Feathers and Fins

I had made plans to go play with the walleye today and back up was crappie fishing with a smattering of striper, but when i put the boat in the water it had a mind of its own and took me back to my semi-secret smallmouth hole. I arrived there at 9:00 and fished it till 3:00pm. I kept catching them and just couldnt stop smiling so i kept casting. I will say this they were in 8 to 12 fow on the inside of rocky points just at the transition to pea-gravel and they were on the stumps of those point very much keyed in to a very specific structure. I caught 38 yes 38 of them. They went from 13'' to 22'.25 inches and chunky thick bulldogs every one of them. Bait of the day was Flicker Shad "Speckle Gold Shiner and Black Gold Sunset" worked parrelling the bank with a steady retrieve. I did run around PC Marina for a bit but saw no stripers on the graph either side or up and down and really not a lot of fish anywhere in the area so to speak. Figured I would also Check the "Hot Spots" from this weeks AGFC Report for stripers in PC area 12 Bridge area, My suggestion, dont bother i didnt find any marks at all that would keep me interested. Anyway todays contestants pictures.

Wind = fish on our lakes we all know it, Im hitting Beaver today instead of going to the Classic just because of that reason, Why watch when i can be catching. If any of these guys did their home work they know it and know with the temps and wind to hit the calm side of main lake points and fish shallow. Duck creek and Honey Creek will produce decent fish today. Its a big fish day Front on its way, Wind and Warmer water. Man i hope they come back to the First of them all one day and to those that dont know where that was its our very own Beaver Lake, I would love to see these guys this time of year come in with a limit of Big Smallies It would be a great to see! I think one thing this classic has shown everyone is just how popular BASS is in this area, from listening to interviews these guys all seem blown away at the quality on grand even in tough condition and how dedicated the fans and community are. FLW knows this Now BASS has been reminded.

There is a time for it and not a time for it. Ive been fishing Shimano all my life but im telling you this right now half the cheap product adds they have given are embarrassing even to a person who appreciates the product. There is a reason they have multiple takes in commercials and thats because some people really are not good at talking. Sorry but its cheesy promotion and even the comments on the Blog are backing that up. Making the classic is a heck of a thing, it shows how good a fisherman you are and no taking that away from them. But there is a difference between being a fisherman and a spokesman.

Basstrakk is sandbagging weights, but expected

Agreed, Im just curious if all the delay is for tape for the rebroadcast on ESPN later. seems like they are killing a ton of time for no reason.

we talked about that, and knew there would be a lot of people throwing baits where the pro's were, see it on beaver at the FLW. What has shocked me is it seems no one has gone in Duck Creek. Either its the dead zone or the Hybrids are in there thick and they are waisting time on them, ive seen that happen on Grand a few times. Local guys Curse no other words for that.

LMAO, Im so following you around and when you do im throwing an Marauder right where you were,Im thinking a 50.00$ lure should get their attention.

Stay where you are most comfortable, it will be a day of local knowledge as the weather has not been friendly. I do well because i cover miles of water just to find the three or four areas that produce and when i find one I take it apart. Thats alot of sitting down trolling, it works but most people will get baord with it and not stick it out to find the productive areas.

Champ i wish I could be on Beaver today it was the Plan but got called into work today so im going tomorrow, There be Walleye needing a steam bath lol. But I bet i catch a bunch of bass tomorrow if the winds not bad ill post pics to make the derby players drool lol. But no BASS is smart, making the fans happy is what makes them money, that is a sport much like any other where if the fans are not supporting it and happy it wont be there anymore so they have to keep up with the times and keep the fans and members happy. The anglers better learn to deal with it! If nothing it makes them have ot be even better and have a good well thought out game plan. You know I use to tourney fish and Hate to say it but Ive seen tourney anglers that i wish I had a torpedo on the boat to send their way, fans might get over excited and get to close but ive seen more tourney and derby anglers that are just flat out rude and disrespectful and ( its my living ) is the worse excuse for that behavior in the world. We have had this conversation on here before so i doubt it will change much and will get worse from all parties. But after the last year and some of my run-ins with (money anglers) I will never again give them any ground if im fishing a spot. Those days are over and done with on my part, if im fishing a area and they cut in to it im not backing off and the simpel reason is THEY should have and easily could see a person fishing the area and gave them the respect they scream they want. I wont go in an area someone is working out of respect but no way im giving up an area anymore either.

Dont use them myself, lead core line works so much better IMO. Knowing your lure weight and its diving depth with leadcore is just as if not more effective than down riggers.

