Kayser

Depends on what you mean. The ones that I have seen on LOTO just have a valve that closes to keep the air in the tank, so the lift is still up, but it will still ride the wakes. If you are wanting it to stay at a set level next to the dock and not go up and down with the wakes, they might make one, but I don't think I've seen one.

Not to mention that the larger (trophy) sized catfish are more important than smaller fish as far as brood stock goes. Rob

No, well below highway 19. I don't think I've been to the river up there. I was fishing closer to CC.

Busy weekend on the river, saw two, maybe even three other fishermen. Couldn't buy a bite with the sunfish, only managed one green sunny in two days, no goggle eye, no longears. Mainly gar bites on the minnows, nothing on nightcrawlers. Did get a nice blue cat on a limb line, a bunch of 8-12" spots, and a drum for the cooler. Kinda shocked at the drum, neither my dad nor myself has ever heard of one this far upriver. The smallmouth were everywhere, mainly on plastic craws, with one 18" coming on a big minnow. All smallies released unharmed. All spots filleted. Rob

All it would take is a name change. Several popular species have done the same (chilean seabass was once toothfish). And people eat fish out of the MS River, I love buffalo (sold as river fish in taverns), and the big rivers are really the only place to get them. I think we need a thread to discuss new names for the things to increase marketability. No ideas yet, but I'm thinking... Rob

Keep in mind, this is all just a guess- Scud Hook, marabou/ostrich herl tail, thread base with v-rib over it for body, dubbed abdomen, swiss straw or goose biots for wing pads, midge diamond braid for a wing case (back), couple turns of the marabou/ostrich herl (same as tail) for the collar. I'm thinking I need to go get some v-rib and diamond braid now... Rob

I only fish the Meramec in the winter when I need a quick trout fix after classes. The idiots are all gone, it's open 7 days/week, and there are no parking/fishing fees. So many better places to go while you're in Rolla, I don't even mess with the park during the keep season. Rob

Gotcha. I was hoping to get some shad raps and original rapalas down to that magical 20-25ft mark, but it looks like I'll need to get some different baits for that. Rob

Just curious, but how do you get your cranks to run 25 feet deep? Put a weight in front, or will the Wart get that deep on a long enough line? Rob

Website uses the divisor of 800, giving a weight of 7.76lbs, which is still on the heavy side. Using a divisor of 1000 does work better, but that isn't the given value for the equation anywhere that I've read (DNR, F&S, anything). And if the 775 or 800 is accurate, then that 25" bow I caught this spring would weigh 8-9, instead of the 7 I thought it did. Rob

Nice fish! Also took this opportunity to use the handy trout-weight equation [(Length x Girth x Girth)/775], just to see how accurate it really is, because normally you only get length+girth or a weight of the fish in question. Anyways, came out to 8lbs... I think this equation might be just a tool to reinforce fish stories... Rob

The main difference is that the "dead zone" would be temporary, as algae could re-oxygenate the water with the waste from the oil-eaters (hydrocarbons and CO2, the main food for algae). Also, I'm not entirely sure that the microbes use respiration- they could be entirely photochemosynthetic, and not relying on 02 to degrade the oil, just the oil and sunlight, or even just oil. Not everything needs oxygen to live, as a matter of fact most microbe species don't need it, or it may even be toxic to them. If the oil remains, then the water would remain toxic for years to come, and even if the wildlife recovers, we still won't be able to eat the seafood, and the recovery will be a lot slower due to the toxicity. Recruitment and survival rates of wildlife are still much lower than they should be in the Prince William Sound due to toxicity caused by lingering oil that was never cleaned up. This goes for everything from killer whales and otters (higher predators) all the way down to krill. Rob

Ok, so I saw this in one of my classes, and finally found it online. The actual story starts at 2:10 or somewhere in there. So, microbes have been used on oil spills in the US before. Also shows the use on coastal marshes, not just open ocean. Not saying this is the miracle solution, but I think it's like a pretty good idea. http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xdjxsw_oil-eating-microbes-the-quickest-so_news Rob

