Champ188

Actually, the striper bite is just as good or better on a dark night. As for depths, 10-15 feet on the flats is plenty of water.

Welcome, Nick. Good to have you.

May sound crazy, but the striper bite in October is awesome at night. Throw a Super Spook or a big lipless crank bait like a Super Spot. Big Rat-L-Trap will work, too, but I like the Super Spot because it has one big knocker in it and makes a different sound. Color isn't really critical on either one but I tend to believe that dark colors provide a better silhouette. Can of black spray paint will work wonders. Doesn't have to be a fancy paint job. Any of the flats between Coppermine and the dam can be good. The stripers follow the shad up onto the flats and night and munch on 'em. Coppermine Lodge would be a good place to consider staying. They have their own launch ramp and a pretty good dock if you want to keep your boat in the water. Just a suggestion.

Capt. D, I'm with Joe. Don't let a couple of numbnuts run you off. You contribute much to this forum and like Joe said, it's appreciated by 99% of the folks here. Heck, make that 100%. The few numbnuts that troll by and try to spoil things don't count. As for the rest of us, we'd hate to see you go.

Actually, last name spelling is Tormanen.

Did he say Paul Dallas or Paul Torminen?

I didn't know him but have seen many like him pass on. Sad when they must go, indeed. We should all be thankful that Blackie was able to spend his last days doing what he loved ... fishing.

Translation of the above: 1) I'm too immature to express my misguided feelings above the level of a 5-year-old. 2) I have no fishing skills and greatly envy those who do, especially those who are able to make their living at it. 3) In fact, I'm so consumed with envy of pros and guides that I wish they didn't exist so I didn't have to see them doing what I wish I could.

Eric, your question goes straight to the point I was trying to make earlier. It's a character issue. For those of us with a work ethic, winning on someone else's (a guide) pattern or fish would seem empty. For others, they see no difference as long as they win. I also suspect that the latter group are far more interested in the money than the sport itself, so since they have little or no fishing skills, hassling guides for free info is their only shot at winning.

Thanks much for the kind words, Bill. Too generous perhaps, but I'll take it. And frankly, I'm darn glad I don't have to tangle with you in derbies on a regular basis. In my mind, you're as tough as they come on Table Rock and I doubt you'd be a pushover elsewhere. Like Bill, I will gladly share whatever information I have on TR or elsewhere with anyone who wants to PM me providing we're not fishing the same derby. And even if we are, I don't mind sharing a general pattern. But I work a LOT of hours between my regular and secondary jobs and I'm not willing to divulge everything that I've given up sleep for and spent precious time and hard-earned money to learn just to help someone who isn't willing to help themselves. Hope that makes sense.

Not that laziness hasn't always existed, but in my opinion, it's at epidemic stage these days. Too many folks want everything for nothing. In this case, they want to know where the fish are but they don't want to put forth any effort to find them. They just want to be holding the winner's check when the derby is said and done and it really doesn't matter how they get it, short of cheating. Sense of accomplishment means nothing. A true fisherman takes a big portion of his enjoyment from hunting the fish, figuring out how to catch them, formulating a detailed plan and then executing that plan perfectly on derby day. The ones Bill speaks of are just as happy to win by letting a guide (or anyone else) do all the work for them and then taking all the glory for themselves. I'll say this ... if I was good enough (and obviously I'm not by my weak showing in CPA last weekend) to locate a single hump where I could catch 18 keepers, I'd be ashamed to admit I was too dadgum lazy to take what I already knew to the next level and improve on the size. Just for the record, I didn't call or privately message anyone prior to last weekend's CPA derby. I read all the posts here and elsewhere, then put in five days of practice over a three-week period and never got much going. So be it. I'm not a good deep water fisherman and tend to struggle when that's the pattern, but my time of year is coming soon and I fully expect to be back in the check line. Meanwhile, I'll WORK on becoming better at deep fishing. Thanks to the guides for all the info posted here. And to those who want more for free, try getting your lazy a** out on the lake and doing things the respectable way.

RiverRat, not sure when you were at Eagle Rock last but I went all the way to Holiday Island on Sunday and it was no better up there. In fact, the traffic was worse due to the fact that there were just as many big wave-makers with idiots/turds behind the wheel and less water because the lake width is less up there. I'm with Techo, let's attack where they breed.

Ditto on the congrats. Fished both CPA events myself and you won't find conditions much tougher in terms of boat traffic. What a zoo out there.

Capt. D, I can't believe you just caused me to go out to my garage, take spoons off my pegboard and put them in my boat. Leaving early in the morning for CPA this weekend on TR. Lawd help me if it comes down to me having to jerk a spoon but after two frustrating days last weekend, I just might try it. As always, thanks for the thorough and FREE report.

Rangerman, I've had that same thing happen twice in my life ... with the line levitating off the water and my rod audibly buzzing. Scary stuff indeed. I was much younger both times and won't allow that ever to happen again.

A blonde, a mouse, a crippled giraffe and a polar bear walk into a bar ...

hay erik, wate til u see da next isshu of da magizeen

yup, we iz stoopid hillbillies but we kin play futball purdy gud. we kin evin katch a bass sumtimes.

Much better, dont you think?

B-b-b-baby you just ain't seen nuthin yet.

Eric, Count me and Donna in. BTW, there's going to be a UFO (unidentified fishing object) on the lower end of TR today — ME. So tired of catching dinks up the White that I could scream. Dinks on docks, dinks on points, dinks on the rolloffs out to 35 feet. Same in the Kings. I hear rumor there's some huge concrete object down toward Branson that actually holds the water back. Oh yeah, and a big paddleboat parked nearby. Say it ain't so! If I don't report back by mid-day Monday, someone send out a search party for me and Donna.

Hey Techo, do you mean I need no help finding fish or finding a place to eat? Of the two, the latter would definitely be more true.

Smallmouthjoe, my experience with largemouths is that a good number of them will stay shallow until conditions literally force them out deeper. In summer, if the water temp reaches a point that oxygen is depleted and it stagnates, they will go deeper. Likewise, many will stay shallow in winter until the water becomes so cold they can't move. Food and cover are factors, too — if those are available shallow, there will be some bass there in conditions that can surprise you. Not all LM do this, but in any lake there is definitely a segment of the population that is headstrong about living shallow.

Well folks, seems the right time to register my complaint. I got some info last fall from this site prior to fishing a derby on the Rock. Was actually able to locate and catch the reported fish both in practice and the derby. Was thinking, "Man, what a deal. Those OzarkAnglers.com guides really know their stuff!" Then just before time to call it quits on derby day and race back to the weigh-in, the unthinkable happened. While battling a 5-pounder at boatside, the ding-dong fish came off! Yup, the thing had only gotten the back hook of my crank bait in its mouth and just came unbuttoned. Cost me a fine check in the derby, too. Had the @^%$# guide bothered to MENTION that the fish were half-heartedly biting the baits instead of swallowing them, thus ensuring a solid hook-up, I'd have looked elsewhere for my own derby fish. As it was, I was left checkless — toeing the gravel at the weigh-in. But obviously, his only interest was self-promotion with no regard for the pain and suffering his incomplete information might cause to those consuming it here. P.S. Note to the whiners: Shut the heck up or take up Fat Boy's offer on the cheap golf sticks. The rest of us, and particularly Babler as he donates lots of time to moderate this forum, don't need you here. We're just darn grateful that the guides are willing to freely share their hard-earned info.

Good report, Troy. Thanks for posting.