Phil Lilley

Bill Babler. Or a number of other guides on the forum.

Sorry- been busy. I'm open to whatever you all want to do. I got these magnets for real cheap- actually a gift from a guy who sold them at cost. But they're too heavy to mail. Stickers would work. I like the cutout ones you can put inside you back window. I've seen some bright stickers put on motors to signify you're part of a group or something. A small, round one. Doesn't have to be fancy. Let me know.

Another great trip this am. Was up there by 6:15- anchored close to the eddie but in good current. Had whites on first dozen casts using 1/4 oz head and blue/pearl swimming minnows. Also caught them on a 1/8th oz white jig. Three of us had 38 whites by 8 am- all males but one and it was a small female. They're starting to bust shad.

I'm half-way seriously looking for a junker 24-foot-plus pontoon. Don't need a motor. Don't need a trailer either. Got one in your backyard you need hauled off?

I usually post this on OA proper but I'll post it both places, as well as our facebook, wordpress and other places on the web. KC Star called yesterday and caught me in the office. I usually write and email reports out on Sunday or Monday but have been too busy to do it this week. My report for the Star wasn't the best one, only rated the fishing as fair, which was really a stretch. It's almost POOR, which hasn't been in my vocabulary in along time. All us guides have had hard time this week finding rainbows for clients. Catching a limit has been the exception rather than the rule. Why? I usually blame it on the weather, the water- but I think it may just be a lack of rainbows. I'm speaking about below Fall Creek where trout are harvested. Above Fall Creek, I can't use that as an excuse cause I know they're up there and it's still tough. For once, I'm short on answers. All I know it will get better. I once gave a fishing report to a guy from the Joplin area. He called the office and asked how the fishing was. I told him real tough- poor. I think he was surprised, like the Star guy. The Star guy told me it was unusual, even refreshing, to hear someone give a bad report simply because it was an honest one. The guy on the phone didn't like it. He came on and went fishing that weekend and had a great fishing trip! He made it a point to call me the next week and tell me how I didn't know anything about the fishing on Taneycomo. The thing he didn't realize is that fishing- or CATCHING- can change in a day here. MDC stocks 15,000 rainbows and catching gets better!! We're still catching some rainbows down at the bridges and the Landing. Drifting either minnows or Gulp Eggs on the bottom. Some guys staying here found some rainbows drifting minnows in the Short Creek area. Bruce and his wife just went out as well as Rolan and his son. I'll talk to them at noon and find out how they did with the lower water and report back.

Thanks.... good info. Makes us all feel better about what we've found so far. Snakem... is that a song or did you just make it up?????

With all the water downstream, from weeks of running, it'll take along time for it to drop completely off. They've not turn it all back on this morning... nice change. Looks like 2 units.

Took Jean and Francis Steffen out last evening. Took the pontoon up below Powersite and anchored on the River Run side in hopes of getting them into a few white bass. Thought the best and easiest would be minnows hanging off the back of the boat. It was slow at first but before dark they started hitting pretty good. Caught a nice crappie and a dozen whites, a couple of decent ones. All males. Great evening to be out with good friends.

I've been going to a chiropractor, Scott Gamm, for the last 5 years regularly. He has, in addition to adjustments, suggested exercises, stretches and given me tools to help with them. He also suggests other healthy ways to eat, suppling materials on nutrition and other things like cleanses (fun, fun). What he and other chiropractors preach makes total sense. The adjustments seem like a racket to alot of people until their spinal cords start showing problems because of being out of whack for a long period of time. I've had back trouble most of my adult life. Lower back with nerve problems. My spine curves which I'm sure doesn't help. Before I went to Scott, I'd have spells where I couldn't put on my socks or bend over at all, sometimes lasting 6 to 12 months. Most of it was nerve out of my lower back extending down my right leg. Since I've been going to Scott AND working out and stretching, I've had little problems. Am I pain free? No. I'm still stiff in the mornings but I can tie my shoes!! Seriously- find a GOOD chiro that doesn't just adjust and stay with it.

I am confused too... fished too hard for just 6 and they were scattered. No pattern. I'm thinking although we're catching big ones, the numbers overall may be down OR they're just not started and will very soon. It is quiet on the forum as far as crappie. Need more people talking about it.

Started at 6:30 this am- anchored in the seam water on the River Run side of BS at the Pothole below Powersite. Whites right off the bat... mainly on blue/white swimming minnows. Then Richard caught 2 keeper walleyes- both males and both milking to beat the band. Whites - all males. Went into Swan about 9 am. Nothing above the park but shad. In the park water is murky and full of carp and gar. Never seen so many carp. Did catch one female white on a rebel- spawned out. Saw another huge sow caught. Also saw a school of fish, probably whites, come up and bust a school of shad off the point there in the park. Stayed up for 30 seconds. No one fishing from the bank there at the time... too bad- would have been fun to be a cast distance from them. Guys said they REALLY caught them last night in the park.

