motoman

- Sorry johnboy, this thread is a bit out of the correct forum. The Glaize Arm is actually on Lake of the Ozarks. It stretches between PB1 and PB2 (Public Beach 1&2 with launch ramps). The Glaize Arm basically runs through the state park. It's has little to no development on it. So a jonboat is pretty common through there. Especially during the 'off-season'. More 'angler-friendly' through there..........if you ask me.

A buddy of mine lives a few miles from the lake. He hits the water almost daily from the shore and gets his daily limit..............well..............almost daily. He only keeps some of the fish he catches for himself. The rest he gives to neighbors and I think he said he gives a bunch to less fortunate families through his church. - He fishes the Glaize Arm throughout the state park. This time of year is a great time to scout out spots to fish from shore, as you can see the lake easier from back on shore; through the leafless trees. He actually follows a lot of trails through the woods to different spots he fishes. - His spots are no huge secrets, as others are frequently fishing the same spots; when that happens, he just moves down the shore a bit. - I couldn't find his spots for the life of me from land or even on a map; I can only spot them from the water. But he said when you follow those trails to shore; they usually lead to productive spots. - Although, the few days he's been out this week, he has really struggled.

Nobody has any pix?!??!?! - I'm with you Bill, I'd love for someone who lives on the water to setup a 24 webcam out their window. It would be cool to see how things look down on the water when we're away.

I'll go out on a limb here and throw in my 2 cents. Myself and several buddies have always used Ya'll-Mart Everstart batteries. Never had any problems with them over 15+ years of us using them. - My one buddy fishes EVERY weekend, all night through the summer. So his get more of a workout than mine. He's pushed them a little to far a few times, and had them finally give up the ghost in the middle of the night. Nice thing is, he just runs to the 24 hour Ya'll-Mart, swaps 'em out, and is back on the water for a few more hours of fishing before dawn. - I know..............I know...............they're not the higher end ones mentioned above. But they've served us well.

- Sadly, I'm sure you're right. For some reason, there's always those people who think any minor inconvenience means they should run for an attorney; for compensation. Shameful!

Here's a link from CNN's website. It might be old news to some, but has a bit more info. - http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/12/12/missouri.stranded.showboat/index.html?eref=mrss_igoogle_cnn

- Glad you made it out and got a limit in just a couple hours. Most days fishing, I'd like to get a limit of ANYTHING in 2 hours!

dscott, - Like Bill said, peek over into the Lake Ozark forum, a lot of good crappie posts in there. - But, I've been down a few times the past few weeks, with a few other guys. A great place to put in is PB2 and head up the Glaize. - Any bluff wall, laydown/twig sticking of the water, or pile of driftwood washed into a bluff-cut; fire into it. - White or Chartreuse jigs, start with 1/8 ounce weedless. let it sink down a 6 to 8 count, let it 'hop' over any debris, and get ready for the 'tick' coming over some limbs/brush. If the 1/8 ounce yields few results, drop to 1/16th ounce, or even lighter. - A few guys we were fishing with were having trouble catching them, they'd feel the 'tick' and try to set the hook with their arm, vs. their wrist. It seemed like the fish would not give you that kinda time. The hookset is just a flick of the wrist/twitch of the rod tip, gotta be quick. But FAR more keepers than shorts. - Good Luck!

Here's a pic I saved that someone posted (sorry, don't recall who? ) a while back. If I remember correctly, whoever it was who took the pics, caught craws to match the colors of their baits. - I think these were caught in the early spring. Ugly suckers! - I've referenced this pic plenty when fiddling with tying jigs/airbrushing cranks. - Hope this helps.

You bring up a good point too Keith. When the sun went down, until sun-up, the baitfish were everywhere pecking the surface around the large community docks. They seemed to hold in the 10-20' range. And we saw and heard some UNHOLY blowups/topwater activity all around where those baitfish were. I was tempted to grab my bass rod and try for something different; but we were on a mission for crappie. So I stuck to the plan.

Yup, was down Thursday night and most of the day friday. Fishing main lake brush piles/laydowns/bluff walls (on the Glaize). We got our limit in a few hours. We were throwing 1/16 weedless jigheads with any variety of light colored 2" curl tail grub. (1/8 ounce seemed to be moving a bit fast for them, and skirted type grubs did not get much love ) Cast it out, let it sink down to the bottom (or as far as you can stand it) then slowwwwwwwwwwwwwllllllllllyyyy reel it back in. The fish seem to be holding very tight to whatever cover there is. If you can feel your line ticking brush underwater; get ready. They would 'tap' it after climbing over any limb. - The crappie bite felt unusually light to me. Which took a little time to get used to and start hooking them up. We saw a few crappie actually come up to the surface (when we would be reeling the grub in a few inches under the surface) barely touch the jig, then dissappear. They would really half-heartedly touch the jig. Like they would only want it if it was an easy meal. Nothing aggressive. - Guys we talked to fishing dock slips, had to go through a lot of short fish to get keepers. We had just the opposite away from the docks. - Hope that helps some of yah!

