magicwormman

Great report!! Thanks for sharing info and pictures. My Grandson and his friend are down for the week and they need the help.

Sounds like fun!!! My bride and I will be there. Ken and Mona Spaanem

Yes, I'm still pouring plastic, when I'm not working on the new house. My fishing time has drastically diminished since I started building our dream home. The rock/fish is just over 7 inches and weighs about 14 ounces. It feels just like any other rock...............but sure looks like a fish.

I need a little help to identify this fish/rock. My wife found this on our property off Y highway. It sure looks like a petrified fish, but feels like a rock. I've never seen anything like it in my lifetime. I would love to find someone who could tell us what it really is. Thanks for any input you may have. Ken

GREAT ADVICE BILL!!!!! Bill is right on, as usual. If I were in your shoes, I would hire Bill for a 4 hour trip to Taney, or contact Chuck @ Anglers and Archers 417-335-4655 and see if he's available. You and your kids will have a blast, catching the trout. I live on Tablerock and have fished it since the early 70's............January is not the time. Try April, May, and early June for some good bass fishing. Good Luck; Ken

Thanks for the respone Troy! I think one or two seminars would be sufficient for most of us. I do think a guide of some sort published on this site, regarding ping speeed, sensitivity, upper and lower depth settings, zoom, ect., would help a lot of fisherman who could not attend a seminar. I hear from several fisherman, who complain they have trouble setting their electronics to read fish and their bait when dropshotting. Many of them are considering new electronics, when they aren't getting the most out of their present electronics.

Now vrs 10 years ago is simple...................much better!!!! But, I believe the virus hit in 1999 and it's taken a long time to recover. I remember in the Spring of 2000 a local guy (Jim Dopp) won a BASS event on this lake and never weighed in a largemouth. In fact I believe they only weighed in a couple of largemouth in the whole tournament. I've fished the Rock since the early 70's and it will probably never be as good as it was than. Lots of 7,8, and 9 lbers. I will say most of the big fish were caught at night, but it was common in the spring to catch 50-60 bass a day. Now if I catch 10 bass a day I'm thrilled. On a bright note, I feel the lake is getting better every year and with the right conservation practices, the lake will continue to improve.

Great info Troy!! Thanks for sharing. Maybe you can put together a little guide, with tips for everyone. I know some guys aren't aware of using two different frenquencies of transducers to eliminate interference. I've also found out that transducers do wear out and will not show much detail. Also how to set their unit to better see fish and bait while dropshotting would help a lot of us.

Registration is now open for the 2013 KVD Oakley Big Bass Tourney. First 100 entry's get a free rod. My grandson and I fished it last year and yes, he got lucky and got a check. Good time!!! www.oakleybigbass.com

I would fish from dawn to 10 A.M. from pt. 10 to pt. 13 on the James or pt. 9 to pt. 16 on the white. Unless you like to fish after dark, this will be your best bet. Read all the latest reports and you should catch fish.

Great detailed report, as usual, Bill. It makes me want to forget that I'm building my own house and go fishing. That kind of fishing is a great day in April or May, much less August. Maybe the fish are coming out from the cover after all the big boats left the lake. Time to eat again!!!

Great sunrise Bill!!! I had to steal the picture for my screen saver. I'm glad someone else is struggling besides me. I had relataives from the North country down on Friday and Saturday and had to dropshot crawlers to get bit. The only quality fish we caught had whiskers.

Great info from everyone! I would like to add a couple of tips that may work for you. I use 10 lb braid tied to a #1 Sampo swivel (I use the #1 Sampo with a snap so I can pre tie my leader and save some time on the water), than use 8 lb flouracarbon to a #6 mustad hook. I've had great success with the #6 mustad hooked thru the nose of the worm (very small and inexpensive hook and makes the worm more natural). I use worms from 4-6 inches, but my favorite is a 4 inch purple flat tail worm that I hand pour.

65 lb Power Pro is perfect for the A-rig. I started using it years ago for Muskie and pike fishing. I also used it for Peacock bass fishing in South America a few years back. Pricey, but great stuff.............lasts forever. I use it on Table Rock on many lures, however, if you're on the bottom it's prone to getting nicked on the rocks and will break. I tie the double uni knot (easy to tie with a little practice) with braid to flouracarbon leader with good results. It also allows you to break off if you get snagged up.

rps is "right on" as usual. I believe it comes down to quality or quanity. You seldom can have both. My experience for quality is three days before thru three days after the full moon in April. For numbers, I love the first two weeks of May. Good luck!

I don't what Lake you're talking about. I've fished the Rock for forty years and haven't caught a five lb. smallmouth or Kentucky. I've not broke the 10 lb Largemouth mark either. I did get close with a 9.1 lber before the fish kill. I bet less than 10% of the people on this forum have broke those records either. Is the Rock a good bass lake, yes, and getting better. Still not even close to the Lake it was, back in the Seventy's and Eighty's.

Has anyone tried the new Rick Clun classic jerkbait, made by Luck 'E' Strike? They are a dead ringer for the Megabass Ito Vision 110, at half the price. I picked up a few and will try them soon. I will give a report after I try them, to see how they compare to the Ito Vision.

You have my sympathy leaving this beautiful area for the east coast. I was wondering why I haven't seen your post recently. Hopefully, a great job will open up for you to return to this area. I've fished this beautiful lake for over forty years and have loved every minute of it. You are "right on" how we get spoiled in this country and take so much for granted. I thank the Lord every day for living in such a beautiful part of the world. Even my worst trip on the Rock is wonderful!!!!

I think it's a great question! I wish I had all the answers. I think it's a combination of things that are causing the ultra slow bite. September and October have always been a tough time for me. That is one reason I get my bow out and do a little deer hunting. It's also a good time for me to work on the honey-do list that I've put off all summer. If I had to guess why this year is so tough, I would say, weather conditions and tournaments are the biggest factors.The clear water, clear sky, and lack of wind can spank you and send you home. Some days, I can catch a few on a spoon or a dropshot, but legal fish have been hard to come by. When you see the really great fisherman on this site struggling to catch fish, you know it's tough. Even KVD gets humbled on the Rock, so I guess we shouldn't feel too bad.,

The Rock is as tough as I've seen it in forty years. Even after the fish kill of "99", I could catch a few kentucks and brown bass. We've had one legal LM in our last three trips out on the James near pt 13 area. That fish was caught on a redfin at first light. Three good keepers might win the derby if things don't pick up by Sat. Good Luck!!!

Great advice Bill!!!!! Those boys at Battery Outfitters are great. I've bought my last two sets from them. I've never had a problem with the batteries and the sevice is great. Woody, the fact that you mention Bill's name, does not cost too much extra.

I'll take a shot. I think the first day will be slow, with about 16.8 leading it. The 2nd day some cloud cover might help. My guess would be 28.3 total. It seems like no matter how tough the Rock can be, someone always finds a honey hole. That's what makes the game so exciting, you never know when it's your turn.

Great detailed report!!! Sounds like a pretty good trip to me. I know lots of guys doing worse. The bite has been tough for me too.

Posted 20 May 2010 - 08:21 AM This whole catch and release is crazy... You all have your heads in the sand. There is a significant mortality rate with C&R. If you think that this is incorrect your silly. The reason that the Rock is more difficult to fish is due to all the tournaments in the last decade. Thousands of fish are caught, hauled in boats all day, and they DIE!!!! Any one that thinks the bass kill from over a decade ago is why, needs mental help. Rember when you made this statement?????? Still feel the same way???

Try Bev at 303-877-9263.