Missouri Lakes Fishing Report by Steve Wilson

Lake - Lake of The Ozarks 01/03/06:

Reduced Water Levels and Clear Water have really Bunched the Bass up at Lake of the Ozarks. This winters fishing has been better than it has in years!

Lake levels: 656.19 with no generation scheduled for the next few days. This will hold the lake steady at 656.3 Truman Lake level: 705.06 Garmin Surface Temp: 45-43 around Dam and mouth of Gravois. 43 to 41 from PB 2 to Hurricane Bridge and 41- upper 40's in Nianguas.

Dam and Gravois area: Clear. Fishing continues to be good here. Since the extreme cold spell we had a few weeks ago that brought single degree air temps. The fish have been moving from the deep channel points on the main lake. Where they are spending the night and most of the mourning. Into coves with creek channels and feeding on secondary points.

The fish on the bluffs can be caught on jerkbaits and small finesse jigs. I use a homemade 5/16 similar to the Eakins Jig in Green Pumpkin and PBJ and fish it right against the rocks from 2'-12'.

As the day warms up the fish been moving into the coves with creek channels and feeding on the secondary points. The best bait for fishing these secondary points has been the jerkbait but wiggle warts have been catching a few fish also. Some good jerkbaits to try are Rogues(Shad colors and Table Rock), Pointers (Blk Aurora Chart Shad Bone), Specialty Tackle (The Black One) and MegaBass (Pro-Blue) I’ve seen all these catch fish, some better than others depending on water clarity and sunshine or cloud cover.

If you get a bite where your line jumps. That means the fish is swimming towards you and trying to get away from the other bass that are trying to eat your lure. Whenever this happens slow down! You’ve found the right spot to catch your limit. Grand Glaize to Hurricane Deck Bridge: Clear to slightly stained. The patterns remain the same here.

It seems like the best fishing has been around the mouth of the Glaize and the mouth of the Gravois. Some of the things both these arms have in common are. Both have warmer water at the mouths where they intersect with the main Osage. And they both have bait fish that are holding at 8'-12' along the main bluffs where the channel swings into the points.

These fish are moving around with the bait fish and when the sun pulls the bait fish up on those secondaries the bass follow them. The bait fish look a lot like Specialty Tackle jerkbait in Blk , Pointer 78 in Aurora Blk or MegaBass Pro-Blue. Those lures work really good in these areas.

The Rogue and Pointer 100 work better in the slightly stained water you see above Tan Tara. The jig bite picks up in the slightly stained water. The fish are a little shallower and relating to dock brush on steep channel swing banks. Slowly work the 5/16 jig in green pumpkin or PBJ around the brush in 2'-8'. You can catch them deeper. But it seems like the bigger fish especially these big 3-4# spots that have been biting are coming out of shallower water.

Nianguas: Clear. The Nianguas are different than the other areas because of the influence of the large springs. The water goes from being colder at the Hwy 5 bridge to warmer near the Hwy 54 bridge. But the best fishing has been in the middle near Larry gale ramp. The small creeks (example Windermere) that have deep creek channels with defined points and swings have been producing well. Lure choice depends on weather conditions.

Also you can catch them on a wider range of baits here. During these time of year. I have 4 rods in the boat. 7' with 5/16 jig-12# Fluorocarbon, 6'6" jerkbait 10# mono, 7' crankbait 10# mono and 7' spinnerbait with 15# mono. The jig and jerkbait I fish the most. And the crankbait and the spinnerbait I fish when they are biting really well in the afternoon.

Also the spinnerbait I use is a 3/8 HawgCaller that I cut down to a smaller frame. I use white mostly with small silver and gold Indiana blades. I want a spinnerbait that I can "scratch the bottom" with in really cold water. In the Nianguas the fish are relating more to creek channel banks.

The influence of the warm water produced by the springs makes the cold blooded bass act this way. It is more like early spring pre-spawn fishing than winter fishing like you have in the Dam area. So it is good to keep an open mind and the crankbait or spinerbait near at all times when fishing the Nianguas.

Osage River: The water is a little colder up above the Green bridge and I have only been fishing the areas mentioned above. I am sure there is some fish biting up there. But due to the low water it makes for a long boat ride!

Note: I would like to think everybody for their support of BassFactory Instructional Bass Fishing Trips. 2005 was an excellent year. I meet a lot of very quality people, made a bunch of friends and we learned a lot about the bass. 2006 will be even better! Looking forward to fishing with you soon!
Thanks and Good Luck!

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