I'm combining fishing reports of Friday, Mar. 17th through the am fishing of Monday, the 20th. During this time, I fished with Tom Meister,
of Stillwater, MN.

We caught 11 keepers during this period, and many smaller ones that didn't make the 10 inch minimum. This morning's keeper crappies
are all est. in the 12-13 inch range, while the previous day's were; 1 at 10 3/4, 2 @ 11 1/2, 2 @ 12, 1 @ 13 1/4, and two at 14 inches...one
weighing 2 lbs., the other 1 lb.15oz.

We mainly fished the dock and nearby area. It's been very windy, making for difficult fishing and boat control. We did brave the wind and
waves on Sat. to go past marker 2, so Tom could view the Bull Shoals bridge from this side, and also see where many fish are
suspended...in the deeper waters.... 125 to 165 feet deep.

As the waters warm....they'll continue to move into the Howard Creek area.

The air temperatures have been much lower than last week...and today certainly doesn't seem like the first day of Spring. The day started
with a temp of 36 degrees, plus winds at 15 mph, gusting to the mid-twenties, making for an uncomfortable wind-chill. During the night, the
dock was blown off the walkway, due to the strong winds from the east.

March 16th 2006

Daughter Teri, and Tom Meister are coming down for a few days. They may have a snowy start according to the forecast for MN. and northern IA.
The early dock fishing was a carryover from yesterday....all crappies were under the 10" minimum. There was a major Carp fleet in the area early
today. There must have been something they really liked, floating on top of the water this morning.

Have some errands and chores to do today, so may not put in much time fishing. But of course, will report any good catches.

March 15th 2006

Started the day early.....cold and frosty, with a beautiful moon. Caught several small crappies. The highlight (which you may/may not believe),
as I was pulling in a small crappie, a fairly nice bass followed it up to the net. If I had longer arms, or longer bet, might have caught the bass.
The day ended late, on the dock, with a beautiful moon. I caught 2 small crappies.

March 14th 2006

This morning's temp of 33, showed a 24 degree drop from yesterday am. The front that came through didn't seem to bother the crappies though.
I caught two 13+, and 5 under-sized, in an hour and 45 minutes. In spite of the wind, decide to go out in the boat this afternoon...lost a bass
when it jumped and flipped the hook (during a speed-drift), caught a 12-13" crappie (backtrolling), before giving in to the windy conditions.

May try again later.

March 13th 2006

Another stormy night, with a spectacular overnight Light and Sound Show, and more of the much needed rain. I wondered whether 
the stormy weather would adversely affect the early morning fishing, plus it was windy, another LWA. But, I decided to check it out.
Glad I did.....caught 5 in about 45 minutes, all keepers, biggest 12 1/2". Early afternoon, caught a 12 3/4 inch crappie, jiggling a little
white bait, in the trees.

March 12th 2006

Sunday, the 12th; A day of fishing, with no catching. After the stormy night, the water was cloudy, with lot's of "stuff" floating. 
There seemed to be a current, maybe a generator or two, running at the dam. There was a Lake Wind Advisory.

Caught 1 small crappie, saw a couple of large ones, but they were just "shopping", not buying. I spent about ten minutes trying
to outwit a small bass, for some reason. Couldn't catch it. As I missed a fairly nice crappie, the minnow came off and started to
swim away. Up comes a bass (about the same size that I had been trying to catch), and it picks off the minnow.

Saw a few Bluegills/Sunnies between the dock and the shore, plus some under the boats. Water must be warming, and it's
definitely rising.  

March 11th 2006

Early morning dock....caught 2 keeper Crappie and 2 small ones. Mid- morning boating, caught 2 small bass. Wind
picked up and didn't get back out. Tried the dock briefly, but nothing.

March 10th 2006

Early morning, Ward caught one off the dock, and Bud a nice one from the boat. Later Bud caught a 15 inch Crappie (the biggest of the trip).
He also caught and fought a major battle with what turned out to be a tree. This ordeal lasted at least a 1/2 hour, and ended when, with
Ward's assistance, they raised it high enough to see a large section on a cedar tree.  It was really a good fighter, they were both exhausted,
and of course, I had to adjust my map....to show the changed location of the underwater structure.

