Smalliebigs

very sweet spot.....we have kayaked Lusk twice once it was epic and at a high stage.....the next time we went it was low and we actually caught a ton of 14 to 15 inch largemouth.....both were good trips and that is a very beautiful area for sure. nice pics Andy we tried our best to catch a smallie but didn't....although I think there is another creek in the vicinity that has a few????? rumors???? I would love to catch one over there....kinda my White Whale

David, you are correct you can launch from the cobblestones, right now they are way up the bank. there is an area there designated for launching.....two of the best area on the Mississippi are right downtown for some truly big cats. there is tons of debris as you can imagine, just downstream from the arch .38 miles according to my hummingbird gps is THE spot for Blues. there are a bunch of dolphins on the west bank where the barges stage and the debris is abundant, the current scours out holes and ditches behind the debris and the BIG Blues hang there.

First I must agree with Wrench the Evinrude 50 hp could be the best of all time.... too east to get parts and fix for cheap compared to most outboards. Columbia Bottoms you must always use caution on the big rivers, they are both low right now and the channel is fine for a medium size boat that planes up. all of the wing dams are very much out of the water at this point so that make navigation easier IMO but the channel does snake a bit.Electronics will help, mine has the hotmaps premium chip which gives you a good idea of where the channel is........be careful!!!! also right now there is little to no barge traffic which helps, it can be a hell of lot more dangerous with several long barges navigating the channels. The pattern?? well it has been the same for years any medium to deep diving crank bait will do. Fish any structure you can find.....most people bank bang the riprap on the wing dams, it seems like the Hybrids and whites like the rock out there, so anywhere you can find some rock. The best spot of all and is one of my secerets,it is really two spots, one beeing the down side of the Chain of rocks dam or levy and the upper side. Right now it is a huge rapid as the river makes a huge ripple right over it. The spot come with caveats, to go to the down side you have to go down into the Mississippi thru the chain of rocks canal and lock thru at the end, then come back up stream to the bottom side of Chain of Rocks dam or levy. This is about a 12 mile run one way and with the lock at the end you never know what could happen but the fishing on the downside of that dam is crazy for Whites and Hybrids, walleye and cats. the upper side of the dam is good fishing too with way less runtime but, if your motor conks on you??? you may go over the dam and this is a sketchy proposistion most won't take chances on. I have a new motor that I have confidence in and take the chance for the reward. It is a very industrial looking area that scares some off but it can and does produce for us. You should expect a ton of snags and you will loose some plugs which can be fustrating.....the fish don't seem to mind cheap cranks so we use a variety of Basspro plugs and walmart will put certain cranks in a box in front of the fishing section buy those they are cheap as hell...any Gizzard shad or white color will do, then you just have to get your crank to bang some structure and hold on!!!! ......respect the river and you will be okay. Here's what you will see Here is a chunck rock bank in the Missouri that we nail Hybrids on

I agree with what Joe said100%........my wife and I floated every year four 4 days on our aniversary 09/27 since 1999 and the last two we actually saw people and we didn't catch any fish bigger than 20 inches. I also am constantly looking for fish the whole time I float and always see several pretty big browns.....this year didn't see one big trout.....kinda weird I agree with Joe!!!!! as we left the ramp at Baptist this year one day, there were 6 other canoes each carrying a man and woman couple who looked like they had just been told what to order from the Orvis catalog and they listened . It seemed like only one of them could actually do anything other than a roll cast and all twelve stood in the river just down from the ramp like it was the park and looked confused as my wife and I paddled thru them???? very peculiar they caught up to us at Schaeffer Spring and were wanting to know if we had any food as they were very hungry and how much further it was to Cedargrove.....I couldn't let a group like that get in front of me as I knew the fishing would be fucked by their paddles slapping the water and canoes hitting every rock.....it was just something I had never experienced on the Current but, I only fish it from September to March.

oh yes Harris!!!! if you want to try around town, try what I call the poop chute....it is a drainage pipe that comes out of the bank on the East side of the Meramec right below where the old HWY 30 bridge was. I fished there the other day from a yak and caught three crappie and five white bass, all where very good size.....this area can be fished from the bank now with the water levels so low and the pipe isn't really draining but there is a cut in the channel there with tons of debris and the white bass move in and out of that area thru out the day as the move up stream I assume???? even better when that pipe is flowing water into the river this spot becomes very good but, you can catch them there pretty good on a small shad pattern crank bait or good rooster tail......beware you will loose some rigs but fish are there, just an idea.....I would really like to fish today.....oh would I like to go

Depending on what kind of boat you have there are options closer to home. Thomas Hill aint bad in the winter, you will be only fishing a small area that is effective and the wind can be a bitch but, I have caught some there and decent ones too. I have a 19 foot Seaark with a deep V and we have been killing them out of columbia bottoms....go down to the mississippi lots of nice Hybrids,Whites, sporadic Walleye, BIG Drum,some flatheads........lots of fun ......use medium diving shad pattern cranks on any structure and hold on.

