May 29, 2012 - Lake of the Ozarks - Submitted by Old Oar House Inn Mile Marker 81 - www.oldoarhouseinn.com - Lake of the Ozark water elevation is 658.57’. Truman lake water elevation is 706.12’ LOZ water temperature is 77 degrees Fahrenheit and rising.  Water discharge through Truman Turbine is 0 CFS and over the spillway was 0 CFS. 

Spoonbill:  Closed
Well, as usual I’m late on the fishing report as I was out of the country the last week of April but I wanted to give the Spoonies the closure they deserve as this was the best year of spring fishing I’ve ever seen in the 10 years we’ve owned “The “House”.  The sheer numbers and size of fish that were weighed off our docks are testimony to the amazing spring it’s been.  Until this year the biggest spoonbill I’d ever seen all year weighed right around 94-5#s and typically I’d see at least one each year.  This past season during the last week of spoonbill season the unofficial LOZ state record spoonie was caught only 2 miles from the Oar House.  The giant sow weighed in at 113.6# on our digital scale and allegedly beat the state record that I found on Google by over 2 ½ pounds.  However…… I don’t believe the fish was ever weighed on certified scales so the existing 111# LOZ state record spoonie still stands as the largest spoonbill ever caught in LOZ Missouri.  The state record fish I believe was caught in the Missouri River and weighed around 131#s.  More on State Record Fish in the Carp section below.

Largemouth Bass: Excellent
Bass fishing was excellent this past Memorial Day weekend.  Grampa Gene Carnahan of Richmond Mo and Grandson, Jacob Petree 17 of Holt Mo stopped in for a cold soda and lunch this weekend and reported they’d done real well fishing for “Bucket Mouths” this past weekend in the local coves.  Jacob used crank bait exclusively in a baby bass pattern with orange belly. He caught and released over a dozen bass in the 15 to 17 inch class. Most of their fish came from the Cole Camp Creek arm where they targeted woody structure and pea gravel banks. Carnie chose the Texas rigged worm in ‘electric blue’ and ‘watermelon pepper’ manufactured by “Net Baits” which produced their larger fish in the 4# plus range as seen in this great photo. Carnie reported he fished the day before in the 90mm to 91mm area and used the same presentation and caught several nice fish while working floating structure over 14ft to 18ft of water. The grandpa, grandson duet also had a Bald Eagle buzz the boat in Cole Camp Creek which they said was really cool on Memorial Day !

Carp: Outstanding
Another Missouri State Carp record was shattered this past weekend at the Old Oar House Inn as long as Cody and brother Brady Chaney from Belton Missouri and Grandpa Bill Hill from Raymore, MO follow up with the Conservation Department and get their 5.8# Quillback Carp weighed on certified scales and validated by the MO Department of Conservation Tuesday.  The trio were bow fishing all night Friday and Cody shot this Carp right around midnight near the Oar House w/ his Alpine Bow drawing 45#’s and using Muzzy Fish Points.  They stopped in for breakfast this morning and I personally weighed Cody’s fish on our digital scale.  Check out this nice photo of the new unofficial state record Quillback Carp Cody is holding. Note the quills Cody is showing. Personally I’d never heard of a Quillback Carp until this weekend but a short internet search showed me that yes indeed Cody had shattered the state record which until this weekend had stood at 2#-12oz and was also taken w/ a bow from the North Fabius River in MO.  There is a great teaching point here and that is to know your quarry and if you’re going to do anything in life then do it right.  Teenager Cody is about to launch his name into the Missouri State record books probably for life and he did it w/ a bow!  You’re a stud dude and I envision great things out of you in the future.  Well done and I know both your brother and Grandpa are extremely proud of you.  (As I am!)

