Lake of the Ozarks Spring Spawn Windup: Crappie Limits and Bass in the Shallows

About this episode

The episode discusses fishing conditions and tips at Lake of the Ozarks as the spring spawn winds down.

Hey y'all, this is Artificial Lure, your go-to guy for all things fishin' down here at Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri. It's April 28, 2026, 'round 3 AM, and the night's still got that crisp spring bite in the air. No tides on this big ol' reservoir, but water levels are steady at 657 feet per the Army Corps, perfect for runnin' the creeks without scrapin' bottom. Weather's lookin' prime: partly cloudy, highs in the low 70s, light southwest breeze at 5-10 mph, per local forecasts. Sunrise at 6:28 AM, sunset 7:52 PM—plenty of daylight to chase 'em. Fish activity's rampin' up with the spawn windin' down; solunar charts show average to good bites 'round dawn and dusk. Recent catches? Anglers pulled in limits of crappie up to 2 pounds on minnows near brush piles, plus solid largemouth bass 3-6 pounds hittin' in the shallows. White bass are schoolin' heavy in the rivers, and catfish are prowlin' deep points—folks report 20-30 pound blues on cut shad. Smallmouth are active on gravel banks too. Best lures right now: go with **jerkbaits** like the Rapala X-Rap in shad patterns for bass, or **jigs** tipped with minnows for crappie. Spinnerbaits in white/chartreuse are tearin' it up for…

People in this episode

Host: Artificial Lure

Topics covered

• fishing
• Lake of the Ozarks
• crappie
• bass
• spring spawn
• outdoor activities

Keywords

• Lake of the Ozarks
• crappie limits
• bass fishing
• spring spawn
• fishing report

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Army Corps

Products: Rapala X-Rap, jerkbaits, jigs, nightcrawlers, shad

Places: Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri, Niangua Arm, Gravois Arm

More episodes of Lake of the Ozarks Missouri Fishing Report Today

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• Lake of the Ozarks: Post-Spawn Bass Strong, Crappie Scattered, Catfish Steady · May 20, 2026 · 4 min
• Lake of the Ozarks Bass Bite Heating Up with Current and Clear Skies · May 19, 2026 · 4 min
• Lake of the Ozarks Fishing Report: Post-Spawn Fire-Up with Stripers and Bass Going Crazy · May 5, 2026 · 2 min
• Lake of the Ozarks Fire Up Post-Spawn Bass with Perfect Spring Weather · May 4, 2026 · 3 min
• Lake of the Ozarks Heating Up: Bass, Walleye, and Catfish Bite Hot This Sunday · May 3, 2026 · 3 min