Beaver Lake
When the fishing gets tough, try fishing at night.
Brian Rusher at Hook, Line and Sinker in Rogers recommends fishing for black bass at night with spinner baits or jig and pigs. Dark colors are best.
Black bass can be caught with top-water lures between first light and sunrise.
White bass and stripers are schooling on the surface early in the Rocky Branch area. Top-water lures, spoons, crank baits or jigs are good lures to use.
Catfish are biting well on sunfish or goldfish on trotlines, jug lines or rod and reel. For walleye, try trolling crank baits. Crappie are biting 20 to 30 feet deep around brush on minnows or jigs.
Bluegill fishing is good in shallow water around bushes with crickets or worms. Average surface water temperature is in the low- to mid-80s.
Beaver tailwater
Lisa Mullins at Beaver Dam Store said trout fishing is best drift-fishing in a boat because of high water.
Fly fishing with a white streamer is a good tactic during power generation. The top lures are size 7 countdown Rapalas or small spoons.
Nightcrawlers are a good bait for trout. Power Bait in bright colors may also work.
Lake Fayetteville
David Powell at the lake office said catfish are biting well on glow worms or nightcralwers. Try crickets or worms for bluegill. Black bass and crappie are biting minnows. Fish for crappie 10 to 15 feet deep.
Lake Sequoyah
Mike Carver at the lake office said black bass fishing is good with spinner baits or crank baits. Crank baits with some chartreuse in the color scheme are good to use.
Bluegill fishing is good with worms. For catfish, use stink bait, cut bait or nightcrawlers.
Bella Vista
Chip Wiseman at Hook, Line and Sinker in Bella Vista said trout fishing is good at Lake Brittany with Power Bait or small gold and red spoons.
Black bass fishing is good at Lake Norwood on top-water lures early or Ned rigs later in the day. Smallmouth bass are biting well in Little Sugar Creek on tube baits or Rebel Wee R crank baits.
Elk River
Drew Daniel at Big Elk Floats and Camping said good numbers of black bass are being caught with black and brown jigs, green tube baits or small top-water lures. Crawdad crank baits or silver crank baits are also working.
Swepco Lake
Kenny Stroud in Siloam Springs said black bass are biting well on all types of soft plastic lures. Top-water lures are good to use early or late.
Siloam Springs, Crystal lakes
Stroud recommends fishing in the evening and night with soft-plastic creature baits and plastic worms.
Illinois River
Black bass fishing is good with tube baits, small plastic lizards and Rooster Tails, Stroud said.
Eastern Oklahoma
Stroud said smallmouth bass are biting well at W.R. Holway Reservoir. Try pearl-colored, single-tail grubs or tube baits. Other good lures are Ned rigs, Rooster tails and top-water lures. Only electric motors or paddlecraft are allowed on the lake.
At Lake Eucha, Stroud said black bass are hitting top-water lures at dawn. Work deep-diving crank baits along points during the day.
Table Rock Lake
Focused Fishing Guide Service said the best lure for black bass is a small jig and pig. Work the lure in front of flooded bushes early, then 15 to 20 feet deep later in the day. Flat gravel points are the best places to fish.
Try fishing back in the flooded timber with swim baits. Bass may hit top-water lures from first light until sunrise, but the bite is slow.