The next several days....

[coyotewhacker]

Over the next several days, this forum might slow down considerably. Several of us are going to be fishing with the FLW professionals, others will be pre-fishing for the first MWAA tournament of the year, and some will be doing both. I don't think any of the competitors are going to go into much detail about how their pre-fishing goes, and posting up about how you did with this pro or that pro before their tournament might get you a visit from OJ or Baretta.....I think you catch my drift here. Anyway, I would encourage those of you who are not involved in these activities to continue to post your results, whether on Stockton, Bull Shoals, or where ever you wet a line. If you should come across a huge number of very large walleyes down on Bull Shoals, PM me immediately, then forget you were ever there!
Last item: as you go about your daily activities this week, keep our own Mike Alley (PowerDive) in your thoughts. He flunked his stress test, and as punishment, he is going to have a little medical procedure done this week. It's routine, and he will be back to his old self (darn!) in a few days, but he will not be up to fishing the MWAA tournament this weekend. We're all pulling for you, PD.

[fishnxs]

For those of you fishing the tourney this Sat. Good Luck!!
If nothing else it sounds like you all may have a great day to be on the water.

Mike, get to feeling better. Rumor has it Hooters has had to lay off some of the help.

[coyotewhacker]

Gary...you and Ralph will have Stockton all to yourselves. Pull some big ones out before the crowd comes back. I had to go to Home Depot for some stuff, and there were five or six Hooter's girls out front with signs saying "Will work for Walleye fillets"...if this 2Bills thing don't work out, I may know where to find a new fishing buddy!

[ackermannsacre]

For those that are prefishing with any of the pros in the next few weeks...please do not post any results of the day, not even what part of the lake you were on or with who. There will be plenty of time for the boasting after their tourney is over!

[powerdivehome]

You guys go get 'em. My little medical adventure is tomorrow. Will tune in when I can. Good luck!!!

[coyotewhacker]

Mercy...you guys are dropping like flies. When BB weirded out on me yesterday, I thought it was just a back spasm. Got a note from him just a few minutes ago that he blew out another disc...he will be laid up for at least a week, maybe more. Change in plans for the tourney on Saturday. I will now be taking the Express down and have an empty seat if any up and coming walleye guy wants to take a chance with CW. The entry fee is already paid, but your half is $45. If I gotta fish by myself, things are gonna get rough, 'cause I know where a ton of pros are hanging out, and for a chance to spend the day with CW, most of them would cheerfully blow off the entire FLW thing...yeah, right. Anyway, here's your chance to get in on a tournament real cheap. I don't need any gas money....the boat is 3/4 full anyway. Leave a PM here and I will be back tomorrow night, if interested in this once in a lifetime opportunity.

Meanwhile, keep Mike and BB in your thoughts. Appreciate it.

CW



ditto again on what Bill Ackermann said above. It is absolutely critical to keep everything you see, hear, or learn to yourself until the FLW tournament is over. Once that is history, we can have a whole seminar on here about what happened, but not until then.

[Ozark]

coyotewhacker said:
It is absolutely critical to keep everything you see, hear, or learn to yourself

CW - I ain't gonna do it. I'm gonna blab all the fishing secrets I know right here.

For instance - my partner and I absolutely tore up the crappie and white bass on James River today. Our secret - nose-hooked baby bullfrogs and grasshoppers on little-bitty treble hooks, fished topwater style.

To get those March bullfrogs and grasshoppers, you've got to search with a flashlight in muddy, marshy places about 2 a.m.

Seriously, good luck to all you guys in Saturday's tournament.

[coyotewhacker]

Well, maybe they won't hold that kind of blabbing against you. I know I certainly won't. Never have hunted March bullfrogs, but did do a little snipe hunting with some older boys when I was about ten or so. I was selected to hold the bag....dang snipes never did show up.

[bullitt]

Yeah, Ozark, I've been killing them on chicken-liver crankbaits!!

PD, get well soon buddy. Have CW send you a jug of his, uh,...bloodthinner. I hear it works just like fastflush in a radiator.

Good luck to all in the tournament. I'm staying home to meet my daughter's prom date. hehehe

[coyotewhacker]

Wise move on your part, bullitt. If you are cleaning your shotgun when he shows up, you might casually mention that it takes quite a while to do the job properly, and you will still be up at curfew time....

[Tablerock]

Mr. Bullitt.....!!! When I get this MWAA tourney under my belt, we need to hit the upper lake (TR) for whatever we can get into.....Green fish...Golden Toothy's....Crappie...
Whatever.....Will be in touch. We need to get you a ride with a PWT pro also, in May.....
Ozark is the pro when it comes to crappie. I'll betcha he'd be up for a trip too. We might actually learn something..??

[Plasticman]

Tablerock said:
Mr. Bullitt.....!!! When I get this MWAA tourney under my belt, we need to hit the upper lake (TR) for whatever we can get into.....Green fish...Golden Toothy's....Crappie...
Whatever.....Will be in touch. We need to get you a ride with a PWT pro also, in May.....
Ozark is the pro when it comes to crappie. I'll betcha he'd be up for a trip too. We might actually learn something..??

I'm getting reports that the crappie fishing in the Campbell Point area has been awsome the past two weeks. I had one report that a limit of Crappie came in at 17 lbs---

[bullitt]

Sounds like a plan all the way around, TR. Bring it on!
That is a big stringer-o-crappie, PM. The guys up in my area haven't been doing much good. Fish all morning for two or three keeps, with no shorts in between. Most everything I've seen them bring in has been 10" bucks so far. If we get a few more degrees in the water it should get a lot better quick.

[Ozark]

Tablerock said:
Ozark is the pro when it comes to crappie. I'll betcha he'd be up for a trip too.

I'm definitely up for a trip, but I don't know that I'm a "pro". Every day you go, it's something different to learn - and that's what makes it fun.

On Tuesday, we tied up to a snag and were casting downwind over a 10 foot deep flat. It was just full of crappie, but at first my partner was catching 5 for every one of mine. I finally figured it out - he was retrieving slowly but with his rod tip high, and the wind on his line was keeping his jig shallow. I had been holding my rod tip low, out of the wind, and I was going under the fish. Crappie WON'T go down for a lure, only up.

So I changed my style and started catching them as fast as he was. Lots of times, it's the little details that matter.

There are a lot of barely-short crappie in Tablerock, but there are some good ones too. Here's a 14 1/2" one from Tuesday, and we had others almost as big.

[Tablerock]

I told you Ozark was Crappiemeister.....!!! Nice photo Sam!!!
BTW: I had a GREAT day on BS.... Will tell you all about it soon.....New stuff...!! New Stuff ...!!