Phil Lilley

damage docks- Lilleys lost 4 stalls on their upper dock Cooper Creek lost both their docks and it looks like their boats are under the dock. Docks ok so far- Lazy Valley and Ozark Trout's dock are holding. Scotty's dock and boats are in good shape. Don't know about Trout Hollow or lower lake. Last I heard, Lake Shore and Blue Haven's docks were not looking good.

We got what we could. Shouldn't be any more damage. The temp is dropping like a rock and it's quite raining/sleeting/iceing/snowing. But I've heard a couple of big limbs fall on the neighbor's place and a tree fall on the bluff across the lake. I hope that's not a sign of things to come tonight.

We got what we could. Shouldn't be any more damage. The temp is dropping like a rock and it's quite raining/sleeting/iceing/snowing. But I've heard a couple of big limbs fall on the neighbor's place and a tree fall on the bluff across the lake. I hope that's not a sign of things to come tonight.

Lost our upper dock- collapsed. Going out for round 3- trying to get the ice off the rest of the dock. Fun Fun

Just checked the radar and the ice is still showing over and around us. Still no trees down. Power is good. We went out and got as much ice off the front edge of our dock as possible- it helped.

Our dock is not in good shape. We usually climb on top of it and shovel snow off it when it's this bad but I just tried and it's mostly ice, not much to shovel off. Some of the fingers are under water. Not sure how much more before it collapses or turns over. Never seen it this bad. No trees or branches down. Very fortunate. Phone is ringing off the wall with reservations... I guess everyone's thinking about warmer times while shut in the house... making plans.

Posted a map last night- it's pinned on the Crane Creek Forum.

Doesn't look good down here in Branson- I'm sure it doesn't look good all over the area. KY3's site is down. Depending on where their server is, that probably means Springfield's power is down. We had rain most of the night but it's now starting to cling to the trees. We'll see if it's bad enough to bring them down before it stops. When will it stop? Not sure. We have one big tree that leans over the lake and the dock. If it goes it will flatten a section of our dock.

Click here to go to a printable map of Crane Creek. Or click the link below to download a pdf file. crane_printable_map.pdf

Tailwaters- there's no guaranteed as far as generation. There are ways to get an idea- weather forecast, history, lake levels- but you just never know. Best time- honestly- anytime you can get away. No time like the present. 70-foot rig - you can park it along the road heading into the hatchery area and walk to the water. I would not attempt to pull it into the parking lots.

My son Caleb shared this video site. The videos here are much nicer and you can even upload videos in HD. I uploaded my jig fishing video- much clearer. http://ozarkanglers.com/index.php?option=c...view&id=526 Check it out. http://www.vimeo.com/

Terry- can you email me the original?

Thanks, John. I plan to fish on Monday, 2/2. I'm hoping for running water. I'm bringing white jigs!!!

I think it's a combination of what you can afford and how much (or little) you appreciate their work (or lack of). I relate it to tipping a waiter. If I like the service and appreciate the work that's done, and I can afford to tip more than the average (15%) then I will. Same with guiding. rps covers the good points very well.

I'm jumping in the middle of this, not reading everything, but someone mentioned mortality of trout caught on bait. MDC says 20% while artificial is 5%.

Never seen their site before... had to add it to OA's links. Nice yellow perch. They are really a pretty fish.

1elkhunter - 4000

Can't use the same email, user name... who's to know? I imagine we have alot of people who have signed up more than once... forgot their passwords and didn't ask me, just re registered.

For all you lurkers out there... be the 4000th member and win something!

If nothing works, email one to me and let me see what I can do with it. lilley @lilleyslanding.com I leave the space so bots can't steal my email and send me stuff.

Nice to have you.

