wily

i took the boys to indian hills crappie dock today. fishing was pretty slow. but we managed a couple...all on a minnow. about 20 foot down. per the lady in the clubhouse. the fishing was better earlier in the week, but the cold weather kind of knocked them back. indian hills is a great place if you've never been. full service marina and pro shop. grill for sandwiches and cold beer. not sure what else you'd want.

my mechanic told me to run all the fuel out of the motor before leaving the ramp, so i disconnect the fuel line from the motor and run the engine about 1/4 throttle when it it's on the trl just before pulling it out of the water. after about 3 minutes the engine dies from lack of fuel. voila...no alcohol is left in carbs while it's sitting in the garage.

classic

us too

me and the oldest will hopefully join you guys...thanks

take them on a hike. there's the scenic overlook trail by the hatchery that is pretty cool. there's also another short one on the opposite side of the river -- straight across from the tag office -- where they can go inside a couple caves.

Thanks, i plan to fish more of them. i think i'll fish the next two for sure. Congratulations to both of you on your top 10 in the buddy tournament...good job.

ya - lots of good fish were caught mostly on a jerkbait, but also a wiggle wart, jig or spinnerbait. i even heard a couple guys caught big walleyes, and one big striper. personally, i didn't do very good but i didn't get skunked. i only had one keeper. it was a 12.5 inch ky. smallest fish weighed in i heard...but what the heck. better than a zero. i also caught two decent largemouths...but neither would stretch. i thought the tournament was well ran, and everyone was friendly...good times.

Yes sir - I got mine too. i put the 11th on my calendar. the boys and i will be there. thanks

bump -- looks like a couple days of warming weather. the fishing should be good.

we didn't make the buzzer -- we had planned on it but the weather kept us away. me, my 7 year old, and fil got to the park about 930. i think my tag was 1584. we let out about 12. the fishing was good. lots of large fish were caught. the biggest i heard was 9 lbs. my son had a large one on a black roostertail -- maybe 4-5 lbs on for a blink...it was basically right at his feet, and each time he'd reel in it would nip at his lure. well one time it got a little too close. he yelled i got him. i looked up and the fish was running right up the bank. in no time it was at the other end of the pool...once it got there it turned and jumped. and when it did his line broke. would have been great to catch it. but hopefully he'll have another chance at a big one. he loves to go. boy -- it was cold. when that wind blew it was freezing.

here's an article about spoonbill fishing on grand lake http://www.joplinglobe.com/cnhi/joplinglob...eadpicturestory

i'm glad that the worst is over. sorry about your dock but i know that you'll build it back better than ever. if you need any help let me know -- i don't know very much about construction but i've got a strong back and a willingness to help. these ice storms are crazy -- last year we had a bad one here in joplin. we were out of power for a week. tons of tree damage all over town.

if you just want basic accomodations...ie a motel room and you plan to bring your boat -- martin's landing would be my choice. i've never stayed there but i launch there quite a bit. the motel is pretty new...probably 10 years old. the ramp and docks are good. it's fairly close to the city ramp...probably 10 minutes by water or land. it's also close to the best night life in the area

i've got a 2.5 in american shad -- or whatever color the rainbow looking one is -- that i use at grand. i like it - i've thought about buying other colors/size but they're too expensive for me to have a variety. if i lost the one i have -- i'd buy another just like it to replace it.

go to bass pro -- outdoor library click on maps...they have some hot spots maps on file -- grand is one of them http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/s...-1&appID=86

you can donate it to a charity organization...i think there is one called boat angel.

i wish they had a courtesy dock. i started going down there after fishing with ed chapko. we fished around the mouth of ventris...the islands around prairie creek and down by the fish hatchery. casting redfins mostly...that's why i still go at night every now and then. i've done well in the mid lake area the handful of times that i've went down there. but like you say...indian creek is so convenient...and the fishing is pretty good, so usually i go there. but hopefully this year i'll try ventris more often quillback -- it's pretty easy pickins if you're up there at the right time...can use just about anything. good luck and i hope we get more beaver reports...thanks

i fish it...my in-laws live in monett. I think it's an easier drive than tr. usually launch out of indian creek. this year i'm going to use the ventris ramp more and fish the mid-lake area more. i typically fish for white bass in early spring in the back of indian creek. black bass fish rest of the time. mostly with a tube, eakins jig or c-rig. i go periodically at night and throw big crankbaits for stripers.

try spider creek in arkansas. it's a great place and pretty close to RR. http://www.spidercreek.com/

i bought a pair of the orvis last week for $79...haven't got them yet. it seemed like too good of a deal to pass up.

i read on Don's post where left hand reels are somewhat hard to find, so i'll sell these two if anyone is interested. i've got two brand new citica's -- LH retrieve -- One was a demo and has a little scratch on it. $75 each / OBO includes Box / Paperwork / Tool set i bought them a month or so ago on clearance and i've never used them.

after reading the first post -- i thought you had taken it to Ceselski in purdy...I made that mistake once. i'm glad you didn't. he had a trout of mine for over a year...finally get it back and it was as if he switched fish on me. bad deal -- been almost 15 years and i'm still mad about it.

hey techo...no hard feelings on the hat joke -- it was just that

today's schedule 10 - Scott Taxidermy 11 - Jeremy Lawyer/Chris Macy - Grand Lake 1 - Tommy Biffle 2 - Randy Blaukat 3 - John Sappington 4 - Eric Prey / Pete Wenners 5 - Troy Eakins 6 - Tommy Biffle 7 - Panel 8 - Randy Blaukat / John Sappington