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No big lines at the weigh in, no one running over you because they are late for the weigh in. It will never work, takes NASCAR out of fishing. A lot people stuck on ounces, will take a while to adapt to quarter inches, but I would fish a tourney again if they used such an app. Sure would make night fishing safer, and save bass in the process. Big question is what would prevent someone from riding around with a 22 inch fish and taking 5 pictures? You would need a small group you trusted IMO. If you say you can tell it is the same fish, have you ever noticed how they change color in the live well? Then knowing my luck, I would catch a 24 inch small mouth just right where there is no cell phone signal....lol

While we are talking about lights, has anyone found a good cheap green light. I got the 26 leds light from Academy for about $35 and it does seem to put out much light. I don't night fish much and really don't want to shell out $100 for a bigger light, I am open to any ideas.

Thank you Mike, it does not take much to plan ahead. I used to freeze gallon jugs and place one at a time in my livewell and had no problems. I did use the catch and release but still not sure if it did much but make me feel better but all my fish were always kicking hard, but then again I never had a full live well either. 3 small spots and a barely legal largemouth are easy to keep alive. Sorry it must have been the Friday night jackpot I saw all those fish and not the Castmasters. sorry to confuse the night. Glad you were looking out for the fish. Like I said before it is just a few bad apples, but that is the pain of growth. I can remember fishing that club when we had six boats during the summer and when I took first or second how I wished there were more boats, now there are 40, I don't want to go near it, guess I am just a complainer. I hope you placed !!!

Shhh!

I wonder if anyone has stats on the natural reproduction of Walleye in Beaver? I know there were several failed attempts to stock walleye in the 90s and no one understood why since Beaver is not much different than the other Ozark lakes that have had healthy walleye populations. The big difference in Table Rock, Bull Shoals and Beaver is Beaver does not have as many rivers that run up into underpopulated and hard to access places like the other two lakes and makes for a better spawning ground for the fish. Another theory I have is I keep seeing fish on the bottom at 50 plus feet usually in pairs, I wonder if the bigger walleye are going deeper?

It can be done, but it takes care and I know Johnny takes killing bass more serious than anyone. I have had my share die, but I took them home, did not disrespect the fish by wasting it. If it bellies up in the live well, get it back in the water and try to revive it or put it on ice. When I really feel bad is when I have to cut a line and let a 10 in large mouth swim off with a hook inside. That is fishing and the law but they don't always make you feel good. I just get mad at people that have no feelings, sorry if I got off on a rant.

17 years in Upstate New York and Vermont I caught more of those than bass, I do miss the fight, just not the winter. They did bite good through the ice when the bass just laid on the bottom and waited for spring.

It does not bother me to see fish die, it is part of life, but it just shows that the rich spoiled kids are playing in the bass clubs today. No different then the wake boaters. People who would waste a 4lb bass by throwing it dead into the lake has never been trained as a sportsman just a kid wanting to feed his over inflated ego. they have too many toys on those $100,000 boats to make room for a bag of ice. Just takes a few to give us all a bad name. If you want to change it tell Johnny and Bud what reputation the Castmaster's are getting. If you don't have a regulator installed on your boat were you can refresh the water and don't carry ice and want to take care of fish, don't keep them in the hot weather. If you deep hook the fish, put it back or harvest it on the spot (you will still need ice). I am saying this to the lurkers, you know who you are, the people who never sign in and talk just surf here trying to get a tip to help you win the next jackpot.

That really came out of Beaver? I would almost believe it but you would have brought that glove along on a fishing trip on Beaver.

I came in around 3am and the ramp was full of dead or dying bass, hey turtles got to eat too but it was a very depressing site. With striper fishermen at least they harvest the fish and don't waste them like that, I would much rather watch someone filet a bass on the dock then just discard it.

I agree, give bad people a wide birth and let them hang themselves. I was born and raised in Arkansas and all my friends that thought they were the police and got in people's face to tell them when they are wrong are all planted on the same hill. I cruised the docks at PC last night and talked to a lot of good people, man do those guys have some nice lights, but I don't think I want to mount a 110 generator on boat to run one. All the led lights on the bass boats made me feel invisible, got to add some lights now. If anyone saw an old man launch without lights last night it was me, got past the first dock before I remembered, wow this short term memory loss sucks, and no I had not been drinking. You have the right attitude Vinsott, enjoy your own fishing and the lake and let others do what ever they do, just don't expect a tear from me when they drown. Water temp was 88 degrees and made for a good bass kill at the weigh in last night, most were spots but did see one good 4lb largemouth floating.

