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The fishing is really good this time of year at Lake of the Ozarks if the weather would cooperate. From now till the end of March is your very best chance to catch that big fish of a lifetime.
Lake level: 655.61 and falling with heavy generation scheduled today and light for the weekend. What this is doing is pulling all that runoff from the lasts rains that flooded the creeks down the lake. So the Nianguas and Osage are really muddy. Looks like you could plow them and plant corn. The water starts to clean up down lake past the Hwy 5 bridges. It is still very stained there and that mud line could make it down lake further by the weekend.
Water temps: Frozen in the back of coves to 40 maybe 41 in the North Shore Area.
Toll Bridge to Bagnell Dam and Gravois area: Clear to stained. Right now due to cold water temps and poor water clarity throughout the majority of the lake. The Lake of the Ozarks is fishing small. Dirty water and surface temps under 40 is not the place to start. Around the Toll Bridge Area it starts to warm a little bit. Upper 30's. As you go down the lake you’ll see some of the most fishable water conditions around the mouth of the Gravois to North Shore area. The water is clearer and just a little warmer. Just inside the small creeks fish the steep rocks bluff points and any irregularity along the bluffs. Jerkbaits and jigs are the lures of choice right now. The best jerkbait colors look like shad. Lucky Craft Pointer 100 and 78 ,Rogues, and Mega Bass Vision 110's have been the best. Target points with the jerkbait. As far as jigs I have been using 5/16 finesse up to 3/4 football depending on how deep I want to go. I catch fish from 2' down to 25'-30' on these bluffs during the winter. It all really depends on the bluff. Sometimes they are on the bluff itself and you can catch them with that 5/16 finesse jig shallower. Sometimes they are on the first or second ledge out from bluff and that is where the ˝ to 3/4 oz football jig comes into play. If you have any docks along these deep banks it makes them even better. Usually the crappie fishermen have some brush around those deep docks. So it is worth it to fish a piece of brush thoroughly. There always are some fish relating to deep docks. It takes a lot of work and effort to find these places where bass group up during the winter. So it is not as easy as it sounds. I got 3 decades invested in my search. But when you do find them. It is worth it. Like I said you can catch that fish of a lifetime during this time period.
Thanks and Good Luck!
Note: If you have any questions about fishing patterns/lures or would like to book a trip at Bassfactory Instructional Fishing Trips send me an email at Bassfactory@Charter.net
