FishinJack

I know I'm way too late to chime in, but I'm a fishing guide and I run Jack's Guide Service here at the Lake. Check me out at www.FishingLakeoftheOzarks.com. I run the guide service out of TanTarA resort which is the largest resort here on the Lake. I am the best, busiest, and most versatile guide at Lake of the Ozarks. Please if anyone has any questions give me a call and I can explain in more detail. 573 434 2570

Lake of the Ozarks State Park has 100's of camp sites. They're Great I've stayed there. Right on the water too! you can fish 24/7 if you wanted to. It's way up the Glaize arm, real shallow water for the most part. PB1 boat ramp, lots of deer and turkey. It's out hwy 42. you won't be disappointed! The lake is so big, people think they know everything about it but it's a lot bigger than you think. Jack's Guide Service

Locating Winter Time Crappie on Lake of the Ozarks You can catch crappie year round on Lake of the Ozarks, even in the dead of winter. I generally try to fish 3-4 days a week during the winter months. I choose the more mild days with a day time high above freezing hopefully with a tolerable to light wind. Our average high in the dead of winter is 41 degrees and water temps usually bottom out around 38. I dress appropriately to stay warm enough and usually don’t start too early in the morning. Plus you’ll warm up just fine when you get on a good run of big crappie, one after another. Winter time crappie fishing can actually be really easy once you find a pile of them, but finding them is the hard part. I’m going to talk a little bit about where I go, what I look for and other things that might help you find fish better this time of year. In December you’ll start seeing the really big schools of crappie down deep. I target the deepest brushpiles I know of in the winter in search of large schools of primarily white crappie on the main lake or near the main lake. Anywhere from the Hurricane Deck Bridge down to the Toll Bridge works best for me for this pattern. Finding these brushpiles is the hard part. Once you find them they will work for you for a long time, many times day after day, year after year. Time on the water and a good fish finder will help you find these submerged trees. Troll around looking for them and when you see something down there I will tie on a heavy bass jig and fan cast around to feel where exactly it is on the bottom. I like the sunny days over cloudy days because you want the crappie to hold close to their brushpiles. On cloudy days they tend to roam more and it’s better to be more aggressive in your approach by covering more water. The sun will keep crappie home and once you find a home you will be able to vertically fish slowly right over top of them. I use Humminbird electronics and Side Imaging as my under water eyes to see what is going on down there. Good electronics will help you find not only the brushpiles but also whether or not fish are using them right now. The mapping system is also a must because it will remember your waypoints and bring you right back to the exact spots with ease. Plus you can easily see if shad are in the area, which is always an important factor in catching fish. I slowly drive around areas that are in between 20 and 40 feet deep preferably at the mouths of coves looking for brush on my graph. Docks with brush are fine but they are not an important factor for this pattern. Brush by itself is often times better than finding just a dock loaded up with brush. Also looking along the main lake is just fine as long as the depth is in between 20 to 35 feet. My best spot I know of sits in 28 feet of water with parts of it coming up to 18 feet below the surface. It doesn’t even really need to be brush either; I have found other objects in the water that work just as well. One of my favorite honey holes is a sunken dock from the ice storm several years ago. You can also make your own sweet spots by putting in your own trees. Nowadays, I find these spots with my electronics. I use 3/32 oz jig heads which are slightly heavier than what most people use to help me get down there quicker. I don’t like 1/8 oz jigs because they get hung up too much when I’m fishing deep brush. 