly. But the big ones......well they are like unicorns here. You have to hunt them down.

[Tanderson15]

I retired and moved here to fish walleyes and decided on Rogers. I can go up lake or down lake. That way you can follow the fish. Love it here and the folks are great, even F@F and J-Doc. I'll be honest my first choice was Bull Shoals, but my wife told me she needed a little more than a Wal Mart store, so here I am