May White Bass fishing

May 4-6, 2009: Sean and I had planned to camp and fish with Kevin Smith and others on the Little Red River, a tail-water below Greer Ferry Lake in Arkansas. But with a six-inch rainfall that weekend in Arkansas, I called and canceled on Sunday afternoon. I have a problem starting a campout in the rain. The streams were high, so I spent May 4th in the garden and mowing the yard. Many of the streams had peaked from the weekend rain but continue to be too high to fish: the Little Sac peaked at 11.5 ft on Saturday and still at 7.0 ft on Monday. It was too much water for me to paddle against. So, my next plan was to return to Bull Shoals Lake and fish below Power Site Dam.

Here is the site to view the Little Sac River real-time data: http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/uv?06918740

Here is the site to view the Bull Shoals Lake below Power Site Dam real-time data:
http://www.swl-wc.usace.army.mil/WCDS/plots/WEB/bul.htm

Bull Shoals Lake has been on the rise since the beginning of April here are some levels on several fishing trips.

Bull Shoals Lake levels
4/07/09 653.2 ft and rising
4/14/09 654.2 ft and rising
4/19/09 655.6 ft and continues to rise
5/6/09 662.0 ft and continues to rise almost nine feet!

May 5: White Bass Pot Hole
Sean and I left Springfield for Forsyth to fish Bulls Shoals Lake. It was overcast and it rained most of the day. We took to the water in a kayak and canoe with oars. Sean picked up several white bass in the 14-16 inch range with many of the fish on the small side released. We fished in the boats tied to trees fishing to the brush that is mostly submerged.

May 6: White Bass Pot Hole
We returned to Bull Shoals Lake (Pot Hole). It was a sunny day with a few clouds. The gate on power site dam was opened with the current heaver then the day before. The lake is on the rise! We caught twenty white bass and a large mouth, and a crappie

May 10: (Mother’s Day) White Bass Little Sac River
It was to be the last trip for spring white bass. Sean and I took the canoe and kayak to Little Sac River near Morrisville near the Taylor Bridge. The water was high and dingy. We took the water crafts upstream to the power lines. The river conditions: Little Sac 4.4 ft Stockton Lake 872.2 ft
Sean had made a promise of fresh fish for a dinner date the next day, so the pressure was on to find fish. We did find a few fish in small pockets of water since the stream was running fast and high. Several of the white bass were over sixteen inches and we managed to pack out a dozen.