How it used to be

[Bill Babler]

Had the extreme pleasure of taking out Dan and Tony Alderman, yesterday. Both young men had grown up coming to the Rock on their yearly family vacation, for the last 35 years.

Back in the 60's when the Rock was the Largemouth Capital, their father was a Spotted bass fisherman. He was interested and completey taken with the deep water K's.

He dropped shotted for them before there was a drop shot. He deep trolled for them, but most of all he live bait fished for them.

The boys told me of place after place and locations all over the dam to Kimberling City and Indian Point area that their father could catch not 10's or 20's but 100's a day.

His best was a 6 pound 8 oz. monster, he caught while trolling. The boys said even in those days, he kept, very few, only those that were deep hooked or maby 1 or two per day, never more. Most days none.

Sounds like my kind of guy!

Starting about 10 years ago, he stopped finding them as well, as he used to and he tried even harder. He has since pasted, but the boys still come and fish his old haunts. They booked me, because they said all the fish are gone where they caught them by the buckets full as early as 10 years past.

They hoped I could show them were the fish had moved. Sadly I couldn't.

Yes, we caught fish, but not like the old days. We ended the morning with 17 with a 4 lb. Smallie and a couple of very respectable 3pound K's, but not the magic spot or the numbers they had hoped were still here.

They related to me that their fathers favorite spot was Point 5 and Point 1.

He would put the boat in 25 ft of water on point 5 and toss out a small crawdad with a 1/8 split shot and catch fish from sunup to sundown. They said they had many days on point 5 of well over 100 fish, catch and release.

He would fish the suspended K's on Point 1 with crawlers, letting the crawler skim the tree tops in the same 25 ft. range. Those trees are in from 50 to to 130 ft. with the tops in that 25 ft. range. One weekend total on point 1 was for the 3, disputed amongnst the brothers, but between 2 and 3 hundred. They believed it was 1968.

Every spot they told me, are places we fish on an everyday basis. Some of these locations are fished 24 hours a day 7 days a week. There are just not that kind of fish there, they are too much in demand.

The boys said they can catch a 1/2 dozen a day anymore if they really work hard at it. That's a real shame.

I was really hoping they would show me a spot or two that we had not found. They pointed out about 20 locations during the morning, and unfortunatly, we all have fished those locations, and do now from time to time.

In 1974 Rex Grady took myself and a good friend, Chris Brooks, to fish K's.

We fished the bluff end called High Dive, on the West side of the lake, across from Clevenger Island. We let our head hooked Crawlers down about 16 to 20 ft. if my memory serves me. We fished that one area for at least 6 hrs, and never went any where else and caught, I would think at least 50 or 60 apiece. Well over 150 fish for the boat. Narry kept a one.

These fish were running in the 2.5 to 3.5 pound range, and I remember Rex saying, you just can't get the big ones here anymore. I was 18 at the time, and had fished and guided my entire life on Lake Ozarks, and had never seen fishing like this, it was the most wonderful thing I had ever seen. It just started a love afair for me with these spotted bass.

I have fished that location 1000's of times since that day, and regreatfully they are no longer there. I still check from time to time.

Tim Sainato has also fish the same spot with Rex and related much the same story to me.

The extreme magnitute of fishing prussure on this pond is tremendious, and we are thankful for what we get, but the really good old days, may not be commin back.

Today report, Bill and I had a trip form Baxter this AM, in the storms high water and fronts. Total for the two boats, was a megar 18 bass with 6 keeps.

We both found the fish, but for the life of us both, could not get them to get to worming on it. They would rush the baits but not take it or just bump the bait. For the ammount of fish we saw, we should have had better days.

Bill however saw the whites a jumpin, and called. I was there in a heartbeat and we caught big whites for an hour. Threw most back, but did clean 15, monsters. The whites, pulled our bacon out of the fire.

Always better to be lucky than good.

[techo]

I know that post was almost all deep fish talk and about Kentuckys, but I was wondering if you or anyone have been trying to throw some crankbaits with the high water?

[denjac]

Bill, do you think that back in the 60's and 70's they was alot of LM to be caught bank fishing and the spots got left alone, hence the big numbers? Not so much pressure on the deep fish as today.

[twosets]

Great report, Bill

As always, thanks for sharing,it helps us guys who fish via the internet.

George

[Bill Babler]

Boy's always love the feed back. Techo, Have heard of a very good shallow bite. Both blades and topwater around the bushes. Buster just pointed out, this water is only 74 degrees, I think we are fishing to deep. I think both of you guys maybe right. Our big smallie yesterday came on a football jig in 8 ft. I for the life of me, thought I should have been swimming a grub, but had taken the grub rods out. Probably should put them back.

I can remember at that time walking around moonshine beach, state park beach, old 86 beach, and long creek, just casting a purple ring worm off the bank rigged texas style and catching as many blacks as we wanted. 1973 thru 1977.

Chris and I would also fish nights, and fish the pockets and bluff ends from the 86 bridge to old 86 campground. Unbelieveable. All Blacks, usually 2.5 to 6 lbs.

You know, I never remember catching a smallie untill I started guiding here full time in the early 90's.

[Bill Babler]

denjac, I really noticed the spotted bass populations changing to the biggest extent in 1998 thru 2001. Kind of in the same time as the fish kills. With the LM at extreme low numbers, everyone started targeting the spots.

I fished a spot that Jeff Fletcher had shown me up the White River, from 1990 to that time frame. It was a very deep channel swing with a bit of a teet that went from about 60 ft. to a top of 22 ft. This spot was about 50 yrds. by 50 yrds. In the 10 years I fished that spot I had seen ZERO other fisherman on it. One Saturday I went up to the spot and there were 6 boats on it. I very seldom go by there now that at least one boat is not sitting on it.

Another spot, up the White that the locals and most of the guides call the Babler Bank is a deep ridge, surrounded by 100 ft. of water, and is absolutely in the middle of the lake. I found after Jeff had mentioned to look to these types of locations for K's. We fished it for years with little comp. Now it is covered up 365.

Lot's of fisherman, and everyone knows how to fish.

[Fishin' Freak]

A 6lb 8oz spot---now that is a pig!