Navigation conditions are almost near normal elevation.

Drink plenty of water while on the lake during this time of year. Heat stroke and heat exhaustion can sneak up on you while getting double sun intake from the sky and reflection off the water!

As of Monday 29 June, Largemouth Bass are fair to good and improving, ranging 2-5 pounds each and seasonal patterns for summer have kicked in. The Bass continue stacking horizontally, now that the water levels have more recently stablized. Surface temps are in the mid to upper 80 range. Lures over the past few weeks producing catches on Millwood include 5" Bass Assassin Shads, Twitch Assassins, salty Rat Tails, Buzzbaits , Texas rigged worms, spinnerbaits, and Cordell Crazy Shads. Best bite still remains early thru mid-morning.

As of USACE update on Monday 29 June, lake level is now 4.2 inches above normal pool and rising, with decreased current in Little River. Main lake and Little River's water surface temps are currently ranging from approx 82ºF early, to 88ºF later, depending of course, on location and time of day. Lake level on Millwood as of Monday 29 June is 259.55 feet. Normal consv. pool is 259.20 feet. USACE has decreased the discharge, for a total discharge of 389CFS (cubic feet/ second) with only 1 tainer gates open at 1 foot. Tailwater levels are 225.85 feet on Monday 29 June. Clarity slightly improved on main lake to approx 8-12 inches and approx 3-5 inches in Little River w/ the decrease of current. The oxbows clarity ranging approx 24-48" visibility depending on location. Clarity and visibility can change dramatically on Millwood in just a few hours with high winds.

Millwood's next 4' drawdown is currently scheduled to begin 5 July 2010 to control unwanted aquatic vegetation, make scheduled repairs and complete other projects, such as shoreline improvements, Ranger Tony Porter said. It will take approximately 14 days and lower the water level to 255.2 feet, approximately 4 feet below normal and the project will last until 11 February 2011, when the lake will be filled to 261.2 feet, which is 2 feet above normal and return to normal elevation of 259.2 feet after two months, or approx 11 April 2011.

To volunteer for one of the cleanup dates or ramp and USACE park information, contact Brooke Kervin at the Millwood Tri-Lakes Project Office.

To receive updates or volunteer, call the Corps’ toll-free information line at 888-697-9830.

The Details:

Largemouth Bass: The best bite over the past several weeks is definitely daybreak to around 10am due to increase in heat/surface temps after 10am. Numbers of bass from 3-5 pounds are improving over the past week, now that the lake level has stabilized recently.

Upriver, Largemouths are in normal summer patterns. Fish are beginning to return to a shallow, (early and late) reaction bite, around vegetation such as coontail, hydrilla, pondweed, and lily pads. Buzzbaits, Cordell Crazy Shads, Spit'n Images, Yum BuzzFrogs, Twitch Assassins, Bass Assassin Shads in salt and pepper silver phantom, and gold pepper shiner colors, and other surface lures are beginning to draw reactions again for those fish; Carolina rigged lizards, Southern Pro 4" magnum tubes, and 10" Power worms in blue fleck or peanut butter / jelly, and Fat Free Shad crankbaits are the best bites for the fish suspending out further between the 8-14 foot thermocline areas. Jigging Cordell hammered spoons were working late last week for fish suspended in standing timber in the 10-12 foot depths on trees.

Rat-L-Traps in Millwood Magic, Firetiger, and Cajun Craw colors are working well in tandem with the crankbait bite, around new pondweed grass, creek channel mouths, standing timber, and stumps as long as you remain in the creek channel, or deeper drop sections of the oxbows and river. Jigs in Texas craw or black / blue colors, are catching bass on cypress trees in deeper sections of the creek channels. Add rattles to your jigs for sound attraction in the off-colored or stained water clarity. Siefert's Buzz Baits are working to get reactions in Casper Ghost, Avocado, or Midnight Sparkle colors.

The best water clarity is being found upriver, although the main lake is improving daily. Slow moving, or dead sticking Bass Assassins Shads, Cordell Red Fins, Twitch Assassins, and skipping/hopping the Yum BuzzFrogs around pads, are randomly taking fish again early and late. Work flats and drops, or creek channels, near fresh lily pads, hydrilla, and pondweed, where the vegetation is growing in close proximity to stumps. Texas rigged 6" lizards in pumpkinseed/chartreuse tail, redbug, or grasshopper colors and magnum 8" lizards in junebug are taking some bass in creek channels around live cypress trees and stumps. Swim baits are beginning to work for suspended bass around drop offs next to stumps.

