8-7-15 Shell Knob Fishing Report

[mjk86]

Bill - is there still a spoon bite? I am going to buy a few of those Dixie's when I come down in a few weeks. BTW should I buy them on line or can they be bought locally?

They had some at the tackle shop next to rapid Robert's in kimberling. 1/2 oz and 3/4. I bought a few of the half ouncers and couldn't get bit on it...but it was my first time with it and I have no clue what im doing.

C4F

[crazy4fishin]

Thanks! I know the place

C4F

[Bill Babler]

Most of the local stores have the Dixie Jet if not you can have them in 3 days from Bass Wishes out of Lebanon.

I have not thrown in much the last few days, but they would have bitten it at Shell Knob off the cove mouths. Just could not throw it with the clients.

Yes they were suspended over nothing and relating to nothing. That is not uncommon at all. If you will look back at last year this time I was catching them on the jet and also on a spin bait same deal.

This is still Table Rock Lake. Our fish for the most part live in the lake period. Not here or there, they live in the lake. If you always have to have something to fish that you think fish are relating to, you are missing just about 1/2 the fish in this pond.

This is by far the hardest thing I have to convince my clients of. The fish in 99% of folks opinion have to be by this dock, or by this tree, or by this rock. My question is why do they have to be there? They can swim faster than a shad a perch or for sure a crawdad, why can't they just go hunt them down.

If they are not hunting, why would they have to be on the bottom. They don't lay down and go to sleep, they are always in an upright position finning. Why can't after they chase a group of shad just sit out in 25' water at the mouth of the cove they just pushed the shad from?

By gosh they do.

Good Luck

[5bites]

Thanks for the explanation. You mentioned deep trees so I didn't know if you meant that you found them there or didn't find them there at all.

Are the schools very big? Do you ever use si when hunting schools like this or do you stay with sonar?

[Bill Babler]

Seems like you will see a fish or two, and then if you catch one they seem to come from everywhere. There are trees in the locations I'm fishing, but with the water high like this the tops are 40' and the fish are in the 15' to 25' range, really not relating to any of the trees, just suspending there.

Really like last year at this time. I was catching loads of suspending fish at the cove mouths. Pretty much something you had better have faith in or you won't last long at it.

I had side imaging on my last two boats and thought it was the biggest waste of money I had ever spent. I worked on it for days at a time and never liked it. Did not order it on this boat and have not missed it one bit. I'm pretty good at reading a sonar screen and pretty much go with what I know works. Looking and chasing shadows from the side imaging just was not my deal. I know others love it, but it was not for me.

[5bites]

Right on. That's crazy that the fish seem to come from nowhere after you catch one. They are apparently spread out hunting and watching each other rather than how we think off them typically grouped up under shad. Does that sound right? Or are you seeing much shad?

I remember several years ago tournaments being won out of isolated trees in the middle of nowhere deep with heavy bags of spots in them. This was before si came along. Since then I've thought how much easier finding those trees would be with today's technology. You being a guide though that's not really a situation that would be helpful I guess. Most aren't looking for the best 5 and also working a single small tree hoping for one or two good bites may not be the easiest thing for most clientele.

[5bites]

Btw thx for clarifying this for me. Personally I like looking for fish on the graph and dropping to them. It's when to stop doing it that I struggle with and part of the trouble I have fishing on the upper end the last few years yet remembering how I used to fish on the mid lake and lower end. I mean I never got worth a darn or anything but it's not intimidating and I enjoy it I should say. I haven't been able to get it going in the eagle rock area like that. I recently told my wife I may just start trailering over to shell knob and Indian creek area some of the time when we come down. It's a mental disconnect.

[Bill Babler]

5 bites you are right on everything you posted. First on the upper end, they just seem to relate to the bottom way more lets say from even point 22 up. Yes you can find them on some deep trees and some suspended, but for the most part these fish are bottom dwellers, until Winter, and even then they will move into the guts and deep channel and still relate to the bottom.

I'm not finding them relating to the shad when they are suspended, just more an isolated fish or two and as we talked about when you catch one they come zipping over from everywhere. I think they are in pretty loose schools, but they sure get excited when one is hooked and come to investigate.

I wonder how many isolated trees have been found with side imaging? I doubt that anymore have been found than seeing the lake for 30 yrs. and fishing durn near every location on it. If you have been over an area 1000 times looking at it at high and low water and graphing it, I don't think we are going to see anymore with the side scan. If your new in the area, man that would be a plus. And yes for sure if you can see on side imaging a tree that is loaded with fish. I never got that good. I could see the tree, but not the fish. until I looked at it with my sonar.

I am never after or let me say very seldom after 5 quality bites. I am more after 40 bites of any kind. This is my 26th. year in the business and folks just want to get bit. I had a guy a couple of weeks ago say he wanted to catch a 5 pounder. He was ready to mount the first 1.75 jaw he caught thinking it was a trophy fish. Folks just want to get a bite. 99.9% could care less if its a 12" or a 24".

My guy yesterday took a picture of every K he caught. He had been to Brazil last year and caught 18 pound peacock bass and he was just as happing porking a 15" K on a jig.

For most of us, its about the bite. Thank goodness for me.

Good Luck

[mjk86]

This time of year, and in the deadest part of winter, the mouth of coves will sometimes hold fish. Although we may not see the break on a break on sonar, I think the cove water interaction with the lake water creates a water break line. Of course, I could be suffering from a bad case of over analyzing.

Yup....crappie on stockton do the same thing. From june through september, they hang out at the mouths of spawning coves and eat bandits and flicker shads. Its odd behavior for sure.

[mjk86]

5 bites you are right on everything you posted. First on the upper end, they just seem to relate to the bottom way more lets say from even point 22 up. Yes you can find them on some deep trees and some suspended, but for the most part these fish are bottom dwellers, until Winter, and even then they will move into the guts and deep channel and still relate to the bottom.

I'm not finding them relating to the shad when they are suspended, just more an isolated fish or two and as we talked about when you catch one they come zipping over from everywhere. I think they are in pretty loose schools, but they sure get excited when one is hooked and come to investigate.

I wonder how many isolated trees have been found with side imaging? I doubt that anymore have been found than seeing the lake for 30 yrs. and fishing durn near every location on it. If you have been over an area 1000 times looking at it at high and low water and graphing it, I don't think we are going to see anymore with the side scan. If your new in the area, man that would be a plus. And yes for sure if you can see on side imaging a tree that is loaded with fish. I never got that good. I could see the tree, but not the fish. until I looked at it with my sonar.

I am never after or let me say very seldom after 5 quality bites. I am more after 40 bites of any kind. This is my 26th. year in the business and folks just want to get bit. I had a guy a couple of weeks ago say he wanted to catch a 5 pounder. He was ready to mount the first 1.75 jaw he caught thinking it was a trophy fish. Folks just want to get a bite. 99.9% could care less if its a 12" or a 24".

My guy yesterday took a picture of every K he caught. He had been to Brazil last year and caught 18 pound peacock bass and he was just as happing porking a 15" K on a jig.

For most of us, its about the bite. Thank goodness for me.

Good Luck

This is true...something about the tug on the end of a line even if its a little perch brings outs the kid in us. Plus....when table rock bass suspend over nothing, you can use light gear. 6ft 6in light fast rod with 4# mono and a 15" spot in 200 feet of open water is about as fun as it gets. Im glad that your finding the suspended fish. I was really really having a difficult time with that, only a few little spots and my usual locales.