Stockton Lake Guide Service

Make sure you make it out to the bass tournament this thursday at ruark bluff. we take off at 6 pm and will fish until 9:45 pm. Register at the ramp and I should be there to check everyone in about 5:15 pm call me with questins.. 4172089535 or text 4172348988 or we will see you there.

best bet is to net your own shad then float them over a flat. the catfish are spawning right now so they will be on rocky points and the rip rap for the next week or so. then they will go to the flats along the channel and can be caught non stop till the water cools. hope this helps some.

Don't miss this Thursday's tournamnet. We need as many boats as possible and lets face it, there ain't nothing on tv on thursday evenings. We have been avg about 10 boats. There is no reason we shouldn't be getting 20+ boats at these tournaments. It's the season to be doing some serious bass fishing. We have a great group of dedicated guys that are coming every week, we just need to add to them. You can come up and fish the best bass lake in the state for 3-4 hours, come in and weigh your fish, and who knows, maybe take home enough to pay off the farm. Take off is at 6 pm at ruark bluff. Buddy tournament and we have lots of fun. Don't miss this thursday!!!1 Give me a call at 417-208-9535 if you have questions or just show up about 5:30 and I'll be there checking the boats. We had 2 new boats last week, so were ready to go and if you don't get in now, you might just miss out!!

May 30, 2010 Water temp 78 We are about 6 foot high and dropping. Walleye are good to excellent on 1/8 oz jig heads and a 1/2 night crawler. Fish between 5 and 15 foot of water on the bottom on main lake points. You will catch several smaller fish, but the big ones are in there. I have a few openings the starting the monday June 7th, but I am booked on the weekends. If you are wanting to learn how to catch walleye give me a call. Lots of fun. Crappie have been hit and miss. They are post spawn but have not move into the brush piles. fish drop offs along the creeks with minnows and in the standing timber. Lots of smaller fish are being caught, but move around and the big ones are out there. Bass-Stockton is the best bass lake in missouri, however the past week has been a little tough. Jigs and plastics have been working in the flooded brush, but they are pulling the lake hard. I would fish the points and find brush piles in 10=15 foot of water. The fish are there, but they are not biting great, but they will be. Catfish are good on trotlines and limblines on goldfish lakewide. concentrate on the flats up the creek arms for the bigger fish. Keep your hooks sharp and good luck

WELL THE LAKE IS A LITTLE ABOVE NORMAL, ABOUT 7.5 FEET. WE DON'T NEED ANYMORE RAIN FOR ANOTHER COUPLE WEEKS. THE HIGH WATER HASN'T BEEN BAD YET, LOTS OF FISH IN THE BUSHES. BASS, WALLEYE, AND CATFISH HAVE ALL BEEN GETTING CAUGHT SHALLOW. THE CRAPPIE HAVE BEEN HIT AND MISS SHALLOW WITH A MORE RELIABLE BITE COMEING IN 15-20 FOOT. WALLEYE ARE HITTING 1/8 OZ JIGS WITH 1/2 A CRAWLER. LEAVE THE CRAWLER AS STRAIGHT AS YOU CAN ON THE HOOK. WORK THE OUTSIDE OF THE BRUSH OUT TO ABOUT 17 FOOT. KEEP THE JIG ON THE BOTTOM AND PAY ATTENTION. SOMETIMES YOU DON'T FEEL MUCH, JUST A LITTLE WEIGHT. I WOULD TEND TO SAY THAT MORE WALLEYE ARE MISSED THAN CAUGHT. BASS ARE ON WINDY BAITS WITH SPINNERBAITS, JIGS AND PLASTICS IN THE BRUSH AND DEAD TIMBER/LAYDOWNS. SOME GOOD 5 LB FISH HAVE BEEN CAUGHT OFF THE BANK IN 7-9 FOOT OF WATER ON JIGS. CATFISH ARE BITING NIGHT CRAWLERS IN THE BACKS OF COVES AND IN THE CREEKS. THE BIG FEED FROM THE WATER IS OVER, BUT THE FISH ARE STILL BACK THERE FEEDING. IT'S GETTING TIME FOR THEM TO SPAWN SO GET READY FOR A GREAT BITE. BIG FLATHEADS AROUND THE RIP RAP!! KEEP YOUR HOOK SHARP AND GOOD LUCK. GIVE ME A CALL IF YOU NEED ANYTHING AND I WILL DO MY BEST TO HELP YOU OUT.

