Tommy Zinda, Arkansas and Wisconsin, Fishing Guide Reports & Conditions

FISHING REPORTS:

3/8/10 Well folks, finally some good news at Greers Ferry Lake Arkansas. The past three days of very nice warm weather has brought water temps up from 41 degrees to the high 40s lakewide. Saturday the water temp finally made it to 47 in the far reaches of major feeder arms. Just like magic, the fish followed this warmer water. While fishing the Devils Fork arm Saturday, my boat produced around 20 fish from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm. Really nice large mouth and small mouth bass in the 2 to 3 lb class. For the first time this season, we found walleyes from 17 to 20 inches up this arm. All fish were caught in 8 to 15 feet of water on boulder rock and using larger live shiners. Two rods should be used. One slowly jigging a 1/16 oz Weedless Rickee jig and shiner and the other rod, a slip bobber with a shiner hooked through the dorsal fin to keep it alive. Set the slip bobber only 1 to 2 feet off the bottom to be close to those rocks. If you find two or more fish on a particular rock bar, be sure to fish that bar for up to an hour. Don't be impatient. These particular bars are constantly being replaced by new fish movement upstream now. Be satisfied with two or three nice fish per hour. All walleyes are still in prespawn, with no males milting yet and females fat with eggs. Even the bass have been hitting very light, so 6 to 10 lb mono line and light tackle is a must. White bass simply are not present yet in these upper reaches of the feeder arms. Only one white bass was boated by us in three days of fishing the shallow arms. Expect the action to simply improve day by day now as this warmer weather appears to be here to stay. Also, the warm rain predicted for the next couple of days will help warm that water. Remember, if you're serious about boating fish, live bait will out produce those artificials 3 to 1. I'll be back in a day or two to report our progress and info. Good Fishin'
Tommy Zinda, www.tommysfishingadventures.com <tadpole@g2a.net>
- Monday, March 08, 2010 at 04:57:59 (PST)

3/3/10 Well folks, just an update to let you know there is very little change in either the conditions or the angling success yet in this very late bite on Greers Ferry Lake Arkansas. Yesterday, we again checked out our favorite early "eye" run in the far reaches of Johnson Hole. Perfect conditions exist there. Water levels, current, water clarity all are goes. Water temp remains the culprit. Still only 42 degrees. Very cold air temps at 34 degrees greeted us at 7:00 am and we, of course, were the only boat out in this two mile stretch of the river arm. One nice large mouth bass in the 3 lb class was boated, but this was it. We even had snow flurries present. This past Sunday was a very nice day and we had lots of company in the Hole. Bank fishermen were present along with the boat fishermen. My long time buddy, Dave Sommers from Big Bend Wisconsin, joined Pat and I on our outing. Again, we did not skunk in the Hole with Dave boating a nice small mouth and real nice large mouth in the 5 lb range, but no eyes. Local expert eye main, Scott Hink, reported to me he did pop a nice 19+1/14 inch eye previous to our getting on the water and one slot eye on Saturday. Those were the only fish I know of caught in any of the boats there at all. Since it was a nice day we continued down South Fork to check out Blackman's Bottom and Chimney Rock areas. The success was not much better. However, as soon as water temps hit 47 degrees, increased activity was seen. At that water temp we began to mark some shad forage and, of course, finally some game fish with them. One nice small mouth, one nice Kentucky, and a few large mouth bass in the 2 to 3 lb class were caught. No eyes. The encouraging thing was how hard and aggressively the large mouth hit. Starting today, the weatherman promises a string of very spring like days with 50s and even upper 60s. This should turn the tide in this tough bite. Watch your water temps very carefully from this point on. 47 degrees will be the magic point. Any lower than that, forget that area. We are not planning on checking out any of the far reaches of South, Middle, of Devils Fork for a day or two until they warm up. Smaller mid lake minor arms will be our target for at least two days now, as main lake temps are higher. I'll be back with an up to the minute update. See ya next report. Good Fishin'
Tommy Zinda, www.tommysfishingadventures.com <tadpole@g2a.ne>
- Wednesday, March 03, 2010 at 04:30:48 (PST)