After Bud left, Ward and I returned to the lake, where I caught a 14" Crappie. It was quite windy and as we were about to call it a day, we
decided to try one more inlet, where the structure hadn't been disturbed. Ward had a strike, and as he set the hook. this very large fish shot
out of he water. It was Big! Each time he got the fish coming towards the boat, and tried to raise it, it would dive and take out line. This
happened 3-4-5 times, and on one occasion, I caught a glimpse of the fish, but it was still to deep to tell for sure, what kind of fish. On the
final dive, it flipped the hook, which was a small crappie jig. That was it, the fish was gone, and from what we saw (when it broke water, and
the deep water glimpse), we feel it was a large, in the 10 pound range, Rainbow trout...definitely wall material.

That's the close of a couple of fun filled, and very eventful days, with two great friends.

March 9th 2006

Bud, from MO., and Ward Stubbs, from Cedar Falls, IA. were here for a couple days of BS'ing, BL'ing, mixed in with some fishing.
Ward and I fished the dock early...I caught 1 keeper and Ward caught 2, plus we had 2 non-keepers. When Bud arrived, we went
out in the boat, again, I caught 1, then Bud caught 3. After giving Bud and Ward a few quick lessons and some tips, I always step
back to let them have their fun and maybe catch a few fish.

Later in the afternoon, a storm came through, with major winds (60 mph) as you know, since you had to re-position the dock. And,
that finished fishing for the day.

March 8th 2006      ~~~Happy Birthday Jeff~~~

Early am, caught 3 - 6" crappies in a row, looked like the same fish, definitely from the same class in school. Finally got a keeper,
before heading out to the brush piles. Had a few very light "taps", but that was it. Returned to the dock, and prior to feeding the trout,
caught another keeper, and saw two large crappies swimming through the area, but they weren't interested in my offerings.

Ward Stubbs, from Cedar Falls, IA. is coming later today, and Bud will arrive tomorrow morning, from MO. for a few
days of R&R, BS'ing, BL'ing, and hopefully some fishing. However, the weather forecast doesn't sound the greatest for fishing.

Wednesday update:

Went down to the dock at 1:30, and it started to rain as I went down the hill. Anyhow, caught a 17" Lg mouth Bass, on silver
Bobby Garland Split-tail, on 2nd cast past the fishing platform and trees. Lightning cancelled any further fishing. 

March 7th 2006

Not much to report....caught 2 undersize crappies, and lost a nice one in the trees, along with jig. There was some early top water activity,
may be some shad moving in. I tried a Zara Spook, and then a white road runner, but they had pretty much moved on by the time I decided
to take a break from crappies. In the afternoon, Red and I went out, but it was quite windy, and difficult controlling the boat. We trolled some
and also had a few speed-drifts. Not fish action.

March 6th 2006

It was a frosty and foggy start early, which produced 1 keeper crappie, and one returned for another time. The fog lifted around 9 am...and the day
turned out beautiful. The higher temps...air and water, which is coming up some...brought out an increase in boat traffic. Mostly  bass fishermen.
One boat across from me caught a 17" bass. Another asked me for info on what I was using. They left shortly after our discussion....hmmmm,
must not have worked.

My plan was to drift with the wind from a favorite point of mine, for about 1-2 blocks, then backtroll to the point, and repeat the process. I fished
for 2 hours, starting about 1 pm, so this wasn't constant action, but.... Twice while drifting, I caught bass, not big, but bass. Twice while backtrolling,
I caught keeper crappies, a 11 & 1/4 and a 12 1/4 inch. So... my question of the day....what does boat direction, wind, speed, depth have to do with
fishing, and why the difference in catching bass vs crappie in the same area, at the same time, but going in different directions? Is one species on a
certain side of the structure, facing a certain direction?? Then mix in the impact of the ever changing fisherman/boating techniques. How about luck...
No, can't be that! The one constant.... I used the same bait the entire time, a 2 1/2" Finn S, charcoal topside, silver/gray bottom. I used this the other
day with no success, but this time I tipped it with a minnow.

Later, caught a small crappie prior to feeding the trout...and wondering about the impact of the slightly lower temp and rain forecast for tomorrow
evening, and then thunderstorms the next day or two.

