Phil Lilley

David guides both in Alaska and Michigan. Here's his website. www.peremarquetteoutfitters.com

I get emails from a friend of mine, Tom Silver, about his fishing adventures. I usually don't post them but thought I would seeing the forum is staved for reading and viewing material this time of summer. WEATHER COLD, DARK BROODING SKIES, NIGHT RAINS, RAZOR-TOOTHED LAKE TROUT SPILLING FROM NONVIANUK LAKE TO RAVAGE & SAVAGE THE RIVER FOR MILES DOWN STREAM, LEOPARD RAINBOW TROUT, MILLIONS OF SOCKEYE SALMON ( "RED SALMON" ) RUNNING UP THE RIVER IN A 24/7, THREE MONTH, MIGRATION FROM BRISTOL BAY TO SPAWN IN THEIR NATAL BEDS THEN DIE, GIANT GRIZZLY'S PLUNGING & CLAWING & FEASTING ON SOCKEYE FLESH, GRAYLING SMACKING & SIPPING SURFACE FLY HATCHES, BALD EAGLES STRAFING FOR LIVING OR DEAD CRITTERS, WOLVES & FOX ON RELENTLESS HUNTS, MASSIVE SPLAYED HOOFED MOOSE 6 FOOT AT THE SHOULDER WADE RUSHING WATERS WITH EASE AS IF ON STILTS, NEARLY 24 HOUR DAYLIGHT, SUMPTUOUS MEALS OF FRESHLY DRESSED & PAN FRIED LAKE TROUT & RUBY RED SOCKEYES, SLEEP BAG SLEEPING WHILE RAINS PEPPER & BATTER TENTS' RAIN FLY, AN AWESOME SCENERY OF ENDLESS TUNDRA AND BOREAL FOREST PRIMEVAL, A SERPENTINE RIVER BOUND FOR BRISTOL BAY, AND WE WERE THERE IN THE MIDST OF THE ALASKA'S RAPTURE! ON WEEK TWO WE WERE JOINED BY FORMER YAAK, MT., FORESTER ( RET. ), C.W. FUDGE ( 52 YEAR FRIEND ) AND A NON-FISHERMAN, CHRISTOPHER CALVERT. CHRIS HAS BEEN ON A 31 YEAR QUEST TO VISIT ALL 394 U.S. NATIONAL PARKS. AFTER US ( TWO NAT'L PARKS ), CHRIS HAS "JUST" 13 MORE PARKS TO GO, HAVING NOW VISITED 381 PARKS! HE IS DOING HIS 13th PARK NEXT WEEK ON A SIX DAY VOYAGE, ANIAKCHAK CRATER NATIONAL PARK, AK. A TREACHEROUS JOURNEY AS THEY LITE ON PONTOONS IN CRATER ( 1931 ) ON SURPRISE LAKE. HE & GUIDE SHOOT RIVER THAT TUMBLES FROM CRATER FOR MILES ON A MOONSCAPE TO FINAL ON PACIFIC OCEAN. I'M SOMEWHAT FAMILIAR WITH THE AREA FROM PAST YEARS. BROTHER DAVID SILVER FERRY CRUISED RIGHT BY ANIAKCHAK IN 2009 ON WAY TO DUTCH HARBOR. HORRIBLE WINDS & WEATHER WITH COAST GUARD CHOPPERS RESCUING AN ADVENTURE GROUP LAST YEAR AFTER 120 MPH WINDS SHREDDED THEIR ENTIRE CAMP & FOOD STUFFS. A SERIOUS SITUATION. I ALSO MET A HONEY MOON COUPLE COMMITTED TO HARD SHELL KAYAKING ANIAKCHAK. THEY DEPARTED NEXT DAY, HAVE OFTEN WONDERED ABOUT THEM. MOST OUTFITTERS & PILOTS DECLINE DOING ANIAKCHAK CRATER AS "TOO DICEY". CHRIS CALVERT IS DEVOTED TO DETAILING EACH PARK HAVING SHOT 2400 PICS ON OUR TRIP WITH HOURS OF VOICE RECORDING HIS OBSERVATIONS TO BE TRANSCRIBED AND CAREFULLY CATALOGED. HE IS A MAN ON A MISSION. HE'LL ACCOMPLISH ALL 394 PARKS IN TWO YEARS, ON HIS 50th BIRTHDAY! ENJOY ATTACHED PHOTOGRAPHS. WE WERE GUIDED BY DAVID ROLLER & SON, DAVEY, 24 YRS., PICTURED BELOW.

