Table Rock Lake February 1st. 2016 Report

[merc1997 Bo]

very well done, and it goes to show how often the bass are not on the bank even though many want them there.  got to fish where they are to catch them.

bo

[JacobW]

I put the 1/4oz road runner to work in that spot right when you were leaving. And yes those spots were all over the place. Why they didn't eat that sticker as well I'll never know. I do know that little road runner works wonders on those spots when they are acting like that. That was the first spot I stopped at yesterday morning and they still would not eat the stickbait. You guys out there can't get a better report than what Bill has given on this thread. I came out of viney creek eating a sandwich before I passed Bill, looking at the point that extends out. One of those pics of a smallmouth is in the same spot I left in the creek. Well done...

[merc1997 Bo]

3 hours ago, Bill Babler said:

Lets face it, 5 yrs. ago how many people were using Lew's reels.  When you make a quality product like that folks will come.  How would you have liked to bought some stock 10 yrs. ago.  Quality, word of mouth and a very good field staff have propelled them to this.  Look at the local and even national tournaments how many of these guys do you see with either Lew's stickers or Lew's clothing.  Just about as good a value for your money as anything that has came along in my lifetime.  Yesterday I was throwing the new Tournament Pro G right into and across a very stiff wind, with a 110 McStick.  Did not have a single blowup.  With the combination of the magnetic and the centrifical drag, you can dial in as much or as little as you want, a click at a time.

Couple more Pic's from yesterday

i hope by the picks that people will quit gripping about me hauling those brown upstream to enjoy catching.

bo

[JacobW]

1 hour ago, Bill Babler said:

I had already fished it 3 times.  Where you were sitting is where I caught the 3 K's on a spoon.  There was a pile of worming K's from where you stopped to where you were fishing when I passed you headed back up the river.  I saw you catch one little guy, and by that time I was sure I could get to the other side bluff end and that interior run.  Caught 3 keeps off the other side and 5 keeps on the run.  In the 3 passes I made before you "Cut me off"  I had 5 keeps there plus the 3 short K's.

If you caught some more there you did good.  As I pulled onto it, there was a guy pulling off in front of me around 2 PM, so that place got some attention.  Difference with me was my boat was in 50' and I'm sure the guy in front of me was way in.  Every bite I had there was at least 25' on the bottom.

Next time come on over and say Howdy.

 

A lot of people are usually sitting on top of them, or are too far in and should cast to the other side of the boat...

[dtrs5kprs]

There's no reason holding a fish under 4 or 5 pounds for a pic should hurt it. Most of us don't have to worry about holding a double digit fish the wrong way.

[kdc]

Thanks for the report Bill. Thought it was just me struggling around Kimberling

[Sore Thumbs]

Thank you. I got my butt kicked on Grand Sunday. No clear water on that lake. I was there scouting for upcoming tournament and put in by the dam. I knew it was gonna be tough when I saw how dirty the water was. 

[Bill Babler]

15 hours ago, Ketchup said:

Excellent report Bill, and with pictures of fish AND the bait, my golly.... Ive only fished that area once, at last years OA tourney, so those places you mentioned are german to me. Glad after your struggles those few days, that you caught fish. 

Table Rock is a never for certain deal, especially this time of the year, even for those of us that are blessed enough to get to fish multiple days a week.  Anyone that catches them every time out or says they do is really not being very honest.  I have plenty of days that I struggle, even with all the years I have spent on it.  I'm going to tell you how I do, either way. Good or bad.  In doing so I'm hoping you don't make the mistakes that I made that day or if I get lucky and do well, that gives folks a good starting place.

Yesterday I really dialed in.  The fish I caught had not even seen another bait this year, they were just moving and staging a bit on those locations.  You can latterly miss those fish by a boat width as Jake mentioned.  This year 9 out of 10 times your either sitting on them with your boat or they are behind you.  Bo and I have preached this here for years, and I still see 90% of the people fishing in to close. 

I caught an abnormal amount of keepers yesterday and lots of 3 plus pound fish.  The A-rig for the most part was responsible for catching those bigger fish.  Something else that contributed to my larger fish, was there were just no K's present in any numbers, or I for sure would have caught some shorts.  I just had the LM and the Jaws dialed in on the type of junk I was fishing.

The few K's I did find were grouped tight right where Jake was fishing, and they would follow but not swallow.  Got them going that one time and spooned 3 but that was it on them.

Jake, when you saw me I was trying my hardest to get them to bite a Jig.  I had worked the tar out of that spot with the A-rig and thrown a sticker down it once.  You could see the fish especially those K's on the bluff, but they did not want the jig for me, it had to be that slow rolled A-rig.

They probably would have gobbled Ned up, but trying to fish him in a big wind like that 25' deep is not to exciting for me.

As far as the Jaws the largest one that I have ever caught here was the next cove on the East side up the river from Big M.  She was 6-1 and on a bed.  Put her right back there after Denver Dixon weighed her.  If you will look on one of the Table Rock lake pictures that Phil has for the Table Rock site you will see me holding 2 very nice SM in the picture.  Caught them both swimming a grub off Viney swim beach  in I think 2000.  Quick pic, and back they went.

Good Luck

 

[5bites]

Off topic a little but how about that muddy eagle rock boat ramp!? Lol

[Bill Babler]

6 hours ago, 5bites said:

Off topic a little but how about that muddy eagle rock boat ramp!? Lol

I guess if we compare it to Viola, we are fishing in tall cotton.  That old dry dirt was  blowing like crazy I had about a 1/4 inch of it sitting on my exterior window sill.   My truck got dirty as heck.