Fishing Report by:     Wilderness Trail      

Summer is fast approaching with this past week being hot and dry. Lake level this week is 653.39, almost one foot down from normal pool, but within inches of last week’s level. Very little generation has occurred this past week. Lake temperature throughout most of the lake is between 79 and 80 degrees with conversion layers at several depths, 4 feet, 10 feet and 18 feet. Lake clarity ranges from 14 feet to 20 feet throughout the lake. All game fish are biting fairly well with the crappie being the best. 

Crappie are in the brush piles and around boat docks 8 to 12 feet deep. Slip bobbers with crappie minnows are working the best over the brush piles. Bobby Garland’s Swimming Minnow in Blue Thunder and tube jigs (red/chartreuse) are also working well. White Bass are hit and miss. Be sure to have a top water tied on such as a Pop R or a Roadrunner so you are ready when they come to the surface to feed. The White Bass caught this week have been of good size. Catfish are biting extremely well in 12 to 15 feet of water. Their favorite bait this past week has been leeches and nightcrawlers.

Largemouth bass are active in the mornings on top water baits such as buzz baits, Zara Spook Jrs, and Flukes in the backs of the creeks and pockets. Docks, blow downs and secondary points or watersheds are holding the largemouth during the day. Spider Jigs, and tube baits are triggering the largemouth during the daylight hours. Best colors in the tube baits have been the Cinnamon/purple, dark melon pepper with red and purple flake and the medium Apple seed. 

Smallmouth bass have been a little slower this week but are still holding off the deep side of pea rock points throughout the lake. They are moving up onto the points to feed in the mornings and late afternoon. Tube baits in cinnamon purple and apple seed colors are working well. Mojo rigs with centipedes or finesse worms in Watermelon Candy or Pumpkinseed are also catching some nice smallies. 

Kentucky bass are still deep with the bright sun this week. There is some top water feeding just before sundown and just before the sun gets over the bluffs. Fish Carolina rigs in 30 to 35 feet of water with centipedes around chunk rock points and channel swings.

Walleye slowed down a bit this past week but are still in 18 to 20 feet of water, with a few roaming about in 8 to 10 feet. Casting a Glass Shad or Shad Rap up to the bank early in the morning or using leeches on a split shot and hook are the techniques of choice. Later in the morning switch to bottom bouncers with nightcrawlers on spinner rigs.

LAKE RATING: Crappie (very good); Bass (good); Walleye (good). Overall rating – Good Plus.

Fishing for trout on the White River has been a little slower than usual as generation again has been low. The Berkley Power Egg bite has been good in yellow, white and pink, or Berkley Nuggets in Rainbow or Orange. With generation the Buoyant Spoons, and Rooster Tails are the bait of choice. The fly fishermen did well on Olive Woolly Bugger, tungsten bead head midges, sow bugs and San Juan worms. The Brown trout are being caught on Flat Fish, Suspending Rogues and nightcrawlers.

Remember to keep only what you can eat and release the rest for another day. Rick Culver of Wilderness Trail does the research for this report and the writing of this report.

Blue cat fishing on lake of the Ozarks really slow catching small fish on the flats drifting shad sides.

Truman looks like blues are going to the nest

Date: 6/9/05
Lake Level : 606.3 
Normal Lake Level : 606
Water Condition: Clear

Surface Water Temp: 74 - 77

The predominate Crappie catch continues to be small. The bigger ones can be had with patience and fishing deeper water. Some large crappie are being caught just off the bank, in the coves or near the bottom in 8 - 12 feet of water close to coves, and next to river channels where it drops off to deeper water. Some crappie have settled into a summer pattern near the bridge piers, and bluffs, with good standing timber. Minnows and jigs. If using jigs, use the larger umbrella jig tipped with a minnow or crappie nibble.

Bass fishing has been very good. Numerous catches of keeper size bass have been reported. Crank baits and spinners have been working. Secondary points and banks with laydowns and timber.

Cat Fishing has been exceptional. A lot of large flatheads and blues have been caught on trot lines and jug lines, mostly using perch for bait. Several fisher people have reported catching numerous smaller catfish from the banks, with the usual nightcrawlers, cut shad, and sonny's stink bait. A couple of bank fishermen were using perch under a bobber and having a blast. The recent fishing photos are overwhelmingly catfish.