Top water stripers still around the bridge, I am hitting the lake.

I have heard the smaller ones will hang out around point 12 and point 10 all year. It is the 20lb plus that head back to the dam area I think. I have never heard of anyone catching a 30lber around point 12 in the heat of the summer, but if I did I would lie about it.

J-Doc I know how you feel, been there did that. When I first moved here there were small bass clubs of 10-15 boats that would meet at restaurants and share information and everyone was friends and it was more of a social outing experience. Then the money got to be the focus the clubs grew, the area grew and I left my boat in the garage for about 3 years only going out with a friend now and then. Staying away from the tournaments and fishing during non peak times has got me back into fishing but I don't think I will ever having the feeling I did back in 2004-2008 time frame. If you are burned out then getting out in the day time in the summer is not a good idea but some midnight fishing over lights is always relaxing, I prefer to tie up to a tree around point 5 then the bridge and hope for a big fish then to get into the crowd but it is a longer drive. Hope to see you back on the lake when you are ready.

Just wondering where you got your bait? Was the lights bring up shad or minnows? My thought is maybe the fish were just targeting the baitfish around the lights and ignoring the shad if that is not what was around the lights. I have got to pick up one of those umbrella nets. Are the shad easy to catch at night around other lights? I only have one green light but thinking about getting out this week.

Really glad to hear there are lots of young stripers in the lake, just wonder how many get taken home as whites.

I think the secret to striper fishing is down sizing, you get more on 1inch baits than I do on 8inch baits.

What a fish, wished I had got out of bed now, thanks for sharing.

I think the whites are still there just spread out more due to there being more shad. JMO but I have got some big whites on spoons deep, just not schooled up like I am used to. When I have seen schools they are smaller, but I think it is because they don't have to hunt that way with so many shad in the lake. That is what I am hoping anyway.

Yea, sitting on small fish and where fish were yesterday are two of my worst habits.

I don't think you did anything wrong, it is just weekday fishing and weekend fishing are two different sports. The increased boat traffic on the weekend make those fish go deep. It starts at sunrise when they hear 150 boats tear up the lake, the fish know what is coming next. Monday fishing is never good for me because the fish seem to still be in shock. I wish I could give you a tip for getting those weekend fish to bite but I just gave it up after failing for about 10 years.

Looks like it works to me !!

The more rain, the less wake boats. It's a loose-loose, but warm and wet is better than cold and wetso If it was not for work I would be there.

With me it has been gravel points and deep rocks, along the bluffs where I used to pull a lot of 8inch spots there are more 15 inch smallies and 15 inch spots than before. It is hard to judge the depth when your boat is sitting in 80 feet of water, but they seem to be moving in where only spots were before, they will usually group together also. I have not caught any up the creek channels, and that is were I see most of the bass boats on the weekends. Seems the bass boats like to flip docks and fish shallow were there are not many bait fish. I see those shad hanging out at 50 feet and moving up in the evening and my bigger fish come from areas that change from 10 feet to 80 feet quick. I have seen a lot of big Large mouth coming up from 50 feet in over a 100 feet of water chasing shad 6 inches and bigger across the top. That type of fishing is not possible this time of year on the weekend, unless you have a seat belt on the front of your boat.

I have noticed a lot more smallmouth in the PC area, could be a change in bait locations or tournaments relocating them. There are a lot more shad south of point 8 than North of point 8 that could account for the difference. I think it is a little of both, as more small mouth are caught and weighed in PC then released they find lots of food and don't bother running back North. I have caught lots of small mouth on lures likes flukes and cranks that I have used for years so I don't think it is the technique, even though the ned does catch a lot more. I have not spot lighted crawfish this year so I don't how well they are doing in different parts of the lake but with aces of thread fin, I don't know how much difference that makes. I do know that whites have been really hard to catch this year compared to previous years and seemed to be focused on bigger shad and shorter feeding windows. Thanks for the report, I have to get back out before the sun gets out and we get another idiot hatch.