Thompson Fishing Guide Service

That was one of my favorite Andy episodes "CITIZEN'S ARREST!" Course the ccw wouldn't be an arrest exactly... All marina boat ramps are open cause they lease them. So if you are concerned about being legal, that's where you should put in: Mutton Creek, State Park, Orleans Trail. MSWP says you are trespassing if you go into corps ramps. When we inquired about the marinas because they are leased, they didn't know. The very nice officer there did say that was an interesting question. Sheriff of Dade county did not return my call reference the same. Dade county 911 says as far as they know, everything is open. All of the news that is fit to print. Marty Thompson Thompson Fishing Guide Service www.fishstockton.com 417-424-BASS Often imitated, never duplicated. Fish the Finest!

I put in at Ruark Bluff today 11 am - 3pm and parked my green van with my green nitro trailer in the shade in the overflow lot. When I returned to my boat trailer I noticed a strong gas smell and saw a puddle of gas outside my van fuel tank. In broad daylight, with 20 boats in the parking lot some dirtbags siphoned 1/2 the fuel out of my van and left the gas cap laying on the running board. I sure would like to meet these folks and educate them on the error of their ways. Be vigilant, be on the lookout and let's have each other's backs. Marty Thompson Thompson Fishing Guide Service 417-424-BASS Often imitated, never duplicated. Fish the Finest!

Thanks for the good words. I am here, with wall to wall trips. We'll get a report out this weekend...just got out of the routine of posting, so looks like we need to get back into the routine. And I do consider the old school comment a major compliment, and so will my dad. Just a reminder...despite the gas prices and economy, we have not increased our rates in 6 years, because we want to keep fishing affordable to our clients. Never a good thing to chase the almighty dollar. Marty Thompson Thompson Fishing Guide Service www.fishstockton.com 417-424-BASS Often imitated, never duplicated. Fish The Finest!

Lake level: 867.57 Normal pool: 867 Water temperature 82 degrees Walleye fishing has been fair off of main lake points in about 20-22 feet of water jigging night crawlers and jigs. We've also been catching walleye in the mud flats around mile marker 7. Most of your fish will be caught off main lake points, you just need to hit enough points to catch a limit. A lot of small walleye are being caught as a result of the stocking programs and reproduction, but we have caught fish up to 25 inches. You need a vertical slow presentation. Crappie fishing has been fair; your deeper brush piles in around 20-22 feet of water are where crappie are being caught on minnows and jigs. The thermocline is at 22 feet, so if you you can find brush piles or structure at that depth of water, that's where you'll find crappie, walleye and even bass. Fishing has been better for me this year than it has been in the last 4 years and I think one of the reasons is we haven't gotten such a tremendous amount of rain this spring as we did in the last few years. Bass fishing has been very good; most of our bigger fish have been in 17-22 feet of water on secondary points and main lake points. Find the structure and cover at the thermocline depth and I'd work that real good with worms or jigs. Cat fishing has been real good; we've been catching at least one good catfish each trip while we've been fishing for walleye. Blue gill fishing has also been good. We've been running across some great big blue gill using pieces of night crawlers in the deeper water (about 22 feet) in brush piles. Marty Thompson Thompson Fishing Guide Service www.fishstockton.com 417-424-BASS Often imitated, never duplicated. Fish The Finest!

Call Bill Cooper Son Sac Marine 417-637-5555. He's the man. I don't let anyone else mess with my boat.

The overhead picture of my boat was taken in 2004 off the Twin Bridges, long before Bob Bennett was ever a guide on Stockton Lake. Like I always say, often imitated, never duplicated. By the way, my web site address is www.fishstockton.com and my phone number is 417-424-BASS. Any similar web sites or phone numbers were created by people who rode off the back of my hard work. Also, we created the opportunity for this picture when the lake was calm and no other boats were in the area. Just want to say, these guys that get these big high powered bass boats which they drive too fast, because they see it on tv, are going to kill somebody or tear something up. Real dangerous and real expensive... Marty Thompson Thompson Fishing Guide Service www.fishstockton.com 417-424-BASS Often imitated, never duplicated. Fish The Finest!

My Nitro, which my daughters named "The Chum Bucket." Personally, I don't think the name fits, but I get points for style because it matches my van! Marty Thompson Thompson Fishing Guide Service www.fishstockton.com 417-424-BASS Often imitated, never duplicated. Fish The Finest!

Thanks, Phil. Last year was a little tough with Lisa's Mom in Colorado having pancreatic cancer and me trying to be all things to all people, but we live to fight another day. As you know, this is our 9th season here, and I am grateful you and I hooked up those many years ago. Still haven't raised our prices in 5 years and don't plan to, even with the gas getting so high. Thanks for your message. Marty Thompson Thompson Fishing Guide Service www.fishstockton.com 417-424-BASS Often imitated, never duplicated. Fish the Finest!

