Phil Lilley

Give cash directly to someone you know needs it... and do it without anyone knowing it.

Christian Action Ministries here in Branson and Forsyth. Food pantry providing food to 1700 families monthly, plus some rent/utility assistance. Samaritan's Purse.

Of course I'll be here but won't be there till early afternoon with church Sunday morning.

HEBER SPRINGS (AGFC) – Anglers visiting the Little Red River below Greers Ferry Dam in Heber Springs will find a few new regulations in place when they hit the water in 2017. The Commission voted unanimously to approve many changes which were adopted to help protect the world-famous trout fishery and spawning areas. The regulations were presented to the Commission in October, and public surveys were conducted throughout October on www.agfc.com to gather public input before the final vote. http://www.kait8.com/story/34122079/new-trout-regulations-for-little-red-river-in-effect-jan-1

These days I don't think about writing a fishing report for Lake Taneycomo very often because I feel like I'm giving one every day when I do One Cast, a daily video we do off our dock in which we try to catch a fish by making only one cast. It's broadcasted on both our resort's Youtube channel and Facebook page. There's not many people fishing right now and that's a little surprising seeing the weather is so nice for late December. Those that are here are catching trout. We haven't heard too many bad reports lately. Generation (the lack of) has been nice to those who like to wade below the dam, as well as still fishing off docks and out in boats. On cold mornings, they'll run up to 3 units for 2-3 hours and then it's off the rest of the day. Water quality is superb now that Table Rock has fully turned over. The Corp has lifted all generation restrictions and closed the vents on their turbines. We have noticed that a lot of the rainbows that have been stocked this month are bigger than normal. I'm not sure if these trout are from Neosho's hatchery or Shepherd of the Hills. We normally get a big load from the federal hatchery at Neosho in December and typically these fish are small. We're still seeing some small rainbows but I think they've been in the lake for several months. Duane and I fished Thursday evening from Fall Creek up to the Narrows throwing mainly black 1/16th or 3/32nd ounce jigs and catching a lot of rainbows. A good number of them appeared to be freshly stocked but measured 13-14 inches and were thick and stocky. I can't say they were newly stocked trout for sure but they did have that dull coloring we see from stockers. We didn't catch many small trout, less than 10 inches. Black has been the color of choice for several months now. I even threw a brown jig yesterday and didn't get bit like I did throwing a black. Duane threw a sculpin/ginger for a bit and caught a few but his bite slowed down when he did switch so he changed back. We've also been throwing black combos too, like black/olive, black/brown and black/yellow and doing well. I'm using 2-pound Vanish line, not because the fish can't see it but because I'm throwing small jigs. One thing that's absolutely great to see is our midge hatches returning in big numbers. The last week, especially in the morning and evening, we've had midges coming off the water and our trout responding to them. I have to point out both because we've had good hatches lately but our trout have turned a blind eye to them. Not the last few weeks! I've been out several evenings, fishing below Fall Creek on the shallow side mainly and seeing dozens and dozens of rises to midges skating across the surface, drying their wings before flight. Rainbows are chasing and jumping, cruising and sipping and something I haven't seen before (I don't remember seeing)-- rainbows coming straight up out of the water