DerekB

Thanks for the report, oneshot. My daughter and I are headed down tomorrow night to spend the weekend. We'll probably set some lines Saturday morning and then head to the dam to give the crappie and white bass a try. Sounds like the catfish action was decent on the line & pole. What were you all using for bait? I was thinking we'd bait our throw lines with cut shad or cut bluegill. Thought I'd go with minnows for my daughter to try and keep her in some action.

I usually put in at Long Shoal, but it's worth noting that the lake is about 12 feet high with all the recent rain. As a result, bass and crappie (especially the bass) have been slow to bite. The catfish bite, however, has been good. The COE has recently started letting water out through the dam, and this is creating a current in the lake, which has helped the white bass bite tremendously. We caught several whites Saturday at the weir, which is near the dam. At Bucksaw, you're not really that close to there, so I'd check shallow flats in mornings and evenings for white bass, isolated cedar trees in 12-15 ft. of water for crappie, and maybe some shallow flats near creek channels for cats. We caught nine whites this past weekend and my 10-hook trotline caught four cats (two channels, a blue, and a flat head). You and your family would probably have the best luck with the cats. Night crawlers or cut shad should do the trick. Have a great time.

It wouldn't be difficult for MDC to install surveillance cams in that lot. I can't believe there wasn't someone on the dock that saw something. Bummer.

I think some people call them shell crackers because of the way they feed on snails. That's got to be the biggest one I've seen.

Well, it was a rough weekend fishing. I caught 8 nice crappie, all on Sunday. They were all caught in the Hogle's Creek area of Truman on minnows in about 20 feet of water. I wanted to fish the tailwater area, but you could have literally walked across the river on boats and not got your feet wet. Crazy!!

I love to fish TR for the scenery, and early Spring works out best for me in terms of fish caught, but two things keep me going to LOZ more often than not: 1.) LOZ has more stained water, which I prefer to fish. I have better luck and I'm more confident in it. 2.) I can be on LOZ in less than 90 minutes from my house. TR is a good 3 hours away. In terms of boat traffic, I stay away from the big open water on LOZ, mainly fishing the Osage arm. I plan to spend a week at TR at the end of June and I plan to hire a guide to help me learn to better fish clear, deep water. Both are quality fisheries, but at TR my wife can drop me off at the lake and she can go shopping or to Silver Dollar City. Now THAT makes it a great fishery!!

Thanks for the clarification, Wayne. If I'm not mistaken, that's what I'd call the Osage River and technically not Truman. Probably why there's a length limit. I've heard the fishing is good there this time of year. I may have to try it out. Thanks again, everyone.

I really appreciate all the great tips. When you say "slackwater", are you refering to the Weir? Also, I'll be putting my new Lowrance HDS 7 to work this weekend as well, so hopefully that will help me getting around in the shallow water.

While I really enjoy fishing many lakes in the state, Truman sits a mere 74 miles from my house. I've only been there a few times bass fishing, mainly because the standing timber makes me very nervous when running the boat down creeks. I'd really like to give the crappie fishing a try starting this weekend, but I'm relatively new to that. Can anyone give me some good pointers on where to go, type of cover to fish, and baits to use? I usually put in around the state park, but can put in elsewhere if needed. Thanks in advance.

I'm usually just a browser on this forum, but I'm just looking for an excuse to get to Table Rock this month. Plus, it would be fun to chat with some of you in person and learn more about fishing TR. Looking forward to it.

Hi all, Last Summer I fished small lakes with a 14-foot 1981 Duracraft jon boat, no outboard, just a trolling motor. It had a nice set up for a jon boat (livewell, bilge pump, etc.). Wanting to get into larger lakes with the least amount of money, I just purchased a pre-owned 2000 Nitro NX882SC with a 175HP Mercury EFI last week for $10,000. The boat is immaculate and the motor has a little over 50 hours on it. I originally had planned to look for an 18-foot aluminum bass boat with a smaller outboard, but for the money, I was able to purchase my first fiberglass boat. I feel like I got a lot of boat for the money. Keep looking, there are some great deals out there.

ZOU!

Hello, all! I just found this site and I can't tell you how much I love it. As a lifelong farm pond fisherman who just purchased a bass boat, I'm excited to spend lots of time on Pomme de Terre and Table Rock this year, yet intimidated at the same time. Phil, thanks a million for providing the information I need to have success at these great fisheries. I look forward to everyone's posts.