Phil Lilley

Seminars will begin at 7 p.m. at each location and end before 9 p.m.. We will have to be out of each facility by 9 p.m.. Each seminar is free to the public. Be SURE you note the location of each seminar. You don't want to show up at the Library when the meeting is at the MDC Nature Center. January 24th - Phillip Stone, Tournament Kicker Bass & Electronics - Springfield Library (South Campbell) Stone will be teaching techniques in catching big bass in tournaments. He will review types of bait, patterns, types of structure and banks that produce locations where big fish live. He'll also discuss electronics and equipment that has proven to be successful. January 31st - Round Table, Trout Fishing, Lake Taneycomo - MDC Nature Center Phil Lilley, Bill Babler and more... Question & Answer session with the Pros. February 7th - Buster Loving, Walleye Fishing, Bull Shoals - Springfield Library (South Campbell) February 20th - Bob Bennett, Crappie Fishing, Stockton Lake - Springfield Library (South Campbell) February 28th - Al Agnew, Smallmouth Stream Fishing - MDC Nature Center March 7th - Steve Dally (& friends), White River - Springfield Library (South Campbell) March 14th - Brian Wise, North Fork of the White River - Springfield Library (South Campbell) Brian will be talking about how to fish big, ugly streamers on the NFOW. Springfield Library 4653 S Campbell Ave Springfield, MO (417) 883-5366 MDC Nature Center 4600 S Chrisman Ave, Springfield, MO (417) 888-4237

Bruce Steel became Bill Haynes when he got in trouble with the law. Never knew how that made any difference- lived in the same house behind his shop. Anyhow, he died quite a few years back. The shop was tore down. He was quite a character.

Yep- if I recall I was using roe. And yes it was treated, not raw. But most ppl used it raw. It caught a lot of browns and rainbows. Bruce Steel taught me well...

I hesitate to post this cause of the guy in it... not the point of the photo, nor the brown trout. Look at the gravel bar behind me. It's up at what we call Rocking Chair. The bar goes more than half way across the lake! I don't remember it. I didn't wade fish much at that time. Notice boats above me too. Must have been much deeper back then.

Yes. We're all set up.