Walleye: Excellent!
Joe and Kim Gregory, the official King and Queen of LOZ Walleye fishing stopped in this weekend for a burger and cold brew for lunch and Kim reported that Walleye fishing is as good as it gets right now.  Kim said they did very well using a “Cotton Candy Colored Crank Bait” w/ a laser eye which can be purchased at Bass Pro Shops.  Joe said to fish the flats and the transition zones to the main channel in the deepest water you can find.  He recommends at least 20’ of water where you can find it.  I saw a gorgeous 28” Walleye in their live well and Kim showed me a picture of a nice 20” fish they’d caught Friday.  This couple consistently catches really nice Walleye from the LOZ and as I’ve mentioned numerous times in the past the new state record fish will come from this amazing fishery called the Lake of the Ozarks.  Quite frankly I wouldn’t be surprised if either Kim or Joe are the ones who catch it.  Well done guys and thanks for stopping in this weekend!

Catfish: Good
Cat fishing remains good but all indications are the catfish are preparing to spawn which will significantly slow things down.  Joe did report a 10# flat head he’d netted and released while trolling a Wiggle Wart for Walleye in the deeper water.  I’ll bet he was sure he had the new state record Walleye while reeling that beast in.  Flatheads and Blue Cats are at the top of the food chain in LOZ and if they can get their mouth around it they are going to try to eat it. The ‘Blues’ I’m told have started nesting from now until mid June when the Flatheads start their nesting pattern.  Any type of Shad belly presentation is going to work and for the truly huge 100# pluscatfish like you saw in the last fishing report use a whole live shad where bigger is always better. I’m often asked if I have any reports on ‘Noodling’ and if I know of any noodling guides and I don’t. One such request came in from Connecticut this spring and they were willing to pay big money as part of a bachelor party to come out here and noodle.  If you know someone who noodles then please put me in contact w/ them and I’ll explain there’s a market for hand fishing here in Missouri that I’d like to exploit with them. Contact me at “The House” or at brucearchambault@juno.com

Crappie: Good
Crappie fishing continues to be fair.  Kim and Joe Gregory said the fish are now well into their summer patterns and Kim said use live minnows and try fishing in 12’ – 40’ of water until you find the right depth and then mark your line.  Any type of submerged structure within that range is producing good crappie but expect to only catch one or two keepers for every half dozen fish brought into the boat.

Stripers: Fair
I heard one report of stripers being caught this weekend and they were caught incidentally while fishing for Walleye. That does tell me the stripers are hungry right now and find that moving top water such as below the dam or near rapids and surface fish there in the evenings and you should do real well. 

For up to date water temperatures and elevations for LOZ and Truman call Truman Dam Water Report at (660) 438-7317 and mash #2 once the recording starts.
We endorse trophy fish catch and release!
Remember a bad day fishing is better than a great day at work. 
www.oldoarhouseinn.com
Bruce

May 25, 2012 -Truman -Fishing Report from Osage Bluff Marina 5/24/12

With the holiday weekend approaching and the weatherman forecasting a
perfect weekend what better time to come to Truman Lake and spend the
weekend fishing and boating. The lake is real close to normal level
and the fish are starting to cooperate. If you are in the lakes area
this weekend, on or off the water, please slow down and drive with
extra caution.

LAKE LEVEL: 706.6
WATER TEMP: 75 deg.
WATER CLARITY: STAINED.

BASS: The bass fishing is still good here at Truman. Main lake points
are working well. Big worms in 6' to 12' of water is a good bite along
with crankbaits. Have had a few walleye come off the points also. Best
points seem to be channel swings with deep water close by, Top water
is also working early and late. Buzz baits and Pop R's
are the best right now.

CRAPPIE: The crappie fishing is starting to pick up on the Osage arm.
The water is still stained but the fish have started hitting allot
better. Cedars seem to be the best cover in the Smiths bend area.
Pommie is also producing good fish in the bridge area. Minnows are
still best or a jig tipped with a minnow. Look for fish on the edge of
the flats in 15' to 20' of water down 7' to 10'. With the weather they
are calling for I look for the crappie fishing to do nothing but get
better.

WHITES & HYBRIDS: With the COE slowing the water flow down the white
bass fishing has slowed up a little. There has been a few fish come in
in the evenings off the humps. We have also had some hybrids caught on
sassy shad on the wind blown points.

