Phil Lilley

I'd consider giving 100% to charity and give winners prizes from sponsors. You'd be surprised how this would not scare people from fishing them. Most would just do it for the fun of it- excuse to get out and fish. Takes some of the motivation out of cheating too. There's a thread a few years old we talked about fly fishing tournaments on Taneycomo... had one and it was fun but here on Taney we're too much subject to generation to schedule one unless it's out of a boat.

Trees are in full view. Can't miss them. Water level will be lower although there is current because of the boards being down at Powersite. Just stay in the channel and you should be good. pl

Fishing below Fall Creek has been tough. Not sure why. I suggested to some that they try drifting scuds and egg flies below Fall Creek cause they've done so well using them above. Didn't hear beck on that suggestion. Also, gold/black sinking Rapalas worked real good the last few days up below the dam.

This may be a harder tournament than I first thought as far as restrictions on baits. Bass tourneys- can't use live bait but can use scented and soft plastics. Trout- I need to eliminate baits that would catch a trout by letting it sit in the water motionless. I think for this one, I'll just eliminate live and Berkley Trout Baits and that's all. See how this one goes. So yes- those baits you use for bass, soft plastics and scented, are ok to use.

Hummm... hadn't thought about that. I use those rules in all my trout tournaments so I just copied-pasted it. I may change it. Just no live bait (worms, power bait). Thanks for pointing it out.

You're right on the cable. Just learned that myself. They pull the cable when they need to let more water through without raising the level of LT. With them out, the level drops 4 feet at the lower end when the water is all the way off and if they're running some water, it's lower up here and runs faster. Makes it interesting. Two of the guides hit bottom above Fall Creek yesterday and ruined their props in places they usually don't have to watch for... it has changed.

We will be marking 11-inch cutthroat trout at the Norfork National Fish Hatchery on May 19th & 20th and are looking for some volunteers to assist us. We will be getting started around 8:30 am. For those of that helped this past winter with the brown trout, this should be a much more pleasant experience. At this time I do not anticipate freezing temperatures to be an issue. Also, we have gone to a better set-up that allows us to be more efficient. If you would like to help, please let me know as soon as you can so I start to get a head count. Let me know if you have any questions. Thanks. Jeff Jeff Williams Trout Program Coordinator E: j_williams@agfc.state.ar.us | P: (870) 424-5924 | M: (870) 404 - 0503 Arkansas Game and Fish Commission 201 East 5th Street Mountain Home, AR 72653 P: (870) 425-7577 | F: (870) 425-6596 www.agfc.com

We are having to cancel this tournament because the Bass Pro Dock will not be back in service by June 12th and there's no place to start or finish the tournament in the downtown area. Chances are, we will hold this tournament next June. CANCELED: We are sponsoring a benefit fishing tournament on Sunday, June 12 here on Lake Taneycomo. The beneficiary is Ozarks Water Watch http://www.whiteriverbasin.org/ part of the Upper White River Basin Foundation. Lilleys' Landing and Bass Pro is the major sponsors. Here's a couple of links to pdf's I've uploaded to give you the specifics - You can catch and weigh in 4 bass and 4 trout. It's unlike any other tournament we've ever held on Lake Taneycomo. Entry is $50 per team. After the event, Bass Pro's Fish House will feed everyone including family members one of their famous Bar-B-Que dinners so come on out and enjoy a day of fishing and fellowship for a good cause. ~~CANCELED~~

The boards are 4 feet high.

Wish we would have placed those big rocks in the flat below and across from #2 before the flood. Would have made some interesting holes I bet. All that gravel gone from the bank had to go someplace. I think that's what we'll see when the water drops all the way out. The boards are down at Powersite remember so the water levels are going to be lower than usual with the amount of water running.

There were lots of small stripers in the lake. We "caught" several like this one. Danny caught this bass Thursday evening. Released... Beautiful sunset.

Took a trip down to Lake Texoma a few days ago to fish with a good friend from Ada, OK. Coy Howry and his son Danny. They spend a week every spring on the lake camping north of the Roosevelt Bridge. We fished Wednesday evening and caught about 30 sandys before dark, caught our limit Thursday morning and then caught and released quite a few that evening. We caught them on wind-blown banks and points in 2-3 feet of water on rattle traps. It wasn't hard to find the sandys... the lake if full of them. Coy usually catches quite a few stripers on his trip but he said the big stripers hadn't been found, even by the guides. Not sure what was happening- if they were hiding or just not there. They're worried about it. They had a big shad kill last year and some believe the big stripers died on account of lack of food. We caught small stripers mixed in with the sandys- nothing over 2 pounds. Coy's uncle George and Coy both talked about what affect the stripers have had on their lake. They said the sand bass are small because of the stripers. They said the sand bass used to get big like ours in Bull Shoals and Table Rock but not since they stocked stripers. Didn't hurt the population count, but it did the size. George catches alot of crappie on Texoma. They were actually still on the banks spawning this week- he caught 20 while I was there. It seems like the striper did not hurt the crappie population- or the size, although they don't catch the crappie as big as in Bull Shoals and Table Rock. There seems to be tons and tons of shad in the lake- at least while I was there. But I think it takes a huge population of shad all the time to sustain a big striper population.