by John Neporadny Finding active bass in the dead of winter can be a numbing experience. Freezing temperatures, blustery winds and a vast body of water in which fish congregate in a small area can leave anglers feeling cold and frustrated after a day on their favorite lake. Reservoirs do have an area that offers some shelter from the wind and contains plenty of active fish. When the fishing shuts down on the lake, anglers should concentrate on the downhill side of the dam. A favorite wintertime spot of Eldon, Mo., angler Harold Stark is the Osage River below Lake of the Ozarks' Bagnell Dam. Stark, a veteran tournament angler, has been fishing the river for more than two decades and has discovered certain patterns for catching bass below the dam during the winter. The Missouri angler notes that spillway water tends to remain warmer throughout most of the winter. From November to mid-January, the water temperature below the dam stays in the 45- to 50-degree range. The area finally loses its warm water in late January when the lake and spillway water temperatures drop to the 39-degree mark. The spillway area also keeps anglers warmer because the dam and the hills alongside the structure serve as windbreaks. Stark lists November, December and January as the best winter months to fish below the dam. Stable water conditions during this time create an excellent opportunity for any anglers willing to brave the cold weather and still catch plenty of bass. Two stable conditions needed during this time are clear water and a constant water level. Water clarity is crucial, since cold, murky water can completely shut down fishing. But the lack of rain during a normal winter keeps the river clear. The lake's winter drawdown also helps the fishing by producing a steady flow in the spillway area, which positions the fish in certain areas and keeps the water level stable. The wintery weather has little effect on spillway bass. Current has more of an influence on their daily routine. "When the water's up and moving, anything that blocks the current has the probability of holding fish," Stark says. "The current has everything to do with finding fish. It positions everything the fish do, whether they're resting, feeding or moving from one place to another." The stronger the current, the easier it is to find bass. "It can stack every fish of a certain area in one spot," Stark says. During heavy flow, Stark looks for bass in eddies close to the bank. "They'll really stack up in those places." Stark catches most of his fish 1 to 10 feet deep from structure next to the bank. Prime structure includes rock dikes, bridge pilings, boat docks, flooded timber or laydowns. The most productive methods for taking these cold-water bass are slow-rolling a spinnerbait and flipping a jig and plastic chunk. Stark lets the water flow determine which size lure he'll use. During a heavy flow, Stark will throw a white or white and chartreuse 1/2-ounce spinnerbait with a nickel-colored number 5 willow leaf blade to catch active fish. He selects a 1/2-ounce jig with a Zoom Super Chunk Junior for a strong current. His favorite colors are a brown jig with black and chartreuse chunk or a black-and-blue combination. The heavier lures help him maintain contact with the bottom where the fish will be concentrated. The Missouri angler also uses lighter line with his spinnerbait to make the lure sink better. "Whenever there's a lot of current, you almost have to go down to 10- or 12-pound test line with a spinnerbait so it can actually get down," Stark says. Heavier line has a tendency to drag the lure along with the current. When fishing a 1/2-ounce jig, Stark chooses lines up to 17-pound test. He can use the heavier line because jigs fall quicker than spinnerbaits and stay down in the rocks better. Since the lure bangs around in the rocks which nick the line, a heavier monofilament receives less damage when bumped along the bottom. Maintaining boat control in a strong current can be difficult. Stark usually points his boat upstream and drifts with the current rather than trying to move upstream. Since river bass face the current to pick off any morsels that drift by, the most natural way to present a lure is to cast it upstream from the structure and let the current push it into the ambush area. The bass position themselves on the outermost part of the structure, such as the farthest point of a log, where they can nab baitfish. In the eddies, they will hang right behind a rock and right at the edge of it. "They'll be positioned right at the edge of any kind of break in the eddy itself," Stark says. Stark slow rolls his spinnerbait along with the current. He tries to pull the lure along the bottom, letting it nick the rocks every once in a while. He also works his jigs in a slow manner. "I throw it up against the bank, swim it back and just skim the bottom." When the current weakens, the bass tend to move to new locations. "You need one of the two extremes to catch bass, either a lot of running water or none at all," Stark says. "When there's no current, the bass will scatter out and find the deeper holes to lay in. They'll also bury up into the thickest part of the cover." Lure sizes should be scaled down as the current loses velocity. Stark switches to a 1/4-ounce spinnerbait with a number 4 willow leaf blade during a light flow. When the current ceases, Stark switches to tube baitsand single or double-tail 3-inch plastic grubs in blue or chartreuse hues. He'll throw the tubes on a 1/16-ounce jig head and the plastic grubs on a 1/8-ounce jig. While working a deeper hole or thick cover, Stark presents the bait in a subtle manner. He lets the bait flutter into the bass' lair and avoids moving the lure more than an inch at a time. Even inactive bass can be taunted into sucking up a slow-falling tube bait or plastic grub. Although more bass can be caught in the lake, Stark catches heftier limits in the spillway waters. "I can catch more limits of 3-, 4- and 5-pounders out of the Osage River than I can out of the Lake of the Ozarks." He says he has taken six-fish limits up to 20 pounds from the river. Stark has also caught bass weighing up to 7 pounds below the dam. Anglers can expect to catch an equal share of largemouths and spotted bass from the spillway area. While the fishing can be great during the winter below a dam, it can also be hazardous to your bass boat. Stark warns that anglers should watch out for trees that wash off the bank and become lodged in gravel bars in the middle of the river. Anyone navigating below a dam should also be aware of constantly changing jetties, wing dams and gravel bars, all menaces to your boat's lower unit. According to Stark, the ideal rig for fishing spillway areas is a john boat with a jet-drive motor because of its capability to run in extremely shallow water. Despite the navigational hazards and frigid weather, fishing the lee side of a dam can satisfy an angler's craving for some wintertime bass action. For information on lodging and other facilities at the Lake of the Ozarks or to receive a free vacation guide, call the Lake of the Ozarks Convention& Visitors Bureau at 1-800-FUN-LAKE or visit the Lake of the Ozarks Convention and Visitors Bureau web site at funlake.com.

KU Journalist… Rock Chark She edits most of my stuff.

ditto... When he found those fish- he should have handed you his rod. And you should have been fishing the good stuff. Not good. May be you should seek out Tripadvisor. Wonder if there's a site like Tripadvisor for fishing guides?

