Feathers and Fins

Errr stripers might have to wait this is sounding like a time to go pull some big baits behind me for some big browns

Elk to me are and will always be a mystical magical animal that hold a very dear place in my heart I will never be that boy again but I hope other boys will be in that same possition and get to enjoy the Ghost. That is why i get so passionate about them. I still go to Ponca each year to hear that sound in the mist, to me there are three sounds that will touch me so deep in my soul i get goose bumps. A Loons call, A wolfs Howl and an Elk Bugle. Some things in nature must be experienced and that bugle is certainly one.

Unfortunately I cant go to the meetings with work But if anyone can go and voice their wishes to keep the lakes looking natural and less docks PLEASE DO! Voice your thoughts on the dock owners attitudes and the loss of beauty etc. The buffer is a great idea IMO TR is such a pbeautiful treasure it would be a shame to see it become littered with docks and litter is the perfect word. Dive under a dock and you will see it fits perfectly.

The best way to mark spots on any lake IMO is to use a Map and mark where you found the spot at what level the lake was and then with a range finder mark 2 points on land you know will not move. Even with spots marked on my units this is the best way I have found and use the visual spots more than the maps when im fishing in combination with the sonar. It will take practice but after a little time you can put yourself on the spots pretty easily just by sight.

The only thing they are worried about is commission off sales of property not the lake or natural beauty of the Ozarks and the lakes. Personaly I would prefer to see less docks. Add a few more Marinas and that is where people can store thier boats if they have to have them on the lake. I dont care how unpopular that might be but im seeing more and more Dock Owners screaming at lake users.

Seems like a high fence hunt operation to me in a way. I have hunted Elk in the past and enjoyed it but hunting them in a "confined area" just is not for me. I also think they should have gave it several years and they should allow the heard to expand. Allowing hunters to shoot one before they do for it jumping the border is better press though!

Shameless as it is I still buy one bucktail style jig from the same place, ever since I discovered them in FL they have been my staple http://www.redtailhawklures.com/ From Snook to Cobia ive hung a lot of fish on them. Little more pricey than a standard bucktail but works.

Shhhh Sabiki are evil you don't want people finding out about them lol. Right now Dam area to point 5 would be where I am looking for numbers of stripers, bigger ones are around Rocky Branch. Take that with a grain of salt though as this year is a strange one and the weather could have them roaming more. Trolling in 33 to 42 fow is most productive Jplugs trolled that deep will definitely get attention as will many other salmon styles. Sounds like your familiar with big jig working, run a 6oz head on a cod size grub tail it does work for them. Walleye are much more predictable lol.

There is a reason I have downriggers on my boat Bucktail jigs, grubs and large spoons work very well as do plugged Herring and Sardines as well as Ballyhoo. They are a pain to get up here though unless you have a way to get them in from the coast. Scents are really needless when you are talking stripers and trolling as you are looking for the aggreesive feeding bite more than anything. Shad are at times a pain no doubt about it but Hook Line Sinker in Rogers normally has good Striper Minnows that work as a good back-up.

I would be keeping an eye on Beaver Dam if they start releasing I would be all over the White looking for stunned shad, Trout will be first on them but within a few hours the stripers will be on them followed within a day or two by the walleye and bass. Or if the generate hard for a couple days you might get in on a shad stun and those are always good for fun times.

Never met a striper I didn't introduce to my dinner table

Debris in the creek arms is nothing new when the lake comes up or has a lot of rain it just releases the debris on shore or wash-down from the heavy rain. Main lake debris will show up 3 to 5 days after the rain causes by wind, lake rise and wake from boats releasing more debris. As to the lake rise there was a fair amount of it in the WRWS area as well as other arms. Its actually surprised me we didn't see a larger rise but the majority seemed to be in the northern end of the lake and that doesn't cause the major rise as a rule. Had areas from Lowell to Fayetteville had the 10 inches the lake would have shot up much more. Watch out reading the gauges I watched them myself and they kept readjusting the online numbers. It doesn't appear they are releasing much water out of the dam so this is not an unexpected rise.

Bob, Im not familiar with musky biology as I am with many fish but here is a suggestion I have used for Tarpon and other large gamefish when fishing by myself. I would keep a bilge pump on hand with a length of hose attached and when I would catch one I after pics and dehooking stick the hose at the fishes mouth and let it run until the fish decided to leave. Worked well on the Silver Kings might be an option for musky especially if you had a cradle for them. With a partner we just would put the boat in gear and drive till they revived good.