April 8, 2011 Stockton Lake Fishing Report Lake level: 868.59 Normal pool: 867 Water temp: 52 degrees Due to the spring weather, one day the fishing’s good, and the next day it’s not. A cold front like we had the other day can really make the fish turn off. We had a great day up by the dam walleye fishing (see attached photo), and are looking forward to another good one today. Crappie are being caught up Turnback, but as far as the main lake goes, it’s still a little cool. The high winds we have had lately have made for some interesting days on the water. I called my clients for Tuesday twice and suggested that they consider swapping for the next day because I knew the fishing was going to be tough, and I wanted them to catch fish, but they wanted to go anyway. So we fished in 35+ mph wind right after the temperature dropped 40 degrees overnight. Guide’s tip: If your fishing guide tells you that fishing won’t be good after a major cold front combined with gale force winds, and you choose to go anyway, don’t whine if you don’t catch fish. Marty Thompson Thompson Fishing Guide Service www.fishstockton.com 417-424-BASS Often imitated, never duplicated. Fish the Finest!

Son Sac Marine is where I take my boat. Bill Cooper is one of the few certified mechanics you will find around here, and he is very good, very reasonable, and very busy. His number is 417-637-5555.

August 26, 2010 Stockton Lake Fishing Report Lake level: 865.60 Normal Pool: 867 Water clarity: slightly stained Water temperature: 83 degrees Between Monday and Wednesday, the water temperature dropped from 86 degrees to 83 degrees; cooler nights contributed to this. Fishing for all species has been fair and in the near future should be very good due to cooler temperatures. Sorry for my long absence in posting reports. My wife has a continuing family emergency with her mother (who lies in Colorado and has pancreatic cancer), and as I held down the fort and continued to guide, posting fishing reports was low on my long list of priorities. We’ve had a good summer overall, in spite of 48 days of 90+ degree temperatures, with heat indexes of 106 and above. By the way, if you were out on the lake on one of these days, that probably wasn’t the wisest thing you’ve ever done; it’s very, very dangerous. The water reflects the sun back to you, so you’re getting a double dose. If it is 90 degrees at your house, I guarantee you it’s a lot hotter on the lake, but I think those temperatures are about finished for the year. We’ll talk about walleye first: A large majority of the walleye being caught are too short. Smaller fish tend to be more aggressive than larger fish, particularly in hot water; that’s why you catch more of the little ones. The bigger walleye slow down considerably in hot water, and will spend a great deal of their time in the deeper, cooler water. With the full moon phase lately, night fishing is your best bet. The bigger fish will come up in the shallower water (anywhere from 10-18 feet) to chase the shad. Trolling deep diving crank baits is a good way to cover a lot of water. Fish the main lake points, and the mud flats. One good mud flat is between B5 and B7; watch your depth in this area, though, because Stockton Lake is a couple feet below normal pool and this makes a big difference. Objects that were not visible before (logs and rocks) are now. Check out the dam and drift the main lake points with a jig and night crawler bounced off the bottom at a depth of about 18 feet. 18 feet seems to be the magic number no matter where you fish on the lake. Many times when fish lay in deep water (45 feet or so), they are usually inactive. When you scope fish in that 18 foot zone, those are the ones that will bite. Where a fish sleeps and where a fish eats are usually two different places. I predict in the next couple of weeks that walleye fishing will pick up considerably. Crappie fishing is slow, but when you find the right brush pile at the right depth you’ll catch fish. There’s a lot of teeny weenie little baby fish in the lake right now, so match the hatch using small crappie minnows hooked with a small weight and drift over the brush piles. Brush piles need to be about 25 feet deep. Use a heavy enough weight to vertical fish, keeping the bait just above the top of the branches. If it strings way behind the boat, it’ll get hung up in the brush. Small jigs and little crank baits also work, but we have been catching them by doing what I just explained. Night fishing over a crappie light is also good in these same areas. White bass: virtually all of our white bass have been taken by trolling deep diving lures like the Bandit across main lake points. If you like trolling and breathing exhaust fumes all day, you should catch white bass. Largemouth bass: As usual, Junior Jaws can be found in 8-10 feet of water and they’ll grab anything from small plastic worms, jigs, spinner baits, even top water. These bass get in schools when they are this size (8-12 inches) and swim endlessly throughout the lake wreaking havoc on the shad, crawdads, and fishermen if they are trying to catch the big ones. The bigger bass we have caught this year (3-5 lbs, no real big ones yet) have been in around 15-25 feet deep. The best technique has been worms or jigs fished slowly. You need something that will get to that depth and stay in their faces for an extended period of time. With a ton of bait in the lake, these bass don’t move often from their zone to chase bait. However, when they do, your best bet is either at night or just before dark. Crank baits and spinner baits work well in the shallower water. Since the lake is lower than usual, there is finally a visible shore line, so take note of the structure that you see out of the water; it’ll give you a good idea of what is actually below the water in any given area. This is a real advantage no matter what kind of fish you fish for. Shore fishermen: now is your chance to fish about anywhere from the shore on Stockton lake. Channel cat fishing has been real good. In Hawker cove, Old State Park cove, or just about anywhere that you can cast to about 15 feet of water. Use chicken livers (I use beef livers because you can cast them better) or night crawlers. Marty Thompson Thompson Fishing Guide Service www.fishstockton.com 417-424-BASS Often imitated, never duplicated. Fish The Finest!