1/16 oz heads are fine but take too long to get deep and you don’t have the same feel on your bait. I do not add any extra action or jigging to the lures. A simple steady slow retrieve with an occasional pause and hold is all that is needed in the coldest water. I use Johnson tubes and some of the Berkley tubes. I almost always tip my baits with a crappie nibble. On the lower end of the lake (toll bridge to Bagnel Dam) the Black crappie population is greater and they act a lot different than the white crappie. Black crappie suspend much more in the winter than white crappie. They utilize shade under docks and also will often times be only 3-13 feet down. Black crappie will run bigger and heavier than white crappie which is what the majority of crappie tournament fisherman are looking for. They have much thicker backs and are more muscular on average. They also roam around much more, unlike the white crappie who are more like homebodies. On the sunny days they school up in large groups under the darkest shade on a dock. Often times the dock might have some wind on it, or be located on a point with some relatively deep water around it. Humminbird side imaging units are critical to quickly find which docks are holding fish. I’ll downsize my side range to 60 feet so I can get a real good look under the docks and keep moving until I find a group of them. They follow baitfish more and are more nomadic, solely depending on the shad movements. Finding good docks with ample shade is pretty easy, even finding groups of fish in the winter is pretty easy. The hard part is finding docks that have fish that are feeding and have easy access points to reach the fish under the docks. Open boat slips with shade are always nice but sometimes you need to be more creative to reach the fish if your fish finder is telling you that there are fish under the dock. Dock shooting and skipping lures under ropes, over cross bars and everywhere takes practice, however it’s not as difficult as some people think it is that have never tried it. Be careful the docks are privately owned and be courteous to the dock owners. Dock shooting is the type of cast that you purposely bend back your rod to sling shot your bait into a tight spot. It opens up new casting spots an ordinary cast or pitch could not make. If you’ve never tried much dock shooting before there are two ways to hold onto the jig, either the jig head or the bend of the hook. For beginners I recommend the bend of the hook because you are less likely to hook your self. On the lower end of the lake, primarily fishing for black crappie on the windy or cloudy days, you need to look for steep rocky banks. Utilize the wind but don’t let it blow you around too much. You still need to be able to fish slowly as you ease along a spot. Scattered brush is nice to find on the windy rocky banks and can be little hot spots. I also look for baitfish in the area before I chose a spot. Rocky banks, bluffs, or points can all be productive as this pattern is more unpredictable. For this pattern the fish are shallower, more loosely grouped, and on average larger in size and have some tendencies more like a bass. As far as equipment goes I really like the Fenwick River Runner series of rods for all my crappie fishing. The 6’8’’ light action is a very sensitive and lightweight rod. It balances perfectly with a Pflueger President reel. This combo is my go to set up for all my crappie fishing year round. Generally speaking I use 6lb Stren Gold monofilament fishing line. It is very strong and a very limp line. Limp line is very important. I have used this line for a while now and really love it. We can horse fish in and we don’t have to worry about it breaking. There are times when I will downsize to a moss colored Stren Magnathin in 4lb in the very clearest of water on the lower end of the lake. The new Fireline Nanofil is another good line for shooting docks. It helps you get the maximum amount of distance under the dock. I hear some people say “I use crappie nibbles but only when it’s tough”. I don’t understand this way of thinking because I always want to catch as many fish as possible and crappie nibbles will make a big difference particularly on this lake. When you find some crappie, slow down let that crappie ease up and smell your bait. Fishing slowly is a must when talking about winter time crappie fishing. Spend some time finding the fish with your electronics. Find out if they are primarily black or white crappie. Put together a plan and fill your limit. If you have some questions give me a call or book a trip. Hiring a good guide is the best way to really to learn a new technique or pattern. Good fishing guides are more than just good fisherman, we're fishing teachers. www.FishingLakeoftheOzarks.com

I'm selling this on Ebay and figured some of you guys might be interested. It's for the Terrova style motors. Free Shipping. Starting bid of only $280, I paid over $400. I Pilot is almost new, only used a few times. Small scuff mark that the picture should show. Sold with the remote, box and paperwork that came from Minn Kota. Easy installation with a few screws and a screwdriver. GPS system works fine, remote works fine, everything is in working order, like new. Spot Lock holds you to your favorite fishing spots, save a track will repeat tracks just as advertised. Be anywhere in the boat and still have control from the remote control. Includes remote lanyard. http://www.ebay.com/itm/321060252825?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