The White Bass fishing has been excellent. Chris Shoffner describes how he and Mike Martin solved the white bass riddle; "We were using Bomber Model A medium divers (6 - 10 feet). I was using one that was all white and another that was green and white. The one that Mike was using was the traditional shad colors (black, silver, & white). There are a number of other lures that work equally well including the Rapala Shad Rap, Rapala Fat Rap, and most any crank bait that resembles a shad and will run deep enough to bump the bottom in 8 feet of water. We were trolling at low speed over submerged humps and shallow flats. White bass tend to congregate on these structures and feed on schooling shad. We fish one line out of each side of the boat and basically just keep making loops across the areas that hold the fish. It is really a blast when you get the hooks in one!"

Black bass fair on buzz baits early and plastic baits later in the day

White bass fair early and late on flats using top water lures and small crankbaits

Walleye good on jigs, minnows and trolling crankbaits

Crappie fair on minnows and jigs 10' to 15' of water over brush piles and good at night on minnows

Catfish good on trotlines using bluegill and shiners and drifting with nightcrawlers and shiners

Bluegill good on worms

Black bass good on crayfish or shad colored crankbaits and brown and orange, chartreuse or white spinners, black or brown plastic baits in 5 to 10 feet of water around structure, in coves and off points moving into deeper water

Bluegill good using jigs, minnows and worms around structure and docks in 3'-8' of water

Catfish good on bank lines, trotlines and limb lines using worms, cut shad and sunfish off channels and points

Crappie good on chartreuse, white or yellow jigs, green Twister Tails, white grubs with a spinner 10'-16' deep in the stumps and fish attractors

Muskie hitting shad colored lures trolling along flats and structure

Walleye fair drifting jigs or worms in 10'-15' of water along channels and rock bluffs; white bass fair on the flats trolling Rooster Tails, crankbaits, spinners or spoons. 

CRAPPIE: Good: The crappie spawn is about over but lots of nice fish are still being caught. Small males are still near the banks with an occasional female. Just back off the banks some and fish a little deeper along the flats and drop-offs in the mouths of the coves. The fish have been huge and this has probably been the best spring crappie fishing we have ever had.

BASS: The bass are spawning now especially around the main lake. This is going to make catching fish a little more of a challenge. Jigs, spinner baits and crankbaits are still the lures of choice for most fisherman. The fish are shallow especially up the river arms and up the Branch. See Thurs. 2005 or Weekend 2005 tournament results for the weigh-in.

CATFISH: GOOD: The cats are biting and can be found in shallow waters. Fish shallow points and flats where the cats are feeding. Several nice stringers are being caught by fisherman on a variety of baits. Channels and blues are most common. A 36 lb. flat head did come into the store over the holiday.

White Bass: Fair: The whites are starting to show up on the main lake. They are not concentrated in large schools yet but you can fish points and humps and find nice size fish. Use pepper spoons on the deeper fish and rooster tails and roadrunners on the shallower point fish. You can also catch some large fish by trolling a shad rap around main lake points.

Crappie fair at night under lights using minnows

Walleye good drifting jigs and nightcrawlers and trolling crankbaits over flats

Catfish fair drifting nightcrawlers and shiners

KIMBERLING CITY, DAM AREA, BAXTER & CAMPBELL POINT

Fish main lake pea gravel points and flats with deep water close by. There are still a lot of good Smallmouths shallow at 5'-10' in these areas. Best bite is early, it slows down after about 9:30-10:00 AM. Use Carolina rigged lizards in watermelon candy, watermelon, & green pumpkin. 

Kentuckys can be caught in the same areas, just a little deeper- 15'-25'. Split shot or Mojo rig or Shakee head finesse worm will also work. The best top water bite seems to be from Baxter to Shell Knob, I assume because of the clearer water in this area. Fish main lake and secondary points with jointed Rapalas, Red Fins, or Spooks. Look for timber on points with drop offs just outside the timber. Also have been catching some fish on deep diving crankbaits such as DT-16, Fat Free Shad, etc. in the Kimberling City area around pole timbered points (hardwoods). Seems to work best when cloudy or windy, shad colors are working best for me. Fish should start moving out over deeper water as the water warms up more and gets clearer.

JAMES RIVER, LONG CREEK, & KINGS RIVER

The mid James is about the same as the Kimberling area with the exception of drop shot fish being caught on gravel flats at 20'-25' over 25'-35'. Deep crankbaits, football jigs working in the Upper James on main river flats, close to the channels at 15'-25', may be some up shallower early. Jig fish can also be caught on channel swings, small jigs 1/4-3/8 oz at 6'-10' in the upper rivers. Long Creek has great color, some fish still being caught slow rolling spinner baits in 2'-10' along chunk rock & channel swings.