I understand the part about not much communicating the last 2 hours. And I understand why he was fishing. I fish (when guiding) only to find out how the fish are biting. Once I find out, I instruct the client, show the client, "do this... like this". Then I watch. But if they're not even hitting what I'm throwing, I'm not stopping till I find fish. In those conditions (tough), how am I to expect a rookie (at what we're doing) to hook fish when I, a professional, can not. Quiet the last 2 hours- I can only speak of myself. If I've gone 4 hours and my client hasn't caught a fish, I'm uptight- pressure is on. I HATE that feeling and that's the reason I don't guide a lot - my worse fear. Fishing for trout is usually easy. No way I'd make a good walleye guide. I've been hearing of some GREAT walleye fishing on BS lately- reports I'm not privileged to report here because I've been asked not to. By all indications (weather-wise) , yesterday should have been a stellar fishing day but our trout didn't think so. It was tough. Sounds like walleye thought the same thing. As far as thinking that the water you were fishing wasn't good water or the way you were fishing wasn't a good technique- that's crazy. Why should a guide take you to dead water and throw wrong baits? Not every guide is going to be happy-go-lucky. Some of the best guides are old grumps but they flat know fish and how to catch them. If I know your guide, and I think I do, then he's one of the best to learn how to catch walleye on upper BS.

Actually my wife Marsha does all the guide features.

Despite a least 10 top-10 Heartland Trail finishes on Table Rock Lake -- six of them victories -- Guide Bill Beck now finds guiding luring him more than competitive fishing these days. "It used to be I was sometimes conflicted with taking guide trips when I needed to be practicing for tournaments," he said, but now he is content with a half dozen competitions down from his peak of 50-60 bass tournaments a year. The circuits included B.A.S.S. and Central Pro-Am, as well. "I really enjoy fishing with the kids and beginning anglers now," he said. "I guess we mellow with age, which is not a bad thing. At only 57, Beck is now one of the patriarchs of Southwest Missouri guides since he started officially guiding at 15 and earned his U.S. Coast Guard license at 18. His family started fishing Table Rock Lake in 1959, and then left St. Louis to buy a Kimberling City resort in 1966, operating it for 31 seasons. His wife, Mary, manages What's Up Dock Marina at the Port of Kimberling. Beck's Table Rock Guide Service offers trips for individuals as well as families, and corporate groups, offering four, six and eight-hour outings. He loves teaching the seasonal patterns, techniques and presentation of lures to catch bass on Table Rock and trout on Lake Taneycomo. His longevity on the lakes now transcends generations, he said. "You meet so many nice people from all across the country in various walks of life that it's pretty interesting. You become friends of the family and start fishing with the grandparents, then the parents and then the grandchildren." "Once when I was guiding a client, he had brought his son-in-law from Chicago. It was one of those days when the fishing was really good and the son-in-law was carefully photographing all the fish and jotting down notes. He asked if he could write a story about the trip, and I said, sure." It was not until his phone was ringing off the wall a week later that he learned the story was prominently featured in the Chicago Sun Times. Another guide trip Beck remembers for the humor: two hefty men, brother-in-laws, were enjoying a day out with him when one of them caught his belt buckle on a boat cleat. "We're fishing and I hear this splash. He is hanging headfirst over the boat with legs in the air and head in the water. I am scrambling to pull him up and the brother-in-law just keeps fishing . . ." Although relishing a holiday Florida trip for golf and family time, Beck still also enjoys winter fishing on Lake Taneycomo. "The fishing on Taneycomo is excellent in the winter. Fishing for quality fish is usually better in the winter, and we usually have some great days amid the cold ones," Beck said. "It's not crowded, so instead of sitting at home, people should come see us and try it."

Hope you're all wrong... don't need another high water (flood) spring on Taney. I don't mind heavy flows as long as there's no flood gates involved.

Fat female, nice.

Might be good to call all this to the attention of the local press. Let them do a feature story on it and put it in the paper for everyone to see, including the land owners. It'd be good public education.

Trophies were made by Curtis Viscardis, our do-all, go-to guy here at the resort.

Some of the guys I talked to before Saturday morning's start were pretty confident they'd found the mother lode of lunkers and were going to do well. It looks like at least some of them were right. Evidently, MDC stocked some 3 pound brood stock not too long ago off the MDC ramp below Branson and they were holding up around the dock where they keep the stocking boat. That's where 4 of them were caught yesterday. Otherwise, yesterday was slow for almost everyone I visited with last evening. The weights were what I'd call light except for the 3 teams who caught the bigger stockers. Anglers said they were biting light, very light, when they bit. Thursday and Friday's bite was good. You'd think looking at weather conditions it would have been just opposite. Thursday and Friday were sunny- Saturday was cloudy with a front moving in. Fish were caught on a variety of lures and baits from worms, minnows, Powerbait but mainly they threw jigs. The lunkers were caught on jigs. No one fished above Fall Creek - this group decided years ago to close off the trophy area to all fishing during the tournament.

