bfishn

That's a politically correct version of the adjective I had in mind. :-)

^^^...the most well-reasoned, logical post in this thread...^^^

Nice Quill! Seems like there's something missing from this thread, but I can't put my finger on it... When you cleaned them, were there any bass in their craws?

Right where they were before I carried a phone around. Behind the driver's license and the picture of Raquel.

There could be huge differences in available food type and quantity over just a couple weeks.

Go there all you want. Continuing to repeat that removing a fish that has already spawned multiple times erases the genetic lineage of the parent just proves you weren't paying attention in class. Rice Krispy squares, possible high heel combinations? Heydezoponroni.

What does any of that have to do with these special genes you keep preaching?

You keep saying that, but it doesn't pass muster. A fish that theoretically has "big fish genes" (an unproven theory at that) has those genes as a fingerling. By the time they become the "large fish" you speak of, they've already spawned many times, ensuring the continuation of the parent genes. Then, when they're really large and nearing their natural life expectancy, their ability to reproduce wanes, and they become worthless for extending the gene pool. Hatchery managers routinely cull out the oldest broodstock for that very reason. I'm not saying there's no good reason to release big fish... but the reason you're using is a poor one.

This bit of prose from a fellow of note gives some insight to what this day of remembrance meant about 135 years ago, before it was considered a "holiday". Sleep, comrades, sleep and rest On this Field of the Grounded Arms, Where foes no more molest, Nor sentry's shot alarms! Ye have slept on the ground before, And started to your feet At the cannon's sudden roar, Or the drum's redoubling beat. But in this camp of Death No sound your slumber breaks; Here is no fevered breath, No wound that bleeds and aches. All is repose and peace, Untrampled lies the sod; The shouts of battle cease, It is the Truce of God! Rest, comrades, rest and sleep! The thoughts of men shall be As sentinels to keep Your rest from danger free. Your silent tents of green We deck with fragrant flowers Yours has the suffering been, The memory shall be ours. -- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow So, the subjects were the fallen from the war that (in spite of Longfellow's promise) it seems we'd prefer to forget... the war that divided this nation to the family core. The one our great granpas either witnessed or participated in. Today's petty internet bickering and so-called partisan extremism that, on the surface, appears to be dividing us simply pales. We aren't divided... THAT was divided. Something to ponder this weekend while that pontoon load of party plows thru where you're fishing. Just smile and wave. It's not that big a deal.

You can get 18 inchers on Amazon for ~$25... I think 3 of them could be as effective as one 6 footer...

Just a misunderstanding of terms. "Ice Age" is the time period, not the location, so Ice Age artifacts can be found anywhere. You're correct about location though, none of the actual Ice Age glaciers ever extended much south of the Mo River. Some of the best glacial drift is in north Mo.

Nobody would have bought that.

Have you actually looked for that stuff, or are you just wishing someone else would do it for you? Here's a start; https://mo.water.usgs.gov/fact_sheets/fs-092-01-wilson/report.pdf https://mo.water.usgs.gov/fact_sheets/index.html If you'll search out the references listed in those documents, they will provide even more information, and the references in them even more... If you're seriously interested, there's enough freely available documented research to keep you entertained for a lifetime. Some of it you may have to visit a library for, but there's an ever-increasing repository on the web if you're willing to do the diligence to find it.

There's a Facebook page claiming he gigged it... ...off a bed. Haters...