Bassmaster21

Hit the water again today out of mutton creek. Caught a few good bass on a zoom super hog. Also caught a pretty nice catfish on a curly tail worm. Got ran off pretty quick because of the wind. Seems like im finding fish in 10-15 fow very close to deep water. Easier said than done since I currently have no functioning depth finder As for walleyes I troll a three way swivel with a crank and a tiny spoon. Catch a decent amount of walleye on main lake flats and the occasional crappie. Oh and did I mention tons of white bass on it.

Bass fish this morning out of Cedar Ridge. Fished Turkey Creek hard and some main lake banks around there. It was the worst outing Ive ever had on Stockton. Threw a lot of wiggle warts and worms. Deep, Shallow, you name it no luck. Ended the day with one 7inch bass and a decent catfish both on the wiggle wart. Water was 78 in creek in morning and warmed to 81 on main lake by mid day. Any advice? Don't want many more outings like that.

Wanted to check and see if there is still a 6hp motor limit on the lake? Last I understood that was the limit no matter what. Even if you trimmed up a bigger motor or didn't run it full speed it was still not allowed. Now Im not too concerned about people with 9.9 or even 15hp motors but Friday morning I saw two guys in a bass tracker with at least a 60hp motor. (Couldn't tell exact number but I also own a tracker w/ a 60hp motor and this looked that big or bigger!) Why can't people just follow the rules that are set.

I hate to be this guy as I will also try to find out for myself. With so many things being said it is hard to keep track... If I have a CoE annual use pass can I put in at the Cedar Ridge Campground Ramp? Also have any other ramps specifically been talked about being leased out. I know the Masters campground area was shut down a while back. Is that ramp a possible "victim" of being leased out?

I have caught bass that meet this description, enough to make me wonder... But I can almost guarantee it is not the cause of how anglers handle the fish. Almost every fish I catch is swung in the boat and I hold them by the lip to get the hooks out and no damage is ever done. To tear them the way they are it is almost as though an angler would have to purposefully tear the lip like you would rip a piece of paper w/ two hands. It could be due to how the fish are caught though i.e. type of lures, hooksets, etc. Could it also be caused by anglers breaking off and the fish trying to spit the free hook? Could it also be the bass' forage? Lots of crawdads being eaten and spiny perch. Doubt it but who knows

What area of the lake are you guys fishing to catch that? I fished the next day and it was TOUGH. Couldn't develop any type pattern and caught bass on: Finesse worm:1 Deep Crank:3 Pop'r: 7 Lipless Crank: 1 Jerkbait:2. You guys must have gone through and caught all of the fish in the tournament. I fished from cedar ridge to masters

Well the dog days of summer are just around the corner and I'm ready to search for some lunkers. In the past the bass fishing has been tough and I spend most of the hot, muggy summer days drowning minnows for crappie. However, I have made a conscious decision this summer to search not only for some largemouth, but for some hogs. Already accepting the fact that I'm fishing for bigger bites not more bites, I think about what kind of lures to use. Looking at summer tournaments not only at Stockton but around the Ozarks, the winning (or big bass) lure is 90% of the time a deep crank or jig. So I think the obvious choice is to start there, or maybe go there second.. I have always been a believer that IF you can get a bite on a topwater over deeper water for suspended fish the odds are IF one bites it will be bigger. So possibly a spook or pop'r type bait will be my starting point on any given day. Regardless of my decisions or success it will be a fun summer and I wish the best of luck to everyone else! God Bless

9LB where were you fishing for the topwater bite? Not specifically, but 10-12ft isn't very specific haha. Backs of coves/creeks? Secondary points? Main Lake banks? I am headed out tomorrow and plan on going to maze creek and throwing the buzzbait and/or popper until I catch a 5 pounder or have to leave for work. (As longs as the pop up storms hold off) Will give report as soon as possible

How'd the tournament end up? Total weights? Not too many guys will keep stringers like that with an upcoming tournament! Hopefully you could find some more like that come tournament time. May be frying up a couple hundred dollars by the looks of that stringer. Can't blame you too much, they are tasty!

Just got home from another trip today.. Caught quite a few smaller ones on the Carolina rig lizard. Caught a few small ones on a BIG jerkbait also. Tried the jig with a super hog trailer and caught one small one. Tough feeling bites with the high wind and my partner runs the trolling motor at mock 2 down banks so it can be tough to fish almost anything effectively. However, I'm obviously just not fishing where the bigger fish are. Because of the wind we were not able to try what I wanted to which was fish the standing timber flats in maze creek. Anyeays still not a bad day on the water

I was using a 3/8oz weight on my c-rig with about a 12in liter. The fish were very aggressive towards them. If I missed a bite I could keep casting to it until I caught it. My partner broke off his hook and lizard and my next cast I pulled that fish in with his lizard and hook still in its mouth. I was thinking about trying a jig and jerkbait in slightly deeper water. Just doesn't feel right for this time of year but if it catches fish ill try just about anything. I have heard people having a lot of success on a spinner bait but no dice for me. My crank bait bite was nonexistent last trip either. Anyone having a good topwater bite? Was planning on trying my luck in maze creek but not sure where about in there?