The water that flows downstream from Greers Ferry Dam for approximately 30 miles is, without a doubt, some of the best trout fishing water in the South. Anglers can fish for monster Rainbows that in some cases push 20 pounds. There are also some very beautifully colored Brown Trout that can grow to massive sizes. There is also the chance for the "Grand Slam", since the Little Red River is also home to Brook and Cutthroat Trout. The river has islands, shoals with faster running water, moss beds and boulders that make up a variety of trout habitat. Construction on Greers Ferry Dam started in 1959 and was completed in 1962 near the town of Heber Springs, Arkansas. President John F. Kennedy dedicated the dam on October 3, 1963. It was one of his last official acts as president before his assassination in Dallas. A federal fish hatchery was built near the dam, where Arkansas Fish and Game raise Rainbow, Brook and Cutthroat trout. The first rainbow was stocked in 1965, and Fish and Game now stock roughly 300,000 rainbows per year. The Brook trout seems to have established itself with many fish being caught that run smaller than the 6" stocking size. Unfortunately the chances for a Grand Slam are slipping away, since there seems to be less and less of the beautiful cutthroat trout and Fish and Game has a proposal to stop stocking them. At first, Arkansas Fish and Game were against stocking the Brown trout, since they are such notorious cannibals and would have had a feast of hatchery trout. But, in the early 1970's, several unknown fishermen took it upon themselves to buy brown trout fingerlings and place them in the Little Red. The next year several Vibert hatching boxes filled with fertilized brown trout eggs were also placed in the river. Regulations now exist that prohibit these types of actions, but the initial stockings took off and now the Little Red is probably one of the best brown trout fisheries in the world, and has the world record brown to it's credit. On May 9, 1992 Howard "Rip" Collins caught the world record brown, weighing in at a whopping 40 lbs. 4 1/4 oz. The beauty was traced back to the initial stocking of the mid-70's. To properly fish the Little Red, your fly box should include: Sow Bugs, Scuds, Wooly Buggers, San Juan Worms and a few Crayfish imitations. Other well known and successful patterns include: the Prince Nymph, March Browns, Brassies and a Red Ass Soft Hackle. In periods of no generation and low water, there are incredible midge hatches and midge fishing can be outstanding. Griffith's Gnats, small BWO Emerger patterns and Zebra Midges work great as do egg patterns in season. The "standard" fly rod is an 8-9' 4 or 5 weight rod. A 6 weight is also a very popular rod. Leaders of 4X and 5X work in most conditions and situations. In periods of low water, 6X or 7X tippets will be mainly used in midge fishing. For delicate presentation in midge fishing, there are anglers that will drop down to a 2 or 3 weight rod. Neoprene waders are a must for colder weather fishing. There is no closed season in Arkansas; some beautiful fish can be caught during the colder months and you could end up being on the river virtually all by yourself. Breathable waders are sufficient for warmer weather fishing. The river bottom is notoriously slick so felt soles are a must. Polarized sunglasses are also a necessity. The most important thing to remember about the Little Red is that it's a tailwater, and water flow can and will fluctuate. The Corp of Engineers does have a warning horn they sound prior to generation, but at any sign of rising water, for your safety, leave the water immediately.

The wind was pretty crazy. It would blow hard and make the water roll, then tame down but the waves kept going. It was rippled so we could see down in and see the rainbow schooling around. We'd throw close enough to see them swarming under the indicator but the float wouldn't move until, wait..., the float would finally dart. It was fun. We also tried this- setting the float at 3 feet, we were fishing in less than 3 feet of water. That means the jig was laying on the bottom. I'd hop the float, hopping the jig off the bottom may be 12 inches. When I did this, I'd see one- maybe two- rainbows dart over toward where the jig was, seeing the movement and being drawn to it. I'd do it again and he'd hit it hard. If we'd used a white jig (we didn't cause they were on an olive), we would have seen the jig disappear into the trout's mouth. That's cool too.

Vince and I boated to the Narrows about a mile above Fall Creek. Water was off, temp dropping and wind stiff out of the north at 15 mph at 2 pm. The only thing we could do is use a jig and float. Vince had his fly rod and me my spin cast. We set the boat up on the shallow flat in about 2 ft of water and casted to the deeper side but still not much more than 3 to 3.5 feet. Even with the waves almost breaking over, we could see rainbows all over the place slashing and jumping- they were very active. Vince started with an olive 1/80th oz jig and I with a white 1/50th oz. Vince had a couple before I got my first. It was a white bass- about 3/4 lb. I saw others but they schooled on by. The wind was really moving us, too fast to catch fish so I threw out an anchor and we really started to nail them. We both hooked some really nice rainbows, lost several but landed a few along with other trout. All rainbows. All were very fat and healthy- lots of color. Caught some males, darken and yellow tinted. We ended it at 4:30- C of O had a couple of B-Ball games and Vince had to get back. I have to say I was very impressed with the size and fight of these rainbows. I saw others quite a bit bigger than the ones we hooked. I'm excited about our prospects this winter and spring.

Cool... isn't it great to get to fish with your dad!!!