SMALLIES ARE STILL GREAT, BUT I AM NOT GOING TO TELL YOU I'M GREAT AT THEM. USUALLY GET THEM WHILE FISHING FOR THE OTHERS. WALLEYE HAVE BEEN AWESOME AND SO HAVE THE CRAPPIE. THE SUMMER BITE SHOULD BE GREAT. GOOD LUCK AND GIVE ME A CALL IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS WHEN YOU GET UP HERE

THURSDAY EVENING TOURNAMENT, TAKES OFF AT 6:00PM AT RUARK BLUFF. WEIGH IN WILL BE AT 10;00 PM SO WE CAN ALL FISH A LITTLE OF THE FULL MOON. BUDDY TOURNAMENT, $40.00 PER BOAT, INCLUDES BIG BASS. IF YOU NEED SOMETHING AFTER 5:00 PM (OR EVEN BEFORE) TEXT ME AT 417-234-8988. IF YOU ARE A FEW MINUTES OUT I WILL WAIT ON YOU TO GET TO TAKEOFF. FULL MOON SHOWS TO BE AT 6:27 PM, SO BRING A GAFF HOOK TO GET THE BIG ONES IN THE BOAT. 5 FISH LIMIT, NO FISHING IN THE NO WAKE AREA AT RUARK BLUFF OR ANY PUBLIC BOAT DOCK. MUST BE INSIDE THE NO WAKE BY 10:00 PM. FOR COMPLETE RULES GO TO WWW.FISHSTOCKTONLAKE.COM

NO, this is a weekly tournament we have every thursday evening for about 4 hours. lots of fun and learn alot from some of the locals that fish the tournament. come on out this thursday and show us how it's done!!!

Just a reminder to everyone that the tournaments take off at 6 pm out of ruark bluff. We will weigh in at 9:30 this week. Only $40.00 to enter and that includes big bass. Great time and fish are biting awesome. Don't miss out the chance to qualify for the fish off in october. Any questions?? Give me a call at 417-208-9535 See you there, Bob

The maize creek area is great for both fish. The walleye are biting great right now on the points. We had several today and kept 6 fish. Didn't do any crappie fishing today, but if we get enough walleye early we might go for a while on tomorrows trip. The walleye were in 8-15 foot of water. the biggest fish came out of 10 foot or less. good luck!!!

The lake is coming up very fast with all of the recent rains. I'm going to do my best to do a fishing report, but things change day to day with the water coming up and all of the rain, so be ready to make adjustments when you hit the water. Walleye are good on jigs and crawlers in 15 foot of water on points. drifting around or using your trolling motor work the points from the inside out and back until you find the fish. Its been a pretty good bite, but who knows now that the lake is up 3 foot in a coupld days. Going out tomorrow morning on another trip for walleye so guess we can find out or try to figure it out!! Crappie have been biting on jigs and minnows from the bank out to 30 foot. most of the better fish seem to be coming out of 10 foot or less. the fish are mostly post spawn and are scattered out feeding. keep on the move and make adjustments throughout the day. They will settle down before to long and hit the brush piles. There are also reports of some crankbait fish being caught. Bass are in the bushes and hitting jigs and plastics in 5 foot or less. We have been catching some spinnerbait fish on windy banks and this bite should get better with the high water. It took over 20lbs to win the heartland saturday so there are some good fish to catch. Catfish are excellent if you can find water coming into the lake. Go to the back of the creeks, any creek, and if the water is flowing into the lake, throw out nightcrawlers in 6 foot deep water or so and hang on. You might get a few carp (awesome tasting fish, I mean aweful tasting fish) but they need catching too. We had 12 channels up to 6 lbs in 2 hours this evening. If you are going out and just want to catch some fish with your kid wife husband whatever, you really need to give this a try. Get far enough back where you really think you can't catch anything and tie up. If you don't get bit in 15 minutes, your in the wrong place. As long as the water is flowing into the lake, this pattern will catch you some catfish. Sorry it took so long for a fishing report but it's been a very busy spring. Good luck and keep your hook sharp!!