2/24/10 Greetings from Greers Ferry Lake Arkansas. Political junkies continue to argue about the existence of global warming. I can tell you one thing, old Ma Nature certainly has her affect on our sport this year. Even the old timers will tell you this has been one of the coldest winters in decades here. Surface water temps remain the lowest I can remember here in over ten years. 35 to 38 degree water temps up main feeder arms, including up to one inch of solid ice was seen in Devils Fork arm most of February. Main lake water temps held in the low 40s. This has pushed back all seasonal fish movements at least three weeks. March will be a month where we will have to pay more attention to water temps than seasonal patterns. All game fish are prepared for their spring spawning activities. They are heavily laden with eggs, ready to move into spawning areas. These fish wall hold in the deep holes of 40 to 60 feet and will not move up major or minor feeder arms until water temps hit 47 degrees. For the first two weeks of March, continue to fish your February patterns in deep water. Slow presentations with live minnows or smaller jigging spoons to reach the 50 foot depths will be necessary. All species of fish from crappie to cat fish will be found in these areas before they disperse with warmer water temps. Finding shad forage is the key. As the different species begin moving into shallower water, the forage will change, including craw fish, small bream, and other species of shallow water minnows. Once you see water temps of 47 to 55 degrees, regular spring fishing methods will be the norm. All three major feeder arms here on Greers Ferry will be prime areas for success. All three arms are miles from mouth to source. Locating fish requires moving constantly until contacted. The method I like is to troll hard minnow lures like Rapala Husky Jerks, X Raps, or Smithwick Rattling Rogues. These lures run about four feet deep. When trolling the deeper portions of these arms, use medium runners like Shad Raps or Walleye Divers. Trolling is best running against the current in these arms at .08 to 1 mph. Against the current is important, in that you get maximum action on your lure at the slowest possible speed. Spring fish will not chase a lure running at 2 or 3 mph. Only four stroke motors will idle low enough to accomplish this task. When you pop a fish or two in a certain spot, stop and finesse this area very carefully with your live bait methods. Once you have trolled the complete arm to very shallow water begin your finesse fishing drifting with the current down stream. You will find active fish in very specific holding areas along the way down these arms. A certain big rock, a fallen tree, even a deeper hole in that arm. If more than three fish are found in that hot spot, spend up to an hour anchoring that very specific spot. Different schools of fish will use that resting spot on their movement up stream. The further you continue up stream, the more you change colors and minnow choices. In the deeper areas of these arms, golden shiners will almost exclusively catch you fish as they most closely resemble the shad forage. Less shad forage is found up stream in 3 to 10 feet of water. In these areas, other species of forage minnows, including small bream or craw fish, become the main forage for game fish. For these areas I like to use a shiner on a 1/16 or 1/8 oz jig and a Black Salty minnow on a slip bobber. Hook the Black Salty minnow under the dorsal fin to keep it lively. The Black Salty resembles a bream or other minnow that are found in shallower water. Game fish, especially walleye will spawn when water temps hit 52 degrees. I expect this to happen much later this year towards the middle to the end of March. When water temps reach this 52 to 55 degree temp, begin to use live night crawlers in addition to your minnows. Crawlers will work best on the craw fish feeders. A very important thing to remember on this lake is to fish the main portions of the lake, too. Spawning of all species including walleye take place on mid lake humps, points, and minor feeder arms. By late March and early April, many of the main feeder arms will empty of game fish and post spawn fish will feed heavily in the main lake. At that time, boulder rock humps, not chunk rock, must be found. If standing timber is found in addition to these boulder rock, you've got a hot spot. Look for 8 to 20 foot humps to produce best. Another very important thing to remember is to use live bait, especially in the spring. Advertisements of lures will claim their products better than live bait. Believe me, finesse methods and live crawlers or minnows will out produce to artificials five to one. As always, I encourage you readers to contact me if you have any other questions on our great lake of Greers Ferry here in the Ozarks. Good Fishin'
Tommy Zinda, www.tommysfishingadventures.com <tadpole@g2a.net>
- Wednesday, February 24, 2010 at 07:01:45 (PST)

2/19/10 Just a quick report as promised on our progress on the walleye spawn here at Greers Ferry Lake Arkansas. The ultra cold weather has certainly put a halt to all action period. We set out yesterday morning to check out the Devils Fork arm, a major feeder arm in the lake and a top spring 'eye spawning area. We launched at the Frontier Canyon landing and had 41 degree water temp. The upper end of the arm is about a two mile ride. The closer we got to the upper end, the colder the water got. We got a huge surprise as we came around a bend in the arm where it narrows down. Solid ice! No kidding! Even the old timers that were here when this reservoir was made way back in 1963 have never seen this in mid February. There was around a full inch of solid ice with water temp at 36 degrees. Even the deeper holes coming into this area were completely void of any fish. No marks on the depth finder at all. The fish simply are not there yet. We didn't even wet a line. We went back to the landing, put up the boat on the trailer to check out Drip Creek on the big south basin, as I knew the water was warmer there. It was. Water temps were 43 degrees, not bad. Upon entering the minor arm, we began to mark shad and some game fish as usual in 55 feet of water. That told me the fish are still staging in the deep water adjacent to these shallow arms. We spent a couple of hours in that area, but only had two light hits on our Weedless Rickee jigs and minnows. By this time, air temps were around 55 degrees and it was beautiful. The fish just weren't hitting. Since this weekend will have decent weather, I'm sure a lot of you will hit the water to get rid of cabin fever. Don't bother with shallow arms. Stick to deeper water on mid lake points. Look for shad forage and fish very slow retrieves. We are a minimum of two weeks behind schedule this year on any spawning movements. Today I will spend our time on mid lake humps and points where water temps will be around 44 degrees due to the sunshine the past two days. Hopefully, we will locate some active fish to report to you. See ya in a day or two. Good Fishin'
Tommy Zinda, www.tommysfishingadventures.com <tadpole@g2a.net>
- Friday, February 19, 2010 at 06:09:43 (PST)

