🎣 Fishing Reports
Bull Shoals • Table Rock • Norfork Lake • Taneycomo • White River • and more
Reports updated nightly — pulling the most current conditions from AGFC, MDC, and local guides so you wake up knowing what the fish are doing.
🎣 Fishing Summary
Bull Shoals Lake • Norfork • Table Rock • White River • and more
Bull Shoals Lake is heating up—literally and figuratively—with water temps at 84°F and the Corps running aggressive generation (three to four units daily). Del Colvin tells me the lake is approaching that critical power pool elevation where a thermocline will form once generation backs off; that's when things get interesting. Right now, the heavy water is tough from the bank but rewards float anglers working main lake points with 3/8 oz chartreuse spinnerbaits and white Chatterbaits in deeper structure. Over on the White River, the story is different: Calico Rock and Cotter are firing on silver inline spinners and white Rapalas drifted through the current, with steady trout action despite variable generation. Lake Taneycomo has quietly become a sleeper, especially around Branson Landing—trout fishing has improved dramatically over the last couple weeks with bait drifted on bottom producing solid numbers even during heavy afternoon flows. Norfork Tailwater is running gin-clear at 205 CFS with water temps in the mid-60s, and that clarity demands downsized presentations: small Mepps #0–1 spinners and delicate jig-and-sculpin combos worked through current seams.
🏹 What's Working — Baits & Lures
- 3/8 oz chartreuse spinnerbait (Bull Shoals Lake, main lake points mornings)
- Silver inline spinners size #1–2 (White River Calico Rock, current seams)
- Small Mepps #0–1 spinner (Norfork Tailwater, gin-clear low-water conditions)
- White Rapala (White River, drifted through pools)
- 1/16 oz Blue Fox spoon (Norfork Tailwater, deeper pockets).
🎮 How They're Fishing
- Float fishing chartreuse spinnerbaits on structure (Bull Shoals Lake, before heavy midday generation)
- Drifting silver spinners through current seams (White River, variable generation windows)
- Float small jigs with sculpin trailers below Otter Creek access (Norfork Tailwater, clear-water sight-fishing)
- Midge and leech pattern fly drifts on bottom (Lake Taneycomo, Branson Landing area).
💡 Guide's Insider Tip
Del Colvin warns the "summer squeeze" is coming once generation slows and a thermocline forms on Bull Shoals—fish the deeper structure now before thermal stratification shuts down mid-lake bite.
🏆 Top Picks Right Now
On Bull Shoals, timing your float sessions around generation schedules is everything—hit main lake points hard in early morning before the Corps spins up to four units; once that midday surge kicks in, move shallow or call it a day. The lake's dropping toward power pool, which concentrates fish predictably.
Bull Shoals Lake
Bull Shoals Lake measured 662.01 feet msl Wednesday, fast approaching desired power pool elevation, with generation continuing with three units (9,000 cfs) in the morning, rising a little earlier than it has been, to almost 12,000 cfs (four generators) by midafternoon. (updated 7-9-2026) Local reports indicate the water temperature is around 84 degrees. “Feels great to jump in for a swim if you get hot. The Corps of Engineers have been running big water. Not looking forward to the summer squeeze. Once generation slows down, the lake typically will form a thermocline. The lake level is down to …
Table Rock Lake
Fishing for black bass should be excellent in 2026. Largemouth bass are plentiful throughout the lake as a result of the high lake levels in past years. Fall 2025 electrofishing surveys revealed good numbers of largemouth bass in the 15”-18” range. These surveys also revealed an abundance of spotted bass in the 11”-14” range, with just three percent of the spotted bass captured in the fall 2025 surveys exceeding 15”. Due to the high abundance and slow growth rates of spotted bass in Table Rock Lake, the minimum length limit is planned to be reduced to 12” in 2026. Anglers are encouraged to har…
White River
Cotter Area (updated 7-9-2026) Local reports indicate “Change is hard for some folks, so we hang on to the best of our world: Trout fishing on the White River here in the beautiful Arkansas Ozarks continues to produce great catches and tons of action. The beauty, peace and hospitality you’ll find in Cotter, Trout Capital USA, and the whole of north-central Arkansas will keep you coming back for more.” Calico Rock Area (updated 7-9-2026) Local reports indicate “Last week we saw the river crest in the morning around 10 feet, dropping throughout the day to about 8 feet. We continue to have succes…
Norfork River
[USACE Norfork Dam — 205 CFS total release] # Norfork Tailwater Fishing Report — August 8, 2026 Current Conditions: We're running gin-clear at 205 CFS—low and perfect for sight-fishing. Water temp's holding steady in the mid-60s, ideal for trout. Wading is excellent throughout the upper tailwater; fish are spooky in this clarity, so downsize everything. Small Mepps spinners (#0–1) and 1/16 oz Blue Fox spoons are your bread and butter. Work the current seams and deeper pockets—trout are holding tight. Fly anglers should match small midges and scuds. Technique: Float small jigs with sculpin trai…
Norfork Lake
No report available at this time. Check back after float season begins.
Lake Taneycomo
In the month of June, we saw mostly heavy generation because of a good amount of rain falling in our watershed. They were good rains — well needed rain! But heavy flows made fishing tough for most anglers, especially from the bank or dock. With the rains subsided, July looks like we’ll see more periods of no generation, especially in the mornings. We will see. Trout fishing has improved the last couple of weeks here on Lake Taneycomo. Even with heavy flows in the afternoons and evenings, drifting bait or flies on the bottom has produced good numbers of trout with quite a few trophies showing u…
🚴 Float Rivers
Live gauge readings — Buffalo, Crooked Creek, Spring & Kings
| Type | Period | Time (CDT) | Duration | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Major | Moon Overhead | 9:16 AM | 2 hrs | Past |
| Major | Moon Underfoot | 9:16 PM | 2 hrs | Past |
| Minor | Moonrise | 1:25 AM | 1 hr | Past |
| Minor | Moonset | 5:07 PM | 1 hr | Past |
- Work the major periods: Regardless of moon phase, the major solunar windows above are your best shot at active fish.
- Let conditions lead: In mid-phase moons, water temperature, barometric pressure, and bait location matter most.
- Versatility wins: Keep a reaction bait (spinnerbait, crankbait) and a finesse option (drop shot, wacky rig) ready to adjust to fish mood.