The water temperature I marked yesterday was 83 degrees at Hawker Point. It dropped several degrees from Monday when it was 86 degrees.

I make my living as a fishing guide. Does McDonald's give away free Happy Meals? Does GM (Government Motors) give away free Chevys? Have you received your free money from Barack Obama yet? When people hire a fishing guide, they pay for information. I give as much information as I can in my FREE fishing reports. I owe it to my clients to withhold certain bits of information and aces in the hole, but my goal in posting fishing reports is to help fishermen better enjoy our God given resources. If you want to go a level above the fishing reports, you need to hire me. Marty Thompson Thompson Fishing Guide Service www.fishstockton.com 417-424-BASS Often imitated, never duplicated. Fish The Finest!

February 24, 2010 Stockton Lake Fishing Report Water temperature: mid 30s Lake level: 867.47 and falling due to gates being open March is the time for the beginning of change. As we get a few warmer days, fish begin to think about moving into their spring pattern. The last 3 years have been fair for walleye and crappie, but I think that 2010 will be a better than average year. My spring calendar is getting full, so if you are planning a trip, call me soon. Crappie and walleye: the reason I put crappie and walleye together is because the same location and the same presentation for the winter pattern applies to both, for the most part. Walleye and crappie are DEEP, in the 50 foot level...this is exactly where they are at this time very year. If you have read my past reports, reference winter patterns for crappie and walleye, you will remember that a number of things must be accomplished in order to be successful: 1) locate fish, obviously. Gizzard shad seek warmer water in the winter and they find it at these depths because of large springs that warm the water in the general area. Where the bait goes, game fish go, be it Wahoo. Bonita, Marlin, Jaws, or crappie and walleye. 2) Presentation: because of the depth, plus the water temperature, plus the fish being very lethargic, sensitivity is the key. When you are fishing 50 feet down, you must remain directly over the fish. If there is a bow in your line, as a result of the fish biting so lightly, bites will go undetected. If you have a windy day, you need to locate the fish in areas that are out of the wind. 3) Plan of attack: I use jigs with significant weight to keep my line tight depending on wind conditions. Half ounce is not too big. You’ll have to experiment. Before I go any further, I might add some of the best white bass fishing you’ll ever experience will be right now using the same technique as you do crappie and walleye. For more details see previous reports. If you look back over previous reports, you should have enough information that you should be able to compile a notebook that deals with all patterns for all species on Stockton Lake. I guide exclusively on Stockton Lake, not on Lake of the Ozarks, not Bull Shoals, not Truman, or the Gulf of Mexico. You can’t spread yourself too thin, you know, because there is too much water to cover to be efficient on more than one lake. Another technique I use this time of the year for walleye, crappie and white bass is to tie a 1 or 2 ounce barrel sinker on the end of my line. Above the line you can attach Aberdeen hooks with a minnow, crappie jig, or even small flies and hair jigs about 24 inches from the weight and 24 inches apart and still get to where the fish are and the sensitivity is far greater due to the fact that the weight is at the bottom of the line and when a fish touches your hook, there is nothing between you and him. This is IMPERTIVE due to the fact that when the water is cold, fish metabolism slows down and they just don’t move that fast. I guarantee you that if you master what I have said in this report and previous reports over the last 8 years reference the winter pattern, you will have some of the best crappie, walleye and white bass fishing of the year. The Missouri Department of Conservation is involved in planting new brush piles throughout Stockton Lake, which will enhance the fishing even more. I know where a lot of those new brush piles are located. Do you? Guide’s note: if you want to see eagles, go to Hawker Point. We saw at least a dozen bald eagles, mature and immature, which have been gorging themselves on the large numbers of dead shad. Marty Thompson Thompson Fishing Guide Service www.fishstockton.com 417-424-BASS Often imitated, never duplicated. Fish The Finest!