Checked- dam isn't in the filters. Still a dam here.

dam Filters must not work for admins. I'll check it. Man, you guys had a great trip! And very nice pictures. Those smallies look great- colors and patterns. Thanks for posting.

I have no idea why it works for some and not for others. Some people will get it fine and then won't. I actually hate the cam. It's frustrating not to have it working for people. I'm not skilled enough to know what to do.

Yea- but what about this morning???

Great pics. Kris got you on fish! I love his boat!

Now check it...

Yes- it's right next to Scotty's.

Well... The only real place you have to watch is the Narrows and with one unit running, you need to be in the channel on on plane. Otherwise, it's mid lake. You can even go over the bar at Fall Creek- I think it's deeper since the flood. Now once you're past the Narrows, and up to Lookout, you can run to Big Hole but I wouldn't go past there until they kick on another unit. You can get above there is you take it real easy and stay left till the root wad, then back to mid lake. It's tricky- even for those of us that's use to doing it cause it's changed that much. I may blow through there but I'm going to tell someone else to because if I do it, it's my boat I damage. I don't want someone to damage their boat on account of my advice. A good mark for the Narrows- go under the arched tree. Stay about the same distance from the bank like you're going under the tree. If it's foggy, stay out about 60-80 feet I think? That's pretty close. Vanven- I have some nice combos in the shop! They're what I use, spooled up with line and ready to go.

Headed up at 6 this morning to Lookout, Being the first boat out is pretty sweet. About the same generation every morning- one or may be a little more running. Good current to throw a 3/32nd oz jig. They were hungry this morning. Bite on almost every cast the first drift down. Nothing over 18 inches though but had 3-4 or them. One kentucky and one goggleye- both were fat as pigs. Probably eating sculpin. Second drift down wasn't as good. We worked the channel out away from the bank more than I have the last few days. Second drift- had this rainbow tap my jig in the fast water at the Narrows. Drifted almost all the to Short Creek and picked up several very nice rainbows along the bluff bank but not as much action as above Fall Creek.