I enjoy jugging myself from time to time and have not had issues with people taking mine but I also take care to be near them at all times and not set them out in areas where they could interfere with boating traffic. I have though seen guys who throw them out and then disappear for the night not to show up till the next day sometime. I can understand why people grab jug lines and remove them. Some don't know what they are others don't want them floating unattended as a obstacle. I had to remove one out of a prop a few years back and that is enough to piss anyone off so I understand why its happens. If you jug you should IMO stay near the lines at all times to monitor the situation, don't set them out in the main lake where they can become a navigational hazard or in places that could be an issue at all. When I jug I like to find a creek channel and release one about every 2 minutes in the current using different baits. Normally I will use live bait then chicken liver and stink bait. If one is producing better I will pick up the others and reset with the bait that works best. It requires more work than putting out jugs just where they land but it produces more fish as well IMO.

I actually think its funding could be done by private business's that wish to partake. I also unfortunately know that under this particular political administration and congress the thought of private business's being a solution to job creation, infrastructure and recreation is not what they want. As a contractor I can see a project like I am talking about creating at minimum of 500 jobs on site another 500 to 1000 support jobs and when completed depending on how many shops and dinners and recreational venues are created many more full time jobs. It would generate millions of dollars for the communities and the COE. We hear all the time about these projects of infrastructure and see the 1000.00 signs telling us about them and truthfully some will only be used by a few where if they put the money to use on not just them but recreational infrastructure that far more people would use and be able to enjoy for long term money generating venues it would go much further to helping the Nation. A road is nice to travel on but doesn't generate jobs or revenue. A recreational area would generate jobs and revenue that would benefit the communities around it. It makes since and this is why politicians and government agencies wont get behind it.

Beaver isn't rising as much most the rain fell on the main lake not in the WRWS where it would have needed to raise the main lake hard and fast like it did a few years ago. Im betting some debris for sure and it will continue to go up a little. Now if reports of more rain come true and it sets up in F-ville area then we could a major rise. I was thinking mudline fishing yesterday but now its just looking like typical bank fishing as things rise. Who knows though with the weather forecast.

some dumb Wakers are going to find out the hard way this weekend.

Mo, I could understand it to a degree, but with the high usage of the lake and all the private docks and homes on the lake the mission has changed IMO. If the COE wanted to maintain the land and water as natural as possible then allowing for Docks ( unsightly and certainly not natural ) should never have been allowed as it is counter productive to maintaining the natural look of the lake as ( the lake itself is COE property ). I would love to be able to go out to dinner on the lake or spend an afternoon walking a boardwalk type area with my wife or visiting friends from out of state. I am not talking development of the entire lake but only the Corps Parks maybe expanding them a little to accommodate a little more. They already are to a degree a ( worlds of fun ) and why I avoid them like the plague during summer. But with the added revenue I could see added patrols and security which would settle that down and make it more enjoyable. I have a feeling more people would as well. Just my 2cent.

I have been following this thread and listening to all perspectives. I have been fortunate enough to see many different parks around the country and just have to wonder why Corps Parks seem to me to be on the bottom of the scale. I don’t want that to sound like a put down but it seems as they are the least used and advantages of them wasted. I just do not understand why they cannot be managed like some of the other parks I have visited. I have seen parks who build museums in the for the history of the area, parks where there were restaurants in them and parks that were opened much longer into the winter even and promoted with year round activities. Now I understand budgets are always a problem for anyplace but just seems as the COE does not take full advantage of the potential of their property. Is they were to build up a “boardwalk” area around the park and leased property for shops and dinners they could have year round revenue for the parks making them not only self sufficient but profitable allowing for purchase of more lands or improvements. Understandably you need to be around populated areas for the bigger more extravagant type of parks, but those parks could help fund the smaller parks and just plain ramps maintenance on the lake, keeping all of them open and maintained. How much money do you think could be generated off of Tablerocks dam park if they put in a boardwalk with dinners and shops? Maybe up even up the fees at the parks for parking or boating? It just seems more could be done to enhance the parks and even expand opportunity.

Top of Powerpool is 917, top of flood is 931, its on the ACE site http://www.swl-wc.usace.army.mil/pages/data/tabular/htm/tabrock.htm

Im agreeing with Wayne, Don't risk it high rain chances calling for 3+ tonight and more tomorrow.

I think it might be a real winter

I heard it got hit. I was hoping Tim could get some pictures of it for us. Glad they got everyone out.

I don't think I have ever seen tanyard that high. great pics