Phil Lilley

Rolan is a little crazy... 6 weight is a tad light for these biggin's. Rolan, though, works magic with whatever fly rod he uses

I know... just wanted you to know I'm back in civilization now. I'm sure hardly anyone noticed I was gone...

I wasn't sleeping.... I was fishing. In Anchorage waiting on flight HOME!

I've been chased by a dz bears the last 2 days and now can handle anything you can throw at me!!

I'm done fishing and heading home tomorrow... you all will have to reign it in

Had a great week last week. Weather was cold and wet most of the time but Friday the sun popped out and it was beautiful. Four days of sockeye fishing and limits all 4 days for us. That's 15 salmon per day and the average size increased from week one. Landed some brutes at about 10 pounds each. My friends weren't interested in rainbows so nothing to report there. They did get 2 kings at 25 pounds each. We flew to the Ugashik Narrows yesterday, about 65 miles south of here. Usually catch lots of big dollies and grayling there on dries but didn't seem to be as many fish there this trip. We only caught about 8 fish each. Biggest graying was 20 inches and dolly, 26 inches. The mountains surrounding this area are gorgeous - partially snow covered and the sun brought out their grandur. A couple flew to a new location yesterday am - a small stream we boat to and fish the lower part called Idavain. They flew to a small lake at the top to fish the upper creek, something our lodge had never done. But the guide got lost and they missed their pickup last evening. They spent the night in the tundra and walked out to the lake this morning. Quite a night... unfortunately the bears hadn't moved into that area yet so no real danger. The trails in this area all look the same. They didn't lose track of the river, just the small lake they were dropped at. Next week looks good. Sockeye are still coming in. We should do more rainbow fishing this week too. Home on Sunday next!

#8 wooly buggers. Purple and black best colors.

Went from the 70's and sun to 50's and rain this week, weather I actually prefer here. Sockeye are running strong and everyone is getting their limit of 5 pretty easy every day this week. They're running bigger too- about 9 pound average. Having a bunch smoked to bring home, plus a 50 pound box of filets. Rainbows are running smaller than normal. Don't know where all the big bruisers are - I guess out in the lake. There are a few 30+ inchers around but they're smart and hard to hook. We've gotten rainbows up to 24 inches to the net on smolt flies and jigs. Only seen a couple of bears on the river but more over at Brooks Camp. Went over the lake last week, skipping this week and letting my friends go over today... I'm doing laundry. I'll go again next week. Brooks River is low and not many big rainbows there either. But we fish dry flies over there and that's fun. King salmon trolling yesterday - my friends Scott and Roger landed 2 kings about 25 pounds each. Caught them on the river in town (King Salmon). http://youtu.be/6oCPIBt_cfY

Had dinner with some special people this evening.

We arrived not to the 70's and 80's everyone's been hearing about up here. I got off the plane in King Salmon is short, tee shirt and sandals and had to run and get a rain jacket from my check on first thing. It was blowing 50 mph, rain and about 50 degrees. It blew all night Saturday. Sunday was better, Some wind, got up to 60 and some rain. Sockeye are starting to move up through the river and we did well mid day, 2 short of our limit of 16 (4 of us). River was murky from the east wind, mixing up the mouth of the river's water and pulling silt off the bottom. By late Monday it was clear again. Monday we didn't do as well catching sockeye. Only had 8 but threw back 6 smaller sows, thinking we'd limit with bigger ones. They stopped running and it cut us short of our limit. But we have plenty of time to get enough for the guys to fill a box for home Saturday. Today we boated to Brooks Camp (google Brooks Camp Katmai). We fished the river from Brooks Lake to Naknek. My guys did well catching small rainbows on Elk Hair Caddis all the way to the falls (3/4 mile) and Chuck caught a 21 inch rainbow on a caddis nymph before the falls. Saw 8 bears and the sockeye we starting to run that river as well. Sunny and 80 - way too hot for up here!!! Tomorrow back to sockeyes and later hopefully we'll try for some kings down around King Salmon.

417-335-0357

I'm leaving for King Salmon, Alaska in the morning. Be back July 14th. Just to let everyone know, I've left the "barn door" open... I won't be checking registrations. Hopefully no spammers will get on and post their stuff here. I haven't had any try in over a month. I will be checking up on the forum every once in a while. I'll post a report and pics when I can. Will have dinner with the Doty's a couple of times... Be good - and safe. God Bless! Phil

I'm leaving for King Salmon, Alaska tomorrow morning. Be back July 14th. I will have limited internet access. Should be able to post a report and pics, of Naknek River rainbows and sockeye that is. Darin should cover the forum reports while I'm gone.

Yes I'm seeing more browns BUT I like using white jigs and you will catch more browns on white jigs, less rainbows. Still catch rainbows but better chance for a brown if you're using white, thus the brown pics. We caught rainbows too but they weren't camera worthy.

Babler's done some trapping... and he'd look good in a speedo diving for mussels.

