Bill Babler

Plus 100% to what he said.

Got the gal looking pretty sweet. If that sells with all the way points, it sounds like a deal to good to pass up. My trouble would be she would keep nosing me into the bank. She probably would cough at a dropshot rod too. For sure one of the best Bass Boats ever made by anybody For an 18.9ft she has no equal.

We were told at a lake meeting about 10 years ago by the corp of engineers that the lines were determined 5 years prior to the flooding of the lake. Geoligist surveyors and architechs determined thru elevation and volume measurments where to put not only the take line, but how high to build the dam. It was pointed out that this was at the time, early 1950's not an exact science. But still very accurate. And I believe that did a very good job, considering the sheer volume of knowledge it would take to do this with the tools they had in the 50's. Lets just have them take all the friggin private docks off the lake and not alter anything from 950 down. Seems to me that would solve a lot of problems. That would be alot less government buracy and expense. You wannna a dock or to build on the water go to Lake of the Ozarks. For cripes sakes they are trying to keep this from being that,and folks are fighting them tooth and nail. Then the people that are fighting are also the ones that don't want the boat waves messing up their docks and the big boats creating havvoc. Pretty hard to have it both ways. My wife and I own 40 acres of lake front and view land and we keep it as it was when the lake flooded. So I do have a dog in the fight. We use no fertilizers or chemicals and our privey faculities are arieal evaporation leach fields. I think with all that they got goin on, the COE is doing a pretty good job.

Ya, I have been seeing that built for about 3 yrs. now. Why in the world with all the beautiful lake front and lake view property on Table Rock would you build something like that up that River. Guess they like mud and driftwood, sometime that is just a complete mess up there, with filthy water. You got money to build a compound like that, a better location should not have been a problem.

I'm a little bit sworn to mums the word here, but I have been receiving text pictures the last 3 days of crappie catchin going on down there. Averaging 20 to 30 crappie per 4 hr. trip and they are BIG. Has anyone been out lookin? Temperature to be in 60's and low 70's for a week,so should be a good time to take a peek. Might try to arrange a trip later this week. Sounds good.

I have forgotten how to get down to that ramp. Do I go in thru Golden and then go straight instead of going left to Viney? Have not been down there since it closed to launch, and thats been a while. That would probably be the coolest water on Table Rock except for the Upper White River at Holiday Island when they are generating. Nice report.

Joe Brantly comes from back to win the CPA derby, with 26.5 pounds. Eric Olliverson second with 25.9 Only 13 limits weighed in as the Rock Bared her Fangs on Sunday. Surface temps jump up by 2 degree and complete eliminate the deep fish bite as contestants scramble to put 5 fish in the boat. Joe Brantly duplicated his catch from Saturday as most other angles fall back and takes the event. Best bite in a scramble seemed to be the dock bite. Using a 5/16 oz flippin jig and a small craw trailer, lots of fish were caught lake wide on this presentation in and around the docks. Bigger fish were scarce as hens teeth, and 5 keeps were indeed the most important deal for the day. Weigh-in took a while as most contestants fish had to be measured close to make sure they were 15". Lots and lots of squeeker fish. With forcast in the mid-60's to low 70's for the next week or more, this is going to set this thing back. I expect it to be pretty tough at least till the first of the year. If this keeps up, the spawn may start next week, so I may be wrong.

Great info on colors. Line size will vary. One of the best wart fisherman in Missouri is Scott Pauley with the dvision of Tourism, You will see his truck all over the area. In cold water I have seen Scott fish a wart more than a few times of 6 pound test. He says he can get another 3' of depth with it in clear cold water. Most guys usually throw it on 8 to 12. yesterday with TR at close to 60 degrees and the fish with their backs out of the water, most were throwing their shallow cranks on 12#, including Scott and Bill Beck. If the Small Jaws are up there you better have a firm grip on the deal in 60 degree water, or they will just flat take your junk away from you. Guys yesterday at the derby were saying how hot the fish were with lots jumping or tearing off the crankbaits. That water drops another 10 degree and you can lighten up abit, but right now I would keep the 12 pound on the old coffee grinder. Good Luck