CATFISH: Seems that this is the time of the year that the big cats are
hitting. Perch and goldfish are the best baits. The flatheads seem to
be feeding up before the spawn. 1/2 way back in the coves off the
points has been a good place for trot lines. Limb lines are also
starting to produce. Best water depth has been 8' to 10'. I think the
flatheads are starting to move on the flats looking foe bedding blue
gill.

Well that's it for this week from Osage Bluff Marina 660-438-2939
www.osagebluff.com.

Have a HAPPY HOLIDAY
Tommy

May 18, 2012 -Truman - Fishing Report from Osage Bluff Marina 5/17/12

I think this week has been some of the best weather of the year. Nice
and cool in the mornings and heating up to the 80's in the afternoon.
There has been enough breeze that it is just perfect fishing weather,
and the fish are even cooperating. If you are looking for the right
time of the year to take the kids out its here.

LAKE LEVEL: 708.18
WATER TEMP: 74 deg,
WATER CLARITY: Stained.

BASS: The bass fishing remains good here on Truman. The main lake
points are holding fish along with the secondaries. 4' to 8" of water
has been working early and as the day warms up down to 12'. Top water
has been productive early and late with buzz baits leading the way.
The 10" worm is starting to pick up the deeper fish and if all else
fails go to the old black and blue jig. The main thing is that as long
as the COE is running water the fish should hang around the points.

CRAPPIE: The crappie are settling in on the summer pattern now. I have
had several reports on good fish being caught off the tree rows. !7'
to 20' has been the best depth with the fish holding at 7' to 10'.
Minnows have been by far the best bait. Had a report from up Pommie
this morning that they caught a couple of limits yesterday with fish
holding at 5'. The fish seem to be in both the hard woods and cedars.

WHITES & HYBRIDS: As long as the COE is running water the whites and
hybrids seem to be holding on the humps. Jigging spoons in 15' of
water has been a good bite. In the evenings a 4" sassy shad has been
working on the hybrids. Haven't heard of any top water working yet.
With the lake getting close to normal now might be the time to chase
whites before they turn the water off.

CATFISH: We have seen good catfish come in the last week. The blues
and flatheads have been hitting jugs. Perch have been the best for
flats and cut shad have been working on the blues. Floating jugs on
the edge of the flats in 20' has been working on the blues. The flats
have been coming off the bluffs on stationary jugs set about 10'.

That's it for this week from Osage Bluff Marina. 660-438 -2939.
www.osagebluff.com. If you need a boat stall for Memorial Day weekend
call quick we only have a few stalls left.

Till next week
Tommy

May 11, 2012 -Truman - Fishing Report from Osage Bluff Marina 5/10/12

What a beautiful week this week has been and more to come. The
weatherman is being very kind to us hope he hasn't got any surprises
in store. The fishing has been pretty good this week with lots of
catfish coming in. The crappie have started to get on the summer
pattern so all is good. Turkey season ended Sunday and the good news
is that the harvest was up 6% over last year. That's really good
considering you couldn't see 20' in the woods but the last week the
birds answer the call a little better. Oh well back to fishing. The
COE is running water about every day so I an looking for a good run on
the whites.

LAKE LEVEL: 710.94
WATER TEMP: 70 deg.
WATER CLARITY: Stained.

BASS: Early and late top water in the back of the creeks. Buzz baits
have been working in 3' to 5' of water on the flats next to the creek
channels. There is also a worm bite on the points in 8' to 15' of
water. You need to move the worn slow on the points. It helps if there
is a channel swing close to the point. There is a crank bait bite off
the points also. Deep runners bouncing on the bottom are working and
you might even pick up a walleye.