Need to stop and visit with the shop owner there... try to get him on the forum.

Put in at Gages. Headed up in Brushy. First cast looking for crappie throwing a chart swimming minnow and hooked a 4-5 lb smalley. Man do they fight. I released her before the pic. Pea gravel real close to the bank. Short story- rest of the afternoon we hit lots of crappie banks and found a crappie here and there- almost all on the bank but only 6 all afternoon. Fantastic weather!!! No wind, light rain and hardly anyone out. Caught a bunch of nice redears and big blue gill too- Rolan throwing a white jig with his fly rod killed them. Made a good mess of fish at the end of the day. They got to be close...

Dr Scott Gamm http://www.extracarechiro.com/ Extremely good for fishermen! Highly recommended.

Thanks for the intro... and the offer for help on your favorite river.

No- didn't want to spend the time but I didn't see any up there last evening. Scott took my boat this am with Vince and fished that slack water and other eddies and put 27 whites in the well by 10 am, launching at 6:30 am. Most were caught on white jigs this time. I helped clean them after my trip- almost all were males but 4 sow- 3 were partly spawned and one wasn't ready. They had 2 over 19 inches- all others were 1/2 pound to 1/5 pound males.

Thanks for the report! Nice to heard about other types of fishing. Keep the reports coming!!

PM to u

YES- 2 reports from 2 lakes in one day! Headed to K-dock, hot on the heals of a good crappie report. Inside K-Dock cove just up the cove from the ramp. But the wind was howling right up in the cove and water had risen. No crappie- only a few small whites and a 17.9 inch walleye. Pulled out and headed to River Run. Arrived at 6:30- pulled out at 7:30... one hour of boat ride and fishing time. We went to the place where I read on the forum today where someone had caught a bunch of whites on the river run side wading... I can't find the post now. We found some slack water and drop the anchor. It was every cast for 15 minutes, then nothing for 15... and so on. Mostly small males but ended up with one sow with eggs and 5 nice males. One 17 inch walleye, nice smallmouth and a trout. They were in the current though, not in the slack water. Caught them on blue/white swimming minnows, 1/4 oz jig head.

Guided today for BA Electric of Broken Arrow, OK- I was one of 10 guides. Most guides stayed down in the Landing area all day- it was tough and we earned every rainbow we boated. We caught our drifting and holding up behind docks, namely Fish House, Shorty Smalls and a couple of private docks. The trout seemed to be holding out of the current there. Jigs and Gulp Eggs- no minnows this time. Chuck Gries said he and his guy spent half the day throwing stick baits above Fall Creek on the bluff banks and catching a few short browns but losing a nice trophy at the boat. Said they had alot of follows too. 4 units blowing thru... we're looking at the eddies and creek mouths for trout right now.

I have magnetic bumper stickers in the office free... but to big to mail out. Had stickers but they are all gone. I may work on stickers again... I do have hats. $10 each. They're on http://lilleystacklestore.com but I see right now IT IS DOWN! Having lots of server issues right now!

Put in at Gages about 6 pm. Hit some of my spots heading up in the creek. Nothing on the banks. Did find a few on stickups out from the bank 15-20. Lost a big one and landed one. Several smaller ones and a couple of shorts. All on swimming minnows- smoke. I didn't clean these but they appeared to be spawned out. I find that hard to believe but .... I'll be looking again in the days to come. 16.5 inches... what a slab!!

"To me thats how utterly rediculous this discussion is." Some of this, most of it boils down to one thing- there are two schools of thought and some gray area inbetween. One- catch and release no matter what. Two- catch and keep a limit of bass to eat. Gray- catch and keep a few every once in a while; never keep bass with eggs (pro & con); never fish for bass on beds (pro & con)... Divide these groups into two forums and never shall one look at the other's forum BECAUSE the catch and release people don't want to give away any information to help the catch and keep people kill bass. That's a bit of the mindset of the guides, or most of them, on this forum. They cannot control who reads this but they can control what information they provide. When I say guides this includes other anglers who know and fish any lake as much as guides do. I'd say most are silent- some provide reports on their own sites and don't come on OAF. Some sell their reports to people who subscribe to their mailing lists. All is fine and good- to each his own. But EVERYONE needs to understand what is fact on any forum- and be smart. It would be really stupid for anyone to come on any forum and thank, say a guide, for the fishing information he provided and follow by saying... "those bass sure tasted good and we had fish eggs for breakfast!" Extreme example I know but it gets my point across.

It's a thought... but Trav would come back and protest big time! Better leave it alone and let it take its course.

Best response yet... thanks!!