2/18/10 Well folks, finally decent seasonal weather was seen here yesterday at Greers Ferry Lake, Arkansas. In fact, a string of days in the mid fifties are forecasted. Yesterday we fished the far upper reaches of the famous South Fork on Greers Ferry Lake. Probably our best spot for early spawning walleyes. Water temp there was only 38 degrees, too cold yet for any activity. Conditions were perfect. Clear water, normal depths, perfect current, etc. Everything is a go as soon as the water temps come up about five or six degrees into at least the mid 40s. A couple more days of this nice warm sun and maybe some warm rain promised this weekend should turn that trick and bring prespawn fish into this area. As of right now, no fish are present at all in this main feeder arm. Didn't mark any fish or have a bump by trolling my X Raps or jigging the Weedless Rickee jigs and minnows. By the way, for those of you who have inquired or already use the Weedless Rickee jig, they are now available at Goldens Outdoors in Heber Springs or Lott's Bait and Fuel in Fairfield Bay, who also carries #20 grade and brooder shiners year round. As you know, decent sized minnows are impossible to find around our lake until April and even then, only Woody's Bait and Tackle in Choctaw and now Lott's in Fairfield Bay are your sole outlets for decent minnows, your main weapon on game fish on our lake. When water temps hit 55, crawlers will then be king on 'eyes, but continue to use the shiners, too. Live bait used with finesse methods will out produce plastics or artificials five to one. Right now instead of running to the top ends of the main feeder arms, fish the deep holes just adjacent to these arms in 30 to 50 feet of water. That's where shad forage is found, as well as the other species of game fish. Water temps in this deep water are at 42 to 45 degrees right now. Be aware that migrations of fish will move up these arms very quickly as water warms. I will be checking out the feeder arms almost daily now and will have frequent reports here to share info. Today I plan on running up Devils Fork arm to see what's up there. See ya next report. Good Fishin'
Tommy Zinda, www.tommysfishingadventures.com <tadpole@g2a.net>
- Thursday, February 18, 2010 at 04:30:32 (PST)

2/5/10 Greers Ferry Arkansas. Cold weather continues across the Ozarks. This coupled with the rain or in some cases snow, continues to discourage most anglers to get on the water. Water temps are holding at cold temps too. Around 46 on the main lake and in the far reaches of the main feeder arms at 40. White bass and deep hybrids continue to hit fairly well on deeper flats and deep water entering minor feeder arms. For the most part, walleyes are very slow. Wednesday we made a trip up into the far reaches of South Fork, our favorite spot for prespawn walleyes. Conditions were perfect. Nice clean water, 40 degree surface temp, and nice slow current. Everything a go except for the fish. They simply are not there yet in the shallows. I had at least expected a few black bass or white bass, but we didn't even have a bump or mark any fish at all in 4 hours of fishing. I would guess this will change in about two weeks though, as the spawning urge on eyes push these fish up into the moving current areas. If you choose any action at all, stick to the 30 to 60 feet of water just adjacent to shallow water in any feeder arm areas. That's where you will see the shad forage that is so critical in locating game fish. Continue to use finesse methods with slow retrieves in this cold water. Also, stick to areas that have surface temps at least 44 degrees. As soon as we find any fish up feeder arms, I'll let you know. See ya next report. Remember, if you have not entered the Walleye Tourney here, do it now as it begins on Feb 13th at noon. Need an entry form? Just request one tadpole@g2a.net and I will email it to you. Good Fishin'
Tommy Zinda, www.tommysfishingadventures.com <tadpole@g2a.net>
- Friday, February 05, 2010 at 07:01:34 (PST)

