T-RockJaws

Thanks for the report Captain... The drop shot never really took off (at least for my partner and I) up here on the upper end this year. Not sure why, we did catch a few on it just not the numbers as usual.

That is right RPS... Never seems to be in perfect conditions when you just happen to have a little extra money!

It doesn't have to be a special needle, you can pick them up cheap (sometimes free) from about any vet or vet supply store.

I am a big G-Loomis fan and have several of their rods. Maybe I will be able to convince my wife that I need one of these for next spring! Make sure to let us know how it performs...

When fishing that way, are you casting the jig or just dropping it straight down to them off the side of the boat? Never tried this, but have been wanting to give it a go.

Thanks Captain Joe!!! I wish there was a way to have a live siminar on the care of fish during the hot summer months. I think most anglers would want to take better care of the fish if they were just educated on it more.

Johnboy - if you do not have GPS, I would definately take a spot light for the first trip or two. Most of the docks that are in the main lake have lights on them or close to them. However, it is a little bit more narrow on this end and there are some corners that can get pretty dark if the moon isn't very bright. We have plenty of big boats up this way as well, but once the sun goes down it gets pretty calm.

We saw several shad balls up in Roaring River arm last night...

Any night fishing is a good night!

I hope to be able to join them some day...

Now that is some funny stuff!!!

Put in at Big M last night and fished from 7:00 to 12:00. Water temps ranged in the mid 90's before dark and only cooled off to around 90 or so after dark. Started out throwing 3/4 ounce jigs and some 4 inch salt craws early with not much success. Switched to a 10 inch tequila sunrise worm and was able to get bit, the bite was short with no hook ups. Before dark, we were up in Roaring River and the fish we could find were holding in bluff to chunk rock transition areas in 20 to 30 foot of water. (Some people reported finding fish suspended over deep trees). Right at dark, the bite turned on for us. We had about 7 fish with 3 good keepers within the first 30 minutes after dusk. Then fished for the next 2 hours to pick up a couple more keepers and another short or two. Had another real good fish come off right at the boat late. One of our 5 keepers came on a 4 inch salt craw with rest coming on big worms. Black with a blue fleck seemed to be a pretty good color. All and all, it seemed a little slow with not many bites. However, the hook up ratio was a little better than it has been for us. Typically if we got a bite, we would be able to hook up. Only missed a few fish. Good luck!

Stump Bumper - As long as you have a method that works, that is all that is important... It is all of the guys I see that just don't care, they just throw them back out in the water to let them die. Fished a small derby last night and we only had 1 fish total that did not make it out of all the fish caught from everyone!

Tyler - good decision, you cannot go wrong with a Loomis!!!

You can do a quick search on the internet and get several quick reference guides...

I will post a report shortly after Friday night. Will try to get it posted Saturday, but it could be as late as Monday before I get it out there. It will likely be listed with a title of "Big M Report" or something similar. We will be putting in for a tourney out of Big M, but or plan is to fish primarily in the Eagle Rock area. Will let everyone know how it goes...

Did not see any good sized balls of shad... Seemed like about every cut we pulled into had some shad flipping around on top, but not what I would call a "ball of shad". Going back out Friday night in the Eagle Rock area, will let you know if I see anything different up that way.

She is beautiful, congrats!

I would think if you have a residence in MO and that is the only place the boat will be, you should be able to only register it in MO. Better check with the counties involved though. I am sure they will all want your money!

If you plan to keep fish in the livewell this time of year, please learn how to fizz them! When we came in last night at the end of the tourny, there were several fish floating and trying to find a way to get back to deeper water. The sad thing is there were just a couple of guys down there trying to fizz them. Most were saved, but a few did not. The best time to fizz them is shortly after you put them in the livewell. If their air bladder is going to fill up, it will usually happen shortly after they have been placed in the livewell. If you keep an eye on them and check them regular, as soon as they start to float get them fizzed. If you do this, the fish will have a very good chance at surviving.

Hopefully the bite will be a little better for us Friday night! This summer heat has been pretty tough, water temp is about as hot as I have seen it in several years. No end in site, guess we will just keep trying!

This past mothers day, my family was eating lunch down at Roaring River. After lunch, I took my wife and kids up to the top of the hill going towards Seligman to look at some cabins. When we turned the corner coming off the highway into the long driveway, there was a very good sized bear trying to get in the trash cans. We sat and watched for several minutes before the bear decided we were too close and headed back off into the woods. Sure was neat to see one in the wild and my young boys were absolutely amazed!

Fished out of the bridge last night from 7:00 to 11:00 without much success. Headed up Kings Rvier to about deer bluff and then fished our way back. Threw pretty much every color of salt craw and big worm we had in the boat without much success. It was a really tough nite for us as we were struggling to just get a bite. Only caught 2 fish all night between us with just one of those being a keeper. For what it is worth, both fish came on a texas rigged electric blue 10 inch worm in about 30 foot of water.

Billfo - I like to throw a 10 to 12 inch worm texas rigged with 3/8 to 1/2 oz. weight. Before dark, stick with plum or something similar then swithc to darker colors after the sun goes down. Good luck!

As the water starts to cool a bit, you can also pick up several good reaction bites on a buzz bait...