<p><img src="http://forums.ozarkanglers.com/images/2011/6-25a-500.jpg" width="500" height="218"></p> <p>This is not your typical summer for us, here on Lake Taneycomo.&nbsp; Generation patterns have not been unusual, and weather has not been unusual, but other things make even the veteran Taney fisher scratch his head in wonder.</p> <p>First thing to notice is the flow versus the height of the lake.&nbsp; It looks fast when generation is even 75% or three units, but the water level isn’t much higher than normal, especially from Cooper Creek on down lake.&nbsp; That’s because the boards on top of Powersite Dam are still off, which makes the “normal” lake level about four feet low.&nbsp; They probably won’t be fixed until later this fall.</p> <p><img src="http://forums.ozarkanglers.com/images/2011/6-28-brown-250.jpg" width="250" height="167" hspace="5" vspace="5" align="right">The second thing to notice is the color and clarity of the water.&nbsp; There’s about 24 inches of visibility.&nbsp; Normally in the summer we see our clearest water of the year with visibility down to about eight feet.&nbsp; However, this spring’s flooding rains mixed Table Rock Lake so that even at 130 feet deep by the dam, the water is stained from the run off.&nbsp; And if you’re really paying attention, you’ll notice that our water temperature is much warmer than normal.&nbsp; It’s been running 53 degrees compared to the mid 40’s in past summers.&nbsp; Water quality is still high, but that will change in August when we’ll start to see the dissolved oxygen (D.O.) levels plummet.</p> <p>The third and last change our fishermen are witnessing is that our trout fishing is very, very good.&nbsp; That’s not necessarily unusual for July, since the Missouri Department of Conservation stocks about 90,000 rainbows for the month, but the size and number of big rainbows is astounding.</p> <p>Now the trophy area continues to be the best place to find larger trout, mainly because the slot-limit rules dictate the release of rainbows between 12 and 20 inches, allowing them to grow to larger sizes.&nbsp; But we’re seeing nice rainbows caught below this special area as well.</p> <p><img src="http://forums.ozarkanglers.com/images/2011/6-28-rainbow-250.jpg" width="250" height="167" hspace="6" vspace="6" align="right">I talk about jigs a lot!&nbsp; And for good reason.&nbsp; They flat-out catch more trout and bigger trout even when they are so easy to use.&nbsp; I recently took two different people out fishing who had never cast or worked a jig.&nbsp; One was a good fisherman, about 12 years old, but he had only fished with bait when visiting Taneycomo with his grandfather in years past.&nbsp; He managed to hook and land several nice rainbows in a short period of time with little coaching from me.&nbsp; The other person was a young woman who rarely fishes but enjoys getting out occasionally.&nbsp; She landed three rainbows in about 45 minutes fishing the bluff bank across from the resort one evening.&nbsp; She wanted to catch, clean and eat what she caught, but all three rainbows were too big, and I wouldn’t let her kill them.&nbsp; It’s a personal thing for me… I don’t like to kill a rainbow longer than 15 inches since they are so fun for someone else to catch again.</p> <p>Early in the mornings lately,&nbsp; only one unit has been running, and the lake level is low and current pretty slow, at least down here.&nbsp; Upstream, above Fall Creek, it’s higher and a little faster but not too bad at all.&nbsp; The flow at one unit is very enjoyable.&nbsp; Throw 1/16th- to 3/32nd-ounce jigs against the bluff banks and really concentrate on the eddies and seams where the current picks up.&nbsp; Throw around the big rocks up there, too.&nbsp; When the water is running hard, which it has been from about noon until 7 p.m., use 1/8th-ounce jigs.&nbsp; </p> <p><img src="http://forums.ozarkanglers.com/images/2011/6-28-vaughn-250.jpg" width="250" height="252" hspace="6" vspace="6" align="right">White jigs have been working okay below the dam. but darker jigs are doing better every place else.&nbsp; I cleaned two rainbows yesterday for dinner that I had caught on the bluff bank across the lake from the resort, plus a white bass I caught on the same drift. All three had sculpin in their stomachs that were 1.5 to 3 inches long, thus the reason the darker jigs were so appealing —brown, olive, sculpin, sculpin/olive, sculpin/ginger and black.</p> <p>Guide Bill Babler is still doing well drifting from the cable down to Trophy Run dragging either a white wooly bugger or a Rebel, F5001V floating black back.&nbsp; Also working well is dragging an egg fly, cream or pink, and/or a #16 brown or olive scud on a drift rig.&nbsp; I haven’t been up there all week, but I would still be working the banks with a jig, either the white or a darker jig.</p> <p>I’ve seen the guides now drifting from Andy William’s house down to the Narrows, staying the middle and drifting the same fly selection on a drift rig or using a float and fishing the flies six-to 10-feet deep depending on how much water is running.&nbsp; After the high water in May, we weren’t finding many fish in this area, but they have seemed to found their way back.</p> <p>Bill says the MDC has stocked a ton of rainbows in the downtown area of Branson, and I think they’ve made their way up here.&nbsp; I was out this evening throwing a jig on the bluff bank from Fall Creek to Short Creek and found those stockers pretty eager to eat my offering.&nbsp; They aren’t real small, I’d say averaging about 11 inches.</p> <p>Drifting PowerBait Gulp eggs in pink or yellow from Monkey Island to the bridges is very good, catching mainly those stocker rainbows.&nbsp; Bill has also tried using a 1/80th jig head and putting a Gulp egg on it and using a float, fishing it seven- to nine-feet deep. &nbsp;Now you need a pretty long rod to handle this kind of rig and casting it is also tricky.&nbsp; But if you don’t like bouncing the bottom, it’s a good way to catch trout.</p> <p><img src="http://forums.ozarkanglers.com/images/2011/6-25b-250.jpg" width="250" height="168" hspace="6" vspace="6" align="right">Guide Steve Dicky says he’s been drifting night crawlers from Fall Creek to past Trout Hollow and catching a little larger rainbow than fishing further down lake.&nbsp; He does warn that there are a bunch of new trees and snags on the bottom to eat up your drift rigs!</p> <p>Most mornings and evenings it’s foggy on our lake.&nbsp; Our fog is deceptive, too.&nbsp; You can be running in light fog conditions and, all of a sudden, you’ll find yourself in very dense fog without warning.&nbsp; That’s when you’ll run up on someone dead in the water or, more dangerous yet, someone heading in the opposite direction.&nbsp; Here are a points to heed&nbsp; when fishing in these conditions:</p> <ol> <li>Until the fog clears, don’t fish in the middle of the lake.&nbsp; Sit close to the bank and throw out to the middle.&nbsp; Stay out of the traffic lanes.</li> <li>When running, go slower than you think is safe.&nbsp; Stay to the right of the lake, just as you would on a road.&nbsp; If you know anything about “rules of the road.” you know that this is a major rule on the water. (Passing boats are to slip by port-to-port or meeting with the left sides closest.)</li> <li>If you’re vision is impeded at all by foggy glasses or objects in front of the driver like seats or tackle boxes or riders in the boat, remove them before continuing.</li> <li>If you meet someone or run upon someone, let off the throttle immediately and put it in neutral, remembering that boats don’t have brakes. Don’t just try to slow down and swerve to avoid collision.</li> </ol>

If you see midging trout early or late, zebra midge or micro jig under an indicator. Not sure what other fly would work.

