Fishing Report For Truman Lake, MO

Current Report: Good To Very Good

The Conservation Commission of Missouri reports expects crappie fishing to be very good. They pointed out that "in general, the upper portions of the lake have larger crappie, and the lower portions of the lake tend to have more crappie."

FALL. Crappie are feeding heavily in preparation for the cold Winter, in 8 to 18 feet of water. Good areas to explore include the Truman Lake State Park shoreline, around brush and timber in Bucksaw Cove, and points and brush in Long Shoal Cove. Minnows, hair jigs, and crappie jigs, are good options during this feeding marathon. They are in the process of migrating to deeper, holding areas, for both crappie and baitfish. Small flutter spoons, fished in 15 to 20 feet of water, are a good option during this transition. Good results are coming around points, creek channels, and brush piles.

WINTER. Once the shallows start cooling rapidly, crappie will migrate to deeper holding areas, mostly off shore. At this time they are typically caught using a very slow presentation, in 15 to 30 feet of water. Most are caught around deep brush piles, creek channel bends, submerged timber, and main-lake structure. If they are suspending in open water, they often relate to some cover, or structure change, directly below them. During warming trends, especially warm afternoons, they are drawn into 8 to 15 feet of water to feed.

SPRING. In early Spring, crappie begin staging in 6 to 12 feet of water, just outside spawning bays and shallow flats. Spring is prime time to be on the water, as both black crappie and white crappie have moved shallow to spawn. At that time, they are typically caught in 2 to 8 feet of water. Vegetation, docks, brush and wood are where most anglers catch crappie using small crappie jigs or live minnows. After the spawn, crappie typically move outside the spawning area and hold on cover close by, in 8 to 12 feet of water. Once they move deep, anglers report success using fish finders and forward facing sonar to locate schools of crappie, which tend to stack vertically around cover. Light tackle, tiny jigs, using 4 lb to 8 lb line, is a popular choice.

SUMMER. Water temperatures get quite warm, and crappie fishing is usually pretty good. They feed in 10 to 15 feet of water early and late in the day, until the hot Summer sun causes them to retreat to depths of 12 to 22 feet. Also, a few have embedded in the shade of slightly shallower vegetation. This is a good time to focus around brush piles, standing timber, deep lay downs, bridge pilings and deeper docks. Anglers are also locating schools of crappie hanging over deep structure and around creek channel edges, using fish-finder electronics.

Current Report: Report: Fair To Good

Catch rates were down this year for largemouth bass, and may stay lower again next year. A wide variety of lures are catching bass here, but not the normal numbers. When they are shallow, working in the dirtier water in the South Grand and Osage Arms produces decent results.

FALL. Now that late Fall taking over, bass are moving out of shallow coves and shallow bays, following schools of baitfish back into 10 to 14 feet of water. Productive areas include points around the mouth of Sterett Creek, shallow flats around the marina in Bucksaw Cove, brush and timber in Bucksaw Cove, and windy points and brush in Long Shoal Cove. Currently jerkbaits, deep-diving crankbaits, slow-rolled spinnerbaits, artificial worms, spoons and jigs are catching most of the bass. As shallow water cools, bait and bass move out to ledges, channel edges, points and humps where flutter spoons, jigs and drop shots are often good choices.

WINTER. Winter will isolate largemouth around slightly deeper structure, flats, points and creek channels. They can be found from 12 to 30 feet deep, around main-lake channel edges, artificial fish attractors, rock piles, stump fields and brush piles. Here they hold, feeding less frequently, awaiting warmer water to return in Spring. Slow presentations are key to getting bites. On warmer days, especially during late afternoons, bass may move shallower to feed.

SPRING. Once water temperatures rise into the low 60's, largemouth will move from deep wintering holes, to shallower water nearby spawning areas. Anglers report good topwater action from mid Spring through Summer, especially early in the morning, and on cloudy days. Vibrating jigs, jerkbaits and spinnerbaits typically get bites just away from the shoreline. At this time they are feeding aggressively in about 2 to 12 feet of water, and preparing for the spawn. Once water warms into the mid to high 60's, they will move into 2 to 8 feet of water, and create nests, then lay their eggs. Immediately afterwards, females move to deeper water and males remain to guard the eggs, and then the fry. After a couple weeks, the males also move to slightly deeper water, around 8 to 18 feet deep. Deep-diving crankbaits, vibrating jigs, plastic worms, jigs, worms, and swimbaits catch bass during this period.

SUMMER. Water temperatures will warm considerably in Summer. Bass will feed shallow, early and late in the day, where they will be caught in 2 to 10 feet of water, on topwater lures, square-bill crankbaits, spinnerbaits and a variety of other lures. Wacky-rigged stick worms always catch finicky bass when the bite is slow. During Summer, keep an eye on the thermocline to determine the maximum depth to fish, as there is very little oxygen below the thermocline. Largemouth bass here feed on shad, herring, small sunfish and crawfish. During the hotter parts of the day, they are being caught on points, channel edges, and ledges 12 to 20 feet deep. Some good reports usually come from anglers fishing around Sterett Creek, Long Shoal Cove, Bucksaw and Osage.

Current Report: Good

Cut shad, worms and prepared baits are all catching plenty of blues, year round at Truman Lake. Blue cats tend to school by size, so it's worth the time to keep searching until you find a school of the bigger fish.

FALL. Fall is one of the better times of year for catching blue catfish. Early in Fall they were cruising the shallows, in search of food. Now they are migrating away from the shallows and current, to moderately deeper holes in the main body of the lake, around 8 to 25 feet deep. Popular areas include channel bends in the Long Shoal arm, channel edges in the Osage arm, the mouth of Sterett Creek, and the tailrace and river channel below Truman Dam. They remain in these areas and feed aggressively in preparation for Winter.

WINTER. In Winter, focus on deep holes, in 18 to 30 feet deep, where blue catfish wait through the cold water season. They are less aggressive now, but slow drifting, or dead sticking baits, can still trigger bites. Cut bait, or live bait taken from this lake are the top bait choice. Use slip sinkers, 3-way rigs, or Carolina rigs with enough weight to keep the bait bumping bottom as you drift or slow troll.

SPRING. Spring begins the aggressive feeding, in preparation for winter. Blues at this time are being caught 8 to 30 feet deep in bays, on flats where baitfish school, and shallow ledges. On warm days, blues are drawn to protected shallows that warm quickly. Cut bait is the ideal bait this time of year, with locals preferring cut shad.

SUMMER. Early Summer is post-spawn season for big blue catfish. They follow big schools of baitfish, and feed heartily in 6 to 30 feet of water. Live shad is the preferred bait at night, while cut bait is catching nice blues during the day. Stay around channel edges and fish areas that have concentrations of bait. Once Summer weather has warmed lake water above the 70's, blue catfish move closer to the main lake, to deeper feeding areas, still preferring to remain in current when available. Blues, including some of the bigger ones, are now being caught while slow trolling, or drifting ledges, adjacent to river channels, or within the channel along the edges. Big blues, 25 pounds or more, are regularly caught. Anglers fishing from the bank are catching a few fish, but boats are the preferred approach. Late Summer, if the water temperature rises above the high 70's, they become less active, and fishing can slow down.