You could say they were being hard headed… and I do not mean the trout!  Some day’s fish play hard to get, like today on Lake Taneycomo.  After arriving at the Shepherd of the Hills public ramp and launching the boat, Dr. Mark Powell and I headed up stream to the catch and release area in search of football sized trout, maybe even a brown if we were lucky.  Earlier, Dr. Powell had called and found out that they only had two generators running.  “Perfect, two generators is just right for catching trout on Taneycomo,” he continued, “with this cloud cover, we should really catch them.”

The next ten drifts downstream told us something different.  Dr. Powell did catch several on a dropper fly rig and I had a respectable football head size trout on that broke my fly line, but otherwise the trout were playing hard to get.  Then the horn blew and the current picked up.  We both changed to jigs and the next couple drifts Dr. Powell hooked up with a number of trout, even I got into the action catching a few.  It was at that moment Dr. Powell, an accomplished fly fisherman said, “Lets pull over and I will re-rig our fly rods with a little heavier dropper set up.”  His knowledge and timing were perfect, the next couple hours we caught and landed numerous trout, all on a fly rod.  I caught my first of many trout on a fly rod and fly.  In fact, the trout were biting better on the flies than the jigs, a lesson I will remember the next time the trout are being hard headed.

Lake Taneycomo’s name comes from the shortening of Taney County Missouri and was formed in 1913 when the Power Site Dam was built near Forsyth, Missouri.  The Power Site Dam is privately owned Empire Electric Company; however, at the foot of Table Rock Dam, the Missouri Department of Conservation built the Shepherd of the Hills Trout Hatchery that stocks Lake Taneycomo with trout year round. 

Trout can be caught year round at Lake Taneycomo with flies or other artificial lures.  The majority of anglers use fly rods while others prefer ultra-light spinning outfits with light line.  Fly anglers can easily wade the upper 3-miles when the water level is low otherwise anglers can fish any of the 22-mile Lake from a boat.  The tailwater has midges, sow bugs, worms, crayfish, sow bugs, leaches, and sculpins. Brown trout will spawn during the fall months and anglers prefer to fish after dark for the big browns.  An artificial-flies only Trophy Trout area is located just below Table Rock Dam.  Anglers can use bait as long as they are not in this area. 

Rod:  ultra-light spinning rod with 4-pound test
Fly Rod: 6-wt sinking head line with 8-pound tippet
Flies:  scud, sow bug, sculpins
Lures: micro jigs in tan, ginger, or pink
License:  Anglers must have a valid Missouri fishing license and Trout Stamp to fish Lake Taneycomo.  License can be purchased by calling (800) 392-4115.
Tailwater Flow:  Generation flow can be checked by calling (417) 336-5083.  A prerecorded message will tell you how many generators the dam is currently running.  The normal flow is 701.4 below.

Lake Taneycomo is located near Branson, Missouri.  There are numerous resorts and guides available.  Guides: Pete Wenners, Pete’s Professional Guide Services, (888) 214-1767, www.hookedonbass.com or Chris Tetrick, Midlakes Guide Service, (417) 239-7374, www.midlakesguide.com