Fishing Report

[Phil Lilley]

<img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-1978" title="Taneycomo Rainbow Caught on Dec 9" src="http://www.ozarkanglers.com.php5-24.dfw1-2.websitetestlink.com/lake-taneycomo/files/2011/12/Taneycomo-Rainbow-Caught-on-Dec-9.jpg" alt="" width="500" height="260" />

Generation has been a little sporadic this week.  For the most part, they've left the water off for most of the day until today when they ran it all day.  Tomorrow, more generation all day.  Not sure what will happen over the weekend but with temperatures staying mild I wouldn't think they would run much.  Hard to say though.

Wading below the dam has been very good.  Stripping soft hackles, #14 and #16 red, black or green, on the flats from #1 outlet to rebar and big hole down past the boat ramp to Trophy Run has produced some nice rainbows and a few browns, very few browns though.  Drifting san juan worms, natural, red and purple, in the outlets and in the fast water at rebar and below has been good along with using scuds size #12 and #14's in varying shades of gray, olive and brown.  Down in the flat water below Big Hole, a #16 rusty zebra midge under an indicator 6 to 12 inches is working early and late in the day when the midges are hatching the best.

<img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-1977" title="Taneycomo Dec 9a" src="http://www.ozarkanglers.com.php5-24.dfw1-2.websitetestlink.com/lake-taneycomo/files/2011/12/Taneycomo-Dec-9a.jpg" alt="" width="500" height="268" />

If the water is running, drifting #10 or #12 scuds or peach eggs flies using a drift rig or just split shot is working from the cable through Short Creek.  Also working the bluff bank using 1/8th oz olive, olive/sculpin, sculpin/orange and purple jigs.  Keep it close to the bottom and work it slow.  Jigs under a float is working if you set the depth of the float right.  It needs to be close if not on the bottom.  Use a big carrot float and float a 1/16th oz jig.  Seems like the bigger jigs are working better than the smaller ones- fish can see them better and they aren't scared to take the big jig floating by.

Rainbows are really eating night crawlers well below Fall Creek.  With the water running or not, inject them with some air and float them off the bottom.  Gulp eggs in white, orange and pink have been good too.  Best areas have been from Cooper Creek down to Monkey Island.

Note:  Lately our trout are biting short.  They aren't being very aggressive and are just pecking at the lures and baits we're using.  When fishing a night crawler for instance, you really have to let the fish take the worm in its mouth by giving him the rod tip or even releasing some line after the initial hit, before setting the hook.