Day in and day out, Table Rock Lake and Truman Reservoir consistently produce more large bass than any other Missouri lakes. Each distinct in its own right, these lakes reflect the watershed in which they were constructed, and each fishes differently. Master Angler records indicate Table Rock and Truman are among the top three Missouri lakes in terms of producing trophy largemouth bass.

Join me as we visit each lake and learn about them through the eyes of professional anglers and biologists responsible for the great fishing. Along the way, I'll provide some fishing suggestions to improve your odds for angling success this spring.

TABLE ROCK LAKE
The fog slapped me in the face as we motored across Table Rock Lake. The sun was just sneaking over the hills to the east as we crossed under the state Route 13 bridge and headed for pea gravel banks where with luck we'd find a trophy smallmouth bass or two. Bill Anderson was my host. At the time, he was the Missouri Department of Conservation's fisheries management biologist responsible for the great bass fishing in Table Rock Lake. In addition to managing this great bass lake, he was -- and remains -- an active bass angler, spending many days fishing the lake each year. Anderson has since been promoted to MDC's administration; however, his advice is still pertinent to bass anglers fishing Table Rock Lake.

Table Rock Dam was completed in 1958, stilling forever the great White River, one of Missouri's great fishing streams. From the ashes of this once fantastic smallmouth fishery, like the Phoenix, rose Table Rock Lake and one of Missouri's best bass lakes.

The new lake filled not only the White River valley, but also the James River valley almost up to Springfield, Kings River and Long Creek, extending into Arkansas. At normal pool, the lake covers more than 43,000 acres, and it balloons to more than 53,000 acres when flooded. It's a true Ozark Mountain lake, filling steep-sided river valleys and creating a beautiful, deep, clear lake. The flood lands, creeks and rivers are relatively infertile, reflecting the underlying strata of the Ozarks, yet bass anglers rate the lake one of the best in the nation.

Fishing with Anderson is always an enjoyable -- and academic -- experience, and this trip, several years past, was no exception. I'm not convinced there's a better bass angler, one who not only understands the ins and outs of bass fishing in Table Rock Lake, but also can explain why a lure works or why a specific lake area produces bigger bass or more bass for anglers. In other words, Anderson knows the science of fish management and fishing techniques that work best to catch large bass.

Besides producing great largemouth bass fishing, Table Rock has earned recognition as one of Missouri's best lakes for large -- 18-inch and larger -- smallmouth bass. According to Anderson, the best place to fish for spring smallmouths is along the pea gravel banks west of Route 13. Smallmouth spawn on the pea gravel in 5 to 15 feet of water, Anderson said. April is a little early for locating males on nests, but you'll find both females and males staging off the banks, near hard cover such as stumps, trees and large rocks. When Anderson and I fished, we caught both male and female smallmouths using tub baits jigged along the bottom with that occasional largemouth and spotted bass thrown into the mixture for good measure.