Not saying they don't make mistakes, Greg. I too thought how the heck they were going to drop the lake to 920 but I was too busy with dry wall, painting and laying carpet to think about it too much. I did think- oh man... flood gates for a month!! Great fishing!!!! In looking at the lake level chart, it looks like the gates are close. Taney's level dropped to 710 from 713. I'm gone for a few days now... out of web-range so I guess you can talk about this without me...

So to answer your question, Kristine, the lake probably won't go down much.

I was going to start a new topic and still may but I wanted to weigh in here. First- I think the Corp has done a good job with this event. And that comes from someone who had 20 inches of water in rental units and a dock that's in half. They did what they were supposed to- let water out. Let me ask you - where are they going to put this water you want drained out of Table Rock to get it down to 920? Bull Shoals is full. The Mississippi is experiencing record floods. Add to it? Because dock owners and boater don't want high water? Flood homes, towns, farm land so that we can play? I don't mean to sound flippant -- it's serious stuff. Right now, we, the Corp, and everyone around and below the dams, are at the mercy of one thing - rain. We got alot of it and now our tubs are 98 full%. Whatever comes now runs over the top and we get flooded again. It's not the Corp's fault. It's our problem- the people who chose to buy homes and businesses next to the water. That's the chance we took. Beaver has already done what Table Rock is about to do - stop running so much water and start holding it. Don't look for these levels to drop anytime soon. Again, where are they going to send it? If you want to know where to look to see when they will start releasing water - look at the Mississippi at or below where the White River run into it. When that water starts to drop, then you'll see our lakes starting to drop, not before. The Corp is reactionary- they don't release water unless there's water on the ground. They won't release, or aren't supposed to by mandate of Congress, on predictions. We did get word this afternoon, although it was second hand and unsubstantiated, that they were going to shut the flood gates off at Table Rock and cut generation down to 2 units, another indication that they are starting to hold Table Rock's level.

Where is a good place to find estimates of rainfall? Thanks

Not sure by your post if you're fishing from the bank or boat but either way, I'd change a couple of things. Bigger crank baits. Heavier line. You can use 6-8 lb line with crank baits. Most of the time, not all the time, you have to be on the bottom to do well, esp in running water. I don't think your jigs are heavy enough by them selves. May be if you use a split shot but I don't like to use them- they take away some of the action. Use 1/8 oz or even a 1/4 oz. 4 lb line is fine. 2 lb is over kill with so much water. If you hook a fish from the bank with 2 lb in this current, you'll have a tough time landing it. If you're using the flies Leonard mentioned, remember to get them down.

I need to write a little piece on getting a jig or anything with weight to the bottom in this much water. I noticed yesterday- and other times- that if you throw off the back or upstream of the boat you just don't get down unless you have an ungodly amount of weight on--often time too much and you get snagged real quick. If you throw off the side, by the time your weight starts tinking the bottom good, it's up towards the dam direction and you lose touch with the bottom. I throw downstream at about a 45 degree angle. The weight gets to the bottom at about a 90 degree angle and it keeps contact with the bottom longer. I also slow the boat down in the current with the trolling motor to keep the weight on the bottom longer. If you're not on the bottom, you won't get bit. Talked to Tony today- said they did real good this morning on an egg fly/scud combo up at the dam. Lots of big rainbows.

I took a crew up to the dam in a pontoon for a few drifts between 2-4 pm. Worse time to be out- high sun. Babler fished all day- said it was good early but got real slow in the afternoon. They were dragging small crank baits mainly he said. We drifted white 1/8th oz jigs and white shad flies. The guys caught I think 5 rainbows, all decent trout. I noticed they were working them way too much. I told them to let them go to the bottom and let them drift. You about got to TRY to get snagged on the bottom to get bit.

More pics from this morning

The guys report catching some real nice rainbows this morning but the bite was real slow after about 11 am. They were drifting white woolies and small silver cranks baits on the bottom. Darin got out and fished white jigs against the banks and did well too. Down below the did well on Gulp pink eggs but have to use a bunch of weight to get it on the bottom. They've been finding some big spoonbill floating on the upper end of the lake. They're coming over the flood gates.

I would NOT use a belly boat on Taney right now, esp at the dam. I pulled out 3 kayakers out of the water yesterday and 2 boaters off a boat up against the trees at Lookout Island today. You could move your feet fast enough to avoid trees right now.

Sold them all...

Cooper Creek Access is fine. No problems at all. We've been using it throughout the high water- a lot today.

Bumping this up. Only one taker so far.