mofisher

Took the family down to the lake for a getaway before school starts back up. Stayed at the Big Creek Resort on Bull Shoals. They had a lot to do for the family, kayaks, canoe, paddle boats, and a playground in the center of the cabins. The cabins are nice and clean with a great view of the lake. We used their boat docks so I didn't have to take the boat out nightly (a big plus having 3 younger kids!) Fishing was tough as one would expect with the water temp around 90, but we did get some big bluegill fishing in 25 foot 15-18ft down on worms. I have been to a lot of different places near Teodosia and this one is by far the best one for a family. Their site is bigcreekresort.biz. Hope you have as much fun as we did there. Kids are complaining today how much their arms hurt from riding the tube so much! I'll take that as a compliment.

Whites

We did not try above the bridge. We heard from some good sources that they have a few whites above the bridge but nothing like below...yet. A guy we talked to on the water that lives around Udall said that he has been fishing for eyes but only catching some small ones. He did not elaborate. If you find them please let us know!

Looking at the number of boats on Norfolk yesterday I am sure everybody knows the start of the white bass run is on! I will post the report in case you were the one guy/gal that actually worked and didn't take it off. We put in at Tecumseh and fished down to Udall. Water was 48.5 when we put in and 52 when we pulled out at dark. Small, purple swimming minnows (available at lilleystacklestore.com) were choice but also caught some on pearl shad raps and vibrick rooster tails. We had a lot of smaller fish but still found several decent sows. The bite was best before 9:00AM. After that you really had to work for them. We anticipated the bite would pick up before dark but it never happened.

My Mariner 175 was in need of more than I wanted (or knew how to) to tackle so I started calling around. A friend told me about a guy he had used and been very happy with so I gave him a call. I got my boat back and took it to the lake today and WOW! It ran better than it has in years! I wanted to test it out and make sure it ran well before I posted his name and number. His name is Mike Binder at 417-234-8377. Mike was fast and kept me informed of the happenings with the boat. He is also a nice guy. He is located between Springfield and Willard. Hope this helps. I know how frustrating it is trying to find a good mechanic at a reasonable price.

Wow what a nice fish. I also think that it is a waste to mount this fish given the fake reproductions you could hang on the wall. It is such a shame people insist on having quality fish mounted. That fish, and many others caught each year, would make two great fillets. I mean come on smoked trout is awesome. Although I do prefer the huge native cutthroat that are found in the high lakes and rivers of Colorado. No matter what you did with this fish, it is yours to do with as you please. Thank you to all the Veterans that have made that possible!

Can too Bill. I've been sick a lot this past winter. Thanks a lot Shaker for the pointers. I will definitely get up to BPS and do some shopping before the next trip. I am learning that the whites can sure be finicky. What you caught a bunch with last trip may or may not work this trip. Odd being they are still feeding on the same old shad.

We put in at Osage Bluff about 6:00 pm in search of Whites. The water was 81.5 degrees. We found them busting on shad but we couldn't find anything to get them to hit on. We tried shad raps, thin fins, sliders, and a bunch of others but no luck. Pulled out at 9:30 pm. The ramp was usable and the courtesy dock was in. The street light was out so finding the dock was a bit of a challenge. We then went to the Headwaters Inn to get a bit of sleep. Buck and Inez have a nice motel. While it is a bit outdated, it is clean, has plug-ins, a lighted cleaning station, and two double beds for $40 a night can't be beat. The next morning we put in downtown Warsaw and went up stream. They were running a lot of water. Finally we found a few largemouth, crappie, and drum. I had a few light bites jigging at the thermocline but the fishing is pretty tough. There is also a major mayfly hatch. If you hit a tree they fly off and get all over the the boat. I saw a truck under a light at a dealership that was white with a nice thick mayfly carpet on the roof. We pulled out around 10:30am and went and had a good breakfast at the Rusty Skillet before heading south.

It sure is to bad there aren't more people picking up the trash. I have had quite a time trying to explain to my 3 little girls why people litter. They just can't understand why people would litter. Awh the inocense of children. Thanks for helping with the trash!

Wow what a nice mess of fish! Thanks for the pictures. After my wife saw them she said she wants to go for Mother's Day. Nothing beats fishing on Mother's Day! I just hope I can teach her to use a fillet knife if we get into them the way you guys did. I hope the cold snap doesn't turn them off. And I also hope I don't have to go shopping at the mall for Father's Day!

Have you tried above Rader, or is that as far up as you've been? What are you catching them on? Last weekend I did very well on a black 1/8 oz head with an olive grub tail, on the Whetstone east of Hartville.

Truth is she out fishes him most of the time! She should....I hear Bass Pro calls on her to raid her tackle box when they run low on stock.