Lake of the Ozarks fishing conditions

Skip docks with a jig or shaky head; the best docks have brush and deep water within a cast.

Active temp

58–82°F

Structure

Submerged grass edges, main-lake points, laydowns and dock lines

Technique

Texas rig / swimbait

Bait

Live shiners

Lure

4.5 in paddle-tail swimbait (3.5"–5")

Color

Green pumpkin / natural shad

Retrieve

Slow to moderate, bottom contact every few feet

Best time

First 3 hours after sunrise and the last 2 before dark

Stages from wintering creek channels to secondary points at 52–58°F, spawns on hard bottom at 62–68°F, then slides to grass edges and ledges once surface water passes 78°F.

Outstanding. Dock brush at 12–22 ft year-round; shoot docks with a 1/16 oz jig.

Active temp

50–72°F

Structure

Brush piles, standing timber, bridge pilings and creek-channel bends

Technique

Vertical jigging / live-scope casting

Bait

Minnows under a slip float

Lure

1/16 oz hair or plastic jig (1.5"–2")

Color

Chartreuse / black-blue in stained water

Retrieve

Hold still above the fish, tiny shakes

Best time

Late afternoon and full dark under lights

Moves to shallow wood at 56–62°F to spawn, then relates to 12–20 ft brush all summer, and follows shad into creek arms in fall.

Blues on main-channel flats; drifting cut shad.

Active temp

60–85°F

Structure

River channels, holes below points, flats adjacent to deep water

Technique

Anchored cut bait / drifting flats

Bait

Cut shad, skipjack, chicken liver

Lure

Circle hook 6/0–8/0 on a Santee rig (Palm-size bait chunks)

Color

n/a — scent driven

Retrieve

Static or 0.5–0.8 mph controlled drift

Best time

Sunset to midnight; all day when water is stained

Pushes shallow to spawn in rock and bank holes at 70–78°F, then feeds on channel edges at night through summer and gorges on shad in the fall.

Spring runs up the Niangua and Gravois arms.

Active temp

55–78°F

Structure

River arms in spring, open-water bait balls the rest of the year

Technique

Casting slabs into surfacing schools

Bait

Small live shad

Lure

3/4 oz slab spoon (2"–3")

Color

White / chartreuse

Retrieve

Rip and drop

Best time

Dawn and the last hour of light

Runs the rivers at 54–60°F, then chases shad in open water; look for birds working in fall.