Bill Babler

You might take a look at some of the Shimano Comb outfits. When it comes to spinning reels, Shimano is just about the only name out there.Cabelas has some super Shimano combs right in your price range in their Spring fishing Catalog. You could also at Bass Pro put a super combo together with a 7' St. Croix Premier Spinning and a Shimano SE 1000 Sedona. Total $159.00 Good Luck

It is 36 degrees with a 20 mile an hour wind. I didn't back out, I just showed some common sense. Plus I would have gotten my clean shiney boat covered in road slime since the rain. I am a neat freak you know. Plus the wife says I have to work on taxes.

First real cast was a backlash, so I had that deal covered.

Boys, I will tell you now, electronics had absolutely nothing to do with it. Nothing. Period. These fish have been in these places since the lake was filled at this time of the year. These are staging fish. For years we caught what we caught using a jerkbait on these same spots. Then we started swimming a grub to them. A few years ago we got on the float-n-fly and caught 25 pound plus bags this time of the year. The last couple of years it has been the A-Rig. It really works for these fish. Most times the fish are really not relating to the bottom, they are moved up in the water column suspended. Staged up ready to feed heavy before the spawn. They are looking for shad in this open water. ie the white fly jig the stickbait, the grub and now the A-Rig with its multiple grubs, looking like a school of bait. This time of the year Mark and Mike Fann are usually not big runners. I'm not going to go very far out on a limb to say all these fish came from Kimberling city 10 miles either way. There are litterly dozens of staging areas plus all the release fish here. Anyone that puts his or her boat in the water can on any given day do this. I can remember huge bags in the 90's over 26 pounds and this is 5 fish coming in swimming a grub on these locations to suspended staging fish. Terry, how big was that bag that R. Homlegran had on a stickbait in March. I think he weighed close to 30 on 5 fish. Cannot remember the number. You get out this time of the year and good things can happen. I will tell you this. Yesterday my boat was in 40' to 100' and my fish were probably coming in the 15' to 20' range suspended. Nice if there was some timber present, but not required. Good Luck

That is one great set of walleye. Any info you can share on tenique. Its always nice to share some info with super pictures like that. Not locations, but just how you put that kind of a pattern together. Thanks Congrats

White River Outfitters- Eagle Rock Missouri 3-4-13 Current Fishing Report Dumped the tub in at Eagle Rock to fish the Upper White River today. I have BFL guys on Thursday and Friday. Trying to avoid a conflect of interest. Eagle Rock Surface Temp at 42 degree even money when I started, at 6:50. Plenty of light and I was not the first boat at the ramp. I had plenty of help today. Headed up a bit toward Holiday Island to check out some stuff and the first spot I plopped on I quickly caught 2 very nice 3 pound LM. One on the first cast and one about a 1/2 dozen tosses later. Both Fish on a stickbait. Boat in 26' of water throwing at a transition bank with the channel snuggled up tight to the bank. Next spot caught a short on an A-Rig and worked up to about Devils Dive. Turned around and headed up to Panther and put the stickbait down and picked up the Umbrella. Nother transition and a sweek 4 Pounder just where the channel touched the bank. Worked hard for about 2 hrs. and not much to write home about. Made it up to the mouth of the Kings River and pulled in behind a guy that was just burning a spinnerbait. Good Gosh I don't fish a Buzz BAit that fast. This is a good spot and I know they are there. Put the boat in 60' throwning up to about 15 and letting the Rig go clear to the bottom before starting to wind. Hoping to keep the bait in that 15 plus depth range all the way back to the boat. Boom a 4 Pound Jaw. Next Cast a 4 pound LM. I just left. Probably could have tricked another one but I'm pre-fishing. Fished the rest of the morning between Shell Knob and Campbell Pt. Ended up with 7 total keeps with 2 on the jerkbait and 5 on the A-Rig. 3 shorts. Really a super day as I pretty much left every location after I caught 1 or 2. Great size for me with the best 5 pushing 20 pounds. The way it has been going however that would have probably gotten me a nice slap on the back and a hardy handshake. I'll see if I can find that other boy some fish from Kimberling to the Dam on Wednesday. Tomorrow Phil and I are walleye guys.

Fann boys don't need an A-Rig to catch a big bag anytime. They are both more than solid sticks. These guys are jerkbait machines and they also love to swim a grub, and catch big ones doing it. Would just about bet you they threw the Rig and followed behind it with the sticker.

