Week In Review

[Bill Babler]

Lets start with last Tuesday. I really worked hard at trying to put a bite together for last Sundays derby, and the lake kept pulling the rug out from under me.

On Tuesday, I fished the dam area with the McStick and caught decent Smallmouth, and a couple of very nice LM out of cedars on bluffends. Wensday, I fished the White River Arm and had the mouth of the Kings and again caught a very respectable ammount of fish on both a jig and stickbait. Probably a dozen keepers, but nothing over 3 pounds.

Thursday, I took one of the FLW boys prefishing for their big derby here in a couple of weeks, and fished the White River. There was an excellent bite, BIG BITE up the river with one fish, pushing 7 pounds, and a couple of more in the 4 pound range. Lots of fish, just shook off on the jig, so we would not ruin them for the weekend.

Friday a guide trip out of Chateau. 5 guides with 3 clients per boat on a "Blue Bird" day and we all had the tough days. I let my guys try and throw sickbaits, for about 15 minutes and figured that was never going to work as we would have to take a time out to go for hook-extraction, if we continued. Only 1 fish on a hula-grub. Chris T. guided with the Group at the dam on Saturday, and said it was just flat BRUTAL.

From point 5, to Long Creek, and it really should be very good with the wind on the Smallmouth banks, it is just terrible. For the most part, Kentuckies have been very hard to come by and on the bright days, the SM'J don't want to bite, so it is reduced to a LM fishery. We all know how hard that is. It will be better this week, if the temps stay up.

Saturday I guided my FLW guy again and we fished the Mid-Kings River and it was starting to clear. Did catch a very nice number of fish with lots of off-colored keepers coming out of that dirty water. Just not the kind you need for a derby. 2.5, to 3 pounders, and that is probably pushing it.

Pulled the boat and went back up the White. Clouds had rolled in a bit up there, and the jig bite was just as good as it could get in the creeks from Arkansas to Shell Knob. Bowed up on a fish in each creek, and they were the right kind, and shook the tube and the jig out of at least a couple of dozen other bites so they would be ready to go Sunday.

Sunday Beck and I ran from Kimberling to Arkansas line up the White River at an air temp of 17 degree. Man that was brutal.

Set-in ketchin fish right off the bat, but the wrong size. Where we were getting 4 and 6 pound bites, they had gone to keeper bites, and just that. Water turned slick and clear, but the fish were biting on chunk-rock transitions, and bluffends with timber. Caught well over 20 fish with most of them being keepers, by 9:30, but just that, 15 to 16 inchers. Most skinny LM Males, up a curisin and a lookin.

Had a limit in the boat in about 40 minutes, but for sure the wrong kind.

Kept working our way back to Kimberling and picked up a nice 3.78 on a jig, and Bill Caught a 4.20 on a stickbait, but it was just not enough, not being able to get rid of our male blackies. If we could have gotten one of those big girls to bite early up the White River, we would have been ok, but no go.

Boys that won it were fishing the Kimberling area as were most of the other top teems, we just turned the wrong key yesterday. Lots of fish and some fun, but it takes "Big-Ens", to win derby's.

The weights, were way down from Saturday, and so were the bags, but Sunday was just way to bright. Water temp, and colors are changing rapidly, and by the end of this week, things might explode around here.

Good Luck

[sfiser]

Bill, thanks for the report. What are you seeing as far as water temps go. Have they started to jump up a little bit with the warmer weather?

[focused fishing]

Just glad this w/e is over...... Was on the same trip as Bill on Firday, four bites 3 fish one keeper all on jerkbaits. Against all things logical went back out on Saturday with the same group and managed one bite and no fish, called it a day at noon, it was brutal.....

Sunday we decided to live and die by the Kings River, we had caught several keepers including a couple of better fish last w/e and thought that was our best bet. Managed four that would of weighed about 11lbs and had several others pull off a wart and jerkbait that felt better but never got close enough to see. They just were not committed to the bait, everything we landed was on the back hook. Alot of spongy soft bites, water still had great color but had dropped from 48 - 52 degrees to 45 - 47 and the fish just weren't as aggressive as last w/e.

To add insult to injury as we were coming around the point across from Mill Creek I spun the hub on my prop and was dead in the water at 2:55.

GOOD TIMES!!!!

EP

[Bill Babler]

I have very seldom seen the the water temps range so much from day to day or from location to location. It would be almost futile to give out the temps, as they would change dramaticlly before you even went out.

Long Creek 42-46

Main Lake Area to Kimberling City 44.6

Kimberling City to Baxter 44

Big and Little Indian at Baxter 43 to 44.5

Baxter to Mouth of Kings River 45

Lower Kings River 43 to 45

Mid Kings River to Deer Bluff 46.5 to 47.5

Upper Kings above Jaques Branch To Arkansas Line 43

Main Creek Arms on the upper White-Cedar,Carter 44--Viney, Rock Creek 44.5--Owl, Panther, Roaring River, 46 to 48

White River to Holiday Island 43 to 44.6

Leatherwood Creek 44.7

Holiday Island to Beaver Town 46.5

The are the only places I have been over the last couple of days, hope it helps, but it is changing as we speak.

One thing that has happened is the lake is clearing at a very fast rate. Even though it is getting warmer, the water is clearing just as fast as the temps are rising. The clearer water warms much slower.

Good Luck

[techo]

Okay if I piggy back of your guys reports? We put in at Cape Fair about 9:15ish this morning. We started trying the Rogues for a while, but I finally gave up! We caught four short Kentuckys with the Eakins jigs. They were in about two feet of water on the pea rock banks that were on the windward sunny side.

It felt like quite a few would pick it up and start to take it, but changed their mind. My Skeeter said water temps were from 42-46. We pulled out close to 2:00 PM.

It was a great day overall with a great number of fisherman about. Bumped into T1365 and his sweet looking new Champion.

[Tom Spence]

Got out Friday and today (Monday) and stayed in the James. Friday found several LM on jigs in the buck brush around Buzzard Branch. Water was really stained as compared to Kimberling and Aunts Creek areas, but...it was much warmer. In the afternoon we had 48-49 degree water in Buzzard. My partner caught about 12 LM in an hour with two small keepers.

Today I went out from 9:30 to 2:30 and stayed right around point 14 in the James. Water was starting to clear up, but still had 46.5 to just under 47 degrees in the afternoon. Told myself I was not putting down the stick bait cause frankly, I need to work on it! I almost held myself to it too. Caught a couple fish pretty shallow on sun warmed and wind blown points with the McStick in chartruese shad and clown. Threw a pointer in aurora black and had some fish knock the fire out of it. However I was pulling it away from them when they hit. Finally figured out I needed to let them have it a little before setting the hook and managed to land a couple. Like I said, I need to work on my stick bait skills. Not a stellar day by any means but an improvement none the less. Pray for Spring, I'm tired of being cold. Ran into techo. Good to see him out and about after a long winter's hibernation.

[CMAC]

Friday found several LM on jigs in the buck brush around Buzzard Branch.

t1365:

I hope this isn't a stupid question, but what do you mean by buck brush?

[Tom Spence]

You would ask that of a guy who has trouble describing everything. Its the small bushes or trees growing close to or in the water. No leaves, hardwood.

[Tom Spence]

t1365:

I hope this isn't a stupid question, but what do you mean by buck brush?

And the question wasn't nearly as stupid as the answer probably sounded.

[Sam]

t1365 - I've got a question too. I thought I knew the James arm pretty well, but I don't know where Buzzard Branch is. That is, I probably know the place but not the name. I got curious and tried looking it up on a map, but struck out. Where's Buzzard Branch? Thanks.