That's all for now...L.  

March 5th 2006

With rain forecast to arrive later in the morning, was hoping the Crappies stayed around for some early am action. And...they did.
The first hour was best, things slowed the 2nd hour, but caught a total of 9 crappies, with four nice keepers...12, 12 1/4, 14 1/4, & 14 1/2.
Checked out the brush piles and ledges, marked more fish than in recent days. Released 1 small bass, and missed one, using
Bobby Garland split-tail minnow, charcoal w/silver flecks. Nothing to report for the rest of the day.... a number of people were fishing
the dock and nearby area, using a variety of baits and techniques, but nothing could persuade the keeper crappies to come out of the trees.  

(Note to Jeff from Lloyd)

I think it would be appropriate for you, the owner/editor of the Red Arrow Website, to share with the world, the substantial increase in the hits,
or visitors, to the website in February. I think we all agree that this significant increase in activity, and the timing of the increase, is directly
related to the February addition of Lloyd's Fishing Report, to the website.

March 3rd 2006

The early fishing started very slow... finally a couple of undersized on plain hook and minnow. Then tried the 2 1/2"silver and
black Finn S, which looked good, but wasn't what the fish were looking for. Using the small white swordtail jig, caught a
14+ inch (unofficial) Crappie, and a bit later a strong 12 " one. Another half hour of jigging, didn't produce anything.

A follow-up on Friday's report...about 5pm when I went down to feed the trout,  tossed out a line, and there were lots of very
large Crappies in the area...probably the most large ones that I've seen in a long time. The water seems to have a greenish tint,
but is clear enough to see down 10-12 feet, fishing in 20-30 feet. A white, or light colored jig helps. Of course, I managed to pick
out a couple of small ones, apparently fast, aggressive small ones.

March 2nd 2006

The early morning fishing was fun, but no keepers. Caught 3 crappies, all under the minimum, @ 9 inches. Had a keeper coming in,
but got off as I was reaching for the net. It was a real nice one, almost ready to jump in after it. Didn't fish too much....errands and
household duties.

Red, of cabin #4 caught one for the wall....a 6 1/4 lb Brown Trout on the White River. Once again, some think it was actually Eileen
who caught it, while Red did the netting.....and bragging.

March 1st 2006

Another day of boating, and fishing....no keepers. Checked out a number of areas...but didn't mark many fish in the
Howard Creek area....lot's of fish by marker 2 towards the big lake, but in deep water 90-100+ feet, and stacked from
the bottom to 45-50 ft., from point to point. With the warm/hot weather (84) yesterday, I thought they would move in
the fingers of H.C. We tried trolling deep for walleye, but no takers.

February 28th 2006

Had good early morning action....5 fish in an hour, only two were keepers...nice @ 13" and 12 3/4".
Bud E., from MO., returned for some fishing. We did lots of fishing....but no catching.

February 27h 2006

Had a Lake Wind Advisory, so not much boating. Only keeper of the day was a 16 1/4 inch Kentucky Bass, which is a very nice Ky., and probably the largest I've caught.

I didn't fish between 2/24 - 2/26, but Red Kohlhof, of Cabin #4 and Hackensack, MN. caught a 7 lb. Walleye.
Nice fish Red!!! Rumor has it, that Eileen, Red's wife, actually caught the fish.....of course, this will be investigated further.

February 26th 2006  No report from Lloyd - He went to Kansas City
 

February 25th 2006 No report from Lloyd - He went to Kansas City

February 24th 2006  No report from Lloyd - He went to Kansas City
 

February 23rd 2006

February 22nd 2006

Early morning from the dock, caught 3 Crappies, all too small. Missed the only keeper, it was half in the net,
half out, when it did a back flip, out of the net, and off the hook.
Around daylight, there was a bit of top water activity...a few clusters of Shad. By the time I got out with the boat,
they had moved on, or down. Spent an hour and 1/2 in the boat, looking for shad, then fishing the usual spots........nothing.
Returned to the dock....2 more of the smaller variety.
I'll include this afternoon's events, with tomorrow's report.

February 21st 2006

After 3 days on no fishing, and suffering from the Cabin Fever Bug":
Fished an hour at most...2 keepers, 1 too small. I did get almost all of the snow out of the boat, thanks to the shovel, and the sun. 

