Slippery

Orleans Bridge

We took a day last weekend and looked for birds as well. Saw lots of divers around Beaver. Didn't see any big ducks until we got to the boat ramp at Rockaway

I live in the Springfield area and have never heard of it. Anyone ever hear of ducks being taken there?

I hunted 4 Rivers yesterday and I have never heard it so quiet. It was bordering on creepy. Few ducks were around and flying. None did anything that resembled duck hunting.

beautiful pictures. I live in Ozark and haven't been seeing the numbers of teal in the area to get myself out there. These taken around your neck of the woods? (Power site) Be safe out there.

I have witnessed 2 of the biggest James River smallies pulled out of that hole. It's always a solid spot.

Better than getting skunked!

I was throwing a 3 inch pearl "walleye angler" swimming minnow on an 1/8 oz. chartreuse jig head. the other guys were throwing 2.5 inch purple and white shad same thing in yellow and white.

Me and 2 of my buddies put kayaks in and had the same luck (once we got on them, it wasn't an hour or so and until we had a limit.) We didn't really get into them until we moved up the river a ways. It was a great day to be on the water.

A buddy and I were there yesterday as well and ended up just fishing the banks for a few hours (hairline crack on a weld was allowing more water in than I'd like) We didn't catch a thing yet, enjoyed the day nonetheless.

Great Job!

Anything that looks like/moves like a crawdad. (my personal preference) My fishing buddy will throw Texas rigged green pumpkin seed finesse worms all summer and have just as good results. The point being, find a lure or 2 that you can actually fish correctly (technique) and own it. I can't work stick baits worth &^%_*&*, do people catch fish on them? Heck yeah they do. Because they know how to fish them. I like more natural colors in the rivers and creeks. It's not an accident that you see chartreuse tackle in the trees, people catch fish on those bright colors too. Start simple (I like brown bass jigs with a brown craw trailer) and fish as much as you can. You may find it's more about presentation, and little to do with color on a particular day. Ask 15 guys what they throw and you're likely to get 12 different lures. Tight Lines P.S. You won't get very far on these forums by asking questions like that. Many of these guys will take that information to their graves. Next time you see pictures of people's fish, try and find the lure in the shot. I've actually seen people (on this forum) black our the lure. Personally, I don't think my set up is God's gift to small mouth fishing, we're all catching fish.

What's the general consensus on large (normal) vs. downsizing the lures used for winter small mouth fishing? Do you throw the same gear 365 and just change the presentation? I'm not really looking for types of lures or even colors used. (some of you guys will take that information to your grave) I just don't have any real experience fishing the winter months outside of crappie fishing the lakes. Thanks in advance. Stay safe out there & tight lines.

Thanks, me too. Thanks and stay safe out there

Heck yeah! Nice bag and beautiful partner you have there. What part of the state you hunting here?