lollygagger1

Tried to talk a guy that was a much better fisherman than I, to try spooning deep trees off a point in a night tourney...said it was the stupidiest thing he'd ever head.....every point we crossed shallow to deep, flasher lit up as soon as we hit deep side......Team that won the tourney that night ? spooning while tied to a treetop in 40 foot of water.....(guess reference to flasher kinda dates me) passed the winners 6 times that night .....as we hit shallow points/backs of creeks all night long...cuz that where they was supposed to be...

Alone if locked into something that is difficult for others to dupiicate (wackerbill minner fishing etc).... with someone/anyone who is better than me....Alone if fishing deep to shallow....with someone fishing shallow to deep.....Alone if trying to fish 14 to 17 feet from cast thru retrieve.....overall 90 % with someone....10% alone.....Feb thru April mostly alone unless pardner is of a same mindset....at my age.... with someone at night, especially if their eyesight is better than mine.....And if with a best friend.....anytime....

Where the wind is blowing hardest seems to be where we catch them...

Northside of the Ferry at Buck Creek.Just north of Public use area. Forget the name,(Lakewoods ?) Charge batteries at the room or you can rent a slip. Good fishing in both directions.....

Black or Black/Silver Suick....1 full size....the other a short 8 incher........med/med small black in line Mepps type in-line spinner....Launch boat and start throwing.....Heavy braid...7 foot + heavy rod and baitcaster.....12 to 18 inch steel leader...cover all the water in the lake......figure 8... 4 or more times at the end of each cast...dawn to dusk every day with cloud cover......or chance of cloud cover or even a chance of clouds.....Start 1st day of fall.....stay alert....strike may occur at any time.....keep at it till mid Dec....then tie a crappie jig on 4lb line.....that is when your odds catch up....A friend gave me a book "Top 50 Secrets To Catching Muskie" ,,,,it's 52 pages of blank pages...even the intro and index are blank.....Have fished for them in Canada a few times....spent 5 days solid throwing every heavyduty Muskie lure.....finally decided to fish for smallmouth....caught a muskie about 32 in on a Shad Rap and 6 lb line.....then a muskie on a Gitzit...28 inch on 4lb line.....another on a Jackall filck shad finese worm.....did have a blow up on a Poe Jackpot and had a Lindy Muskie size spinnerbait destroyed in 2 seconds (red and white skirt/bright red head)......also caught a tiger muskie on a snagproof frog on the Little Sac River about 35 tears ago that swam up the river halfway to Springfield back when Tiger Muskie were initially stocked in Stockton....it can be done......but you will have to make a plan and stay with it....and stay with etc

Fished Spav twice ...once during day,,,once at night....have a cuz that fishes Spav 5/6 times a year...his advice was was to get a long cast from the shoreline and then move a long cast further out....fish where your boat was earlier.....he has 2 that went over 9 lbs...both on a jig ...one during day and one 12:30 AM.....never been to Hudson

8'2oz Rogue 1978....Have seen a Wall of 10 +lbers in Tom Walker's basement caught in late 50s/early 60s.....his dad was Sheriff of Stone Co at that time.....McCord Bend to Wooley Creek......believe there was 8 mounts.....

Put in at the end of a dirt road.....keep doing if for a couple of months......when you "waller out" the road....call a tow truck......happened on Lake Fork ....never again

The Ozark access has a small swimming hole at the base of the bluff. Should still have enough water to get all the way wet. The road into Steel Creek is now paved all the way down the hill, then the old gravel roads on the valley floor. Access there not good for swimming, but gravel bar upstream might have a deep pool. When you get to the bottom of the Steel Creek hill, turn left and follow the gravel road all the way to the far end of the campground. Walk through last campsite to path through woods down onto big gravel bar opposite upstream end of Roark Bluff. Beautiful spot, probably will be crowded, but so will any place with enough water to swim. Might also be some fish in that hole, or along the base of the bluff that runs a long way downstream. The Hasty gravel bar is big, and there might be enough water there to lie down in. Might not be as crowded, since not at a campground and no floaters.

Picked up a couple of great deals there this morning. They are having a Memorial Day Sale. Spent about $25 on about $80 regular price. They talk the talk and walk the walk. Not sure when sale ends but probably Friday.

Filet, cut out bloodline, soak in mixture of salt,lemon juice and water. Rinse, soak in buttermilk, Fry hot as heck. Pour mound of salt on plate. Pour lemon juice on filet and dip in salt. Take a bite. Pour green tabasco hot sauce on filet. Take a bite. Pour honey on last of filet.Take a bite. Repeat. The honey will surpise you but it is gooooood. OR, take some foil and build a little boat. Put butter in boat, put fresh basil on filet and fill boat with lemon juice. Put on grill with hardwood charcoal (hot), cook till lemon butter basil start bubbling. Do the salt,lemon juice,hot sauce, honey thing. Repeat.

Be aware that the Eleven Point allows jet boats on the river. Weekdays are OK but Sat & Sunday it can turn into a zoo. Most drivers showed respect but a few wouldn't slow down or yield. The access at Whitten was a mini-city with about 100 people crammed in an area with 3 campsites.We took out there last Saturday. Boats,campers,generators, RVs, ATVs, kids all over the small launch ramp. The area is to be closed and revamped later in the year along with a little more effort to clear the area and enforce some common sense rules,. Lots of traffic on a very small road. We floated Cane Bluff to Greer Thursday & Friday and the water was really low. Doubt if floatable this week. Didn't catch many bass upriver from spring, but the few we caught were bigger than average. Greer to Whitten caught very few , every gravel bar had groups of Jet Boats on them. Doubt will float this river on a weekend again. We used Jerry Richards for shuttles and canoes for non-owners. Have used Richards for years. We had a group of floaters ask us when the bus ride at Whitten left ? Asked what arrangements they had made. Said not sure and didn't know if they were suppose to camp overnight or what. Talked to Jerrys grandson and he said they passed Whitten looking realy confused 30 minutes earlier. The canoes had an outfitter name that is not on this que. Did not appear they had much gear with them. Jerry said that most of the old float camps haven't been mowed so far this year. Water color upriver was a little milky, at Greer fairly clear and gets a little dirty around Whitten,