That for sure would be my pleasure. Spoke to Mikey MC. today. He is goan hit Beaver tomorrow with the family and try to nab a walter or a crappie or two. It did not have to set long.. Just about as soon as I worked it even with a tree and paused it one would nab it. 10-15 seconds at most. Got to move it alot slower on Bull for the Eyes that we have been catchin. Closer to the tree you can get the better. I probably messed up half the trees I fished getting to close. Did not however lose a single stickbait today. Got them all back from those bushy cedar rascules. You all know of course fishing trees with triple hooked stickbaits is a very heavy risk reward type of fishing. Good Lucki Off to the Rock in the morning. Just about to get really busy. .

Lots and lots of dying shad up the pockets in Rambo. Hundreds of gulls working them. Do you all ever catch any Stripers up there? Worked some of those big pockets but didn't see any big archs. At times up there the shad blacked me out from 40' up. Usually don't so that heavy of clouds of them on the Rock. Would just love to hook into one of those Beaver Lake Bad-Boy's on an Unbrella or a sticker. Maybe next time. Nary caught a single fish on the shad. All the bass were on cover. Fished alot of really nice transition stuff on the channel banks. Stuff that gets you bit on the Rock. Nothing. I creek arm channel transition bank for the first Small Jaw and the rest out of trees. You just could not roll in and fish a tree line. I tried it several times. Single Cedar trees on inside points or at the mouth of a pocket. It was really fun. Good Luck

Dumped the Big Phoenix in at the Back Ramp at Rocky Branch today, with the thoughts of maybe a walleye in mind. Didn't take to long to put that out of my mind cause about my 3 rd. cast I caught a very nice Jaw, about 17,5 inches. Quite abit of wind out there today and not many boats. Pretty much could fish anywhere you wanted knowing you would be the first boat of the day on it. Forgot how beautiful Beaver is and what magnificent homes decorate its shoreline. What a great place to live. The views and vistas go on and on. When I first stuck my toe in the water at 9:30 it was 41.9 When I pulled off at 3:30 it was 44 so it warmed up a little. Still a mite cool out there. Got on a really nice Cedar Tree patern today, with 8 very nice keepers mostly LM coming off the trees. Total of 9 keeps plus a short or two. Kind of got on it by accident Pulled back in a pocket that the gulls were just going crazy in and threw the A-Rig and the Sticker all over a 1/2 acre of dying shad. Notin. Looked back down the point and there was a nice full Cedar with the crown just out of the water, but I could tell it was a full tree. Setting in about 20 ft. Slid the McStick about 12' by and jerked it into the outter limbs, and Whamo Nice 3 lb. LM. Threw it back on the other side and a short K. Looked across the pocket and by gosh there was another tree just pretty much like this one. Hopped over and Bam again a very nice 18" K. At that point I became a Tree Surgen. Fished the rest of the day and did not catch one out of every perfect tree, but I put 6 more solid keepers in the boat on the McStick Blue Bandit in and around Cedar trees at the head of small pockets. Great day on one of the most beautiful lakes in the world.

Buster reports the lake is up about 2 ft. If is more off color than it has been, but still good. Whites are just getting started and he is catching between a 1/2 dozen and 10 per day with most being pretty nice. He is also catching 4 or 5 big crappie and the last two days he and his clients have had 8 keeper walleye with a couple of huge ones. Of course he is still jerking that stickbait. I was going over tomorrow, but could not get Phil around so I'm going to Table Rock. May go over Wednesday if its not to nasty. Good Luck

Guess they just hammered them the last 2 days, with limits up to 29 pounds and lots of bags over 20. All on the umbrella I;m told.

They usually start in Long Creek, before Brushy. Have heard nothing out of Long Creek. Might call Cricket Creek Marina and see if anyone is catching anything. It is about time.

Very nice fish. Any Stripers or Walleye on that A-Rig?

OMTT Saturday and then an Anglers in Action on Sunday. The lake in front of my place is just full of boats and fisherman. It iis 31 degrees and a North Wind. At one point today I had my eye on 11 boats at one time. Burr!!!!

I give it to the KCSTAR. You can look online at kcstar.com outdoor section. We usually publish it at least once a week here and this time of the year it varies so much from location to location and day to day it is just impossible to keep it current. 43 to 47 today with some very cool water in the backs of the pockets in the mid-30's.

