Snagging report for April 17

by Trish Yasger

For Truman Lake, Lake of the Ozarks and the Osage River (below Bagnell Dam).

It’s mid-April and we got some snow again last weekend. Surface water temperatures are still cold, we’re finally about 50F at the surface. We haven’t gotten much rain and have seen a decrease in flow.

Despite this, snaggers have been having good success on Truman Lake and Lake of the Ozarks. The Truman Lake fish have moved down a little more again this week, whereas, the Lake of the Ozark fish have started moving up. On the reservoirs most of the fish they are harvesting are 36-42 inches and in good condition, we’re seeing a few of the larger females, including a 115 lb fish on Truman Lake and 90 lb fish on Lake of the Ozarks. We continue to see a few snaggers with limits on both reservoirs.  Snaggers are catching several sublegal fish (24-34 inches), please get these fish back into the water unharmed immediately as these are the fish you will be harvesting in the future.

We need rain to increase flows and get the fish moving. What we really need is an increase in water temperature. Think warm spring rains! Remember as water temperatures and flow increase snagging should improve and we’ll see more of the larger females.