Great reports and pix! It's always a treat reading about the activity on The Rock, when I can't make it down. - And.........a bit off topic: - For those who described their boats to help other OAF members look out for them; dont forget the official OAF stickers Phil has available They're just the right size! Highly visible from a distance, but small enough to be discrete. (3 inches in diameter..............and $3 for a pair.....which I think included shipping?.......dirt cheap! ) - I find it FAR too difficult to remember peoples boat details that they mention in a thread. - Here's a link to the stickers: - http://lilleystacklestore.com/xcart/product.php?productid=16939&cat=0&page=1 -

- I think this came up before ranger, but I would be with you too on this one. - My grandparents lived on the water for years at LOZ, and it was not uncommon to find jigs/lures/cranks ripped into the seats of the boats down there (even up on lifts!?!?!? ). So from that standpoint, I understand both sides. - A bit off topic, but I would imagine courteous conversation with dock owners and anglers would go much further than yelling/cursing.

I came across one mid-lake in the spring; unmarked. It had fresh cutup bluegills on it; and I thought about cutting it loose, but my warm-cuddly side took over. I thought that maybe someone who had fallen on hard times was using it to supplement there meals. - Far fetched I know, but it still should've been marked.

Very nice trout, very nice! Those fish will hammer that thing. - I've made the same mistake before, I get excited, start painting, then realized I used the wrong side of the stencil! But like you said, those fish won't care. - Airbrushing your own cranks is an excellent way to pass the winter too. Once the bitter cold temps hit, you'll be busy away at the the workbench; then spring will be here before you know it. - Be sure and post up any catches you make with 'em too.

I'm sure any of the excellent guides who contribute to OAF could help; Capt. Don just comes to mind when it comes to Humminbird stuff. - His site actually has info on Side Imaging and Deep Water fishing specific trips. - http://www.bransonfishingguideservice.com/Rates.htm - Not sure if that's what you're after?

Bill, - Lots of great info everyone posted; so I have little to add. But, not sure if you have them on your boat yet or not? The OAF stickers are a great way for us members to see each other at a distance on the water. I've got 'em high on my outboard cover, nice and visible! :-) - They're inexpensive, small enough to not be gaudy, but visible enough to be seen at a distance. Phil ships 'em out quick too. - http://lilleystacklestore.com/xcart/product.php?productid=16939&cat=0&page=1 - And Tfsh4bass, you have IM.;-)

- Holy Cow den! That's cool, but you need to make it official and get one of those shiny jackets; that would be REALLY cool! - Glad to hear the fin bite is back around. That's always a hoot!

- I know Don House and Doug Vahrenberg are a couple of Humminbird guru's on the boards here; may not hurt to shoot them an IM too.

- I've never dealt with them Bill, but are you telling me they DON'T have fangs, horns on their heads and talons sticking out of their shoes?!!?!? - HHHhhmmm................maybe all the internet lore might be untrue?

- VERY interesting stuff! Would love to see him film some underwater footage like that and post it online.

Great post Doug, very interesting! - And to be friends with Mike Bucca! I'm saving my pennies for some Bull Shads!

- I didn't want to inject negativity into the thread............but's that's kinda what I've heard on other message boards about their customer service.

Yah, definitely worth contacting the company first. It will be interesting to see how they respond; some companies are great about those sort of things, while others............you know. - But re: repairing the bill on the bait. It depends on how/where it's damaged. The only baits I've successfully been able to repair are cranks where the bill has clean come out of the bait. Then it's just a matter of cleaning up where the bill was, and then using some clear 2-Ton epoxy (Devcon). Using the minimal amount possible is critical, as too much can be just a pinch to much weight to cause the bait to lose it's performance characteristics. - Now if the bill itself is split, or cracked off. That's gonna be a tough one.

Get him whooped back into shape den, and keep us posted! Thanks for the update. - I've yet to meet Champ and Donna in person, but the few IM chats we've had, speak volumes for the kinda guy he is. I look forward to catching up with him one of these days!