February 20th 2006

No fishing due to weather.

February 19th 2006

After last night's freezing rain, rec'd 4-5 inches of snow. More of the winter mix early this am.
I started to brush the snow off the car, but decided to forget it, when I ran into the extra thick layer of ice.
Driving down the steep hill to the dock would definitely be challenging, but nothing compared to the steep walkway to the dock ramp.....similar to an Olympic event. This'll be the last report until I can go fishing, which could be a couple of days.

February 18th 2006

After yesterday's major weather front went through, coupled with this morning's temp of 24 degrees at 5:45, I just about passed on fishing this morning, but finally gave in and decided to try the the dock for a bit.

Due to the strong winds, the dock had been blown out of position....the ramp to the dock was 5-6 feet off it's walkway. And the far end of the dock, where I do most of my fishing, was resting against the rocky shore/ledge.
I took only one pole (ultra-light, with little stinger jig) from the locker, because I didn't plan to stay long...it was quite cold, aided by a bit of a breeze. After moving the jig, with small minnow, in and around the newly positioned dock/trees for a while, I decided to try the "Walleye Technique", from the other day.

I tossed the bait towards mid-lake, as far as I could, which wasn't real far with the very light bait, and against the north wind, letting it sink/swing in towards the dock. I felt a strike and knew it was too big to be a Crappie, and actually was thinking Walleye...instead of Catfish, Carp, Gar....this time.

Luckily, I got it to come into the boat stall, away from the trees, which I wasn't real sure of their new location. It didn't want to come up, so it a while before I could see the white-tipped tail. It was a Walleye, not as big as the other day, but a nice one.

Several times I got it up to where I was ready to reach for the net, but each time it would dive back towards the bottom. This one was fighting much more than the bigger one a couple of day's ago. My concern was the trees, and the ultra light rig, but it was Fun!

Finally It came up high enough for me to grab the net, but even then it took several attempts, before I could get the net under it. Officially (by Jeff), 23 1/2 inches, 4 lbs. and 10 ozs.

Then, about sunrise, after it the temperature had dropped even further, using the same equipment, had a Large Crappie on, and had it coming up to where I could see it, but before I could raise it far enough to consider netting, it got off. It may have been the same one Bud  had on the other day....definitely the biggest of this trip. Guess it'll get bigger.

I know this is a long report Jeff, but when checking the weather forecast.....freezing rain tonight, possibility of 1-3 inches of snow tomorrow, and not much prettier for Sunday and Monday, this could be the last report on fishing for a few days.

February 17th 2006

February 16th 2006

Not much to report on fishing...1 Crappie and 1 Bass, both under the minimum size. No boating...a Lake Wind Advisory. Went to the dock about a half dozen times during the day. Throughout the day I tried most of the jigs in my tackle boxes....many colors and sizes, even some crayfish, bumble bee, cricket colors, and a couple that had silver/good tinsel, like a Christmas ornament (probably should be ornaments). Nothing worked.

The talk of the day was the weather. It was very windy all day and into the evening. Between 2:30 and 3, the temp hit 77 degrees. A tornado watch was issued. A little after 4 pm, the winds became stronger, then the thunder, lightning, rain and hail came. By 6:30, the temp was 48, and at 31 degrees by 10:30pm.

Not sure what the front/weather change will do to fishing.

February 15th 2006

We were at the dock at 5:45 this morning, a comparatively warm am at 45 degrees. Bud got a small one, and a real nice one, 12+,
and missed the Big one. He saw it come up after the bait...pearl stinger, with minnow. I caught an undersized Crappie, and Kentucky Bass.
Bud left for home before noon, so I decided to see if that Big Crappie was still hanging around. Having used a variety of jigs earlier, tried a
bare hook with minnow, the biggest minnow in our bucket. Tossed out towards mid-lake, let it swing back deep, into the trees/dock.
Thought I was hooked up on the bottom, until I felt the tug. I knew it was good size, but figured it would be a Carp. It went into the trees
and I after a while, I got it out and started to raise it up.