Winter Time Right now is really a nice time to get on the water. I love getting out there in the winter for a couple reasons: you have the lake to yourself (almost) and it's a unique challenge to locate and catch a bunch of fish this time of the year more than any other time. The difficulties and then the lessons you learn now tend to help you in the future more than most times of the year. Water temps are just about as cold as they are going to get and I know most people are just going to wait till spring, but not me. I know it's cold but if you can pick the nice days and dress warm it's not that bad. Here in Missouri our average high right now is 42 degrees in the month of January, now it gets colder than that plenty of days but that's the average. I generally don't fish too much below 32 degrees (anymore) and there are plenty of days during the week when you can look at the 7 day forecast and choose the warmest days that are above the average. Make sure you pay attention to the fore-casted wind when deciding what clothes you are going to wear. North winds compared to south with make a big difference along with the strength. Wind is a major factor in comfort all year but even more important in the extreme months. Strong winds can go right through some inferior clothing and make even the short boat drives unbearable. Layers are always important factor in addition the expensive, high quality rain suits for your outer layer are worth it when they keep you warm. Brands like Bass Pro Shops 100mph suit, Pro Qualifier, Cabela's Guide Wear and others have recently become on the market that do a good job. Skin left exposed is going to make you uncomfortable and eventually wear you down. When it comes to my hands I prefer not to wear gloves unless my hands become too uncomfortable then I like the cheap brown cotton (Jersey's) gloves. They can absorb moisture and you'll have to keep several pairs handy to exchange them for any rainy days on the water. They are cheap so buy a big pack for 10 bucks and you'll be set for several years. You can also easily modify them to be fingerless, or thumb-less with a simple pair of scissors. Now for driving the boat on the coldest days I keep a pair of extra thick ski gloves near by. To fish with these would be a joke but for driving, they are perfect. The extra thick insulation and warmth is nice because they allow my hands to almost catch up to normal temperature during runs to our next spot. As far as keeping your feet warm I actually like just regular tennis shoes. I have found that boots actually make my feet colder and they are very cumbersome in the boat. It has something to do with having enough air movement so your feet don't sweat. I do look for shoes that have just the right amount of ventilation, not too much or too little. I'll buy a pair the next size up from normal to have room for larger socks plus room for warm air to pool up inside your shoe. One of the things I need to utilize more is those heat packs. I usually find them on clearance or on sale after Wal-Mart is getting rid of their fall hunting inventory. I try to buy them in the large bags or bigger quantity so I have a few in the boat and house. It's best if you start to get them warmed up early, like before you leave the house, so the are warm as soon as your hands start to get cold. The larger heat packs work better and get hotter. The exposed skin on your face can be covered up with a baklava or some type of covering just to keep the wind off your face will make a big difference. Another winter time must is the motorcycle helmet for those really fast or long boat drives. Keeping that wind off your face and head is essential to maintaining body heat. Now normally I like to drive about 30 mile per hour and only a few minutes at a time but there are times when you have really move and that’s when you need to get the helmet out and arrive at your fishing spot comfortable and not frozen. You'll fish better by making better casts, better decision making, and stay out there longer. For those short drives a sweatshirt with a hoodie and drawstring is a must. I add a toggle to the two ends of the drawstring for fast tightening keeping your head warmer and out of the wind. It’s a small and easy tip but that's what works. It has to be easy and quick so you do it every time even when you think you don’t really need it because it’ll make a difference by keeping you comfortable for longer. Winter time fishing can be frustrating at times and one of the main problems is simply locating fish. Whether we are talking about crappie, bass, or catfish they all group up together in the winter. Since they are so grouped up that means it's much harder to simply stumble upon an active fish here or there like we all do most of the year. This is why you hear all these stories about great winter time successes because if you get onto one of these schools you can load the boat with quality fish in a short period of time. Now the fish are more sluggish and often times a little deeper than normal so you have to work your baits a little slower and more deliberately. Fish finders like the Humminbird Side Imaging units make a big difference by helping you easily see fish and schools of shad. Baitfish are always important but I would say right now they are more important than any other time of the year. The reason this is because they will lead you to the most active fish in the area. If you find those fish right by baitfish that means they are in the right mood to feed. There is a lot of dead water in the winter. So I do a lot of idling around looking on the fish finder this time of the year, it's part of the game in the winter. You need to be a lot choosier in the winter and don't just fish average spots. I bring plenty of snacks too for a couple reasons 1) it gets boring just slowly driving around looking for the sweet spots to fish 2) your body will burn more fuel in the cold so it keeps you running more alert.. Use those electronics you have, that's why you have them! There are times when the fish are going to be shallow even in January and times when they're going to be deep; your electronics will tell you what's going on or when to simply keep moving. In the future I'll discuss in detail of how to locate bass, blue cat and crappie in the winter time. I look for certain things for each of these fish species in the winter year in and year out. Safety Concerns for winter- Okay guys listen, every year someone (a fisherman) dies here in the Ozarks this time of the year. Cold water grabs a hold of your body and you cannot do what you normally would be able to do like swim. Your families rely on you and do not let something you love turn into something that could hurt you. I fish by myself all the time in the winter and it is simply not a good idea. I have to, I work on the water, it's my job but I strongly encourage everyone to take a friend fishing. Fishing with a buddy is always more fun and this time of year he can save your life. Wearing a life jacket is important and nowadays with the inflatable PFD's you hardly know they're on. I use the ones that look like a belt going around your waste that you pull a cord if you fall in the water. I make my customers wear one as a wintertime rule. I understand that the inflatable PFD's that expand when in water can often times prematurely expand in storage. I believe there are some new style brands that only expand after being submerged under water for so long and under so many inches. I believe those are probably the best now but haven't heard how they are really lasting. Take extra time at the boat ramps. They often times have a thin layer of ice from a previous boater. Also with all the extra layers of clothing it is more difficult to get in and out of the boat at the ramp so be careful. Wet feet at the end of the day is one thing, at the beginning of the day can make for a big mistake or at the very least you'll likely catch a cold. The fact is mistakes happen eventually and you can’t let a small misstep become a life changing mistake. Good luck, good fishing, and let me know if you found this informative. Check my website out for my guide service details and pricing. www.FishingLakeoftheOzarks.com Jack Uxa Jack's Guide Service