Went over after my morning Guide trip on Taney to check out the Weigh-in for the 2013 kickoff for CPA. Really great turnout with 64 boats in the derby. Fishing has been very spotty with lots of do's but more dont's. These boys caught them pretty good. 30-5 fish limits were weighed in on the Pro side, so that is nearly half the field with 15" limits of fish. Pretty good. Weights were not as high as I expected after watching the first guy weigh in with 12 pounds, I thought one of the local crankers would drag in a BAG. 18 Pro's are within 3 pounds with Jeff Farley leading the deal with 15.4. Table Rock Lake Guide Eric Olliverson is in second with 14.5 and he also has big fish at 6.5 pounds. Mike Webb pointed out that the big bass alone for this derby is going to pay over $1,000.00. With the 64 boat field that brings into play all the money. That being bonus money from the boat and motor companies. Winner of this deal with big bass and boat company insentives could exceed $10,000.00, by a long shot. Very strong start for CPA, and a lot of money on the Table. Even with the wind, did not hear guys talking about Blade fish. Most of the talk was crakin and to my suprise the square bill was spoken of more than the Table Rock Beloved Wiggy Wart. Lots of limits of very shallow fish, under 3' deep. Fish seemed to bite thru the mid-day and the lake warmed all day, kinding of moving some of the deep fish that these guys had been on. With the cloud cover the deep bite was really just not there. Lots of these guys depend this time of the year on deep spoon fish. Big LM can get on that jigging spoon, but that did not seem to be the deal yesterday, most everyone was winding. Be interesting with less wind and more sunlight to see how it plays out today. Reguardless, these derbys give us locals a very good heads up on what we can do to trick one here and there. Good Luck

Imt Out, pretty much just made my point. If you are looking at a boat to keep for a while, better look a little bigger than the Z6. Yes there will be great deals out there on the Z6. There is a reason. Good Luck

Had the complete priviledge of guiding Lane Shumakers Pro-Guide Battery team today on Upper Taney. Pro-Guide Trojan Batteries are more than a friend of Ozark Fishing, that help us function everyday. Phil Lilley, Rick Lisek, Steve Dicky and Myself fished the management team today in the restricted area on a 1/2 to zero flow. Only discription is STUPID. I want to take this time to say a very strong Thank You to Turner Jones as his Micro Jigs were simply on FIRE. My three fisherman put easily 80 fish in the boat in 4 hrs. R. Lisek fished thread jigs and his clients put close to 100. Every time I looked at Phil's boat he was dipping fish and have no idea what his count was but it was increadable. I had 3 clients and we had 10 tripples, I was soaked to the bone and my boat was slimed. Can/t get any better. Didn't speak with Dicky, but he is an animal and I'm sure he layed the wood to them. I fished a 256 oz. olive copperhead micro on Rio 6X 6' under the indicator. Phil fished a Ginger Copperhead 256 micro 5' under the indicator. Only fished a 100 yrd stretch from the FallCreek ramp to the mouth of the creek. We had 2 nice Browns, and the biggest Bow was 17. Phil had a fish over 18" Phil may have photos. Get down here, it is as good as it gets. 1-888-lilleys

