redshad

I was believing you until the part about he's from Kansas. Nothing good comes from there...

Speaking of Ned rigs. Has anyone ever met Ned? Seen him fishing one?

I heard something about the MDC had stated that there was a fish kill in the upper ends of the Gravois and the Glaze arms. Did anyone hear the same info?

My favorite part was all the people swimming and playing in the water when the tournament launched. I fished many a derby and can say I have never seen the beach very crowded at 5:30 to 6:00 am when they take off. This guy truly elaborated every aspect of his little story. My beef come with the clueless editor that let go to print. Just another example of the News-Leader printing their opinion of the news instead of the facts.

I think the texas rigged plastic worm is not as popular anymore. Which is fine by me. With all the new creature baits and swim baits I don't think the worm is the staple that it was in the 70's and 80's. That is great less guys fishing them the fish don't see the everyday. The exception is the big worm 10" there a lot of anglers that throw it mid to late summer. IMO the 6 to 7 inch worm is not used as much today. I love to throw a 7" Berkley power worm in plum texas rigged. It still catches them and it will out produce the creature baits on many days.

I think Jim was just trying to stir up some reaction. Or maybe he is trying to get our secret spots and baits info, dprice.

Nice afternoon on the water. It is always a good feeling when you make a change and it clues you in on what the fish are doing. Ketchup, I would like to thanks for all the reports you give with the detailed info. Most guys are not going to put a picture of their bait on here. You know how top secret the where's and what's can get. I appreciate your willingness to share. Was up Saturday morning to do some crappie fishing with the wife and stepson. We put in at Cedar Ridge and fished our way up towards High Point. We found the crappie still in spawning areas where there was mixed bigger rocks and gravel. We caught them pretty good in several areas on the popsicle grubs (pink & purple with chartreuse tail). We caught a lot of shorts with 1 out of 3 being keepers. By about 9:00 we had 22 keeper crappie and 2 walleye so I decide to run up the river and see if the shad were spawning on the roadbeds. I have really whacked the walleyes on roadbeds when the shad are spawning. We checked the first one and not a bite. Headed to the next one and didn't find any eyes but the bass were stacked on the end of the roadbed and my stepson and I sit there and caught 26 bass in about 30 minutes. The wife was fished out and just sat and watched. We had doubles many times and at one point he said this 4 cast in a row with a fish. They were not big ones 13 to 16 inches but was a ton of fun. We caught all of the bass on KVD 1.5 I was throwing shad and he was throwing a pale chartreuse color. We headed home at 11:00 having a great morning on the water.

David, you can throw the wart or a DT6 in the 7'6", it's not to heavy for them. I like to throw a KVD 2.5 when trying to get a bigger bite. I have 2 of the 7' medium cranking Ducketts so usually keep a larger crankbait on the 7'6" pole. I love 7'6" for throwing the rock crawler. The deep or shallow one is perfect for that rod. You can throw it a mile with the longer pole. I have also started using it to throw a bladed jig and a buzzbait. The soft tip really lets the fish eat the bait and with the parabolic bend use don't lose fish with it. I have been thinking about getting another one because I can use it as more than just a crankbait rod. I think it would be a great rod for the wopper plopper with some light braid. I hope that helps.

I have both the Duckett cranking rods. The 7ft is a great for anything from a squarebill to a wart or DT6. The 7'6" is what I throw the rock crawler to the 6xd or dd22. They are light and sensitive and IMO they are good rods. I don't loose many fish with them they have a lot of bend and you don't pull the hooks out.

The lake is producing some quality fish this spring (late winter). That is great to hear. Now I just need to find some time to get on the water. We have a big group that camps the last weekend in April at Cedar Ridge every year. Hoping we might hit just right this year. Thanks for all the great info that everyone shares.

What were some of the other weight brought in? Was 2nd place over 25?

I spoke to the ladies at the Arc of the Ozarks and they will have draw prizes and a silent auction. They have some TFO rods and curado reels in the silent auction. They will also be grilling some burgers and hotdogs at the weigh-in for the anglers.

The bite should be good come out and fish.

I just got back from Guntersville and they were all talking about the Jack Hammers down there. I bought 2 of them to try a 3/8 and 1/2. I fished with a jack hammer on one rod and a z-man most of the time on another rod. I don't think the jack hammer out fished the other brands. My biggest fish on the trip an 8.5 lber was caught on the z-man. I am a big fan of the chatterbait and have 20 or so of them in different brands. Each brand of baits will have slightly different features. The Jack Hammers work well at really slow retrieve, they start shaking at a slower speed than the z-man. The Omega chatterbait will shake your teeth lose the way they are designed, I think it had to much shake to it for the cooler water we had and I didn't catch much on it. The Z-man take a little more retrieve speed to get it a shaking but you can slow it down once it starts shaking. The Z-man can be retrieved at a little faster pace without coming to the top, that can be better in warmer water. I have caught more fish on a Z-man bait than any others, BUT I throw a Z-man the most. Hope that helps. If your like me you will have to buy one and try it yourself to see if its any better.

Great job guys! Those are some big sacks for Stockton.

I was thinking the same thing MOsmallies. AIA had more locals than Webb. I agree with GSP just because Marcus had a big bag doesn't mean that fishing was good. He can catch them when most of us don't. Water temps are still a little cold. If it gets in the 50's and stays there then it will get good. GSP, how muddy was the water in the Glaize?

What are the water temps running?

No surprise to see Marcus on top. He is one heck of a fisherman.

I was looking at the total weights for the event and thought they were low for this time of year. (1st- 32.321, 2nd-29.91, 3rd-26.78, 4th-20.56, 5th-18.76) I was surprised to see only 4 bags over 20 pounds in a 2 day event. I guess that fishing hasn't taken off at lake O yet?

Great outing Skeeter and thanks for the detailed report. That's the great thing about fishing you never know until you go.

Open buddy tournament for charity on Table Rock 4-28-18 at State Park boat ramp if anyone is interested.

I will take the megabass. I have fished several different megabass imitators none of them works like the megabass. I hate paying $25 for a jerkbait. It make me really nervous to tie that thing on 8ilb test but it will out catch any other jerkbait out there.

Open buddy tourney on 4-28-18 out of State Park boat ramp if anyone is interested.

What's the water like up the Gravois Wrench? Is it muddy up that way too?

I think you are right, Wrench. They seem to suspend deeper here in the winter and the lipless is not effective. Down south they spread out on the hydrilla flats and that bait is perfect for covering water. The fish are not that spread out you just have to cover a lot water to find the sweet spots on those big flats.