Old poop lol, ok im 43 and not a grandfather yet ( and for my boys lives better not be made one till im 50 ) I was just taught fair play and respect. If I had one lake outside of the Ozarks it would be THE BIG O!!!! For species, Ive caught Bass, Catfish, Perch, Snook, Tarpon and a Bullshark all in one day on it. Pretty impressive place. But been there done that and I actually prefer the Ozark Lakes over all the others I have fished.

Bill, you and I both know respect is fading fast, I have and sure you have, had people see us catch fish then try and crowd in on the area. Heck go to RR on opening day lol. People just want to see how they are doing it and where and then try to do it themselves its lazy I know but tournament or not its public water and is what it is. We may not like it but anymore i see it more and more. If they want a tourney where it wont happen then it needs to be on a private lake and the owners shut it down to everyone but the people in it, otherwise it will happen every year and with Basstraks now tomorrow will see people fishing those spots probably before the pro's get to them. Be like someone saying they were in the ducks at point12 on beaver I can promise you there will be a armed floatilla around it the next day. What i really want to see is one of the guys snag a spoonbill by mistake, now that will make for fun TV

Bill, there is a bite not talked about, those big brutes that live down by the dam, if someone can get them going they could have a 25lb limit. As to the tag boats it is a public lake, the World Series is on private property and if someone told them they couldnt fish or be there ( so long as they were safe ) then they would be in violation of the law. Respect yes but as people tell us duck hunters all the time WELCOME TO PUBLIC PROPERTY.

Bill I weas talking to a friend about this just a bit ago, The Elk kicked out some fish but im betting its getting hammered right now and Honey creek has 40 boats in it fishing right now accourding to a buddy who stayed behind to see what people do after the pro's leave. My gut is telling me Dam area Bite suspended fish and a jerkbait could produce a 24 pound limit. What i really think is hurting the pros is Basstrak, you can see where they are and what they are doing and thats going to get pressure on those areas after each day. I think KVD will put togeather a good bag each day and betting he has numerous spots to deal with the crowds and fishermen who hit the areas after he has been there, I think that has to be in an anglers bag now a days. Tomorrow should be interesting but Ill be chasing Beaver Fish

He does but look at his total one day including culled WOW. after the storm we just had that is impressive. Hate to say it but it is KVD and i swear bass just want their picture taken with him.

Looks like the unofficial weights have them in the high teens so far, love watching this event.

Elk is loaded with boats

http://www.bassmaster.com/video/2013-bassmaster-classic-war-room or http://www.bassmaster.com/tournaments/basstrakk

Depends on what im doing, shallow water walleye sniping it takes two to do it right. anything else and I can do it alone or with someone, I actually like having company but they better understand I dont come in till im ready and that has been known to be 24 to 36 straight hours. Most trips are 12 to 14 hours though.

Phil, the honest truth is I have heard Guides complaining when people post where the fish are and how to catch them. Even named this site, the fools do not understand that they are hurting their business. If I needed a Guide on Taney it would be you are Duane, The Rock it would be Bill without a doubt, I look at it as Honest guides actually wanting to help others and that tells me they will bend over backwards to help me catch fish. Look at AGFC's fishing report each week for Beaver its a joke might as well be photocopied and used for TP because thats all its good for. Never a mention one time last year of how good the striper bite in PC or Avoca was or where to catch shad and when the bite on Walleye was red hot in Rocky Branch not a word other than the typical ( blank in this area or hot spot).

Icey, wet, cold... and the powers that be deemed going to school was safe. Lord I hope it doesnt flash freeze this afternoon or someone will get killed.

LMAO. Phil, I tied up a ton of the hatchery pellet patterns for fishing RR and have used them on Taney, Beleive it or not the person i learned this from was a die-hard fly fishing kid, 12 years old and he has been tieing for 4 years. I asked him about what gave him the idea and he said "Match the Hatch" I almost wet myself laughing but darn if he wasnt right.

Depends on if they hit the forecast on ice right, they were a little off on timing of the storm starting so and it seems more thna they thought so far so maybe its moving fast enough to be out of here without to much ice. Anyway you look at it, its a good time to change all your line and clean all the tackle boxes up

On clear days, i hope for wind and if there is I find the mudlines off points and work them!

Bacon √ Milk √ Bread√ Propane√√ 25 YEAR OLD SCOTCH √√√√√ And plenty of good ♫♫♫♫♫♫♫♫♫ Im set