Bill is right. Current wouldn't be that strong down there even with 4 units, which they're only running 3 lately. Launching at Cooper would be ok in the morning till about noon but like Bill said, go upstream and float down. Later in the pm, the current will pick up.

I got out after 6 pm tonight and fished the bluff bank from RiverLake Resort (what used to be) down past Cooper Creek. Threw mainly 1/8th oz jigs in brown, sculpin, sculpin/orange and olive. Caught 11 rainbows and one white bass. Most rainbows were 12-13 inches with 2 over 15 inches. Missed a bunch of bites and lost 6 jigs. Yesterday fished the same bank but not as far down and lost 15 jigs and caught 4 rainbows. They won yesterday, I won today. Babler said he did good fishing pink or chartreuse Gulp eggs down by the bridges early and then heading to the dam laster in the am and drifting rebels on the bottom. Mid day bite is real tough. It's early and late- best.

Yes- I forgot about it. I'll forward it on. mchunter and I registered on the forum here and now are discussing this situation with their techs. I suggest you guys do the same and maybe we can get some answers. http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/topic407179.html

There is a tool on the forum that I can run and did yesterday. It goes through and list all the .exe files and level of suspicious activity in each. In looking at the list, there are only a few .exe files that are new as of 2011 and all are low level- part of the forum's makeup. Nothing unusual. My IT asks the following question of anyone getting a virus warning on their machine: Can he send us a screen grab of the message he's getting? And a description of his machine, including os, version of explore he's using.

Just to clarify- I copied some old posts from the other topic---> Boiling Spring Campground is about two miles below the mouth of the Big Piney. One can put in at several spots around Devils Elbow, none of which are easy except the private access at the bridge which charges a fee and, as Chuck Tryon said in his book on Smallmouth Adventures, they have an openly hostile attitude. That would give you a 5 mile float. For those wanting a longer float on the Piney, I'm sure that the guy at Laz-Y-Days would let people put in at his place, which adds another 1.5 miles. Or if you really want a longer float, you can put in up around the East Gate at the Fort and go down to Devils Elbow, which 13 miles. There are some obscure Forest Service accesses in between that can make for shorter floats if you're adventurous enough to find them. Chuck's book is an invaluable source for that kind of thing. Riddle Bridge on the Gasconade to the campground is 13.5 miles. You can cut three miles off that float by taking out at Hwy. 28, though I don't know how good the access there is. It's 7.5 miles from the campground to the next access at Jerome. I figure there's an even chance that we'll now enter a drought phase after all that rain this spring, and if so the Gasconade above the mouth of the Piney is no place for jetboaters who don't know the river very well. But from the Piney down it's fairly easy to run. And there are good accesses at Jerome, Bell Chute, and a private access at Hwy. 42, all of which are a fairly easy drive from the campground. If your using boiling springs campground Larry is a great person. He knows the Access's on the Gasconade and Big Piney. The area You guys are fishing is all great smallie water. I've been on all of it Canoe and Jet Boat. I'd say the Piney will be the best water for the canoe guy's and the Nade will be good for the Jet boats up to Hwy 17. Above 17 the canoers should consider heading that way. Larry has some great access for those who use his shuttle service. The Lazy days campground owner is a very avid smallmouth fisherman. Oh' by the way the weekend after the 4th of July is a very busy weekend for all campground and canoe rentals. I would definitly do some research on how early One can get on the water and how may access's for that day's trip to avoid some of the rif raf. Or go in a canoe so far upstream that no one wants to go cause of dragging. I gotta work or I'd love to go. Ok, Here's what I see on who's going Smalliebigs- Yes Al Agnew - Yes GotMuddy - Yes Cricket -Yes?? Gavin- Maybe Snagged- Maybe Eric- Maybe Drew- Maybe ColdWater- Maybe FishinSWMO Maybe Does anybody else want to go? Tell me if this works for you July 9th How many are camping, how many just floating? Should be fun!! Some people are showing up Thursday, some on Friday, some on Saturday. I don't know if you guys have already contacted Larry at Boiling Springs or not or do you want me to do it for you. Let me know. I probably won't show up until Friday afternoon when the Friday float is near ending. BTW, a know a couple of guys that tore em up on the upper float putting in at Riddle Bridge access last week!!! So let's have a barbque on Friday night and then float again Saturday. I'm sure some will stay and float Sunday as well. Since I don't have any camping equipment I was wondering if I could share a tent on Fri and Saturday?? Here's a prelim agenda for Saturday night: 6:00 to 7:00 Supper 7:00 to 7:15 Change from beer to cocktails 7:15 to 8:00 Tally fish and award ceremony 8:00 to 9:00 Feats of Strength (JoeD, Coldwater) 9:00 to 10:00 Airing of Grievances (Cricket) 10:00 to 10:15 Get more gasoline and logs for the fire 10:15 to ? Free time

