Yellow Bass in Lake Conway

Attachment 145947

This is how yellow bass get into Lake Conway. We had to open all 15 spillway gates this week to let the 5+ inches of rain out. Also the Arkansas River had Palarm Creek backed up to the dam. There was no elevation loss from the lake to the creek. When this happens, yellow bass and other fish follow the flow up into the lake.

Hope them silver carp dont get in there

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Originally Posted by arkansasbowhunter

Hope them silver carp dont get in there

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Good point. Sounds like another good reason for a spillway.

Matt if there no elevation why would you need to open gates? If the river is equal or more than the lake height, it make no sense to have the open. :dono But I'm not the sharpest pencil

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Originally Posted by Gindog

Matt if there no elevation why would you need to open gates? If the river is equal or more than the lake height, it make no sense to have the open. :dono But I'm not the sharpest pencil

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Water is still flowing out of the lake. It is just at a slower rate when the river is backed up. If gates were not opened, it would have flooded houses again. Unfortunately it is a necessity.

Guess that is why Conway is also full of big Flathead Catfish.

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Originally Posted by NIMROD

Guess that is why Conway is also full of big Flathead Catfish.

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I am not sure if Flathead run up the creek into the lake. They might. It would be interesting to see what species do move up into the lake. I think Conway has a lot of big flathead due to ideal habitat in the lake for them. We stocked some around 2005, but i think the lake probably produces plenty on its own.

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Originally Posted by D10

I am not sure if Flathead run up the creek into the lake. They might. It would be interesting to see what species do move up into the lake. I think Conway has a lot of big flathead due to ideal habitat in the lake for them. We stocked some around 2005, but i think the lake probably produces plenty on its own.

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Flatheads and Buffalo move upstream , even more so come Spawning time. That is why hoop nets catch so many in our rivers.

I think the state should pay a dime for every trash fish turned in. LOL I also wonder how many crappie the lake lose's when the gates are open.

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Originally Posted by CrappiePro

I also wonder how many crappie the lake lose's when the gates are open.

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If I had to guess, I would think that a lot of larval fish are lost in the spring time when the gates are open. Also I have seen thousands of fish caught beneath the dam and down the creek, a bunch of crappie too. But out of almost 800 tagged adult crappie in the Lake Conway, not one of them was reported caught in Palarm Creek or the AR River. So I would also guess that once most fish reach a decent size, they are not sucked out of the lake.
:twocents

Fish usually move upstream in high water most of the time.