Good Luck!!

Black Bass: some bass caught on top water, spinners and plastic shad like lures. mostly 18-20' of water.

Walleye: not many reports, really slow this year

Of ALL the places we have fished over the years, the North Platte in Wyoming has to be the BEST! We caught lots of quality fish...20 inches or better! If you have never fished this area, put it on your list of places to go.

GENERAL COMMENTS

Water still off most of the day. Turning one of two generators on in the afternoon....3:00- 4:00 p.m. for a couple of hours. Information I received from one of the hydraulic engineers at SWPA, they are ATTEMPTING to maintaining the water level at the Branson Landing construction site at an elevation of 701 feet or less until the work near the water is completed.

Water Conditions: Water has been off most of the time. If they turn it on, it is only for 2 hours or so and it is generally 1, maybe 2 generators.

FLY FISHING TROPHY AREA (dam to Fall Creek)-SHALLOW WATER-WADING-

Fishing is still good. However, we have seen a lull in the morning from 8:00 to about 10:30 a.m. Had two boats out today and we picked up a few fish in the a.m., on various flies, U.V. gray scud, gold ribbed soft hackle and olive midge, but about 10:30 a.m. they took off on the olive zebra midge and tan flashback scud (miracle scud) My trip of two people caught 20 fish plus on these until lunch time. Had to drag them off the water for lunch! After lunch we stayed with the olive zebra midge and caught more fish as we drifted down the river. Wind was tough, so we rowed on down to the Lookout Point. God out and waded. Had the Olive zebra midge on one person and put a Chartreuse crackle back on the other. The olive zebra midge caught several fish, including a nice 16 inch Rainbow. The crackle back got hot and that person first started catching fish in the cross-current drift. After a while, the fish switched and started taking the crackle back more down stream with a couple of strips and let set. They caught 30 or more fish this way. New coule, juet finished the two-day fly fishing school. Think they were able to learn several different presentation techniques and catch fish. They had a great time!

STAN'S TIP: New regulations for most of the trout streams went into effect March 1. Read up on these changes. Specifically for Taneycomo, if you keep legal size fish, the limit is now 4. Also, a trout permit is required for anyone fishing above Highway 65 bridge.

Fishing Report from Sterett Creek Marina 6/8/05

The fishing here on Truman is like the weather it changes every day. We have had our share of wind this week, but not a whole lot of rain right here. The lake is on a steady rise which has some of the fish on a good bite. The COE. has been running water about every day and this has made the hybrid fishing about as good as I have seen it in a number of years. With all the rain in Kansas and Northern Missouri We should get a good rise out of this and the fishing should remain good for a good while.

LAKE LEVEL: 708.65
WATER TEMP: 74deg.
WATER CLARITY: Big and Little Tebo are clear. The upper

Osage is dirty with a lot of floaters. 

Berry Bend area is stained but fishable. Both Pommies are clear. 

Grand is dirty above Bucksaw, stained to Finey Creek and clear to the dam.

Bass: The bass fishing last night was a little tough but I think we have to blame that on the weather. We had a storm go through about 3:30 and left us with 20 mph winds to fish in. 1st went to Doug and Ozzie Wallace with 6.34 lbs. 2nd went to Howard Love and John Pollett with 4.06lbs. 3rd went to Ernie Cox and Russell Beck along with big bass at 3.90lbs. The bite was on main lake points with big worms and jigs in 6' of water. There is also a top water bite on the points using buzz baits and Pop R's.

CRAPPIE: The crappie fishing has slowed up a little. The crappie are on the summer pattern. Fish 15' to 20' of water on the outside tree rows with minnows about 8' down. There has been a few fish caught off the bluff banks out of 30' of water fishing minnows 20' down.

WHITES & HYBRIDS: This is the best bite on the lake. We have seen more big hybrids this week than we have all season. 4" to 6" sassy shad are the top producing baits. The fish will hit these baits when surfacing or you can count them down when the fish are suspended. Best area is from Shawnee Bend to KK Island. My old buddy Tracy Ward told me there is a good white bass bite in the Berry Bend area. Trolling small Wiggle warts has been the best baits for the whites in that area.

CATFISH: The catfishing on Truman is real good on trot lines. With the rising water these fish have really started feeding hard. Shallow set lines with 1' stages baited with leeches on the shallow flats next to deep water is the best right now.

Bass No Report