"We are temporarily suspending trout stocking on the Lower Illinois River.

Stocking trout is a complex process that depends on trout availability from hatcheries. We conduct two types of stockings. Seasonal stockings come from private hatcheries and occur from October through June. Mitigation trout are provided by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) hatcheries based out of Arkansas during and after the seasonal stocking season.

Last year's flooding significantly impacted USFWS hatchery production, resulting in the loss of approximately two years' worth of trout. Although the hatchery was not a complete loss, the flooding greatly reduced production and has affected the availability of trout for stocking.

The hatchery currently has trout in the 3–4" size range. It takes approximately 19–22 months for trout to reach a stocking size of 9-11", so recovery will take time. Hatchery staff are working diligently to rebuild production while also raising fish for future stocking seasons. This shortage affects all public waters that receive trout from this hatchery.

For perspective, so far about 36,000 trout have been stocked in the Lower Illinois River in 2026.

We are working closely with hatchery managers and will resume stocking as soon as fish become available. We appreciate your patience and understanding and will continue to provide updates as new information becomes available in September."

Been waiting for some bigger fish to test my 7’ mh clarus and nasci 3000 on and it definitely happened this morning, first striper ever and first spoonbill, which i snagged on accident going for striper. (He was released and swam off quickly. Also im 6’4 for reference on the size.)

1lb 6oz

I only started fishing this pond the last couple of weeks because i thought it was empty and so far had never seen a fish even close to a pound. then yesterday fatty bit a fluke but jumped and spit me out. Came back this morning and got him in, talk about a good way to start the day.

Does anybody know if the river in Oklahoma City has bass in it? I see people bank fishing all the time down there but it mostly looks like guys catfishing. The area I’m most curious about is the stretch from western to the dam just east of it. I work in the area often and it would be nice to be able to hop down there and bass fish on breaks occasionally.

Oklahoma' record smallmouth buffalo, caught in 2019, was found to be a 62-year-old female, and was thought to be the oldest known individual of its species at the time. The native fish was spawned in 1957, 11 years before the completion of Broken Bow Reservoir, the lake from which it was caught. By back calculating the length-at-age, biologists believe the fish had reached 50% of its total length by age 6, and 80% of its total length by age 17.   

I have great luck with crawdaddy plastics of any kind but never get bit with a worm. What's your go to?

The title says it all really, do you carry a firearm while fishing the bank? The reason I ask is because I’m considering doing so myself and I wanted to get some input from my peers. I tend to solo fish at all hours of the day & night, in all manner of places (some of which have been pretty off the beaten track) and I’d prefer not to look like a target should some dastardly type get it into their heads to accost me. Suggestions would be appreciated.

I hope this is allowed, as I said I wanted some input from my fellow Okie Fisherpeople - if it’s not permitted I’ll remove it. I realise the subject has the potential to be quite derisive but please keep it civil.

Stripers are ocean fish, but when Denison Dam went up in 1944 — the largest of its kind in the world at the time — it created the perfect conditions for them to thrive in fresh water. That’s why Texoma is called the Striper Capital of the World, pulling in millions of visitors every year.

**Edit** Not fresh water but brackish water. Naturally occurring water with a salinity higher than freshwater but lower than seawater.

Got out on Father’s Day. Kids were out of town, wife hates me, so I took the local bait store owner and his son out fishing. Good day. Nice bi-product of trolling for walley- slab crappie! Big walleye on the right was 5.2

I find myself always wanting to pick one up as it's a great way to try new gear without having to do much research on your own. I also find it easy to tell people to get me the box as a gift so they can still feel like it's thoughtful without asking me about my niche. I have really enjoyed the crappie and panfish boxes and feel they are worth it. On the bass boxes I always seem to get the same 2-pack of EWG hooks, 2 plastics of all kinds, and usually a jerk bait or huge whopper Plopper.

While I use most everything in the crappie and panfish I hardly use the plastics and hooks in the bass box.

What's your opinion? Buy or pass?

The daily limit is now 20 crappie per person on Lake Eufaula and Atoka Lake.

Conversely, there is no crappie daily bag limit at Close to Home Fishing waters and Lakes Dahlgren, Boomer, Holdenville, Purcell, Shell and Wewoka.

Was using my go to curly tail jig and was catching dink after dink. They fought so hard I swore some were 2lbs til they jumped. Good day. Ready to catch some big boys tomorrow.

Hey guys, I posted a couple weeks go about a free fishing/boating app I've been working on called BuoyPilot. I finally got it published earlier this morning.

I built it because I wanted a better way for boaters to mark hazards like stumps, rocks, and shallow spots, but I’ve also been working on fishing features inside the app.

Right now it can show fish known for a lake and give lure/bait suggestions based on the current conditions. It’s definitely still growing, so I’d love feedback from on what could be improved.

Here’s the link to my website. From there I’ve got links to the iOS and the Android build:

https://buoypilot.com

I would absolutely love feedback. I want this to be the go-to app for fishing/boating.

If anyone has any decent spots from the bank near the tulsa area or just tips for fishing here in general would be greatly appreciated, if i stick with it gonna invest in a kayak in the next few months

Hi folks, I was wondering if I could get some advice. Unsurprisingly I’m looking for a challenge and as the title suggests I’d like that challenge to be a big cat - flathead, blue, whatever. The issue is I’m not sure where to start looking! I typically hit Overholser, Arcadia, Hefner, and Stanley Draper and in each of them I get a fair number of decent channels and blues but nothing north of 8-10lbs. I’m sure a big part of that is down to the easy accessibility of the lakes I’m going to means the waters are overfished. That being said I’m not scared of a road trip!

Help me out Fishing Fam, where should I be trying?!

More fish habitat has been distributed in Eufaula Lake as part of a five-year Habitat Enhancement Project! This year, 271 new structures have been added to the lake, thanks to donations from the City of Eufaula, Major League Fishing, local anglers and the Fugitt Foundation, along with matched funds from ODWC.

Structures are important for popular fish, such as bass and crappie, who gather around downed trees, rocks and log jams. This habitat breaks down over time, so artificial structures supplement natural habitat in lakes.

This was the first time concrete reef balls have been used in the Oklahoma Fish Habitat Enhancement project.

You can find a map showing where fish attracting-structures have been placed at the link in the comments.

Did you know you can get your lifetime fishing and hunting license free if you're a Chickasaw citizen?

After no luck for the longest time I have been on a good bite pitching the reeds.

Caught on a 1/2oz black and blue chatterbait

Got out for a couple hours on Skiatook in the kayak and got a few takers including my first OK walleye. Later in weekend took the kids to Veterans Park in Jenks- fished with worms from the yard and they landed a few.

Patch looks sick and im waiting for my first month of the magazine