Nice pic.

Take off was at 7:30 a.m. this morning. Thirty seven boats in the friendly contest. Most anglers are from the St Louis area. Private tournament, fishing here since the early 80's. Good fish caught in practice the last 2 days. They had a big trout contest yesterday- I know of at least 5 rainbows and one brown (legal) over 3 pounds weighed in. 3.9 pounds won the contest. Weigh in is at 4:30 p.m..

Surprised no one snatched this up.... Nice rig.

The only weekend we are going to have this event is January 10-11. Don't mix this up with the seminars I'm putting together in Springfield, which I have already booked 3. Waiting on a few others before announcing the whole slate.

Yes

To follow up- long story short- left eye worsened. Never improved. Pressure on eye- very bad. Prescribed glaucoma meds. Nothing helped. Vet here said it looks really bad- take him to a specialists in KC. Took him Tuesday. She said nothing could be done. Remove the eye. Tried taking him back to KC this morning for surgery but roads were terrible through Springfield. Gave up and turned around. Surgery today here in Branson. They'll send the eye off to have it looked at. Hopefully they'll find what happened. Very rare in dogs this young (2.5 years). Right eye cleared up. It never clouded over.

by Darin Schildknecht Lilleys' Landing introducing a “drop shot weight” into our tackle shop. These weights are used for a finesse style of fishing. The hook is about 18 inches above the weight. The weight is not tied on, but the line runs through the keeper which pinches the line to hold it on. They are very effective when the fish are finicky. I asked “Anglers Advantage” guide Captain Steve Dickey why he preferred a drop shot weight over the others. He said, “They give you more options for fine tuning your weight to use while bottom bouncing, and they are very easy to change out with different weights while drifting.” The sizes we have available are 1/32 ounce, 1/16 ounce, 1/8 ounce, 3/16 ounce, 1/4 ounce, 3/8 ounce, 1/2 ounce, and 5/8 ounce priced at $5.29 per bag; quantities vary with weight.

by Darin Schildknecht Before working here at Lilleys’ Landing I had never fished a PJ’s jig, but that changed quickly. Phil invited me to fish with him one day after work, and, of course, I went! We ran up close to the dam and started fishing a white 1/8-ounce PJ’s jig. Once Phil showed me how to fish the jig, the bites were “on.” I’m not sure how many fish we caught but it was a lot! After that trip I was hooked on jig fishing. It is still one of my favorite ways to catch trout second to fly fishing, although I do fish the 1/125-ounce and the 1/50-ounce sizes on my fly rod. PJ’s Finesse jigs not only catch trout but many other species of fish. During the flood of 2011 I caught white bass, smallmouth bass, crappie and trout all on PJ’s jigs along with some other people who were catching some walleyes with them. I have also used these jigs many times on Table Rock Lake for smallmouth and crappie with great success. The unique thing about PJ's jigs is that the head is shaped with flat sides with one side slightly angled. This affects how the jig drops in the water. I believe that this erratic behavior triggers more fish strikes. I recently asked Pam Hall, the owner of PJ’s Finesse Baits, to write a short bio of the company; Pam Wrote: “My husband and I have been fishing with marabou jigs for trout since 1978. We have caught rainbow trout up to 12 pounds and salmon up to 30 pounds on the jigs. We designed the molds and found the company that did the best job with the paint. People have told us that our paint job is very chip resistant. Our heads are bismuth metal, which is environmentally friendly. The tying collar gives the marabou more body, and great attention is paid to covering the hook and collar completely with marabou.” I started tying jigs as a hobby in 1999. Then in 2005, I started trying to connect my business to a mission organization in Honduras. I trained several single moms in an impoverished village in the mountains of Honduras to tie jigs and they did that for several years. The ladies did a wonderful job and took great pride in their work. The last two years there was no one in the mission organization that could work with the ladies, and we have only had occasional production. I like the idea of using my business to help others. Currently I and a single mom in Fayetteville and another lady tie all the jigs and flies. My plans are to connect with another mission organization in 2014. Thank you for your interest and Happy New Year, Pam Hall” Here at Lilleys we carry many of PJ’s jigs. We have sizes 1/125-ounce jigs to 1/8-ounce jigs in many different colors. We also carry just the jig heads if you would like to tie your own. The jigs are $1 a piece and the heads are $0.40 each or $3.50 for ten. Videos of jig fishing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=614Ud-5-AUk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJOKqpWF_Qo

Great Idea.