Water temps are in the low 40's. Typical for this time of the year. Lower end by the dam is 44. I was there yesterday and it is the warmer than most places. Last week I spent several days up around Hurricane Deck and it's 41. Bass are primarily on Jerkbaits. Jigs are also catching good fish and the a-rig is also having some really good days. I'll write a more detailed report some time soon. Jack

I run a guide service here at the lake and have had several good trips the last few days. The mid and upper portions of the lake the bass are in full spawning mode. The lower section (where you're at) the spawn is almost all done. Post spawn fish can throw some fisherman for a loop. But I love it and look forward to it every year. I spend time looking at the depth finder and fishing main lake points with plastic worms to keep my clients on fish. Heavy generation means lots of current running through the lake right now and points are going to be the ticket for you down there. My guide trip today was out of Point Randel at the 2mm. We started off shallow with little luck and then moved out deeper to the points. Ran into several groups of fish out there. Football jigs, jigging spoons, topwaters and plastic worms were the main baits today. One of my customers caught his biggest bass ever today about 6lbs! It was a great morning. Jack www.FishingLakeoftheOzarks.com

The lake level keeps dropping. According to Ameren it's supposed to be rising soon. Fishing is fine right now and a lot of patterns are half working. Today we caught bass on jigs, shaky worms, and crankbaits. Crappie have been pretty solid with curly tail grubs like the Gulp! (2inch) have been better than the traditional tube baits. Some days you'll smack em dead, other days are on the slow side. All we need is a little rain, rising lake levels, and we'll be in for some great fishing.

