Exploring the Ozarks Outdoors: freshare.net

PINPOINTING FISHING HOT SPOTS by: Jim Low

First posted on 03-05-2007

Conservation Dept. Has Resources to Help Anglers Pinpoint Hotspots Through Global Positioning Technology.

Missouri’s many large reservoirs have always been tremendous fishing spots. However, finding concentrations of fish in vast expanses of water can be tough until you discover some reliable spots. The Missouri Department of Conservation has a shortcut to help anglers find places where fish congregate.

For years, the agency has been creating “fish-attracting structures” with everything from cast-off Christmas trees to commercially manufactured structures made of recycled plastic. Such sites traditionally were marked with buoys or signs on shore. The only hitch was that you had to motor around until you discovered them. Now, the Conservation Department has ways to shorten this search.

The Conservation Department Web page, http://www.missouriconservation.org, has detailed information about fish attractors on many lakes, and the agency continues to post information about additional areas. Some maps consist of lake outlines with numbered brush- and rock-pile fish attractor locations keyed to lists of map coordinates for each. Other maps - like those for Fellows, Pomme de Terre, Stockton and Table Rock lakes in southwest Missouri at http://www.mdc.mo.gov/areas/swest/ - are interactive, allowing anglers to zoom in on aerial photos and access GPS coordinates for dozens of fish-attractor structures.

To access the fish-attractor locator maps, click on the region you are interested in at the bottom of the Conservation Department Web page, http://www.missouriconservation.org.

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