Better late than never but here are the results from last thursday evening tournament. 1st place Troy and Charles Ayres 5 fish 14.16lbs $130.00 2nd place Mike Dill and Sherman Wilkerdson 4 fish 8.49lbs $100.00 Big Bass was caught by the father/Son Ayres team and weighed 4.50 lbs $90.00 Don't forget this thursday's tournament that starts at 6 pm at ruark bluff. We will fish until dark and weigh in will be at 9:30 at the ramp. You can still make the fish off by fishing the rest of the tournaments or making the top 60% of the avg nightly attendance. Should be fishing for $1,500.00 or something around there, and with the way the rules are this year, only about 10-15 boats will be competing in the final tournament. come on out and fish. If you have any questions give me a call at 417-208-9535. If you are on your way and cutting it close, text me at 417-234-8988 and I will do my best to check and wait for you if needed for takeoff. We need 20+ boats this thursday so get out and fish!!

We have already started the thursday evening tournaments. they leave out of ruark bluff at 6 pm every thursday and we fish till dark or a little after. Lots of fun and good times and a great chance to meet some other fishermen at the lake. Don't miss this thursday!! It's only $40.00 per boat, includes big bass, and the payout could be in the millions (if enough boats showed up) Probably more likely to be in the hundreds. Show up at the ramp and register. Call me at 417-208-9535 or 417-637-BASS for any questions or we will see you at the ramp!

Week one of the thursday evening tournaments was won by a newcomer this year, Eddie Bruhn. Eddie caught 5 fish that went 13.31 lbs and also had big bass that weighed 4.00 lbs. Awesome job in some tough conditions!! 2nd place was Jim Flora and Brent Offerdahl. They had 3 fish that weighed 5.50 lbs. Third place was, wait for it, me and Brad Shockley. We had a whopping 2 fish that went 5.26 lbs. Week 2 was won by Adam Smith and Darrel Birch who had 5 fish that went 11.30 lbs. 2nd place was won by Justin and Mike McMannis with a limit of fish that weighed 10.76 lbs. Big fish was caught by Perry Ayres and Jay Carter, a 3.84 lb largemouth. I will post week 3 asap. I wrecked my truck and the results are at the body shop with the truck. Everyone is welcome this thursday at 6 pm at ruark bluff. The more boats, the more money you make when you win. Fishing is getting really good so come on out and fish!!

While it is very true that nothing can be done to someone legally fishing public waters, the stories about pwc's grabbing the bobbers (I personally call these strike indicators) would lead me to call water patrol and turn them in. There is also nothing wrong with calling in an anonymous tip to the conservation agent. You DONT have to leave your name etc, just report what you think is going on illegal. They will investigate the offense, but they need the boat number etc to get info on the offenders. We need to make sure that if we see someone keeping shorts or to many they get reported. Getting mad or in a fight just causes more trouble for everyone. The lake is getting more crowded with the nice weather, and these problems will probably get a little worse, but think about all the trips we all have that turn out great!! It's still an awesome lake to be fishing!!

Hey thanks and it still makes the point. we all get this sometime or other. Even though I fish tournaments, I see bass fisherman that think they have the right to fish wherever because they have paid or they think they are something special. Don't let it ruin your day, it's a public lake so all we can do is let them thru and do our best to not say something that starts to much trouble.

We are having tournaments every thursday out of ruark bluff. they start at 6 pm and go to dark. Still time to make the fishoff in october, so start coming out and fishing with us. the entry fee is 40.00 and it's about a 98% payback. some of each night is set back for the final tournament and some buy the weigh bags. It's a lot of fun and you can meet some of the lakes best fishermen, and even meet me (which by the results won't go with the first group) We pay 1 in 7 boats back. It's a buddy tournament, but you can fish 2 by yourself if needed. The final tournament will be for all the money held back. you can call me at 417=208-9535 or 417-234-8988 for questions or just show up at the ramp prior to 10 minutes before takeoff. If you are running late you must text me because service stinks at ruark bluff ramp. I can wait around for you if needed. Tell everyone to come out and fish on thursday evenings. Thanks

These forums are meant to help us all fish and hopefully catch some more fish. There are some on here, including myself, that enjoy posting reports and reading others comments. There are also kids that read these reports and look at us as mentors and role models that enjoy doing the same thing that they enjoy doing. Lately, there has been some post that I believe have crossed the line and could be a little and sometimes alot offensive to some of these kids and adults that don't feel like they need to use vulgar language to get their point across. This is not pointed toward just one or two people, but we all need to try to watch how we say things and make sure that it is suitable for all ages. Please keep all of the posts clean and and on topic. The Stockton forum has been one of the best I have read on ozark anglers over the past few years. We need to do our best to keep it like this. Thanks for understanding and keep your hook sharp!!