The ramp is fine. The small dock you tie up to to go park your vehical is being replaced. Right now you have to use the larger fishing dock to park your boat or just beach it on the rocks to park your vehical. It stinks, but that's the way it is. I'm sure the new dock is on it's way soon.

Yeah, The spawn is on at Lake of the Ozarks. Bass and crappie both shallow and locked on beds. A couple weeks ago we started seeing bass beds in a few spots. Now lots of bass are locked on and you can easily see them in the clear water sections of the lake. Crappie are bedded up too! Water temp is 68 degrees! Jack's Guide Service www.FishingLakeoftheOzarks.com

Alhonna resort is a nice place that has cabins and fishing boats for rent. There is a ton of small resorts that you can stay at and rent a fishing boat from but a lot of their boats aren't nice fishing boats. Iquana water sports has a couple bass boats for rent. Fishing is pretty easy that time of the year. Boat traffic can be bad from all the fisherman so try to come during the week. Jack

Most years the water level is very low in March. How close are you to the 54 bridge? I imagine pretty close. It can get really shallow out there and surprise you. Also there some years and times when the water can be very muddy up there. Don't bother fishing cold muddy water. It's a big enough lake you can find deeper, clear water elsewhere.

I'm catching crappie great. Deep brush piles and docks with deep brush are holding fish. I can't say I'm killing them all over the lake, but I am catching them pretty good around the mid lake, Linn Creek area. Brush in the 20-25ft is the best. Sunny days, afternoons with spots without much wind. Standard tackle 6'6" Fenwick HMG light action rod paired with Pflueger President reel, 6lb Stren gold line, 1 1/2 inch crappie tubes colors vary as long as it has some chartruse in it. Takes less than 2 hours to catch a limit with normal good conditions.

