Phil Lilley

I live for this.... Really- this forum software makes changes and fixing problems real easy- no problems!!

Talked to Vince- he's caught his limit of crappie 2 days in a row plus 2 limits 2 others caught with him today. He put in a Bridgeport and fished the flats finding the crappie close to the bottom in 6-10 ft of water. He uses jigs, buck tail jigs and swimming minnows, 1/8th oz and the usual colors, white, red, smoke and purple. Vince t/t some guys on the James Arm that said they've been tearing the whites up on the Kings arm but didn't say where exactly. With this rain and warm/windy days, both will be poppin' this weekend big time. Vince also caught a 15 lb flathead trolling a shad rap on the James. He was looking for white bass which he didn't find any.

I like a clean and tidy forum...

5 times??? What are you talking about? Rolan will be a good person to answer this one.

At the top of the TR forum there's a link to the Corp lake level site. Please use it.

I have been twice. Put in at 45 bridge. I went first time to running water at Neils Bluff to see if I could get there. Took about 25 minutes. Lots of shallow bars and shoals that were pretty hairy. Caught 2 Whites and 4 keeper Crappie. I saw a man who had a Hybrid about 5 lbs. He wouldn't devulge any secrets. I went last night. Same route. Didn't go quite as far down as the water had fallen about inches in the river. Caught 1 White and again 4 keeper Crappie. I caught about 15 Crappie that I released as they were too short. Water temp still cold. I looked back this AM and saw the bigger Whites I've caught nave been about now. Just need the water to warm a bit. I'll stay in touch.

ok- they relented. Quenten Fronterhouse and Mike Adams from Branson.

I got this emailed to me... the party, whom I can't mention any names, didn't give me permission (yet) to post their pic. But you know, they sent it to me so it's mine- right? Anyhow, I'll reveal the faces and names only when they say it's ok. They may not have had a OK fishing lisc... you never know about these characters. They caught them in the vicinity of hwy 10 bridge on 1/8th oz white and white/black rooster tails.

Well last week my neighbor and I decided to try something different and fish up on Lake Taneycomo for a few days, and despite everything seemingly against us, we managed to have some productive time on the water. We are both fly fishing guides on the White River and Norfork in Arkansas, and we enjoy using some techniques at Taneycomo that do not work as well down here (this time of year, especially). Anyway, we finally got on the water in the afternoon on March 22nd. The weather was cold and nasty all morning, but the sun peeked through right when we started wading. We met up with a friend by the dam, and the fishing for all of us was good from the start. We were using #14 and #16 scuds and getting a bite on virtually every cast. The fish were decent size, with many hard fighters in the 13 to 16 inch range. When the breeze died late in the afternoon, I did well on a tandem midge pupa combo, while the scud was still working on my friend. On this day we just wanted to catch some fish just in case the weather made fishing too uncomfortable over the next few days. The next morning was indeed chilly, but knowing there was no hurry, we didn't get on the water until 10:30am. It was just my neighbor and I, and he started with some cracklebacks and I used scuds and midge pupa patterns. We were near the boat ramp. I started out catching some nice fish (and some dinks) with my nymphs, and when the sun came out it really got good. The dry fly presentation was working alright for my neighbor, but nothing crazy. Around lunchtime we were sitting in the boat and I enjoyed seeing him start getting rises in 6-inches of water. So to get away from the "normal" nymphing we do day in and day out, I fished a small crackleback on the surface all afternoon. We both caught countless fish (which seemed to run bigger on the surface) and missed many more. Sometimes the wind was too strong to get the fish to rise, but for the most part conditions were perfect. Unfortunately the winds and cold temps would not elude us so we decided to come home Friday instead of fishing. It had been a fun trip for all of us, and we know we can jet back up when the weather looks better. Still, it was nice to see some nicer fish on upper Taneycomo, although it does seem like the numbers of trophy fish is down from what we could see. But the crowds were fairly light and like always on upper Taneycomo, we didn't have to move much to stay on hoards of fish. Gabe Cross http://arkansastrophytrout.com

Where is this? Is there a website with info?

Put in at River Run at 7 a.m. No one at the ramp- concerning. It was cold and foggy so I guess the die-hards slept in (smart!). We headed downstream to one of my best crappie holes at Barker and started throwing swimming minnows- no bites. We proceeded down, stopping at several spots, fished up in Beaver up to the first bend, fished up in Cedar Creek about 200 yards before catching our first crappie. It was our last (keeper). We fished back towards Beaver on the bluff around a log in the water and caught 5 more short crappie. Also threw blue rebels in various places for whites- nothing. Lots of boats came out in the am at Beaver and at River Run. Didn't see any fish caught and no one said they were doing any good. I don't have a temp gage (sorry). Water is great color and should warm up quickly as it gets warmer this and next week. Swan Creek Looking upstream from Barker Hole Looking downstream from River Run Ramp

Thanks for the report... we're alittle short of LOZ traffic but hopefully this will change soon.

Oh... that's good stuff! I will mention it for sure. If he didn't- you must have. What do you have to say for yourself!

Fishing-wise... would be nice to have the smallmouth back on the old White River. Flood-wise... would not be nice to see our countryside flooded every few year. The dams do serve a valuable service. It has its pro and cons.

Call Beaver Creek Marina and ask them. I'd love to see them do it but they'll have to get on it quick. 417-546-5121

Very illegal.

Depends on the depth of water. Set it 12 inches off the bottom.

