Scuba Steve caught these and several more and released them all in Tom Kelly's Trophy Pond. It is ready for spring. 
The lake level was 556.43 and had dropped 8-inches in the last 24-hours with both generators running and spillway gates open equivalent to another generator when Scuba Steve came in at dark last evening. This has been the case for a couple of weeks and the lake is dropping quickly. The water is still stained tea colored from the heavy generation and wind but it wants to clear. It is down 12-feet from it's high in early November and about time. The surface water temperature is 57-degrees and should drop with the upcoming cold weather. The White River at Newport is 12. 24 feet and they are regulating to 12-feet but could be regulating to 21-feet if they wanted to. They are very reluctant to drop the area lakes much lower than the tops of the power pools. They should be dropping them more in the winter but refuse to do so for some unknown reason but they have no accountability. I will talk to Elon about this. There is too much fat in the Corps of Engineers and they need to be cut back.They are very reluctant to get out of their new pickup trucks like a cowboy is reluctant to get off of his cow pony. The so-called ranger should also double as a mower, restroom cleaner and maintenance man. Put them in charge of taking care of the parks rather than just riding around doing nothing. The public servant has become the public master. Hire one good person to take care of all of the parks and furnish him or her a place to live. Scuba Steve went out about 2:PM and always tries to start at the warmest time of the day and fish until dark this time of year. It was slow until about 3:PM and then he caught 3-small Crappie. The wind was blowing hard from the west and there were white caps and it was hard to get out of. The fish started biting about 3-4 PM and he caught some larger Crappie and a Striper. I have caught all of the stripers that I care about and it was a surprise on a Crappie jig and fun. I caught no giant fish and fishing was not on fire like some are saying but it was not bad. I caught no bass. When fishing is tough I go to the old reliable 2-inch white twister tail turned up and tipped with a live medium sized live minnow hooked through the top of the head with a white 1/16th ounce jig head with a red eye cast past the brush and letting it sink into it. I did catch several fish today but no giants. The moon is getting smaller and is now near a crescent but the dropping water is not helping anything. The most activity is now in the evening. If you are in the Mountain Home area for the holidays stop by Blackburns Resort and Boar Rental and Check us out. We have the best prices and the best place in the Ozarks. A free stall for your boat comes with the cabin rental. We especially welcome Veterans and Police and are pet friendly. Call Debbie at 870-492-5115 for a reservation. This is the time to plan your spring fishing trip and your family summer vacation. We are Family Owned and Family Operated and are not for sale and not sold. We like it here and are not trying to cash out. Scuba Steve will help you find fish.