Great info. Looks like my work of a few years ago was pretty close to accurate, and I did speak to quite a few people about the old River Strain. Here is the deal, and for me it would not be a thing at all. I would really like to suppliment this fishery as it for sure can grow great fish. To increase the ammount of funds for Walleye I for one would be more than willing to buy a Walleye permit similar to trout. I know most on this board would also be in favor of it. I just wonder if enough funds could be generated thru a walleye permit to fund a minnow project at the hatchery. My gosh it is cheap enough for a fishing lic and the permits we buy are a miniscule ammount for the fun we have. If it would work I would be all for it.

You all are my heros. Anyone that was on the water today gets a tip of my cap. I am just dying here at the house, but that wind and cold won't let me out the door.

Look like you boys already had the fabric rod wraps figured out. I love this forum. Thanks Guys.

Ment to mention on the break-off stuff. Please all of you check your eyes and guides if you are continuing to break. Just the most minor damage in the eyes will completely destroy your line. It does not have to be in the tip either, it can be on down the rod. Seems like if you keep seeing your line discolor, weather it be carbon or mono, it is a pretty good indication that you have damage to one of your line guides or eyes. As the line goes thru even if it is very slight it for sure abrades the line and discolors it. Did you all notice that EVERY-PRO in the Classic when storing their rods in their rod boxes put them in a fabric sheeth? None of them seemed to just trust the boats rod compartments, they all further protected their equipment for damage. How many times have you went to pull a rod out of the box and had its neighbors lure either harg or scrape the line on the rod you were pulling out. YOu can bet that if the hook touches that line if is abraded. I picked up that tip watching the Pro's put there rods up. Maybe to much work for most of us, but if a 1/2 mil. is on the line,your do everything you can to not have a stupid problem. Good Luck

Plus 1

Couple of things here. And may I say, I can be in the same boat if I am pitchin a dock or get short lined. If you are breaking off with carbon while fishing a football jig or dragging, it is a line problem. If you are using a 6.5 ft. rod or above and snapping line on a full cast something is amiss. If you are pitchin or flippin and are breaking line, with the jigs we have today, and here is where I get in trouble, mostly cause I have no sense and am a poor fisherman. You are just flat setting the hook way to hard. I have fished with Bill Beck now for the last 10 years. He is a dock flippin master. I have yet to see him set the hook on a fish. I have never seen him break off on a hook set and have marveled at his success. He simply reels them in. For the most part todays jigs have hooks in them that are chemically sharpened and more than razor sharp. Just by putting prussure on the fish it will go thru their lips like butter. I personally just got to jerk. He has thumped me on the head more than once for breaking a fish off. I have never seen him lose a flipped or pitched fish due to a breakoff or just coming unpluggted. NEVER. Here is the kicker, and Champ knows this. We usually pitch docks using 8 or 10 pound carbon. The jig falls like you just dropped it overboard or kicked it off the dock and the sensitivity of the line is if they breath on it you know it. Another great point is that it has no or little memory and is easy to pitch without spool overrides. You pitch on mono with 15 to 20 and you are peeling line at least once a dock, I don't care who you are or how much you fish. Just because I struggle with setting the hook to hard the rest of you don't have to. Be like Beck and Just reel them in. Good Luck

Gosh Josh, tell us how you really feel. Don't know a single guide that uses FC on a spinning reel, most use it for down baits on baitcasters. Personally I just like the way it lays and its lack of memory. Most often most of us use it for jig fishing or dragging. Everything most of us do that are getting paid to do it is nothing more than a fraction of a pimple advantage more for our clients. Josh as you have stated you have a rod in your hands and the experence to back it up with years of fishing expertise. Most of our clients don't even have a fraction of that. Everything I can do to help these people get bit is what I do. I am looking for one more bite a day, nothing more, just one more bite. If I can get one more bite per person per day on carbon over mono, it is worth it. If 10% of those one more bites is a catch, that is between 60 and 100 more fish a year that my clients might catch. That is huge, with only 1 more bite a day. Every bait I use, every rod and reel I fish with and everything I do is for 1 more bite a day. Success for me is to master the simple things and don't be afraid to try and learn something new every day you go. I will never be an expert, but I am going to keep striving for one more bite a day. Good Luck Appreciate you all

Is OMTT still doing the off limits deal they have done in the past?

I believe Wrench hit it on the head. Man what a nice boat. For all you that have not seen the Legend, better take a look. That is one sweet machine. One of our good contributors here Phil Stone is on their pro-staff and his boat just rocks. Phil Stone can hook ya up with a test ride or give you any info you need on these fine boats.870-715-2764 Built right close at Mountain Home, right next to the Bass Cat boys. These boats are approaching the top of the food chain, not a starter rig. Get your hands on one of them and you have more than done the right thing. Good Luck