like a whale and inhaling a midge. The rainbows on the San Juan River are famous for this technique but they are rising to clumps of midges. I am targeting these trout using my fly rod and fishing a small Zebra Midge under a tiny float and only fishing it 6-10 inches deep. Some of the water I'm fishing is only a foot deep--that's where some of the fish are cruising and feeding. I'm using a rusty, a red or black, and if it's sunny I'm using a P&P midge, mostly a #14 or #16. And I'm using 6x tippet, or 2-pound line. Someone using a spin cast can fish a Zebra under a float but I would suggest fishing out in deeper water and fish it 24-48 inches deep. When casting with spinning gear, you have to use a bigger float and a bigger float would spook fish holding in shallow water. I've tried fishing a scud up above Fall Creek lately and haven't done as well as I had been. But we had some guests last weekend fish an egg fly under a float and it worked real well for them. We carry an egg fly called a Miracle fly that's an egg tied on a small jig head and fished just like a small jig under a float. Some of our rainbows are starting to drop eggs so they're responding to an egg fly pretty good. Anglers fishing up below the dam are doing well using a white Mega Worm which is a big, fluffy piece of yarn tied on a hook. It can also be tied on a small jig head too. They usually sight fish using it simply because the white worm shows up so clear in the water, you can see it disappear in the fish's mouth. Mike Curry, a long time angler who lives here in Branson, is one of the best at this technique and has caught some big trout over the years. But I believe fly shop owner, Tim Homesley, discovered the yarn at his local Wal Mart and started using it on his home waters at Roaring River State Park. The Berkley Pink Powerbait Worm is still a hot ticket to catch trout below Fall Creek. Take only a small 1.5 inch piece of the soft plastic worm and thread it onto a small jig head, fish it anywhere from 3 to 6 feet deep under an indicator. It's still one of our guide's go-to techniques for catching trout for clients. They're using either 2 or 4 pound line. If you're bait fishing, yellow Powerbait paste is catch a lot of trout off our dock and out in boats. There doesn't seem to be a hot area on the lake--I see people fishing up close to the mouth of Fall Creek and doing well and hearing others going down towards Monkey Island and the Landing and catching trout too. Remember.... and this is very important! If you're fishing with bait, the trout are going to swallow the hook most of the time. Don't try to dig your hook out and by all means, don't just jerk it out! Cut the line without touching the fish and drop it back in the lake. The trout will have a better chance of surviving this way. The hook should dissolve in time. One person can literally kill dozens of trout a day by catch and releasing in an improper way. One other thing. Remember the limit is 4 trout per person per day. That's not 4 in the morning and 4 in the afternoon. We see that quite often here... and it doesn't go unnoticed. We chose to protect the fishery so that anglers arriving tomorrow have fish to catch rather letting someone take more than their limit and ruin it for the next guy. Note: The two images of rainbows posted in this article were taken after I finished writing this report. I took out one of our jon boats in front of the resort and threw a 1/16th ounce black/olive jig in hopes of catching a few pretty trout for pictures to go with this report, between rain showers. I caught 3 rainbows, one was nice size but not real pretty. These two were actually bigger than what I was expecting. But what I wanted to take note of is that both of these rainbows spit up both scuds and sow bugs when placed in the tank. View full article