2/4/10. I rec'd this inquiry and thought others of you may have interest. As always, if you have any questions, please contact me and I will answer honestly. >>> Hello, My name is Matt. A friend of mine (Seth) referred me to you as some one who might be able to help me pattern some bigger walleyes in Northern Wisconsin. I have been fishing Laura for about 10 years now and I have some basic patterns for smaller walleyes(slip-bobbering, Jigging), this year seems to have one of the best year classes I have seen yet(10"-12"). But I haven't been able to locate/catch decent fish. I was wondering if you could shed a little light on the subject. I also would like to start fishing some different lakes in that area. Probably Star, Ballard, Irving, or Razorback. I appreciate you taking the time to read this. Thanks and have a nice day!! Matt.--- Matt, Good to hear from you. Laura Lake has excellent natural spawning. Thus lots of eyes. Chances are that type of lake will have very few fish over 22 inches due to competition for forage. That's why the no size limit, one over 14 inch is on these types of lakes. On the other hand, those lakes that have 18 inch size limits to keep or at least slot limits like Plum and some others are better lakes to fish for bigger fish. To sum it up, if a lake has a no size limit one over 14 inches, in most cases you will expect smaller fish. There are some exceptions like Big or Little Arbor Vitae where it's tough now to catch fish under 14 inches and lots of 20 to 25 inch fish right now. I would pick lakes like North Twin, Trout, Lake Tomahawk, Flambeau Chain lakes, or Little Trout to fish for big fish. Even some little lakes like Wild Cat will have really good fish. Ballard Lake is probably the best of those you mentioned for a chance on a big fish. At one time before the big freeze out on that lake about 15 years ago, that lake produced many 8 to 10 lb fish. Especially through the ice. After the freeze out, the lake was restocked and aerators installed to ensure no more freeze outs by the DNR. It helped a lot. However, you won't catch the numbers you do like in Laura. The size exempt lakes as a rule will not produce the big ones over 20 inches you are looking for. Hope this helps you. Good Fishin'
Tommy Zinda, www.tommysfishingadventures.com <tadpole@g2a.net>
- Thursday, February 04, 2010 at 08:02:28 (PST)

1/25/10 Hi folks. Good fishing continues with the warmer temps now back in here at Greers Ferry Lake, Arkansas. All week long saw nice catches in our boat. Most days 15 to 40 fish in 4 hours. All on jigs and live shiners. The key is to be in the right areas where shad are present. Find the shad and you have found game fish. With recent rains, upper reaches of main feeder arms are very muddy. Avoid these areas that of course are in the upper basin of the lake. As soon as the water clears up, that's where the fish are biting. The better areas are on the south big basin of the lake which seldom sees muddy water. Minor feeder arms are better choices as less water is entering them than major feeder arms that carry more mud. All fish and shad seem to be in 30 feet of water or more. Water temps are 44 to 47 degrees lakewide. I have heard rumors of some walleyes up main feeder arms shallow already, but don't know if this is true due to that muddy water. However, remember those eyes will begin to move into these shallow waters soon in early February. As I keep reporting, decent minnows are very hard to find here. I was elated to find out there is a newer bait shop in Fairfield Bay that is handling #20 grade and even brooder shiners, in addition to smaller minnows and nightcrawlers. Lott's Bait & Fuel, corner of 330 and New Road, in Fairfield Bay just up the road from Fairfield Bay Marina is the spot to check out. Their phone is 501/884-6200, open daily except Sundays 6 am to 8 pm. Also, they are the main registration spot for the big Greers Ferry Lake World Walleye Classic Tournament this year. I would urge all of you to enter the Classic. It's fun and very inexpensive. Only $25 entry fee and you will for sure get your entry money back with simply the door prizes at the awards banquet. The Classic runs from February 13 noon through March 20 noon, 2010. The tournament dinner is March 21, 2010. Check it out! If you want an entry from, simply email me at tadpole@g2a.net and I will email a form back to you with all the rules and info on it. Well, it's time to hit the water. I'll be back in a couple of days to fill you in our catches. Good Fishin'
Tommy Zinda, www.tommysfishingadventures.com <tadpole@g2a.net>
- Monday, January 25, 2010 at 05:38:10 (PST)

