Danceswithbass

Hey Brian, I been hitting Overholser & Hefner at least 2 times a week for the last month, the crappie have yet to move up to spawn, Its weird, they should move in any day now, when they do I'll let you know,you wont need a boat, they will be on the rocks spawning.

The smallmouths I've caught there have come mostly from the lower end, like from Burnt cabin on down. I have caught some before up around Pettit Bay, but most came from around Strayhorn. I dont really look at TK as one of the better smallie lakes. Eufaula is way better for big smallmouths. Murray, Arbuckle, and Texoma are too.

Of all the OKC lakes Draper is one I havent fished much. If your after bass you should go to Wes Watkins, Its the best bass lake in the metro area, standing timber, grass, not sure how you would do from the bank but the fish are there and its not far from Tinker . Lake Hefner in north OKC is easy to fish from the bank. The rip rap on the north end will be good with jerk baits , swim baits and shad imitating lures. You can pick up smallmouth, largemouth, and walleye along the rocks this time of year. Also over in East warf by the restaurants is a good spot. Thunderbird is a great lake if you know how and where to fish it, but you need a boat unless you want to fish the points or rip rap. Good luck hope this helps.

I live in OKC, but I fish the lakes down south more than any others. Especially in the early spring. Our first tournament is on Murray. I like McGee creek too, but prefer Texoma, Arbuckle, or Longmire to the SE lakes. I've never been to Latonka, but I here it has some good fishing. You ever been on McGee Creek when the bass were schooling? Lots of fun.

I know Tiger is bound to go down in history as the best golfer ever. I seldom watch except for the last round because there is no drama anymore, just tune in to see who is battling Tiger on the back 9. Im glad no one dominates fishing like that. Not to take away from Tiger he is awesome but I dont think he's the "best athlete " ever, Im sure there is no way he could tackle Barry Sanders, or cover Jerry Rice.

The west coast guys have the swimbait thing down to a science. But out here in the fly over states,we use them too. Not to target huge bass in deep clear water the way they do out west, but to target pre spawn bass that are feeding on shad. My PB smallmouth 4lb came on a Storm 4" swimbait. I like to buy the shad colored baits and change their color to suit the lake, I use dipping dye and a Q tip to color it the way I want it. I made some sexy shad color baits last weekend. If your bait is rolling over on its side you should slow down your retrieve or use a 5.3 or less reel.

stew, no I didnt get to fish Konawa, had to work that saturday. Going down to Murray in the morning to figure something out. Looking forward to fishing with them, been in the same club for the last 10-11 years, look forward to the change.

stew, I'll be fishing with them this year, I havent met anyone yet. If you are interested in 2 man clubs email this guy, he's with the Okla Pro Miniboat Association. dateedrenner@neok.com = hey spoon, i would like some more info on these 2 man boat tourneys you fish in. danceswithbass, you fish with okc bass trail? my brother in law fishes those tourneys.

Ivan Martin is the only guide I know of on Grand. He's a good guy. But you may not need a guide to catch fish there. If your going to be on monkey island, your already close to some great areas. Mike McClellan proved that its a good jig lake, spinnerbait is also good in the spring. From monkey island if you go down lake it gets fairly clear, go up lake & it gets stained to muddy in the Elk. If you learn Honey creek, Elm branch, the Elk & Wolf creek, you'll be able to fish every kind of water there is, but not have to run from end to end. Watch out for the wakes of the big *** boats up there, they sometimes put off 4 ft rollers that dont break, they will catch you off guard. I know a guy that speared one and tore off his trolling motor. Your lucky to have access to a great lake like that.

Im pre fishing for a tournament there this sunday, the tourney is a couple of weeks away. Im sure I'll figure something out. I've fished Murray for years. I doubt you will want to launch from the north ramp. probably furthur down lake.

I've fished from the back deck for years.I Fish everything from club tournaments to BFL, Had every kind of partner you could imagine, but really none were jerks to me. If you learn to be an asset to him in the boat, then most guys will treat you well. But if you are a hindrance to him, then you are going to get on his nerves. Back boaters should learn the ropes at a lower level before saddling a guy with an inept co angler. If there' are "pros" out there that are A holes to back boaters, their sponsors should hear about it.

