☰ Menu

🏞️ Lakes (bass) · above Norfork Dam

Norfork Lake Level & Fishing Report Today

Right now: lake level 552.06 ft, 1.69 ft below normal pool (USACE, 11:00 AM CT, Sun Nov 8).

Updated

Trout fishing below Norfork Dam? Norfork Tailwater: generation schedule, river gauge and wading safety →

Current lake level

552.06 ft
1.69 ft below normal pool (553.75 ft, USACE seasonal target)
24-hr change: -0.08 ft · USACE reading 11:00 AM CT, Sun Nov 8 · NWS 7 AM: 552.1 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

73°F surface temp (satellite estimate)Landsat 8, Oct 24 · 15 days old · median of 22,655 open-water pixels, middle half 73–73°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.

💧 Clarity

No clarity reading this week (no USGS turbidity gauge here and no guide note on clarity in the 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)

Norfork Lake

No reports.

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
Reviving a tired bass

Hold it upright in the water, one hand on the tail and one under the belly, and move it gently back and forth so water flows over the gills. Let go when it's ready.

Source: MDC: Fish handling and release guidelines · All bass care tips →

Norfork Dam today

Not generating now · 348 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 Norfork Tailwater page and the dam release schedules.

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