If you're using a spin cast rod and reel you can use flies!! Just alittle readjustment needs to happen. First, I'd use 2 lb line. It's easier to handle the lighter rig. Using a small float, throw some beadhead nymphs - copper johns, zebra midge, small jigs in earth colors like brown, black, olive, sculpin. Or throw a jig straight- no float- 1/32nd oz - and work it up and let it drop in the deeper holes. If you get good at working a jig, you're set for life! All types of fish can't resist a jig. Hope this helps!! When you do to the parks, and this report helps you catch more fish, please share the forum with others.

The colder days last week and weekend were tough on anglers and fishing it seems... lots of slow reports Saturday and Sunday with a few acceptions (there are always acceptions). One was a email report from Pete - Hello Phil; Just wanted to say thank you for the advice you gave me Saturday about where and what to fish with when I stopped in your shop. I went up Sunday armed with the brown and orange head jigs you told me to buy and man I had a ball. I caught approxiamately 100 fish with a half dozen between 15 and 17 inches with my best being an 18 and 1/2 beauty. Thanks again and the next time I get down you can count on me coming by for more jigs and advice. Sincerely, Pete LaBoube He was using 1/125th oz marabou jigs we sell in the shop. They've been a hot fly up below the dam. Sitting here watching boats on the water, I just saw a pontoon full of people trolling past the resort, hooking 2 rainbows in front of the docks. It looks like they were using small spoons. Lots of midge action since it has warmed up the last couple of days. Zebra midge #16 red or black under an indicator with either a spin or fly rod should be excellent all week fishing them from 12 to 48 inches deep. Use 2 lb line for the best action. I'm heading out to fish with John Johnson this afternoon- probably boating up past Fall Creek to fly fish the flats. Will add to the report later today. Bait fishing- very seldom changes. Power eggs in a combination of white and another color (pink, orange, yellow) using 4 lb line with a split shot best. Night crawlers injected with air and floated off the bottom 12 inches. Minnows fish on the bottom- better chance to catch a brown trout. In from fishing- John and I drove to the dam and tried fishing jigs. Water was very shallow below #2 - too much so for us. We did catch a couple of small rainbows but headed down to deeper water at the boat ramp. There we found glass surface and little action. John caught a couple. We headed back to the resort and my boat. Boated up above Fall Creek and just above the narrows. Was alittle chop on the water and fishing was good. John threw hwi fly rod and a zebra midge and I threw a 1/32nd oz sculpin jig with an orange head. They tore up the jig and hit the zebra pretty well. But when the chop was gone, so were the bites. We caught alot of rainbow, most were 10-12 inches but some were up to 14 inches (pic). Rainbows midging all over at dusk.

Try the docks on the east side of Indian Points. i've heard there are trees sung around some of them. Bass- use the same techniques mentioned in the reports by House and SKMO.

http://ozarkanglers.com/bsmaps/bsmap1.htm Bull Shoals Maps are linked at the top of the BS forum.

I'm not an authority on white bass on Table Rock by any means but I wanted to start a topic that will start to cover the ins and outs of white bass fishing on Table Rock in April. Typically, white bass spawn in feeder creeks, rivers, points and coves but most anglers focus their attention on the creeks and rivers because they are easier to target. Water temperature plays a key part in when and where they spawn. Watching weather patterns including warm days, warm windy days and rainfall is crucial to knowing when they make their move. Rainfall usually brings water water into the system. It also adds colored water. Colored water warms much faster than clear water (very important to know). And I believe fresh, warm water triggers spawning whites more than anything else. Rivers- James, Flat, White, Roaring, Kings, Long are all major feeder arms. Best times to catch whites- early morning and late evening. They tend to move during low light times. Night time is even good. Pre-season - locate whites using lures you can cover alot of water with. Rebels, rapalas, sluggos, grubs, swimming minnows. When you find one you'll usually find two or more. They will move in and out of the creeks/rivers. If there are deeper holes int he river, below shallower gravel areas, that where they will stage, hold. Otherwise, they'll be in the mouths waiting to run. Males typically will be the ones that will move up and down the river. Females will move but not as far and not as often. Spawn - this is the easy time to catch whites... sometimes. I find when they are in the spawning areas, which are shallow gravel with moving water preferablly, they will bite. Live minnows are the best bait, drifted down to them from above using light line and a split shot. Fly fishing using small clousers and other streamers are also good. But be aware if it's fairly clear water and a bright sunny day, they won't be as cooperative to bite. Int he peak of spawn, whites will rise to the surface and tail, making a circle as they spawn. I've been told 2 males will push a female up between them and eject their sperm and eggs at the same time while they do this 'dance'. Post-spawn - Whites will stay in these rivers and creeks for alot longer than you think. I've caught them in the creeks way into June before. The idea is they stay in the creeks as long as there are minnows there to eat. Rebels and small sluggos are my favorite lure during these times.

These trout eat trout guts mainly. That's why there are so many here. We have seen big browns under there and I would think they would catch one or two chubs but why bother when you get a chunk of meat handed to you without any work? There's a couple of shaddows holding back- they look very big.

I just changed the position of the camera under the dock. It's not pointing upstream, under the dock, instead of downstream and pointing out from underneath the dock. The light is different- the trout close to the camera are brighter- and there is 3-4 rainbows that are huge that stay under the dock. You'll see 2 of them- about 4-5 pounds and one well over 10 pounds. They are very shy. But I got them if them come back!

Yes.