Are fishing with the OKC bass trail?

Here's a report off of another site... Classic Scouting Report Pros Tight-Lipped, But Hartwell Bite Seems Strong Wednesday, February 20, 2008 Photo: ESPN Outdoors Aaron Martens was one of the few who laid out his bite if he catches 15 fish, he thinks he'll weigh 18 pounds. In a regular tour event, sandbagging's a given. But at the Bassmaster Classic, it reaches mythic proportions. In fact, it's hard to find any Classic pro with something positive to say about his practice. Sandbagging makes sense, though. Nobody wants to be pegged as the guy who's on fish before the event even starts. That adds pressure, and a potential spectator armada. It also sets up possible disappointment if (or when) things change. Two pros who seemed to deliver the straight scoop after the final practice day this afternoon were Aaron Martens and Kevin VanDam a duo that happens to be favorites in every Classic they fish, no matter what. Martens said if he gets 15 bites he'll catch 18 pounds. Ten bites will deliver 14 or 15 pounds, while five bites will back him down to 10 or 11 pounds. VanDam simply feels a lot of guys are going to catch them. "The lake's too good there are too many fish not to," he said. "I'll have my chances. Every place you go that's 40 feet or deeper, there are tons of fish suspended in the trees. It's going to be a great Classic." All of which means a lot of the field must be holding back on describing their practice. There does remain the wildcard of the shakeoff where the pros don't hook fish during practice so much of the field truly may not know what they're over. But in all, it's looking like 17 to 18 pounds a day will win the thing. Before more about the bite, plus notes from individual competitors, here's more about the lake itself. another site Lake Profile > Lake Name: Lake Hartwell > Type of Water: Lowland reservoir > Surface Acres (full pool): 56,000 > Primary structure/cover: Standing timber, points, humps, creek channels, brushpiles, some docks > Primary forage: Shad, blueback herring, crawfish, bream > Average depth: 45.6 feet at full pool > Species: Largemouths, spotted bass > Minimum length: 12 inches > Reputation: An expansive, quality fishery with excellent average size. But unpredictable since fish move a lot day-to-day in relation to blueback herring. Contains some bruiser spotted bass. > Weather: A warming trend will end with potential heavy rain in the forecast for Friday. Nighttime lows in the high-30s to low-40s expected for the event. > Water temp: 46 to 50 degrees > Water visibility/color: Main lake is clear with up to 8 feet of visibility. Clarity varies all the way to muddy in the backs of creeks. Since water level is low, there's a distinct mudline along many banks. > Water level: 12 feet low (very significant) > Fish in: All depths, but majority of fish are from moderately shallow to deep > Fish phase: Winter (shallow fish might be prespawn, or just up feeding) > Primary patterns: Crankbaits, topwaters, jerkbaits, jighead spinners, jigs, some plastics deep > Winning weight: 56 pounds > Cut weight (Top 25): 26 pounds > Fishing quality (1=poor, 5=great): 3 for Hartwell > Biggest factors: The morning bite there's a good one in a few spots that everyone knows about, so boat draw's important. Also the weather it'll probably affect the shallow bite more than the deep one. Lastly the lucky bite there's some junk-fishing happening up shallow. > Biggest decision: Deep or shallow? Also, whether to stick with an area and fish it slowly, or run a series of spots. > Wildcard: The weather. Nasty conditions could turn the deep fish on, but make boat position difficult. Also the "glory school" one probably exists.

I went to a seminar by OT Fears yesterday, he recommended a 4.7 reel. He said he has watched the bass in the Berkley tanks for hours and realized they hit cranks from the side more than from the back. The slower reel and a fairly limber rod gives the fish a better chance to get the bait in its mouth.

Surfers right , I've flattened the loose rivets before, its called bucking the rivet. I used a rivet driver that you use in an air tool and just used a hammer with it right on the rivet. We backed the rivet with a 3lb sledge. It stopped the leak, I ended up going all over the boat doing it.