My home water for over twenty years. A cold, clear tailwater that fishes 365 days a year.
I came to Branson in 2001 to attend College of the Ozarks, fell in love with Taneycomo, and never really left. After a few years away, I came back home to Branson in 2013 — and I've been guiding these waters ever since.
Taneycomo isn't a lake the way most people picture one. It's the tailwater of Table Rock Dam — cold water pulled from the bottom of Table Rock Lake that holds a steady 50 degrees year-round. That cold water is why the trout thrive, and why we fish here every month of the year.
Table Rock Dam can release up to 20,000 cfs. Whether the turbines are on or off completely changes how we fish — and knowing those patterns is the single biggest edge a local guide brings.
Over half a million rainbows are stocked every year, but the browns are the prize. More than half the browns here run over 16 inches — this is genuine trophy water.
Constant 50-degree water means the fish never shut down. Midges in winter, sowbugs and scuds year-round, and explosive bug activity through the warmer months.
Taneycomo's brown trout are something special. Roughly 94% of the browns measure over 13 inches, 55% are over 16 inches, and one in five tops 20 inches. The Missouri state record — a 27-pound, 10-ounce brown — came out of this tailwater in 2005.
The dam was completed in 1958, and the cold, oxygen-rich water it releases turned Taneycomo into one of the best trout fisheries in the country. We fish it with respect — every trip is catch-and-release.
Two-hour intro wades, half days, full days, and family trips — all on Lake Taneycomo.