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🏞️ Lakes (bass) · above Bull Shoals Dam

Bull Shoals Lake Level & Fishing Report Today

Right now: lake level 652.48 ft, 6.52 ft below normal pool (USACE, 11:00 AM CT, Sun Nov 8).

Updated

Trout fishing below Bull Shoals Dam? White River below Bull Shoals: generation schedule, river gauge and wading safety →

Current lake level

652.48 ft
6.52 ft below normal pool (659 ft, USACE seasonal target)
24-hr change: -0.09 ft · USACE reading 11:00 AM CT, Sun Nov 8 · NWS 7 AM: 652.5 ft

Normal pool is the level the Corps aims to hold the lake at for this time of year. What these terms mean

Water temperature & clarity

🌡️ Surface temperature

71°F surface temp (satellite estimate)Landsat 8, Oct 24 · 15 days old · median of 39,788 open-water pixels, middle half 71–71°F
How this is estimated
  • It's an estimate, not a live reading. It comes from the most recent clear-sky Landsat 8/9 pass in the last 30 days and is hidden once it's more than 21 days old.
  • Landsat's thermal band measures roughly the top millimeter of water (“skin” temperature), which is often slightly cooler than the water a foot down.
  • Thermal pixels are about 100 m, resampled to 30 m. We use only open-water pixels at least about 200 m from shore, with cloud, cloud-shadow, cirrus and snow masked out, and report the median.
  • Landsat covers each lake on clear days only, every 8–16 days.
  • Atmospheric correction adds error. An independent validation of the Landsat Collection 2 product found about ±1.1 K (≈±2°F) RMSE over water (Wang et al., 2021, Int. J. Digital Earth); USGS's own per-pixel uncertainty for these scenes is larger, about 3 K (≈5–6°F).
  • Data: USGS/NASA Landsat Collection 2 Level-2 Surface Temperature (ST_B10, scale 0.00341802, offset 149.0 K), read via Microsoft Planetary Computer.
68°F Bull Shoals Lake: water temp (guide)per Del Colvin, 11-5-2026 · AGFC report

💧 Clarity

“Go with a spinnerbait or Chatterbait in stain” Bull Shoals Lake: clarity (guide)per Del Colvin, 11-5-2026 · AGFC report

Turbidity readings are on the streams that feed the lake (USGS). Under 5 FNU is generally clear water. Guide observations are quoted from the AGFC weekly report. Release-water temperatures below the dam are on the tailwater page.

This week's lake fishing report (bass, crappie, walleye)

Bull Shoals Lake

(updated 11-5-2026) Fishing guide Del Colvin at Bull Shoals Lake (815-592-4302), delcolvinfishing.com , said the water temperature has fallen to 68 degrees, give or take. The lake is at level 652, or 6 feet below normal pool. “We finally got a little rain. The trees are changing as temperatures are dropping. Powerfishing has been slow; better have wind/clouds/rain/stain. There are some fish up shallow. The Rock Crawler bite has started. If it’s the right conditions, you will most likely notice baitfish. Topwater has still been hit or miss; a lot of shad are on the move. They are still migrating back into the creeks. Go with a spinnerbait or Chatterbait in stain. Try topwater baits if you find them busting. Those fish have been moving in schools, as a lot of the fish are definitely keyed in on shad. The Jewel Shad spoon is working well, or you can try your favorite minnow, a Tater Shad or swimbait.
“If the conditions are post-frontal, flat water, high pressure and bluebirds, it will likely be tough. I will slow down and try a drop-shot with a Robo in suspended schools. Try a Jewel half-ounce football jig in green pumpkin orange or PB&J. Sit off of deep points, dragging the long points or using Craw baits in brushpiles and timber tops on bluffs and bluff ends. Also hit the steeper banks in the creeks and work ambush areas around shad. “It’s that time of year. The bait is moving, and so are the fish. Remember: Fish the conditions!
Del regularly posts new YouTube videos. Visit his YouTube site (Bull Shoals Fishing Report) or delcolvinfishing.com for more information and tips on fishing Bull Shoals Lake.
(updated 11-5-2026) Southernwalleye Guide Service (501-365-1606) reports that fall transition is occurring on the lower end of the lake. Schools of fish seem to be breaking up into smaller tighter packed pods and are roaming. Where they were today might not be where they are tomorrow. Follow the wind and start looking for the first holding sites in that direction. Some good fish are still being caught suspended 5 feet off bottom in 35-45 feet of water along with some undersized fish holding closer to bottom. Fishing has been fair to good this past week. Schools of walleye have been a little hard to find, but when you find them you need to work them over with different methods to get them to respond.
Fish are holding on flatter points with deep water on one side. Look for fish on the tips of long points as well as the sides that are close to the sharper dropoff. Main lake and secondary points have been producing fish during the day. Fishing slow this week has still been the key to picking up better-size fish.
Start out shallower in the early mornings and on cloudy days in 6-15 feet of water, or deeper in 25-45 feet of water if there is little or no wind or cloud cover. Jerkbait fishing is picking up. Casting 110-style deep-suspending lures like Head Hunter or Mega Bass+2 has been working, along with jJigging spoons in white, chrome and blue spoons and jigging Rapalas in blue and chrome or Helsinki Shad color, half-ounce or three-quarter ounce, into 12 feet of water and working it back out into 30 feet has been working. Drop-shotting live crawlers or one-eighth ounce and crawlers around the offshore side of brushpiles in 35-45 feet is working.
If trolling, try shad-style and small banana-style baits like No. 7 Flicker shads or No. 9 Flicker Minnow in natural colors trolled in 15-20 feet of water at speeds of 1.2-1.5 mph seems to work best.
(updated 11-5-2026) Crappie 101 Guide Service (870-577-2045) reports that fishing for crappie has been productive on the main lake on timber and brushpiles mainly with live bait in 25-30 feet of water. Some days are definitely more productive than others.

From the AGFC Arkansas Wildlife Weekly Fishing Report, 2026-11-05. Quoted as published; AGFC's separate lake and tailwater entries decide which page each part appears on.

🐟 Fish care tip · Bass
Gentle culling clips

Use culling clips that lock but don't pinch hard. Never use clips that pierce the mouth.

Source: B.A.S.S. Keeping Bass Alive, Part 1: The tournament angler's role (PDF) · All bass care tips →

Bull Shoals Dam today

Not generating now · 1,040 cfs (USACE, 11:00 AM CT, Sun Nov 8)

Generation affects the river below the dam more than the lake. Hourly plans, river gauges and wading safety are on the White River below Bull Shoals page and the dam release schedules.

Lake fish ID: bass, crappie, walleye and more →