1/16/10 Greers Ferry Lake, Arkansas. Well folks, after three weeks of very cold and, in some cases, record low temps here, we finally are seeing really nice weather. Yesterday saw noon temps approaching 60. These nice temps and calm winds made it a pleasure to be on the water. Water levels remain somewhat high, but no where near what it has been all fall long. Water temps are now at their winter lows of 44 in the main lake. We began the day fishing flats around the Edgemont Bridge area which had been producing fish the past two weeks. Only one white bass was taken here in about 1 + 1/2 hours of fishing. That fish came on a trolled Shad Rap. Nothing on our 20 grade shiners. 15 to 40 feet of water were the depths. We then moved to a few areas we had been doing well in the Mill Creek area and Five Fingers that produced real well before the very cold weather. Again, our normal 15 to 50 feet of water was fished. Again, in about 1 + 1/2 hours of fishing only one large mouth bass around 3 lbs was caught. While in Five Fingers, I noticed lots of shad on the depth finder out much deeper in 60 to 75 feet of water just off the deep drops from 40 feet. We used some jigging spoons, as hybrids have been in those depths lately. No dice. We then went back to our old standby, the Weedless Rickee jig with oversized hooks tipped with 20 grade shiners. Bingo! That was the ticket. Believe it or not, a 1/16 oz jig was used in 70 feet of water. We made long casts and let that minnow sink very slowly. By controlling the boat, it was possible to drag that very small jig and minnow until it hit the 70 foot bottom. This requires patience for sure. Almost immediately my wife Pat got a double, as she uses two rods at a time. That was a picnic with two ten pound hybrids on at once, tangled lines and all. Both were landed after a great battle on the medium light rods and 10 lb test line. For the next two hours we enjoyed steady, not fast action on these tiny jigs and minnows. Mostly big hybrids, but surprisingly some large mouth and small mouth bass in that deep water. As soon as 30 feet of water was reached, the action would stop and we would move again into 60 to 75 feet where action would resume. There were a couple of other boats who came into the area pounding the traditional shore lines for large mouth bass prefishing for the tournament this weekend, but we did not see them catch a fish. No question, those active fish were with the shad out in deeper water. Another impressive thing was how light even the big hybrids hit. Almost felt like bream hits with the light taps on the line. This often happens in that cold water, as all game fish will not smash your offering aggressively. So to sum this up, go light, have patience, and use live bait in deeper water right now to produce. As you know, my main target is walleye, but any species that want to tangle with us is just fine. Especially the nice hybrids. Nice weather is supposed to be with us now for a week, so take advantage of it and enjoy some great winter fishing. There is little competition out there right now. I'll be back with more info in a couple of days for you. See ya next time. Good Fishin'
Tommy Zinda, www.tommysfishingadventures.com <tadpole@g2a.net>
- Saturday, January 16, 2010 at 05:32:30 (PST)

1/7/10 Well folks, the big news on fishing here on Greers Ferry is that there is no news. The very cold weather is keeping even the hardiest of the hardcore off the water. This bitter weather is to continue for the near future at least through next weekend and is the most severe in over 15 years with lows in the single digits, in some areas below zero. Most mid south anglers have never experienced attempting to fish in weather like this. Always remember the danger in braving this cold. Standing and casting should not be done in subfreezing weather. Any water that should happen to get into the boat will turn to ice and can easily cause you to slip and fall into the lake. There probably will be nobody else on the water and if you fall in, it's almost a sure death. Hypothermia with heavy clothing on can occur within minutes. Also, in very cold weather mechanical failures of outboards and wiring is common. Don't depend on cell phone service to get you off the water, as service is nonexistent in many areas of the lake due to canyon walls. In my case, I spend at least 300 days a year normally chasing fish. This year if this continues, I will not hit that number. On the other hand, instead of complaining about cabin fever, you can take the time as I am to go completely through your fishing gear. It's a great time to get all those reels greased, sort and arrange lures, hooks, and other tackle. Even taking the time to read articles, study maps, and use the internet to learn new tactics to make you a better fisherman. So until the daytime temps again are back into the mid 40s or so, have patience. We have tons of good fishing coming up soon and as usual I will be back to try to help you score. Talk to you again soon. Good Fishin'
Tommy Zinda, www.tommysfishingadventures.com <tadpole@g2a.net>
- Thursday, January 07, 2010 at 07:33:21 (PST)

12/15/09 Cold temps have kept most folks from enjoying our favorite sport here in Greers Ferry Arkansas. A few hardy folks have been out with surprisingly pretty good results despite the cold. Water temps now are down to 51 to 53 degrees in the lake and soon will be in the mid 40s where it hits it's low for the winter. The lake level has fallen about 9 feet since I've talked to you. This is good news. Yesterday saw a good day with over 20 fish boated by us. All on live minnows, although we witnessed a couple other anglers popping a few on jigging spoons. The good thing about the live bait is the variety of fish we boated. Kentuckies, large mouth bass, whites, hybrids, drum, blue cat fish, and, yes, 'eyes. All species were together in the same areas in 17 to 30 feet. Move deeper into 45 to 50 feet and only whites and hybrids were in these depths. Nice hybrids, too, in the 6 to 7 lb class. One thing all species had in common: all hit very light and non aggressive. Even the hybrids mouthed the minnows and it was necessary to wait them out before setting the hook. If you set on these fish at the first tug, they would simply rip the minnow off without getting to the jig head. When this occurs, we use the method called "walking the dog". A very light resistance should be put on the fish, just like you do with a dog that isn't sure it wants that bone. If you slightly pull it, he bites a little harder to get that bone and holds onto it. Wait until the fish holds the bait and moves to the side holding that bait. Then, set the hook. Same thing with a slip bobber when a fish is simply pulling the bobber down and releases it. Wait until that bobber goes down and moves to either side for a least 4 to 6 feet. Expect this type of bite throughout the winter months as with the cold water the fish rarely hit aggressively. If you have no patience, you will get skunked a lot with this live bait method. Looks like the cold weather is still with us all week long. So bundle up good before hitting the water. See ya next time. Good Fishin'
Tommy Zinda, www.tommysfishingadventures.com <tadpole@g2a.net>
- Tuesday, December 15, 2009 at 05:30:37 (PST)