When I saw the white tip on the tail, of this large fish, my heart jumped out of my shirt. It was a nice Walleye. Now I'm hoping the line, hook,
pole, everything holds together. There were some pumps and dives,  and a couple of times it was headed towards the trees, but luckily,
got it turned around, headed into the net....Yes!!!

And, this is no story.....as you know, since you did the official weighing...25 inches long, and 6 lbs, 1 oz.

Also, the stringer of Crappies....4 days catch, weighed 9 lbs, 13 ozs.
I measured them when cleaning: 2 @ 12", 1 @ 12 1/2, 2 @ 13 1/2, 1 @ 13 3/4, and 1 @ 14.

February 14th 2006

Bud came down from MO. we tried the dock for a while...nothing, then went to the big lake, past marked 5.This is where there's giant trees,
in the water, along the steep cliffs. the water is very deep, and so were the fish, marked lots, but no takers. Fished there until about noon,
when it had warmed up nice...high 67.We tried a couple of other spots on the way back, but nothing.
Made some social calls in the afternoon for some BS'ing (Bull Shoals), before hitting the dock about 5:30. Caught 3 real nice ones
in about 10 minutes. However we ran into trout feeding time, and the fleet of jumbo Carp apparently heard the dinner bell too.
The Crappie moved out.

February 13th 2006

This morning started with a beautiful moon, but very cold and frosty. The frost was everywhere, on the car,
on the ramp to the dock, on the boat, and even on the cobwebs. It was really neat... wish I had brought a heated camera.
Frosted cobwebs, with a full (?) moon background, plus "steam" rising from the lake. Beautiful, almost spooky,
like Halloween time/?/.This really was a very cold day, seemed like one of the coldest, and I didn't last long, about 45 minutes.
Caught 1 too small, then left for cabin & hot coffee.

The temp did improve during the day and probably reached the 50's. While getting prepared for tomorrow's trip to the big lake,
stopped by the dock and  picked up another undersized Crappie. Bare hook, with minnow.

Bud E, a friend from childhood... fishing, hunting, sports...from our hometown of Waterloo, IA. is coming from Forsyth, MO.
tomorrow, for a couple days of R&R and BS, mixed in with a bit of fishing. So, expect some real fish stories in the next  few day's reports.

February 12th 2006

Did you ever have..."one of those days"?  A day where things just don't go quite right.

I planned to be on the dock a little earlier this morning, since I didn't get in enough fishing yesterday.
But, had to scrape the frost off the windshield first, so didn't make it much too earlier.
I would say the temp at the lake was much less that the 24 degrees reported for Mtn Home, and it was still very windy.
Ice continuously formed at the tip of the rod, making fishing difficult. On some rods, it even froze at the 2nd and 3rd eyelets.
I tried 5 different baits, but nothing seemed to be of interest today. When I went back to my favorite jig, at/in my favorite tree,
I managed to get snagged. Finally got it out, and moved to the 2nd favorite spot, and proceeded to get snagged there too.
I assume any fish in those areas, moved to mid-lake by now, to get away from all the shaking trees.
And, I decided to get away too, back to the warm cabin and hot coffee. 

Oh, by the way....I went scoreless....no keepers, and no non-keepers.
This may be a good day for me to stay in the warm cabin, and watch the Olympics and BB games.
But, don't be too surprised if you see me head down towards the dock, a time or two, during half time.

February 11th 2006

The morning started at 5:45, and the wind started even earlier. Very windy. Noticed when I got back to the cabin...there
was a Wind Advisory for the lakes, until 6pm.

Caught 4 fish...2 were keepers ( 1 @ 13")......all on pearl stinger, w/minnow.

Briefly tried the dock a couple of times during the day....the last time as I just got started, a fleet of Carp came through,
and continued to cruise the area. Some approached submarine size.  I didn't want to hook up with them, so left.
Still super windy, plus a few flurries, off and on during the day.

February 10th 2006

The jig bodies that I've been referring to as J-Shad, are actually called a Fin-S. A senior moment perhaps:-)

I hit the dock/area at 5:45 this am, and the good news is I caught 5 fish..... the not so good news, only
1 keeper, a nice one 12-13". Another was very close, it could be legal size by tomorrow.

The keeper was caught on the small, minnow colored Fin-S....I got it right this time....not tipped with a minnow.
All but one of the others hit the pearl Stinger, tipped with a minnow.