CRAPPIE: The crappie are working the summer pattern right now. The
Osage has allot of color but Pommie is just right. Tree rows in 17' to
20' of water fished with minnows down 6' to 10' is working. There is a
bite starting on the bluffs in 25' to 30' with the fish holding in the
15' range. Minnows by far are the best bait. I am still hearing of
crappie coming off the weir in front of the dam

Whites & Hybrids: With the COE running water the whites and hybrids
are starting to work the humps.15' to 20' of water with spoons is the
best choice. Late evening a 3/4 oz chartreuse sassy shad would be a
good to pick up a hybrid. Here again the humps would be a good area.
Look for shad.

CATFISH: The cat fishing remains good. Jugs seem to be out fishing
trot lines now. Blues are hitting cit shad on the flats in 10' to 15'
of water. Flatheads are doing better on perch in 15' to 20' of water
off the end of the bluffs. We have had allot of cats come in this
week. The channels are working trot lines baited with leeches on the
flats.

That's it for this week from Osage Bluff Marina. 660-438 2939 or at
osageblufff.com. We have several used boat lifts for sale here at the
marina starting at about $1500.00. Contact us at the marina for
details.

Till next week
Tommy

May 9, 2012 -Table Rock Submitted by Jamie Kowalsky - Table Rock Lake level is 914.67, just a few inches below power pool. The water temperature is 72 degrees around the Indian Point area. The fishing remains very good. Largemouth, Smallmouth and Kentucky Spotted Bass are all being caught. If you get out early you can find a topwater bite but it doesn’t last long. As soon as the sun gets on the water the topwater bite slows down. Fish are being caught on just about anything you throw. Crankbaits, spinnerbaits, jigs, carolina rigs, split shot rigs, shakeyheads and texas rigged worms are all catching fish right now. You can find the fish from ultra shallow water down to 35 feet. You just need to keep experimenting with the depth until you find where they are holding in that area. The fish are holding on the points, the flats, and in the coves. Now is a good time to get out on Table Rock and enjoy some good fishing. Give me a call to set up a fun filled day on the lake.

Till next time Good Fishin’
Jamie

May 4, 2012 -Truman - Fishing Report from Osage Bluff MarinaFishing report from Osage Bluff Marina 5/3/12

Looks like we are in for a little high water again. This is a perfect
time for a rise with most of the fish finishing up bedding. That means
that the COE will go to running water and get the whites and hybrids
all stirred up. As for right now the catfishing is about as good as I
have seen it this year. The bass fishing is real good with the water
on the rise also. The water is stained but very fishable. The weather
is good so come on down to Truman.

LAKE LEVEL: 711.62
WATER TEMP: 67 deg.
WATER CLARITY: Stained

BASS: The bass are strung out all over. The nitches are still a good
bet when fished with sinko's. 3' to 5' of water is best. There are
fish staring to pull under the saw dust already. !/2 oz. jigs are
working here. On the flats in the willows big worms are working in the
flooded bushes. As I said these fish are strung out all over.

CRAPPIE: Right now most of the fish are coming out of 8' to 10' of
water. Minnows seem to be out fishing jigs by a little.For the best
results fish the summer pattern.
17' to 20' of water seems to be working the best. There has been a lot
of crappie come off the weir in front of the dam drifting minnows in
20' of water..

WHITES & HYBRIDS: Had a few fish come off KK Island on spoons this
week. Also had a report of some fish surfacing on shad in the back of
a creek so keep your eyes open. With the rise in the lake the COE will
crank the dam up and get these fish going.

CATFISH: If you are looking for catfish now is the time to be at
Truman. Jugs and trot lines fished in 15' to 20' of water on the flats
is a good bite. Perch and cut shad are te best baits.On the bluffs
fish the laydowns in 20' with perch for flats. I have had a couple of
reports out of the backends of the coves on blues.

That's it for this week from Osage Bluff Marina, 660-438-2939 0r
www.osagebluff.com. We would like to thank the groups of guys from
Indiana, Illinois and Iowa for visiting us, it was a lot of fun. Don't
wait till next year to come back.