There is a lake in Southern IL where muskie were introduced a while back, and the bass fishermen have claimed that it has ruined the lake. Well, this lake is producing more big bass and crappie than it ever has before, and gave up the state record black crappie this last year. There was even a net installed at the spillway to keep the big muskie (works on other species, too) from escaping during periods of high water. The bass in the electrofishing surveys are getting bigger, and more prevalent, but the average catch is going down (due to increased pressure and fish moving deeper), so the bass fishermen claim that the muskie are ruining the lake. The crappie guys will tell you the exact opposite, and that it's also good for the local economy. Rob

I've only been to Roaring River once, quite a while ago, but the time I went the people in the park store made sure that you had your name on your stringer, and said that the game warden would definitely issue tickets for not having your name on it.

In the right spots, there are plenty of hungry little trout perfectly willing to strike, it just seems that you need to figure out what is good vs. bad water and focus your efforts. That and using proven fish catchers helps. My first trip, I had the best luck on small egg patterns, san juans, and standard princes. Also had some luck on beadheads when I finally switched over. The most important thing about fishing the LP (like everywhere else) is to get a good drag-free drift on your flies, unless you're stripping streamers. Mending is your friend. Rob

If you were a pike, I would've given you directions down a dead end road in the opposite direction. But Lane Spring is the place to go. The water is cold enough year round, and I had one friend catch a 21" on a spinner there a couple years ago. I didn't believe him until I saw the pic. But I have a few other creeks I spend most of my time at- one gave up a 25" wild rainbow to me in April. But like I said, come by Delta Sig this fall, I need more fishing buddies. Rob BTW- what kind of rod are you throwing?

Rooster tails and fly-spinners are OK, but rapalas and spoons are not. Need single point hooks in the fly zone. He can also fish flies under a indicator with the spinning gear, just a little harder to cast. Good way to nymph without mending being much of a problem. Outside of the park, Lures and trebles are OK, but no soft plastic or live bait. Rob

I would, but you're a SigEp. Then again, we're kinda neighbors, and I could always use another trout fishing buddy in Rolla. Drop by Delta Sig when fall semester starts up, I'm always up for a trout trip. Can't go this summer- in NC for an internship. If you want to catch trout, pay the $2 parking fee and fish down from Lane Spring. I tried below the 63 bridge during finals week and only got one at a small side-spring. Water was really warm everywhere else. Also found a lot of empty nightcrawler containers near the bridge... Rob

JD- this isn't Soviet Russia, and we don't have Stalin to OK it for us. Yes, it has been done before, yes, it worked, and no, it's not an option this time. Unless you want 3-eyed tuna...

What Phil is probably referring to are oil-degrading bacteria, which have been chemically engineered to eat all of the oil and grow as non-toxic first level consumers (like algae, except they eat oil instead of capture light as an energy source), which actually forms a biofilm (like algae, pond scum, etc) that can be eaten by zooplankton, shrimp, and other low-level consumers. I watched a video of it in Microbiology, but can't seem to find it online. The stuff basically comes in 50lb bags of dry powder, then gets mixed with water and sprayed onto the oil. It degrades all of the petroleum- from asphalt and tar all the way up to octane and ethers, and was used to clean up an early 90's spill off of Venezuala (I think) when a supertanker exploded and released it's oil into the water. And though BP might not care about the environmental/nontoxic aspect of bioremediation, the fact that is costs about 25% of what their expensive toxic dispersants does probably would make them interested. Surprised they haven't started with this already, probably would've saved them a lot of grief. Oh, and when there's no more oil to eat, the bacteria just die off, just leaving themselves as fertilizer, basically. Rob

Don't forget the San Juans! They usually save every high/muddy water trip I have. And don't be afraid to make them really big so the fish can see em. Rob

Agree with everything you just said, SKMO. Far more afraid of irresponsible gun handlers and meth-heads. Animals are predictable. People, not so much. Would also like to add that raccoons are the closest relative of bears in the US, FYI. Rob

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