About sunrise, although the sun didn't rise,  went out in the boat for another 1 1/2 hrs, and marked quite a few fish.
It was calm, and could sit right over the fish, but no takers. There were snow flurries/pellets from the beginning, and
when they turned into full fledged snow flakes, I decided to come in and try another time.

Tried the dock mid-day....nothing, will try again at dusk.

February 9th 2006

Early Thursday...got a late start due to early emailing. Very frosty, with "steam" rising from the lake.

Finally caught 1 undersized, after trying various baits. Went to the small minnow colored j-shad, with no minnow. 
Had a hit while dangling it in and above the trees, but didn't set the hook, thinking I was snagged.
After a few minutes, it hit again, and this time I was ready for it.... in the 11-12 inch range.

More later.

February 8th 2006

Early morning dock area....1 @ 14 inches (official, I measured it ), another very close to the same size, both
caught with the pearl stinger jig, tipped with minnow. I tried the larger, green J-Shad, and on the first toss
caught a 12" one. Later using the small J-Shad, caught a too small Crappie.

Took the boat out.....started misting, and the wind came up. Not a good day for boating, fishing, and no
catching. Rained later...tried the dock late pm....zero.

February 7th 2006

This morning's temp at 6 am, was 23 degrees, according to the Weather Channel, for Mountain Home.
The "real" temperature at the lake was more like 2 or 3 degrees....cold and windy.

After every 3-4-5 casts/tosses, ice balls formed at the end of the pole, which makes for difficult reeling.
I went with the same pearl colored Swordtail/Stinger jig, tipped with a minnow, I caught 1 keeper Crappie,
and 2 non-keepers one was close, within 1/2 inch).  

Finally, after an hour of cold and de-icing the pole, a tree grabbed the jig, and wouldn't let go....  
so it was time for a warm cabin, with hot coffee.

Went boating for 1 1/2 hrs in mid-morning......the temp had warmed up, but still a cold wind,
and felt colder because of no action.

Had errands, banking, post office duties, etc., today,  so not too much fishing.
Did try about an hour this pm from the dock.... no fish, but no trees.

Thanks for the new lures/baits....I'll try those for the next few days. They sure look good laying on the table.

February 6th 2006

Had the most action since I've been here. It wasn't balmy, but not as cold as yesterday....no ice pellets forming on the end of the rod.

Early am from the dock area...1-11" keeper, 3 under minimum, missed 1, and lost one when reaching for the net.
All were caught on a small jig, with white swordtail body, tipped with a very small minnow. 

Later, from the boat....1-12" keeper and 1 small one returned to grow up.
The keeper caught on a larger jig, charcoal with flecks, tipped with a minnow.

May go out later.

February 5th 2006

At 6 this morning, the temp was 23 degrees, and  the slight wind added even more chill to the air.

It was one of those days where the eyes water, nose runs, and hands get super cold.
No, this isn't open-hole ice fishing on one of Minnesota's frozen lakes, it's Bull Shoals Lake, in Arkansas.

Had a repeat of yesterday, one Crappie of 12+ inches, and 1 too small. Caught both on a small, minnow colored jig, with a split tail.
Tried a bare hook with minnow, a shad colored Swimmin' Minnow, and a charcoal color jig, with silver flecks.
Tried tipping the last two, with a minnow, but no takers.

Back to the warm cabin, and hot coffee by 7:30. Took the boat out from 8:45 - 10:30. Caught one small bass.
Talked with two guys who were hitting the docks, for bass, but had no luck at that point.

I'll hit the dock again, and take out the boat this afternoon, before Super Bowl time.

February 4th 2006

Friday's  fishing.... 1 keeper (10 3/4") , 3 too small.

Today.....1 keeper (12+), 1 too small. No boats today, too windy, white caps coming from the west, looking towards the big lake.
Fishing from the dock, I did have a Huge Carp on....ultra light equipment, using small jig, after about 5 minutes,
it decided to break my line, thankfully.

Even too windy for dock fishing this afternoon. If the wind goes down toward dusk, I might try the dock then.

January 30th 2006

First day back down here. Went to the dock and caught 1 keeper crappie on the 2nd cast and another keeper on about 8 casts later.