I have a new hp laptop, so maybe I can get caught up. I will post results for the tournaments in the next couple of days. Crappie have slowed down, but I don't think they are done spawning. the weather just messed them up. keep fishing shallow and keep letting everyone know what is going on. I should be out again tomorrow so I will give an update. Bass are slow and are hitting jigs in shallow whater. It's a light bite so be ready and set the hook fast. lots of little fish but the big ones are in there. I messed up several times thurs night. it's late so going to bed. I will now be able to update some trip reports in the next couple of days. I've been very busy over the past month and thanks to everyone that has helped me get more business!! Good Night!!!

My computer crashed last week so on cell phone. Crappie are on the banks and hitting jigs. Sorry I haven't been posting but this lil keypad is a pain. Getting new computer tomorrowm Thanks.

Lake is close to normal, and water temp is in the low 60's to upper 50's. Crappie are on the banks and biting about everything you throw at them. We had over 200 fish today, most being just under the 10" limit. Had several really nice crappie and a 4lb largemouth. fish jigs under a strike indicator or fish a jig on the bottom. Had some females that were on the bank tonight, so they are moving up for the spawn. Bass are shallow on secondary points on jigs in about 5 foot of water. Walleye are still trolling the banks and can be caught while crappie fishing. Fish out a little deeper. Got to get in bed, have another trip in the morning and need sleep. It's been a great spring and I'm pretty booked up for the rest of the crappie spawn, however I did have a cancellation next thur and fri so if you are interested give me a call. Good luck and fish hard!!!

Lake is close to normal, and water temp is in the low 60's to upper 50's. Crappie are on the banks and biting about everything you throw at them. We had over 200 fish today, most being just under the 10" limit. Had several really nice crappie and a 4lb largemouth. fish jigs under a strike indicator or fish a jig on the bottom. Had some females that were on the bank tonight, so they are moving up for the spawn. Bass are shallow on secondary points on jigs in about 5 foot of water. Walleye are still trolling the banks and can be caught while crappie fishing. Fish out a little deeper. Got to get in bed, have another trip in the morning and need sleep. It's been a great spring and I'm pretty booked up for the rest of the crappie spawn, however I did have a cancellation next thur and fri so if you are interested give me a call. Good luck and fish hard!!!

Overall fishing has been excellent on Stockton Lake. The lake has been very busy and most of the boat ramps are full or close to it. The water is 1.95 high and falling with the main lake temps between upper 50's to low 60's. The creeks are in the mid 60's. Water color is normal most places that I have been to a little stained up sons creek. Walleye are biting crappie jigs along the banks in 5-6 foot of water. The males are trolling up and down the banks feeding. If you catch one stay there and crappie fish for a while and you might catch more. I ate walleye for dinner the other day and I have 3 more waiting for me to cook for dinner tonight. Crappie are excellent. fish shallow with a crappie jig or minnow. The best advise I can give you is if you don't catch any in the place you are then you are in the wrong place. Fish the spawning banks and try to stay in coves, cuts, and places where the crappie spawn. This isn't really the ime of year to tie up to a tree on a bluff and drown minnows. Not saying you won't catch any, but you will have lots better luck if you stay in the shallow water. Bass are hitting jigs in 5 foot or less and they are either in the brush or right outside of the brush. It took 14 lbs to win the thursday nite tournament and he said all his fish came from the back of a creek along a bluff end and in very shallow water. we had a coupld hit crankbaits and a couple on spinnerbaits but the best bite came on the jig. We probably caught 40 fish in the 3 hr tournament but had 38 small ones. excellent time of year to go out and catch some bass!! It's still alot of fun to be out there catching fish. Catfish are unknown. Had 2 on crappie jigs monday and both were close to 5 lbs. Good luck to everyone and be safe.!!

Just a quick reminder that the thursday evening tournaments start at 6 pm at ruark bluff. we will probably be able to stay out until 9 pm. Had lots of people tell me they were fishing, so come on out and get rich quick, or go home like me, broke. Either way is lots of fun and great time meeting some new people, learning new stuff, and telling stories. Call if you have any questions. My cell is 417-234-8988 I will be at the ramp about 500 to check everyone in and we will depart at 6 pm. Looking forward to another great year. Thanks for everyone that supported the tournaments last year!!

Nice fish!! Welcome to the Stockton Lake Forum