I'm not convinced they move to better DO, at least on LT. I know they move for food. I think they tend to move/change their pattern if the water is off for long periods of time vs water running for long periods of time. Last year, trout were dying up below the dam because of bad water quality which included, but not limited to, low DO. Those fish didn't move, or if they did move, it wasn't far enough. Sunlight and wind play a big part of adding O2 to water. The further downstream you get from the point source (the dam) the better the water will be. But all of this is of no affect now... Table Rock has turned and we have very good water coming through Table Rock Dam now.

I'm up to 7 this year...

Narrows.... real tricky. Can't see the bottom because the gravel is dark, water is dark. There's 6 inches of water where you don't expect it.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) reports it has received results for more than half of approximately 19,200 tissue samples being tested for chronic wasting disease (CWD) collected during the Department’s mandatory sampling of deer harvested on Nov. 12 and 13 in 29 counties in northeast, central, and east-central Missouri. From those test results, MDC has confirmed that two deer tested positive for CWD; a yearling male harvested in southeast Jefferson County and a mature buck harvested in northern Franklin County. MDC expects to receive results in the next few weeks from the remaining tissue samples being tested from mandatory sampling and early sampling in southwest Missouri. Testing is being done by Colorado State University at an independent laboratory that specializes in wildlife-disease testing. “This has been a huge undertaking and we greatly appreciate the help from participating hunters and businesses,” said MDC Wildlife Disease Coordinator Jasmine Batten. “As we get the final test results back in the coming weeks, we will have a better understanding of where this wildlife disease is on the Missouri landscape. This will help us in evaluating the next steps in our ongoing CWD management efforts, including future testing efforts in the CWD management zone and around the state.” The department also received test results for about 80 percent of the nearly 550 tissue samples collected for CWD testing in seven counties in southwest Missouri. The target counties are close to where more than 100 cases of CWD have been found in Northwest Arkansas. No deer from southern Missouri have tested positive for the disease. The Department is also testing additional tissue samples taken by taxidermists and collected at MDC offices and other sampling locations throughout the deer-hunting season. MDC encourages hunters who harvest deer throughout the rest of the hunting season in northeast, central, and east central Missouri to have their deer tested for the disease. MDC also encourages hunters who harvest deer throughout the rest of the hunting season in Barry, Christian, Douglas, McDonald, Ozark, Stone, and Taney counties in southwest Missouri to have their animals tested for CWD. Find sampling locations online at mdc.mo.gov/cwdsamplinglocations. For more information on the Department’s CWD sampling efforts and testing results, visit mdc.mo.gov/cwd and look under “CWD Surveillance Summary.” Hunters who participated in the Department’s CWD sampling efforts can get test results for their harvested deer online at mdc.mo.gov/cwdtestresults. Chronic Wasting Disease infects only deer and other members of the deer family by causing degeneration of the brain. The disease has no vaccine or cure and is 100‐percent fatal. For more information on CWD, visit mdc.mo.gov/cwd. For information on processing and consuming meat from deer with CWD, visit the Department of Health and Senior Services at health.mo.gov/cwd.

Sorry... I wrongly assumed (bad thing) since it was posted on the TR forum it might have been a TR fish. Shouldn't have known to keep my opinions out of bass country

Observations: That's not Table Rock. There's some sort of waterfall in the background of post #1. The boat looks like a river jon. Square front. Pic #2 kinda looks photoshopped with a false background. I'm not disputing anything... it's a great fish. Would like to know more details.

One more pic.

We caught ours on 1/16th and 3/32nd ounce black jigs. Brit's rainbow measured 19.75 inches - dropping eggs.

Since we had fly fishers and jig fishers, I changed the name of the gathering. Me and Duane took a boat out and @Chief Grey Bear and his 2 fishing buddies went out in their boat. They followed up to Lookout where we found less than a half unit running. Here are our pics...

MDC sets upcoming deer and turkey hunting dates For more information on deer and turkey hunting, visit mdc.mo.gov. JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – At its meeting on Dec. 16, the Missouri Conservation Commission approved recommendations by the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) for 2017-2018 turkey-hunting and deer-hunting season dates. 2017 SPRING TURKEY HUNTING DATES Youth Portion: April 8 and 9 Regular Turkey Season: April 17 through May 7 2017-2018 FALL TURKEY HUNTING DATES Archery Season: Sept. 15 through Nov. 10 and Nov. 22 through Jan. 15, 2018. Firearms Turkey Season: Oct. 1 - 31 2017 – 2018 FALL DEER HUNTING DATES Archery Deer: Sept. 15 through Nov. 10 and Nov. 22 through Jan. 15, 2018 Firearms Deer Early Youth Portion: Oct. 28 and 29 Firearms Deer November Portion: Nov. 11 - 21 Firearms Deer Late Youth Portion: Nov. 24 - 26 Firearms Deer Antlerless Portion: Dec. 1 - 3 Firearms Deer Alternative Methods Portion: Dec. 23 through Jan. 2, 2018 Details on hunting regulations, harvest limits, allowed methods, required permits, and other related information will be available in the Department’s “2017 Spring Turkey Hunting Regulations and Information” booklet and the “2017 Fall Deer & Turkey Hunting Regulations and Information” booklet. Both will be available prior to the related seasons where permits are sold.

We have a 2 pm appt. Not sure how long it will last but should be able to fish afterwards.