Brrr! I'm glad that I am not fishing today. Not to many times you wish you weren't fishing right? Single digit wind chill reminds me of a day years ago when me and a fishing buddy went out and fished in -30 temperatures. My thumb would freeze to my reel, literally. The craziest thing is that day is we still caught fish! Much older and wiser now I only go out if it's above freezing. Fishing has been just fine lately on the lake (for January). Some days the bass are biting real well, other days have been real tough. You know how bass bite the best with clouds and wind? Well on this lake that is not always true. There are many different times in the year when I'm doing the best if I have sun. It usually correlates with a deep water pattern, deep brush, or dock pattern. However this is a time when a mixture of clouds and sun is the best. A manageable amount of wind is preferred also. Bright sunshine with no wind means tough bass fishing. Those are ideal conditions for crappie however. Right now I'm really only using a couple baits for bass. I’ve been using a Jerkbait for the most part and a jig just to change it up. Drop shot, shaky heads, crankbaits can work but have not caught a lot of fish lately. Jerkbaits are what everyone uses in the wintertime and as the name implies we jerk, jerk, pause, jerk, manor. Change up your cadence to match the mood of the fish. The colder the water the slower you work the bait. Several guys will wait up to a minute in between jerks. I've never been one of those guys to work a jerkbait that slowly. My typical cast lately takes about 2-3 minutes to get back. Right now the water temp is 48-44 degree range. With these relatively mild water temperatures (usually by now 39) fishing can be very good. As the water temps drop more the shad die off will start. Thousands of dying shad are easy pickings for all the game fish. It can help fishing and it can certainly hurt fishing just as easily. I have seen a few shad dying this winter, but not like most winters. We have been blessed with a very mild winter so far. After a cold couple of days this weekend is expected to return to the 50's again. There are two main ways to fish a jerkbait. The first way is to fish points or creek channel banks. Cast to the rocky shore line and get the bait to the desired depth. Twitch your rod tip with some slack in your line to make it snap similar to working a topwater spook style bait. You want to have some decent water depth below your boat. These fish are generally suspended and you're going to be calling them up to feed. Fishing windy or shady areas make it easier for the bass to move up to your bait. Windy points can be main lake or secondary points. Secondary points are my favorite. Creek channel banks are steep rocky banks with a 45 degree angle to them. They are great for Jerkbaits or a jig this time of the year. Find a stretch without a lot of docks so you can make some long casts down them. Good chunk rock with wind and shade with some baitfish in the area is a killer combination. Jerkbaiting brushpiles is another technique often used on Lake of the Ozarks. For this technique it is best if you fish brushpiles you already know about. You want to make specific casts to the brushpile and work your bait slowly by the submerged tree. Working your lure just above a specific spot helps you be more patient in between your jerks. An added bonus this time of the year is the giant crappie that can be caught while you are bass fishing. Crappie love brushpiles and the 4 inch long Jerkbaits can trigger some true slab sized crappie. The best rods are medium action 6 to 6'6". Your rod length changes for how tall you are. I'm 5'10" tall so a 6'2 or 6'3" rod is ideal. My favorite rod is a 6'3" medium action Garcia Vendetta. You will want to fish a good baitcasting reel also. Jerkbaits can be troublesome to cast compared to most lures with a baitcasting setup. I use a Garcia Revo SX or STX to help eliminate backlashes. I can cast a long ways and these reels are very smooth. Spinning rods are also nice for jerkbaits and offer a change in the wrist action. After several days of Jerkbaiting your wrists can become tired and a spinning rod can be a nice change. 8, 10lb line is what is suggested to help you maximize lure depth. Plus clearer water is preferred and lighter line with help you get more bites. 6lb line is not out of the question with a spinning rod. Some of the brands of Jerkbaits that I have caught fish with this winter are Megabass, Lucky Craft, Lucky Strike, Smithwick Rogue, Berkley Frenzy, and Sebile. I prefer the Berkey frenzy jerkbaits on spinning rods because they cast much easier. The high dollar ($30) Megabass are being thrown on heavier line. Have you ever wondered why some of these baits are so expensive? The reason is the bass literally study these baits 10 times as long as look at a typical lure. We have to fish slowly because of the cooler water temperatures. The fish learn obvious color schemes and even learn particular baits after months and months of regular use. That is why companies like Megabass and Lucky Craft have been so popular for so many years. Dynamic and lifelike colors or one of a kind paint jobs make a big difference when it come to jerkbaits. More than any other bait it is important to make your bait a little different than what everyone else is throwing. Red hooks, gill slits, finger nail polish, Spike-it lure dye, even permanent markers can easily make a difference for you without spending $30 on a bait. Berkley Frenzy work just fine for me after tweaking the bait the way I like. Get out there guys! Let me know what are some of your tips? Jack www.FishingLakeoftheOzarks.com

Water temperatures are starting to drop with the cool nights lately. Water temps were around the 93 degree range a little while ago, but now they are down to 83 and slowly falling. By Christmas water temperatures will be around 55. Bass fishing has picked back up recently after a pretty rough stretch. I'm basically fishing early fall patterns right now. Shad and baitfish are going to be extremely important for the next month. Shallow flats with bait and some isolated cover will be my first choice. Docks with wind and bait nearby will be my second pattern choice. Topwaters, cranks, swimbaits, jerkbaits (hard or soft). Think fast, fast, slow, fast, then kill it almost like a jerkbait retrieve but will all the baits. Really concentrate on triggering the strikes. The crappie are really easy right now. (On the lower end of the lake at least) They are grouped up in large schools. Deep docks, or deep structure with help from your electronics. Not 15 inch crappie, but lots and lots of keepers. Catfish are still biting pretty good and unfortunately I'm getting addicted to jugging. I just can't deny the results and effectiveness of the jugs. I like to rod-n-reel fish but the jugs offer such quick action and so many big fish. A couple days ago me and a client easily caught another beautiful stringer of big blues.