Till next week
Tommy

April 28, 2012 - Lake of the Ozarks - Submitted by Old Oar House Inn Mile Marker 81 -April 27th Fishing Report
Mile Marker 81
Lake of the Ozark water elevation is 656.12’. Truman lake water elevation is 709.94’ LOZ water temperature is 64 degrees Fahrenheit and has held stable for the entire week.  Water discharge through Truman Turbine is 400 CFS and over the spillway was 0 CFS. 

Spoonbill:  Excellent!
Another gorgeous spring day and another great spoonbill fishing weekend here at the Oar House.  It seemed hit or miss with some of the boats but I those who had fish had really nice fish.  When you do get into the fish make sure you do several runs through the same hole.  Jeremy and Shauna Bexton are shown here w/ a nice 94# Sow they caught down near the dome hole.  Jeremy was using Shauna’s pole and she drove him right to the fish within the first four minutes of fishing.  I was talking with Randy Ellis from Olathe KS, and his bud James Worley from Bonner Springs, KS. Who were chowing down on a chicken fried steak and chicken basket for dinner.  Randy said he caught two nice spoonies late afternoon from near the dome hole.  The dome hole has been hot as you’ll read in a minute.

Crappie: Fair
The crappie fishing continues to be fair.  The females are down around fourteen feet and I’m told the males are up around four feet.  Best crappie fishing remains up near Truman Dam.  Tommy Dees local crappie legend reports that after this latest wave of cold fronts and rain the crappie span has stalled and quite frankly he’s not sure what they’re doing.  Decent numbers of fish are being caught but in his opinion the crappie run never fully materialized and he said he was going to wait until water temperatures begin warming back up before he can get a good read on them.

Largemouth Bass: Good
Bass expert Pete Robinson has already reported in that he’s slaying the bass again this year and showed me an awesome 11# 5 oz beast he caught and released in the small cove right there at the end of our parking lot. Almost identical to last year’s last report Pete said the bass were hitting a senko soft plastic lure the best. However he caught the ‘Hog’ on a Texas light brown rigged lizard with a 1/4oz split shot weight. I’ve always liked that small cove especially when they are running water as it allows the fish to get out of the main current and rest. Check out this lunker bass that was caught earlier this spring somewhere down in Oklahoma.  As the story goes it weighed 17# 14oz and was released unharmed. 

Catfish: Excellent
Cat fishing down near the cleaning station remains very good.  Wendell Lopez from Portland IN is shown here w/ a perfect 5# eating blue caught he caught in chicken livers.

 

The catfish of the day was a 107# blue cat Jason Brown from Mexico Missouri caught out of you guessed it the dome hole.  Jason caught the monster on a 1# shad he said he hooked under the dorsal fin.  The fish was 52” long and took two guys to lift it for the picture. He threw it back to grow another day.  Jason said “Be Good to the River and it Will Be Good to You”.  He’s not kidding.  Great call, a fish this big isn’t going to taste very good and it’s around fish like this which our great fishery here is built upon.    

Walleye: No Report
Joe and Kim how are the walleye doing? Looking forward to hearing from you!

Carp: Good
Bryan Heinen said there’s a massive Carp population spawning up in Cole Camp Creek.  There’s a number of ways to get them but certainly the most fun is with either your bow fishing set-up or your winter Gigging outfit consisting of a 14’ lightweight fiberglass pole and tempered steel pronged spear set-up. I’ve begun feeding the carp around our docks floating fish food around the ramp in the floating white PVC pipes and I’m seeing really good numbers of big carp to include one huge gold fish or coy that has to weigh at least 10 #s.      

Stripers: No Report
For up to date water temperatures and elevations for LOZ and Truman call Truman Dam Water Report at (660) 438-7317 and mash #2 once the recording starts.

We endorse trophy fish catch and release!
Catch and release, it will grow on you and remember a bad day fishing is
better than a great day at work. 
Bruce

April 26, 2012 -Truman - The weather this week has been perfect with the exception of a really
hard wind yesterday that made fishing about impossible. Now it's going
to settle down and be nice the rest of the week. We have seen lots of
nice fish this week so it might be the time to hit Truman The turkeys
are still gobblin but sure are hard to see in the woods, really green
already.