I don't know.... long lines at the kios's at Branson Landing I understand. $10 a feather- installed.

Not bad- you can wade out at #3 and down at Big Hole. Better than 100 mw for sure.

I guess I need to point out that about 1000 different people look at the forum a day and very few people have had warnings appear and only one report of any substantial damage possibly coming from this site. The whole site has been scanned several times lately and nothing has ever shown up. That's about all I can do at this point.

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Crazy. Took Vince out from 4-6 pm today... backup. I got up early this morning, not planning to, but I have the same thing my dad has had- can't sleep past 4 am some nights. Rain storm - great rain! To my surprise, there was little fog on the lake at 5:30 so I headed up. Two units. Wanted to try something. I kept the boat close to the bluff bank below Lookout and worked it like I would flipping for bass. The water is stained so we can get away with it. Normally it's clear -- trout run from the boat. I've caught fish directly below the boat in 4 feet of water- they're not spooky in this water. I caught alot of rainbows doing this. Most of the time I got bit on the first drop from the cast. They key is to let it drop, even if you think you're close to the bottom. "If you're not losing jigs, you're not letting it sink enough, working it too fast." -- me. So when I took Vince out, we tried drifting below the dam with rebels and white woolies but "they weren't havin' it", as Babler would say. The wind was blowing us upstream and if you've drifted here and know that wind you know how tough it is. I thought, "Vince can do this", thinking of the flipping thing. So we headed down and started, and yes, he did do well. I think he caught a half dozen rainbows before he had enough. Video to follow. I dropped Vince off at the Riverpoint ramp and started home... well I thought I'd try my flipping thing on the bluff bank there so over I trolled and flipped a 3/32nd oz olive jig in an eddie, let it sink and "tap", I set the hook into a solid fish. Man!! I would not come up! I thought -- smallmouth! May be a brown trout! But I was thinking bass. I've only caught a handful so far this year so I'm not looking for browns. But it was (pic). Slipped it in the live well and cranked it up. Second cast-- "tap" and set the hook on a screamer. This trout didn't start down. It wasn't to play! Rainbow (pic). Caught another dozen rainbows on the stretch, not a slouch in the bunch. Headed back up to Fall Creek's dock and started again. Caught a blue gill and a chub on 2 cast. What's going on??? I'd caught several crappie and white bass earlier in the morning in the eddies upstream and now I'm continuing in the same pattern. Got back to the dock and had Marsha met me with the camera. Snapped some pics and all the fish went back in the lake. A young man on the dock was fishing with his grandpa. He was a little put out that I'd caught so many big fish in a short time and he had been fishing all day and not done as well. So I asked if he wanted to learn. He and his grandpa jumped in the boat and we headed to Lookout. I'll have to get alittle more info on the pair. They are regular guests but their last name eludes me. Vaughn is the boy's name and they're from O'Fallon, Missouri. Anyway, I explained what I knew about fishing jigs, the main thing was you lose jigs under and over the water and it takes time so don't get frustrated. Vaughn lost one jig, I lost 3. And Vaughn caught several trout, missed a few strikes. But the main thing is he casted very well, worked the jig and felt the strikes- set the hook. I think he's going to make a fine jig fisherman. He informed his grandma, once back at the dock. that he would never use that bait-stuff again. Within in 5 minutes, he was reeling in a rainbows from off the dock. BTW, I added another nice fish to my daily total on the short trip up- a smallmouth (pic).

Always a mistake.. and my wife even edited it!

Seven on the dry is great! Nothing like fishing a dry!