Knock yourself out... I'll be sleeping

@JestersHK is coming late Friday, Saturday. 1 person. @Chief Grey Bear is coming Friday, Saturday, Sunday. 5-7 people. Not sure how many fishing. @Bryan1717 is coming Friday, Saturday. 1 person. @jtram is coming Friday, Saturday. He and his wife, one fishing. Unit #22 will be the gathering place. It's got a big open room with a kitchen, located across from the office. I'm going to be here after all. I know Chief is bringing some food - I'll pitch in some smoked chicken and salmon (real salmon). I assume we won't eat together Friday evening since everyone will be arriving at different times but we'll have lunch items there Saturday and then put on a big spread Saturday night. Fishing... I'll be available to fish whenever plus we have boats ready to go.

@grizwilson @MOBass @gotmuddy You guys will be missed!! @jtram I'm sure we'll have spots open in a boat... we'll make it happen.

It's every upland bird hunter's dilemma... I find myself watching quail fly away without a shot when I'm toting #4's in my chamber. But then when I drop a quail with #4's, they're not tore up too bad at all. One of the land owners hunted with us, and he uses high brass #7.5's and says he doesn't have much trouble dropping pheasants. The key is hitting them close and not taking the long second shot. Could meet in the middle and use high brass #6's and feel more confident on the pheasants. Up until this year, we didn't have this problem - quail and pheasant - but it's a good problem to have!

@grizwilson is coming Thursday, Friday. 1 person. @JestersHK is coming late Friday, Saturday. 1 person. @Chief Grey Bear is coming Friday, Saturday, Sunday. 5-7 people. Not sure how many fishing. @Bryan1717 is coming Friday, Saturday. 1 person. @gotmuddy is coming Saturday. 1 person. Forget anyone? I'm going by PM's, texts and postings. Not sure if any is bringing boats but we have plenty here. Looks like decent weather. They are still running water 24/7. Food - if everyone brings what they say they're bringing we'll have tons of food. But should go over it. Also, post when you're able to fish - what days or half days. If any locals want to get in on this, please do. Should be a fun weekend.

I emailed Paul H. Rydlund and asked about funding. Here's the email I received just now: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Thank you for your inquiry. Costs for gage operation are $14,600 annually to disseminate both river stage and flow, costs are $5200 annually to only disseminate flow. Through non-standard means we could receive funding (often times through another agency) from private sources. Feel free to give me a call if you wish next week. We are slated for a meeting next Monday as follows.... ---------------------------- You are receiving this email to be invited to attend a short meeting on the afternoon of December 12th in Waynesville, Missouri to discuss four USGS stream gages in Pulaski County area that are threatened to be discontinued due lack of funding. These stream gages are located along the Big Piney River and the Roubidoux Creek (see below), and USGS has indicated that these stream gages will be discontinued and removed if additional funding is not secured in the near future. Attached you will find a fact sheet that USGS has prepared regarding these specific gages. 06928300 Roubidoux Creek above Fort Leonard Wood, MO 06928420 Roubidoux Creek at Polla Rd below Ft. Leonard Wood 06930000 Big Piney River near Big Piney, MO 06930060 Big Piney River below Fort Leonard Wood, MO As a stream gage user you will have unique insight on how you and/or your entity uses these stream gages and will be able to provide input in that regard. Given the importance of these stream gages, we would very much like to work all interested partners, so feel free to forward this email to other parties and/or individuals as desired. The goal of this meeting is to discuss the specific use and benefit of these gages and come up with a unified path forward to secure funding. What: Roubidoux Creek and Big Piney River USGS stream gage meeting to discuss use and funding When: December 12th 2-4 pm Where: Waynesville’s new Municipal Center at 100 Tremont Center (more specific directions to follow) If you have questions or concerns please feel free to contact me. Thank you for your help and attention. Bob Bacon, State Hydrologist Bob.Bacon@dnr.mo.gov Missouri Department of Natural Resources Water Resources Center 1101 Riverside Dr. Jefferson City, MO 65102 (573) 751-6632 (office) (573) 291-8184 (cell) (573) 751-8475 (fax) Paul H. Rydlund Jr. PLS Supervisory Hydrologist. U.S. Geological Survey Missouri Water Science Center 1400 Independence Drive Rolla, Missouri 65401 Office (573) 308-3572 Cell (573) 202-3994 prydlund@usgs.gov