Really I think you have picked a great time to get in the boat market. Just like most of the poster said, and there is some great advice there. Interest rates are at all time lows if you have to finance. I know Arvest is really doing a great job on boat loans. See Mark at Shell Knob, if you don't have a lender. I really liked what mixmarkb had in his post. I have owned 25 bass boats and for a fact there are some good ones out there. You all know I am not a Bass Pro Fan, but the strides that have made is truly remarkable. I believe the Z series in either 8 or 9 are good boats, and if you look on Craigs list or the papers in KC, STL, or Omaha, or Desmoines, you can find a preowned boat for excellent money, this time of the year. Don't wait till March or you will pay the whole enchalita as that is boat buying season. Look at an 18' with a 200 to 225 that still has warranty. If it still has warranty, you can buy more and even up to 5 years. That is a boat that is say a 2008 or 9. No question and do not doubt this for an instant, you want a Merc ProXs. Frankly there is no other engine. It is the only one in the world. Trust me on this one, I love the YHammer, but you want the Merc. If it were me, just starting with what I know now, I would buy a Pro-Staff boat from one of the major dealers. Loads of warranty and you can get what you want. PM me if you are really serious and need some help. My boat order would be: Phoenix Stratos Elite Bass Cat Nitro Legeand Skeeter Ranger That about covers it. Ranger has shot themselves in the foot and for the quality of the boat has completely priced themselves out of the market. They are a mid range boat with a low end ride and a top end price that does not compete with the above mentioned boats. Triton is alive for now, but they are on the brink. Every componet of the Nitro is at least the quality that Ranger is trying to sell for twice the price. Used to work, no longer does. Any of those boats will work and shop,shop, shop

10 years is a long time with a little boat like that. Really it is small for taney, but it is a toy on Table Rock. Also that Z6 has the trade in or trade up value of a used kleenex. I would look to the larger metal boats at least 18'. Or go with a very strpped down Z8. You will regret that Z6 most everyday you own it. It will be like the old saying. The happiest day of your life is when you buy your new boat and the second is when you sell it. Good Luck

Becky has decided to get a new 6 person Spa for our lodge. We currently have a Marquis Silver Aniversery Rewards 41 Jet 8 person Hydro Spa. This has been a great addition to our home and B&B. We have just loved his very high end Spa. With the lodge we never have over 4 persons in the spa at any time and this one will easily hold more. If you have a family it would be great. It is fine for two people, but the more the merrier. Becky has kept this Spa immaculate and it has all the features including a insulated cover with lift. Waterfall and light package. The spa is 220 electric and need a breaker to be devoted just to it. She can arrange installation and delivery. She is asking $2,500.00. Her new 6 person spa is between 9 and 10 grand. It is featured on our lodge website at www.whiteriverlodgebb.com look under the Lodge ammenities page. IF your interested you can give Becky a call at the Lodge at 800-544-0257

I fished the James today and the docks were just full of Bluegill. Very seldom this late in the year will we see this type of concentration of gills that high in the water column. You might ask and try at Holliday Island Marina, they may give you all the gills you need.

Great report and thanks, sounds like a very good day. I fished the James for 2 hrs. checking my favorite docks for crappie. Caught only 2 but really noticed the docks were just full of bluegill. Strange for this time of the year. usually don't see them under the floats this late. Water temp up the James in the 58-60 range around Noon. Did really notice the otters had been working the docks. Went on 8 docks and everyone was just covered with otter poop and pee. What a mess. might be the reason for no crappie, but don't believe so as I stated the Gills were just thick on every dock. Guess I ought to drag out the traps and go at it to give me something to do. Good Luck BB

Depends on how good you want it. If you want it to look like factory I would call Rick Lisek 417-224-5108. I have seen over 25 boats he has done and they look Showroom. Sometimes he is hard to reach, but this time of the year should be be able to get him. Send him a text for best results, he is usually very busy.

acetone is the best carpet remover. just pour it on the old carpet and it will loosen the glue and you can pull it off. Bigger job as has been stated is the clean up of all the glue and mess that is still attached to the boat. Also a great point by Bird Watcher. Never try and clean a spot on your carpet with Goof Off or any of the other products like that as it will go thru the carpet and melt the glue under it. What a mess. Just take the boat to the car wash and a scuddy wash and rinse will clean about any mistake other than a burn. Good Luck

Were you catching those bass vertical jigging in 15-16 ft.? Main channel, or big coves? Very interesting spoon fishing that shallow. Thanks for the report. Good Luck