12/1/09 Well folks, finally water levels are falling in Greers Ferry Lake, Arkansas. Still 13 feet over normal pool, but at least dropping. So far, this alone has not been enough to alter fish locations, but is flushing muddy water and debris out of feeder arms. The success on catching fish was surprisingly good over the long Thanksgiving weekend. Most anglers reported good catches on whatever species they fish for. The one thing in common for all species was the depth fish were active in. 25 to 45 feet was the ticket. By moving the boat slowly to locate schools of shad, it was just like clock work. You would begin to mark large schools of shad in 50 to 60 feet of water suspended. When you would hit the 40 foot level on points and flats, these shad were ether in the 10 foot to surface level or tight on the bottom, not suspended. Then the action would begin. Those that were shallow were being pushed to the surface by active whites and hybrids. Surfacing could be seen of both shad and the occasional smash on the surface of a hybrid. Birds and loons in that area also were tell tale signs for good action. When the shad were tight on the bottom, you could see bigger fish right with them, which most of the time were black bass and walleye. Sunday was probably our best action day. That day it was dead calm and surfacing could be seen for long distances. As soon as surfacing was seen, active birds converged on that area and you simply moved to that area to enjoy fast action on whites and nice hybrids. That day, my boat never left those areas in search of my walleye. They wore us out. Saturday and Monday were a little different story. We still caught plenty of whites and hybrids, but it was not nonstop action. Therefore we fished the bottom and produced nice large mouth, Kentucky, and some real nice eyes in the slot limit to 26 inches. Fish were caught on both 1/2 oz white spoons and live shiners in my boat. As usual, minnows out produced the spoons 4 to 1 in my boat on all species. The 20 grade shiner matches the size of these shad almost perfectly. The best method was using 8 lb to 12 lb mono with a 1/16 oz lead head on one rod, and a 1/8 oz lead head on a second rod. Make a very slow drift right through those schools of shad simply dragging the jig and shiner combo through them. The 1/8 oz will reach the bottom in 40 feet of water and the 1/16 oz will be in about 20 feet for the suspended fish. The hits, even on the hybrids in the 5 to 10 lb class, were very light. Sometimes they would actually feel like small bass or bream tapping at the bait. If you set too soon, they would simply rip the shiner off without getting to the light jig. This meant waiting until you felt the fish more steadily with the bait to pop them. Once you would get into minor feeder arms in about 30 feet of water, we would use mostly crawlers and switch from the shiner to a small Black Salty minnow for black bass and eyes, as very few whites and hybrids were in these particular areas. The Black Salty is a great minnow for bass and eyes, in that it resembles bream more than the shiners do. It's no secret that big eyes feed a lot on small bream right on the bottom. Water temps are falling now and in the mid 50s. As water temps continue to fall, the very slow retrieve is a must. Expect active fish for the most part to remain in those 30 to 45 foot depths throughout the winter season, except large mouth and occasional small mouth bass which can be found right up in the brush. Now I'm not saying the occasional eyes will not be in the deeper brush, too, but the very slow retrieve necessary to get these eyes, which will be on the bottom, are almost impossible to get at due to hang-ups when using lead heads. Even a weedless jig like my favorite Weedless Rickee jig will get hung up almost every cast. Oh, by the way, for me, the north portion of the lake is where I've been spending the bulk of my time. Higden Bay, Mill Creek, Five Fingers, Piney Point, and even Point 14 is where you will see by boat these days. Colder weather is coming in for the remainder of the week. Don't let that scare you off. Simply put on the heavy deer hunting clothes and get on the water. There is little competition out there. Lots of fun can be had if you shop around to find these active fish. Once found, spend a lot of time in that area and don't run and gun. Hope this info helps So Come On, Catch the Good Life With Us in the Beautiful Ozarks. Good Fishin'
Tommy Zinda, www.tommysfishingadventures.com <tadpole@g2a.net>
- Tuesday, December 01, 2009 at 04:47:34 (PST)