Not on Taney... I think there's some interesting characters on this forum that might fit the bill. May be we can nominate some...

Not late fall usually. Depends on lake levels.

Visitors are pouring into Branson with summer in full swing. The strip is starting to get a little busy, but the lake isn't really -- not yet. The weather has been great with little humidity but some fog on the lake in the mornings. But it wouldn't be Lake Taneycomo in the summer without a cold mist on the water before the sun rises above our high bluff. It's been a good week so far for trout anglers here on Lake Taneycomo. Most mornings the water has been off with no generation until later in the morning, which has been great for fly fishing and still fishing. But I've heard some say it's better fishing after the water comes on. I'm sure you'll find varied opinions. The Missouri Department of Conservation has been stocking every week so far this month, so there seems to be a good population of rainbows in the upper lake. When I was out drifting in our area the other day, fishing a Trout Magnet against the bluff bank, I saw several schools of rainbows every few hundred yards swarming my lure. That's a pretty good sign of freshly stocked rainbows. They tend to stay together for several days after being stocked. In our tackle store the last couple of days, I've heard anglers say that live bait has been working very well in a few areas of the lake. PowerBait Gulp eggs have been working good after the water starts running down by Monkey Island (very good) and night crawlers are working from Short to Fall Creek. Don't forget to inject them with air and make them float! This makes all the difference in the world, believe me! Fishing buddy Coy and I were out for about 90 minutes Wednesday before heading to church. Three units were running with the lake at 708 feet, a good amount of water. We drifted from Lookout down past the Narrows using a white 1/8th-ounce jig and caught this nice brown and a couple of rainbows. We didn't set anything on fire! We headed to the cable below the dam and made two quick drifts just past the boat ramp and caught more rainbows and this brown trout, almost the identical twin to the first one. Jackson, my black lab, loves to lick rainbow trout, but he does not care for warm water species of fish at all. The other day a smallmouth bass jabbed him in the snout with its fin and that re-enforced his aversion to green-colored fish. I usually let him take one or two licks (kisses) and then back to the water they go. Early in the mornings, a zebra midge under a float, with either fly or spin equipment, and fishing anywhere from Fall Creek to the dam has been working. Use size #16 in red, black, rusty or P&P (pearl and primrose) using 6x tippet. Depth depends on whether the trout are actively feeding or not. If they are, fish it close to the surface (6 to 18 inches). If they're not, fish it 24 to 48 inches deep. On the gravel flats below Lookout, try a #14 gray scud and fish it dragging the bottom under a float. Below the dam, fish it in the chutes or flats where the water is moving. You might go to a size #16 or #18 if they get picky. Ants and beetles are starting to show up and our trout are taking notice. Fish from the Rocking Chair Hole down to the conservation boat ramp early in the morning when the water is not running and watch for surface feeding rainbows to target. Also target rainbows cruising the shallow flats. I expect this generation pattern to continue. If it changes at all, we may see less generation as Table Rock's lake level continues to drop. What might reverse this is hot weather. If it jumps back in to the upper 90's, look for heavy generation to power our air conditioners.

Only fishing 10 feet so I used 1/8th and 1/16th- either worked.

I don't want to hear it...

Send your mailing address to me in a PM.

No. Set the trolling motor on 20 (very slow) and kinda worked the worm up and down off the bottom real slow. Babler rigged me up with a drop shot. Actually I'd never used one or seen one before (I'm not a bass fisherman). I used it a while but didn't have any confidence in it. So I went to what I know- a jig. Jig head. Beck caught some on a swim bait - a grub. But he said all his were short walleye. We threw a motor oil swimming minnow and caught one short and a couple of bass. I think they like the worm the best.

Well, short story it was an off day for big walleye yesterday. Don't have alot of time to write so I'll make it brief. Phillip Stone/Bill Babler and Phillip's son fished out of Stone's boat, Bill Beck and 2 friends fished out of Bill's boat and I had Coy Howry, a friend from OK with me (and Jackson my black lab) out of my boat. They all fished till about 1 pm and we fished till 7. My key blew out of my boat on the way over and had to have a switch installed... won't leave my key in the boat again with a floatie attached again. Babler told me to bring 6 dz crawlers- I did- then he asked for them when we got there and I thought... I thought those were for ME! We bought the last 3 dz in Diamond City and used them sparingly. We fished flats and flat points mainly up from DC in 10-12 fow just outside the bush line. Bill said he thought all together we had 40 walleye with 5 keepers. Beck did the best with 3 and Babler and I each had one. We had several 1/4 inch short. We used a roadrunner head or just a jig head with a half crawler working the bottom close to the boat. Bite felt like small blue gill pecking at it. I think I shook off the first 6 walleye thinking I was getting robbed my the little buggers. Perfect fishing day I thought. Little wind, cloud cover, rain... but the fish didn't think so. Water temp 80-82 and murky.