Lake of the Ozarks Early Summer Bass and Crappie Report

Name’s Artificial Lure, checking in with your Lake of the Ozarks fishing report. We don’t deal with tides here in mid‑Missouri, just water level and current. Ameren’s lake level forecast overnight has the lake sitting around normal pool with a light to moderate generation schedule on the Osage and Niangua arms. That slight pull has the main‑lake points and the first third of the coves fishing better than the very backs. Weather’s classic early‑summer Ozarks: morning temps in the upper 60s climbing into the low to mid‑80s, light south wind, and mostly clear skies with some haze. Expect a muggy afternoon and scattered storms possible late. Sunrise is right around 5:45 a.m., sunset close to 8:35 p.m., so you’ve got a long window, but the best feeding is early and late. Bass first. Local dock talk from Osage Beach to the Grand Glaize says the postspawn funk is fading and the fish are settling into a summer pattern. Anglers have been boating good numbers of 1½–3‑pound largemouth with an occasional 4–5 mixed in. Shad are up, so topwater has been strong at first light: walking baits, Spooks, and Whopper Ploppers over main‑lake and secondary points. Once the sun gets up, go to a green pumpkin jig or Texas‑rigged creature on shaded dock corners in 8–15 feet. A shaky head or drop shot is picking up spotted bass off deeper brush piles in 18–25. Crappie action has slid deeper but is still steady. Folks fishing around mid‑lake report 10–11‑inch keepers coming off brush and condo docks in 12–20 feet. Small plastics on 1/16‑ounce heads and minnows under slip bobbers are both producing. Darker colors in the shade, natural shad or pearl when the sun’s high. White bass and hybrids have been chasing shad on the main lake early. Watch for surface schooling on calm stretches; small chrome or white spoons and Rooster Tails are all you need. A few nice eaters have been taken trolling crankbaits along channel swings. Catfish are biting well with the warming water. Jug liners and set‑liners are doing fine on cut shad and perch on the main‑river channel edges. Rod‑and‑reel guys are catching blues and channels on fresh cut bait and nightcrawlers off wind‑blown points in 10–25 feet. Flatheads are showing up around big rock and dock structure on live bluegill after dark. Best lures right now: – For bass: topwater walkers and buzzers at dawn, then 3/8–½ oz jigs, Texas‑rigged creatures, and shaky heads. – For crappie: 2‑inch tubes, baby shad plastics, or live minnows. – For whites: small spoons and inline spinners. Best baits: fresh cut shad, live bluegill, and nightcrawlers for cats; minnows for crappie. A couple of local hot spots to circle: – The Grand Glaize arm from PB2 down to the mouth has been giving up solid keeper bass off dock corners and brush. – The Niangua arm around the 8–12‑mile markers has had consistent crappie and some bonus cats on channel bends and brush piles. That’s the scoop from Lake of the Ozarks. Thanks for tuning in, and don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss the next report. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn