Quillback

First person I thought of when I saw this - Johnsfolly.

That's awesome, you're going to have me out there dragging crawlers if you keep that up. 😀

I like the walking part, and no problem getting wet. I like a river or lake where you can do a lot of walking (and fishing), it's fun to throw a rod in the car, bring minimal tackle and do some fishing. Put my dog to sleep recently which was tough to do (his liver was shot), but it does free me up to do long fishing trips.

Is the Mulberry a good river to fish as far as bank access?

Peaks the night of August 11/12. Locally it is supposed to be partly cloudy that night. But there are some flying by now, went out and watched the sky for a few minutes this morning and saw one.

I've seen more of them this year than ever. Get quite a few peck-peck bites on the swimbaits which I believe are yellows. Not happy to see them, but we're now stuck with them.

Good luck, hope you get into some eyes. I haven't caught one in a while, the places I've been fishing in Beaver have shad, white bass, black bass, yellow bass, and a few small stripers. You'd think there'd be an eye or two in the mix, but I can't get one, not even a dink.

The Yakima river where it runs through Yakima canyon in Washington is single barbless hook. It's full of wild bows. It's a very popular stretch of river, lots of drift boats and some bank access. I never seriously fished it as when I was in that part of the state I was bird hunting, and when I was fishing it was for salmon and steelhead that were closer to where I lived. Everyone that fished the Yakima fly fished, I'd fish a spinner with a single barbless hook and those rainbows would practically fight each other to get that spinner. It was tough to land them as they'd jump and toss that spinner pretty easily, but it didn't matter to me. I didn't know about marabou jigs for trout at the time, but I might make a trip back there in the future and you can bet I'll be packing some jigs. Ought to be fun.

I'm not going to float, I don't trust my back in a yak. However I might make it to the takeout, just to say hi. Just need an estimate on when folks are planning to reach the takeout. Might be worth bringing a small grill and burning some dogs if there's enough room for that and if ya'll are interested.

Went out for a few hours early. Weather was a little different, east wind and it felt cold out there early. Fishing was slow, some bites here and there, I'm getting bit in the backs of coves in water that is 20-30 feet deep, most of the fish are near the bottom, but sometimes they'll be up shallow over deep water chasing shad. Had one of those mornings where I had as many missed bites as fish caught. They'd whack the swimbait, but drop it, nothing to set the hook on. Hooked something that felt submarine sized, had it on for 30 seconds or so, it was slowly swimming away pulling drag, acting like it wasn't hooked or didn't care that it was hooked. It came off when it decided to do some head shaking and rolling around, I'm guessing by a little bit of slime left on the line it was probably a big cat or possibly a big drum, but I'll never know for sure. Caught 5 smallmouth, 5 white bass, and one yellow bass. Kept some whites to clean and kept the little yellow dude just to see how it tastes, probably like white bass I would think. 3.3 Keitechs on a 1/4 oz head. WT 85

Thought you were, but I have no idea what a PFA is.

Great pics guys. I just got my Outdoor Oklahoma magazine, they have an annual outdoor photo contest and this edition has some excellent outdoor shots. If you want my copy, I'll mail it to you, just PM me your address.

Those are questions I don't know the answer to.

I've PM'd him a couple of times today trying to change his mind. Illegitimi non carborundum

Thought they looked interesting: New Fish Habitat Initiative Underway in Oklahoma; Anglers Invited to Contribute | Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation (wildlifedepartment.com)

I've got about a half dozen, It's more of a case of tying one on and throwing it.

Tiny Torpdeo - Dutch and I were talking about that one last time we were out. Good fishing!

It's gone political, so time for it to go to sleep.

Well he has slowed down, which was inevitable. However, Royals pulled it out last night with a 3 run, pinch HR from Melendez.

Great pics - the water looks nice and cool!

Acoustic Sampling for Shad in Large Reservoirs in Arkansas Gizzard and Threadfin Shad are essential species that serve as the primary food source for many sportfish in southern reservoirs. However, fisheries biologists have faced challenges in accurately estimating their populations using traditional sampling methods. As a result, they are continuously searching for more effective ways to assess the abundance of these vital forage fish. At AGFC, we began using cove rotenone samples in the 1960s to estimate shad abundance in reservoirs across the state. However, changes made during the Environmental Protection Agency’s 2007 re-regulation process rendered rotenone impractical as a standard sampling technique. Additionally, the highly variable results from rotenone data made it difficult to use for management and monitoring, leading to the discontinuation of cove rotenone sampling in 2010. With cove rotenone sampling no longer available, we sought a modern and reliable method to sample shad. In 2021, we partnered with Oklahoma State University (OSU) researchers to develop an acoustic survey technique. This method uses sound waves and specialized software to detect and measure the number and size of fish in a given area. Previous research by OSU showed that acoustic surveys provide more accurate estimates of shad abundance than previously used methods. However, specific technical details of this method still need to be researched to optimize shad abundance estimation. Research on Beaver and DeGray Lakes began that summer and has continued for at least three months every year since. AGFC biologists and an OSU researcher spent 12 hours zigzagging at 3.5 mph from the Beaver Lake dam to the Nursery Pond late last month. They observed schools of shad throughout this effort, with higher abundances near the main river channel. OSU researchers will analyze the large amount of raw data collected to estimate the shad abundance and their average size. The same crew conducted a similar effort the following week at DeGray Lake and Lake Hamilton. This effort will be repeated on these three reservoirs in August and September. Our plan to utilize modern sampling methods for shad will enhance our understanding of their populations and improve abundance estimates for managing fisheries in Arkansas reservoirs. This approach could also serve as a model for other states aiming to monitor their shad populations using similar technology and techniques. Gaining a better understanding of shad populations will lead to more informed decisions regarding forage management and sportfish stocking programs. Ultimately, these efforts will benefit both shad and sportfish populations, enhancing fishing opportunities for everyone. Screenshot of large schools of shad (red oblong marks) near point marker 9 (36.3329416667, -93.9516533333) on Beaver Lake, July 23, 2024. Another screenshot showing large schools of shad (red oblong marks) upstream of the Beaver Lake Highway 12 bridge (36.31904, -94.00615) collected on July 23, 2024

Met Dutch at the Indian Creek ramp at 0600, and we were fishing shortly thereafter. We found some smallmouth in the back of one cove that had steep, gravel banks. We caught them in 20-30 FOW on 3.3 Keitechs swum on the bottom. That one spot is the only place we found them and we were off that water at 1000. I think we had 6 smallmouth, a spot, and a white. Couple of the smallies were solid keepers. Nice morning to be out, but it was getting warm when we got off the water. WT 85

Home of the state record black crappie.

That's a good one!