White Bass: continue schooling in Horseshoe and McGuire oxbows over the past week, early morning.

Crappie: are fair to good, and improving with the more stable water level, improved clarity and reduced current, up to 2.5 pounds over planted brush in 12-16 feet, on live shiners, jigs, smoke grubs, and vertical jigging tiny (1/32) Beetle Spins in white/red dot or Catalpa colors.

Longnose Gar: continue to roam shallow in good numbers for bow fishermen. We continue seeing large fish shallow, and in groups of 4-8 roaming flats, making perfect opportunities for bowfishermen. Try back of creeks and oxbows up Little River for some really big gar over the next couple weeks. McGuire had several schools of gar in the 40-60 pound range surfacing over 18-22 feet depths close and adjacent to flats.

Bluegill and Bream: continue biting very well around Millwood State Park , boat docks, and also up Little River at Jack's Isle off the bank on crickets, red worms, and grubs.

Cats: Channel Cats continually bite well over the past week with the increase of current in Little River. That may change later this week with the reduced current. Blues and Channel cats are biting best on chicken livers, Charlie, red night crawlers, by either anchoring and tight-lining, or trot-lines, along Little River and up river in back of Mud Lake on yo-yo's hung from cypress trees in the oxbows over 9-15 feet depths.

}><(((º> Millwood Lake Level & Little River Conditions Report <º)))><{

Navigation conditions are almost near normal elevation.

Drink plenty of water while on the lake during this time of year. Heat stroke and heat exhaustion can sneak up on you while getting double sun intake from the sky and reflection off the water!

As of USACE update on Monday 29 June, lake level is now 4.2 inches above normal pool and rising, with decreased current in Little River. Main lake and Little River's water surface temps are currently ranging from approx 82ºF early, to 88ºF later, depending of course, on location and time of day. Lake level on Millwood as of Monday 29 June is 259.55 feet. Normal consv. pool is 259.20 feet. USACE has decreased the discharge, for a total discharge of 389CFS (cubic feet/ second) with only 1 tainer gates open at 1 foot. Tailwater levels are 225.85 feet on Monday 29 June. Clarity slightly improved on main lake to approx 8-12 inches and approx 3-5 inches in Little River w/ the decrease of current. The oxbows clarity ranging approx 24-48" visibility depending on location. Clarity and visibility can change dramatically on Millwood in just a few hours with high winds.

Millwood's next 4' drawdown is currently scheduled to begin 5 July 2010 to control unwanted aquatic vegetation, make scheduled repairs and complete other projects, such as shoreline improvements, Ranger Tony Porter said. It will take approximately 14 days and lower the water level to 255.2 feet, approximately 4 feet below normal and the project will last until 11 February 2011, when the lake will be filled to 261.2 feet, which is 2 feet above normal and return to normal elevation of 259.2 feet after two months, or approx 11 April 2011.

To volunteer for one of the cleanup dates or ramp and USACE park information, contact Brooke Kervin at the Millwood Tri-Lakes Project Office.

To receive updates or volunteer, call the Corps’ toll-free information line at 888-697-9830.

Wear your Life Jacket and kill switch!! If you are suddenly or unxpectedly thrown from your boat, it could be your only chance of survival. Use caution navigating Little River in low light conditions, SLOW DOWN, and pass friendly to other boaters! As always, careful watch for any random floaters and debris in Little River's current, and wearing your PFD and kill switch is a requirement!!

Don't forget, be courteous, and respect the other guy's right to use the lake too. Release those big bass to spawn and fight again, and take home those little 16"ers to fry up! Use caution in low light conditions, and wear your flotation device! If you are suddenly thrown from your boat, or knocked unconscious, your life preserver can potentially be your only hope to survive.

Visit us on the web for the most current Millwood Lake fishing report, updated weekly. See some great catch and release photos, sponsor links, tons of great information and resources on the lake available to you, along with excellent related direct links to Arkansas' State Parks, Arkansas Game and Fish Commission's Black Bass Program, The US Army Corps of Engineers, and Arkansas.com.

And As Always,


Mike

Thank you for your interest in
Millwood Lake Guide Service ~ Arkansas' Best Bass Fishing!
Quality Catch & Release Bass Fishing!
Huge Crappie to Take Home!

Mike Siefert
Owner/Operator
www.MillwoodGuideService.com
P.O.Box 4957
Texarkana, AR/TX/USA 75505-4957
Come see what all the excitement is about!
20+ years in the guide business on Millwood Lake, since 1990!


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