[aaron j scott]

Kyle and I were talking the other day about Taney, so I thought I’d throw my two cents in.

I’ve fished Taney more than anywhere else in my short angling career, and I have something of a love-hate relationship with it. Sure, it’s a lot of fun, and it’s not usually not hard to catch fish there, but the only thing that separates it from one of Missouri’s trout parks (Bennett Springs SP, Roaring River SP, etc.) is the $3 day tag.

Now, if you are in the area and plan on fishing Taney and want a challenge, I’d suggest going at night. It’s the best time for zero or low generation (IMO, wading in the “trophy” area at Taney becomes dangerous when generation is greater than 1 unit – especially at night) and the big fish will be more active at night. Plus, there’s nothing like a heron sneaking up on you in the middle of the pitch-black night!

If you do plan on fishing Taney and aren’t familiar with it, check these sites (along with the aforementioned OzarkAnglers.com forum):
http://www.swpa.gov/generationschedules.aspx (TRD is the column for the Table Rock Dam tailwater release schedule)
http://www.swl-wc.usace.army.mil/WCDS/plots/Web/tab.htm (real-time lake-level, precip and generation charts for TRD)

However, if you’re looking for real challenge and truly beautiful fish, head over to the North Fork. Call up Kyle if you really want to see the river and get into some incredible fish. The coloring of the rainbows and the browns there is spectacular. A lot more color – and a lot more scenic beauty and solitude – than you’ll ever find at Taney. I spent the whole day on the Fork on Tuesday and, while I saw a handful of floaters, didn’t see one other angler on the water. Yeah, it was tough, but it was still gorgeous.

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