11/25/09 On this long Thanksgiving weekend, many of you will be spending a day or two on this great lake of Greers Ferry. Expect only moderate action with little fast action. The high water has given large mouth bass a huge amount of cover to relate to in the brush along the shore lines. Getting down to them is difficult, as hang ups will drive you crazy. Twitching floating crank baits over the top of this brush will produce some large mouths, but they must be aggressively feeding on shad to do this on the surface. Since the vast bulk of the shad are deeper, out in 30 to 50 feet of water, you will do much better on flats away from the brush. Most fishermen prefer to move along shore lines casting these shore lines, throwing at visible structure. However, your best bet is to move slowly in these deeper flats looking for schools of shad. Once you find these schools which normally will be suspended at 30 to 50 feet, look for game fish on your depth finders just below these bait fish. Use white spoons or better yet, #20 grade or bigger shiners on 1/8 oz jig heads around those shad slowly. A couple of days ago, we caught nine different species in a small area of only 500 yards in 40 feet of water where there was huge schools of shad. That particular day, there was a lot of surfacing in that area by Higden Bay to lead us to that particular spot. Watch for this telltale activity. By the way, decent size shiners are very hard to find in any local bait shops here and will be until March. So bring your live shiners along with you if you can find them elsewhere. I make regular trips down to Lonoke to Andersons Minnow Farm to get mine during this period and keep them under aeration at my house. Night crawlers will be your best second choice on live bait and action has been good on them right now with the water temps now in the high 50s. However, very soon, the water temps will be into the low 50s to mid 40s. Then crawlers fall off drastically and minnows are the way to go for good action. I'm a firm believer in live bait over artificials. Live bait will out produce plastics or artificials 3 to 1 if you're serious about your fishing. Concentrate your efforts on the upper part of the lake, from the Narrows north, with the exception of Salt Creek area, where there has been consistent action. Hope you do well and see ya on the next report. Come on, Catch the Good Life with us in the Beautiful Ozarks!! Good Fishin'
Tommy Zinda, www.tommysfishingadventures.com <tadpole@g2a.net>
- Wednesday, November 25, 2009 at 04:55:23 (PST)

11/19/09 Well folks, it's time for a prediction of December's fishing here on Greers Ferry Lake. As usual, weather conditions will play a dominant role. As you know, we went through a record wet October which raised water levels 15 feet over normal pools. This high water didn't budge the whole month of November and remains high entering December. This has made consistent fishing success a bit tough. The pattern has been from dawn to about 8:00 am, all species seem to be relatively shallow and surfacing on shad in flats of bays like Hurricane or Higden Bays in 10 to 25 feet. After 8:00, the shad forage backs out in 35 to 50 feet of water and so do the game fish. All species can be taken at the same time from hybrids to walleye in the early morning outings. I expect this pattern to continue into December. Since all species are feeding in these same areas, I've been prepared by having different rigs set up for specific species. All rods are set up with 8 lb to 12 lb mono line and medium light to medium action spinning rods. A white 1/2 oz jigging spoon or 1 oz Cicada silver spoon is ready if whites or hybrids are chasing shad on the surface. In these clean bottom bays, I've been casting them out over the surfacing fish and pumping them back to the boat instead of vertically jigging them. This way, you cove a lot more water as these schools of shad are constantly on the move. While doing this, I am constantly dragging a 1/8 oz Weedless Rickee jig with a whole crawler on the bottom for walleye and black bass. Also, it's a good idea to use a slip bobber and #20 grade medium live shiner set about 2 feet off bottom for these eyes and bass. Every so often you will hit some brush or limbs that have been blown into these bays by storms. If you find this, you have a hot spot and that should be fished thoroughly. These limbs offer shad protection from the predators. At times, in line spinners will out produce the jigging spoons for those hybrids. These are used with a steady medium retrieve, but let them fall to at least 10 feet before starting your retrieve. My favorites are Mepps #3, #4, or #5 Aglias in white with silver blades. Mepps, because they never fail to trip and spin at all times. These Mepps will not only pop whites and hybrids, but will produce black bass or even eyes. By the way, rest assured I recommend a specific lure or bait because I believe in them. No on pays me to recommend that particular lure. In mid morning, it's time to move into deeper water. Move out to 30 to 50 feet off points or deep brush edges. Find schools of shad on your depth finder. Suspended game fish normally mean whites and hybrids, so vertical jigging of these white spoons or the slip bobbers set at those depths with the live shiners should be used. If shad are just off bottom and the game fish are with them that normally means black bass or walleyes and the weedless jig with a live crawler should be used. Weedless jigs because these fish will be closely related to deep brush or rock on these points. As water temperatures continue to fall throughout December and the rest of the winter, use your lures and other rigs slower and slower to match the fish's metabolism as they do not want to chase a fast moving lure. Once lake levels begin to fall, if they do so in December, simply move with the bait fish and use the same methods. The major feeder arms are still dirty, but will clear up as water recedes from the lake. When this occurs, there will be action in the deeper holes of these arms, too. Winter fishing is generally believed to be poor. Don't believe this. Slow down as the water cools into the 40s and use finesse methods, not run and gun methods and you will produce fish every outing. Hey, Come On Catch the Good Life With Us in the Beautiful Ozarks!! Good Fishin'
Tommy Zinda, www.tommysfishingadventures.com <tadpole@g2a.net>
- Thursday, November 19, 2009 at 04:50:17 (PST)

