With all the rain that was forecast for us earlier this week we sure didn't get it. I had about .2 at the farm and could of used about 2". I guess we shouldn't complain it could have been worse and we might not have gotten any. Maybe its saving up for Sept. and we will get a bunch. As dry as it has been the woods are still in good shape. The acorn crop in this area looks good so the critters should have some good eating this fall. We are just a month away from the opening of archery season and it looks like we have a good deer population here in the lakes area. I have been seeing lots of turkey here in the last week or so. the poults I am seeing are 1/2 to 3/4 grown and it looks like the numbers are fairly good. With it being dry like this there are birds coming to water on the edge of the lake in the early morning and sunset so if you are on the lake you might get a good look if you are back in a creek at those times.
Again just a word of caution with the lake being low there are new stumps everywhere so keep a good look out when going back in the creeks. Also the deer are moving and the school buses are out so when driving slow it down a little. The little deer have no fear of a motor vehicle and can do a lot of damage.
LAKE LEVEL: 704.9
WATER TEMP: 82 deg.
WATER CLARITY: Clear to lightly stained.
CRAPPIE: The crappie fishing is about the same as it was last week. The brush piles in 15" of water seem to be the best when fished with minnows. Brush piles on the points are doing the best. The tree rows on the flats are doing better this week. With so many new tree rows showing now its hard to figure out which ones to fish. Best bet is fish in 10' to 15' of water and fish 8' to 10' down. No matter what pattern you fish take lots of bait as you will have to sort through lots of little fish. Cedar trees have been working better this week. Isolated clumps of trees on the flats can hold good numbers of fish. 15' to 18' seems the best. You may have to fish 4 or 5 different clumps but when you hit the right one you can pull good numbers of fish out. The bluffs are also holding some fish in 20' to 25' of water with the fish down about 15'. Look for trees just under the surface which may not have been fished as hard all summer.
BASS: The bass fishing has been slow this week. Go to the typical summer pattern of point hoping with big worms and a jig and frog in 8' to 10'. Main lake or secondaries close to a channel or current break. The top water bite on the flats is still going in the early am. Buzz baits and Pop R's have been the best. with the water temp starting to cool the bass bite should start picking up.
WHITES & HYBRIDS: With not much water going through the dam the whites have been slow this week. There has been some surfacing fish from sunset to dark. 1/4 oz. spoons and Rooster Tails have been working here. O 3 and KKIsland have been a couple good spots. The hybrids are still doing the suspending thing so live bait is the best. Drifting the channels with baits set about 15' has been producing a few fish. These fish seem to be holding in the trees along the edge of the channels. This is something a little different but it is working.
CATFISH: Jugs and drift fishing the flats are producing some nice blues. 15' of water has been the magic number when fished with cut bait set about 8'. I had several reports of blues being taken on stationary jugs in the same area. Look for small ridges or humps along the edge of the flats for the best action. It seems if you go shallower than 15' you start picking up lots of channels. Haven't heard anything on the flat heads this week.
WALLEYE: The walleye fishing got real slow last weekend. It almost looks like they moved off the humps. With the number of bait fish holding around the humps I'm sure they can't be to far away. Maybe it's time to start looking in a little deeper water.
That's the report for this week.. With cooler weather on the way this is a perfect time to hit the lake for some good fishing. We have a few boat stalls left for the holiday so give us a call to get one reserved for the holiday. You can reach us at Osage Bluff Marina 660-438-2939. You can also check us out on face book at Osage Bluff Marina.
Till next week
Tommy