Forgot to mention taking off all the box lids, there is just no way to do it with them on the boat. If you have them all off you can get a very tight fit. This is a big job to do it right. If you don't get it glued properly and have bubbles in the carpet, when it rains those areas will fill with water under the carpet and make little wet pockets that hold water. Good Luck

I have done two bass boats and I will tell you, removng the old carpet is probably tougher than installing the new. Usually takes two gallons of acetone, and you need for sure to get all the old glue and carpet off. Make sure you can eat off it before you put in the new carpet. This is not an over night job on a 20 ft. boat. You need to remove all the hardware the seats and everything you can get out. Take your time and put in good quality Marine grade carpet. It will make the boat look like new. To tell you the truth, a professional can do this in 1/4 of the time you would take to do it and the difference in the job would be night and day. I have been very fortunate to have Rick Lisek help me and his work is by far the best in the Springfield Branson area. Just saying dont bite off more than you can chew, this is a big job. Never put indoor outdoor carpet on a Bass Boat, looks like HeKK. Only good quality Marine Grade Carpet. Doing a Pontoon is a walk in the part compared to a bass boat with all the small pieces and irregular cuts and cutouts. I know it was mentioned about a pontoon being a pain. A bass boat is more than that. Every corner or lid needs a special angular cut to make it tight. It is kind of like wrapping a Christmas present. If you could wrap a present like Macys go ahead if you wrap it like My 10 year old niece, I would think about it. Good Luck

They are for sure not everywhere. We caught all our fish both days off about 4 locations. I believe the bait might not have mattered with the exception they did not really seem to want the jig for us. The soft plastic on the C-Rig worked much better. Another point being, it they hit it and you missed them you had better keep it out there as they would continue to keep after it untill they got a stickin. I thought about a tube and probably should have thrown it some. It is so soft and I bet they would really hold onlo it. "Me Bad."

I know Edwin will disagree with me and thats ok. I never use carbon on a spinning reel as I have a terrible time with memory. I use Maxima 8 pound moss color. If I am dropshotting or dragging a splitshot, I go to a swivel and put a leader of 10# InvesX to the hook. I use the heaver line on the leader as it get 90% of the abrasion. I at times will snag and break off, but I will tell you I cannot remember the last time I broke a fish off other than a walleye.

Well all good plans of mice and men are sometimes altered and today was no exception. Was going to pick up Jerry and Brian at their dock in Aunts, but the Fog was to thick to breath and knew I would have a hard time finding them. Since I had done well yesterday evening at Baxter, I had the boys meet me and drive over there. Knew I could just launch and fish. Fog was just terrible there also but we did manage to keep a lure wet most of the time till it lifted. Not nearly as good a day as yesterday but if Jerry and I would have done our part it might have been better. Jerry's son Brian caught 9 fish with 5 keepers, including a great brown bass and a very fat LM. Jerry and I did our part by catching 1 keeper each. We were trying to stay out of Brian's way. "Right." 11 fish with 7 keeps. The quality was there, just not the numbers. Clear blue and slick as a gut, but we had a great time. We had 4 on a dropshot, and all the rest were on the C-Rig. 26 to 30 ft. mostly on long gravel points. Little chunk mixed in with the gravel helped and if there was a Loon present it also enhanced the bite, MIght be a pattern. Good Luck

I have to guide the James this morning out of Aunt's. Said it was foggy as all get out up there yesterday. Going to start early with the wart and hope we can put a half dozen in the boat, and then start the work when the sun comes up. Pete Wenners is blogging they are really deep up there on the dropshot. I'll give some of the usually deep runnouts a look see. He is also saying they want nothing to do with the spoon, and for some reason on the rest of the lake it is good. He usually has a pretty tight reign on the James, so I'm taking his advice. I'm for sure going to keep that rig handy, cause they were just tearing it up yesterday. I'm going to say at least 5 quality bites per hour for the boat. I'll take that right now. Not alot of short fish, a really good mix of K's, LM and Jaw's. I'll keep ya posted. Good Luck