LAKE LEVEL: 707.45
WATER TEMP: 65 deg.
WATER CLARITY: STAINED.

BASS: If you want bass go crappie fishing. The nitches are producing
if they have deeper water close by. 3' to 5' has been a good depth.
Beavers and lizards are the top producers there. There are some fish
on main lake points in 5' to 10' of water on worms. Have to move
everything real slow. Still not hearing much on top water.

CRAPPIE: Have had all kinds of reports on crappie. Had fish on the
banks in the Berry Bend area last weekend. 2' to 5' of water. Minnows
or jigs fished under a bobber and worked slow was working. There were
also some fish on the outside tree rows in 20' of water down 8' to 10'
on minnows. Right now it seems as though the crappie are strung out
all over.

WHITES & HYBRIDS: The COE is still running water but the white and
hybrid fishing has slowed. There are a few coming off the humps but
not as good as last week. Talked to a buddy and he said the weir has
slowed also.

CATFISH: The catfish bite is on. Jugs or trot lines are working. We
saw several nice flatheads this week. Best bait is perch. Steep banks
with laydowns.in about 20' of water. Blues are on the edge of the
flats on cut bait. If you are looking for cats now is the time.

That's it for this week from Osage Bluff Marina. 660-438-2939 or
www.osagebluff.com.

Till next week
Tommy

April 21, 2012 - Lake of the Ozarks - Submitted by Old Oar House Inn Mile Marker 81 -April 21st Fishing Report
Mile Marker 81
Lake of the Ozark water elevation is 644.46’. Truman lake water elevation is 711.23’. LOZ water temperature is 556 degrees Fahrenheit. Water discharge through Truman Turbines is 2,400 CFS and over the spillway was 250 CFS. 

I know…..  I’ve been seriously delinquent this year w/ my fishing report and you’ve rightly let me know.  The three of us are burning the candle on both ends and we’ve barely had time to breath. ‘Nuff snivlin’ here’s the latest:

Spoonbill: Excellent!
Spoonbill continues to be real good.  Man what a year.  The World Class and Mother of all Spoonbill Tournaments; “Snag masters” was held this past weekend and I understand it went very well. I think I heard the top fish was in the mid 80s and paid out close to a couple thousand. Uncle John, his son-in-law Joker and Joker’s brother Lou  fishing with “Catch n One” guide Brian Heinen did exceptionally well and all limited out.  Lou’s 87# sow would have easily taken first place in Snagmasters had he caught it two hours earlier.  Well done guys. 

Crappie: Good
Crappie fishing has continued to improve, especially after the rains we had this weekend.  I’m hearing good reports of lots of nice mails as well as a few decent females as they start moving in to the nesting areas to mate with the males.

I’m not hearing of too many people limiting out but a lot of nice fish are being caught along south facing bluffs.  Pick your bait; either minnows or chartreuse jigs and you’ll do very well.

Catfish: Excellent!
I’ve never seen so many and such large cats caught down at the cleaning station in the 10 years we’ve owned this place.  I know I sound like a broken record but chicken livers fished along the bluff on the right side of the cleaning station is second to none for catching any size cat.  SET YOUR DRAG and ensure you have an extremely large net.  37#s is still the season’s biggest catfish pulled out of there.  It’s belly was absolutely gorged with ‘leavins’ from the butchering going on directly above them.  Ronnie Ryce from Rolla reported last weekend that his boat caught 45 cats Saturday afternoon weighing well over 100#s. They anchored against the bluff about 15 yards below the cleaning station and clobbered them.

Bass: Slow
Pete Robinson stopped by for a burger and a beer and reported that bass fishing had tapered off the past week.  He had a couple strikes and managed to land one small 2# fish all weekend. I’m guessing all the cold rain may have slowed things down.   

We wholeheartedly endorse trophy fish catch and release!
Remember a bad day fishing is better than a great day at work. 
Bruce