I completely stole both jig ideas from a dude who sells them in Virginia......those were the best looking ones of the bunch for sure....some of the other ones I tied looked like dung.

We fished from Sand Ford to Plum Ford and did okay with the biggest fish beeing only 17.5. The bummer is we did catch 5 that had what I considered gig wounds and we took pics and reported it to authorities. I would echo what Corey said, the river is as low and as clear as I have ever seen it and we were able to see the bottom in even the deepest pools that I can't ever remember beeing able to. That beeing said the fish are very spooky to say the least, you have to be very diligent in stalking them and keeping yourself hidden......long cast from shadows to them will help your catch rate immensely. We caught them on some custom hand tied jigs in Olive tipped with some very small chunks We also caught some on some RC stx's and pointer 78's in a very clear or ghost colors due to the ultra clear water. I hope you only have a 16 foot deal with a 60/40 because that river is low and the channel has been running in the same area now for awhile, there are some gravel piles and rocks in some very dangerous spots.........BE CAREFUL

Mike, no offense to the zig jig as i have bought from him in the past and like but, try these guys too http://flatheadjig.com/ he is in Lebanon, MO and is one of the friendliest business people I have ever encountered. they make me several jigs in a variety of colors and they nail smallies and trout in the trout parks and outside on the rivers....try their wooly bugger jigs in olive w/gold head and black w/nickle head....you will like.

Sweet video.....kinda reminds me of some old Virgil Ward clips. I'm glad you got to finally get away from the fields for a bit and run the jet.....kudos. The Eleven Point is such a cool river

You said it there Ronnie.....it's tough to always have the camera around your neck 24/7 to get the shots. That's a great pic, we have a family of those beautiful birds in our yard and every evening we get to hear all their different calls....it's really cool to sit on the deck listening to those owls drinking some pinot noir. who cooks for you......who cooks for yall...... who.......who

wow Gary and his program is really falling fast!!!! what a bummer......All is good according to most around here with Missouri's program???? I don't see a whole lot to be excited about next year???? 5and7 mabey 6and6 and a congrats you don't quite suck as badas the rest of d-1 bowl game.....not good for my olde MIZZOU

LOL........if football was only 3 quarters Mizzou would be killer????? There would be a ton of good great major league baseball teams if they didn't have to pitch the 9th inning. Maty Mauk please step up and show us what an actual quarterback plays like.......or I hope he gets a shot from this pathetic coaching staff.....who knows. I know Maty is a Johnny Manziel clone who has speed, guts and passing abilty better than Franklin. He will run this goofy spread better than Franklin. Bottom line is Pinkle and his staff need to recruit way better or this is going to be your Tigers.....fighting just barely for a bowl bid which is pathetic in the NCAA........I still get all excited for their games though.

and I was ridiculed on here for saying we hear Cougars regularly howling and screeching in our large pasture at our farm off of HWY A behind Bell mountain Wilderness area......lol I can sympathize with that guy, they are a bit spooky when you see them in person.

If you go after smokers well then you need to go after obese people and people who have contracted aids thru sexual contact, both groups put a burden on the health care system just like smokers and are lifestyle choices. No new taxes until are economy is rolling along again.....if ever will be and even then think twice. The school systems, specificly the R-7 district have been seeing increases in revenue recently and it has done nothing for the students map scores. Quit throwing money down that rat hole to pad teachers under funded pensions and put AC in all the rooms. worry about this they are just as bad as smokers to health care

I'm already packing my bags for Colorado

I have waded the whole section from the darn to Lenny's..... and from the park to the upper end of the lake. Not many people are as dumb as me to wade that. Mike it's very dagerous in there and you stay away....lots of slick rocks and cougars

Sweet pics!!!! and man those CC fish look emaciated. I'm glad to hear more and more people are giving up on smallie fishing until Spring

Dude.....sweet pics and it looks like you guys had a great time.....great for you and your family!!!! the pic of you and your daughter cracks me up with her rubber gloves....priceless

lol

Oh my god thats funny!!!!! thank you for posting.....I needed a good laugh.....kinda reminds of the dudes at the trout parks I see in the winter.

see ya

see ya

see ya

see ya