Had to help with some boat repairs on a friends bass boat and didn't hit the water until almost 11 and fished until 3:30. Following the front wasn't sure how the fishing would be. Turned out to be alright. Ended up catching 30 LM. Caught them all on a Carolina rigged lizard in 2-8 FOW. TONS of bites. Probably "missed" 50 more. Water temp was around 62+/- a degree or two. Fished between high point and Masters. Of the30 about 15-18 were keepers but nothing bigger than 17in. This makes three trips in a row now where we have caught a lot of fish but can't find any big fish. I have never caught so many average bass without at least a few 3 pounders. Any advice? I'm pretty positive its location not lure/ presentation. Headed back again Thursday!

I'll only keep bass if I really need fish to eat and cant catch any keeper crappie otherwise I release them... That being said I take the side of reasonable keeping is just fine. Any deer hunters out there? Are you going to let that big buck walk so he can reproduce his genes and get bigger? On public land there is not one person that would!! Why? Someone else will shoot him! What I'm trying to get at is that just because you release that big bass doesn't mean the next guy will. Just another way to view it.

I know this probably sounds like a dumb question and if I had the time to drive around myself I would but where is State Park? And where is old state park? I know how to get to them but I think I have them confused. Is Old state park on the big sac arm? and State Park on the little sac arm?

I am looking at purchasing a new depth finder for our older bass tracker. I decided that I am going to go with the Lowrance Elite 4 or the Lowrance Elite 4x DSI. They are the same thing except one has sonar and down imaging and the other has sonar and chartplotter (lake maps/ability to make waypoints) they are the same price. I am looking for advice/opinions on which to go with

I am looking at purchasing a new depth finder for our older bass tracker. I decided that I am going to go with the Lowrance Elite 4 or the Lowrance Elite 4x DSI. They are the same thing except one has sonar and down imaging and the other has sonar and chartplotter (lake maps/ability to make waypoints) they are the same price. I am looking for advice/opinions on which to go with

I understand that they are still skilled at catching fish but it is similar to giving a nascar driver the same car you drive and saying lets race. They are ultimately better but the playing field is significantly leveled.

haha yes I love it!!! Give me a new bass boat with the works and I'll compete and hold my own with almost any angler out there

Not a big deal. Happens a lot with the forum being a combination of multiple bodies of water. Creekfishin isn't it wild how springfield lake works? Out near the water output the temperature can be warm and bass can be in spawning phases and closer to the river they are still on almost winter type patterns. I wish there were more lakes in this area with hydrilla grass and shallow water action that this body of water offers. Especially during the warmer months! Hard to find that anywhere else without running a boat a country mile up a creek arm.

Lots of helpful info. Thanks you!

Hit the water from 2-5 with a friend yesterday since the weather was nice. TONS of boats and kayakers out. Very crowded from 65 bridge to main lake. We fished where we could which was mostly just the banks on the river. I threw a smoke single tail grub an caught one short LM and my friend threw a spinnerbait and caught two sticks. Didn't see many folks catching fish. Wish I had a dollar for every Alabama rig I saw. Also saw a boat go by with a 15hp motor and I can't begin to describe how much that frustrates me. I guess too many folks today will break the rules until they are enforced as opposed to just doing the right thing. Who knows maybe they didn't know... I would have let them know if I could have though!!! (and probably not in the nicest way) Anyways the water temp. was anywhere between 45 and 50 depending on the depth we were in. Further from the dam we were the colder it was - which is to be expected with the water output there. If anyone out there is catching em and want's to share I'd be more than happy to hear. Cant wait to have some more success.

Hello all, I know we are a ways off still from the time where the largemouths actually spawn but just curious what people think about spawning bass on this lake. Where? Or what to look for? I know flats is usually the answer but I was hoping for a little more detail. Just trying to learn more and more. Have a great day!

Watched the weigh in for a bass tournament in Kimberling city on table rock last weekend and all of the fish were caught on single tail grubs or 1/2oz+ football jigs. The shallowest anyone said they caught fish was 20 FOW and most said they were suspended in standing timber at about 25-40 feet deep in 60 FOW. Hope that can be of any help. Sorry its a day late!

I'd be in if it were CPR also.. Or if livewells were required. Its an awfully small body of water to have that many people out there for an extended period of time. Anyways as long as all the fish can be released unharmed then im okay with it I guess

Thanks