11/13/09, Greers Ferry Lake, Arkansas, Today folks, let's talk about a theory or some may call it a fishing myth. Or is it only a myth? Major and minor fish feeding times and moon phases. Many dispel this effect of moon phases. I have followed this throughout my 33 years of professional guiding and I am a believer. The moon phase affects all liquids including tides in the oceans. I always pay attention to dark of the moon or new moon phases and find those days the best daytime bites. The dark of the moon will occur on the 16th this month and I look forward to a good bite this weekend and all of next week. Also, the major feeding period is around 8:00 am these days. It's been like clock work this past week with a lot of surfacing and action very early in the morning. Then by 10:00 am, it's pretty much over for the day. Yesterday we enjoyed the best bite of November so far. A great mixed stringer of large mouth, Kentuckies, walleye, white bass, and several real nice hybrids were taken in my boat. All between 7:00 am and 9:30 am in 12 to 35 feet of water in one bay, only covering a distance of around 500 to 700 yards. These fish were taken on pearl white 1/2 oz jigging spoons, Cicada spoons, jigs and crawlers, and jigs and minnows. In other words, they hit just about anything we threw at them. Now, granted, they didn't hit every cast and it was necessary to stick to that area for action. The run and gun boys who pop into an area and cast only 10 minutes and move on did not do well. Several of them entered the bay, spent a short time, and nervously moved out. That was a mistake. The key has been with this high water was to move into a bay with a large flats and a relatively clean bottom. Move around in this flats until you find some brush or limbs of trees that have blown into the lake by storms. Bait fish are congregated around these scattered limbs and so are the game fish. If you snag into one of these limbs, stick around that area and you will pick off a couple of predator fish with patience. So far, November has been a classic time to prove the importance of moon phases and fish feeding periods. This theory will work, barring any big weather pattern changes. November so far has been constant weather: calm, warm, and sunny. Just what the doctor ordered. No major storms. A sudden severe weather change of severe cold front will totally mess up this moon phase thing. So, to sum this up, make sure you get out on the water this weekend. It should be a good one for you if you practice patience and pay attention to the presence of shad in the cove flats. We will be out on the water every day barring no heavy rains and I'll let you know how we fare. Good luck and catch the good life with us in the beautiful Ozarks. Good Fishin'
Tommy Zinda, www.tommysfishingadventures.com <tadpole@g2a.net>
- Friday, November 13, 2009 at 03:39:25 (PST)

9/14/09 Sorry it's been so long since I talked to you. Been very busy on the water every day. We have been with absolutely no rain for a length of 16 days here. Every day has been picture perfect weather with calm winds, sun, and temps in the high 70s and low 80s. Water temps are back into the 70s for the first time since late June. You would assume the fishing was as hot as the weather, right? Wrong! We have really been working for our fish for the entire period. No wind, bright sun, and a full moon phase was the culprit. Now, this didn't mean we caught no fish. Good moderate stringers of all species were taken daily. But very light hits were had and it required a lot of patience and constantly moving to pick off a couple of the most active fish on a spot was the way to go. For most of this period crawlers were a must on 1/32 oz or 1/16 oz Weedless Rickee jigs worked on exact weed edges. However, the past 3 days or so, the bite was better on fat head minnows. Take both crawlers and minnows with you. The past 3 days have seen 35 to 50 walleyes boated by my clients, as well as really nice crappies and perch. Also some nice pike. For some reason, the bass are quiet right now after a tremendous bite all summer. If jumbo perch are your target along with the eyes, use crawlers. If you want to score some great crappies with your eyes, use the minnows. Plastics on crappies are not working at all. They want real meat. As you all know, I'm very partial to the Willow and that's been my main target. There has been no increase in water depth, so continue your extreme caution. If you're a hot dog, you will pay dearly with broken props and worse, a blown lower unit. Other than the Willow, you always can count on the beautiful Flambeau Chain for action. Lots of bass there, as well as pan fish. Yup, you will pop eyes too, but as usual, very few over the legal 18 inches. Both Arbor Vitaes are dead seas, so don't bother with them. Squirrel has shown some improvement. The normal fall bit has not started yet, but the usual smaller eyes are starting on the mud, adjacent to the deep rocks. It's now time to begin on Minocqua and Kawagasaga Lakes, too. The crowds are gone and the weed beds are lush and beautiful. A couple of our guide staff are now taking some nice keeper eyes there now and of course some nice bass. This year I'm heading to Arkansas in mid October rather than November, but will let you know until then about progress to the fall fishing. For now stick to summer fishing patterns until that water temp falls into the 50s. This will happen quickly this year. This summerlike weather will switch off real fast one of these days and fall turnover will happen very quickly. In the meantime, get out the and enjoy this great weather on the lake and see ya soon. Good Fishin' Tommy Zinda
Tommy Zinda, www.tommysfishingadventures.com <tadpole@g2a.net>
- Monday, September 14, 2009 at 05:21:38 (PDT)