3wt

On Saturday and Sunday (later in the morning due to cold on Sunday) what I thought were Tricos turned out to be tiny olives (baetis I think?). They were sub-20 and the fish responded well to my usual greyish smal dry fly w/grizzly hackle that I use in Montauk for Tricos. I find wierd joy in seeing a different mayfly than the usual trico down there. Like the other day on the roof at work (close to the mississippi river) I saw a mayfly fluttering - turned out to be a red-quill looking thing about a 14 size, and it wasn't just fluttering, it was being held by the head by a tiny spider that was haning from it's silk. I only had my cell phone camera and couldn't get a good shot of the thing. Too bad, i thought a couple of like-minded nerds here would appreciate it.

For floating: You can't float in the park (fyi, the spring is in the park). If you have your own canoe, I'd put in at tan vat or baptist camp. Tan Vat is a kind of poorly marked access, first downstream from montauk when you follow the road along the river past the campgrounds. Baptist is the next (at the top of a big hill, road turns to pavement). This will let you float the best fishing stretch - you might drag quite a bit this time of year. If you need to rent, they'll probably only put you in as far up as Cedar Grove (due to low water), which is where the Blue Ribbon area ends, and fishing isn't very good (Some seem to have some luck once you hit welch springs - which is a big spring that cools the water back down, can't miss it), and there will be tons of floaters on a weekend. The most common day float would be Cedar Groave to Akers Ferry. Nice float if there aren't many other floaters. If you're looking to fish, the blue ribbon is best, but you'll tend to blow by the good fishing quickly if you don't make a real point of stopping often. It's really best fished by wading. Maybe somebody would rent you a kayak and let you transport it yourself. Then I'd float Tan Vat to Cedar grove (easy to take out there). Try Jadwin for rentals

I'd try some hoppers this time of year. I've also had luck on stimulators. At least having a big dry tied as your indicator makes nymphing more fun. ditto on the #10 olive mohairs.

Tomatos- my best year ever. TONS of them starting in early July/late June. The Lemon boys started first and are still going. Brandywines started early and great and are slowing down. Better boys were a little later but are going too well. Cherries grew ridiculously large and are producing way more cherry tomatoes than anybody could ever need. It's the first year I suckered and trellised vs. letting them go and staking. I'm a believer. I also added a lot of compost because I raised the bed to level it. Much better soil, and I added a little time release fertilizer, and an occaisional hit of water soluble fertilizer. Jalepenos produced tones of peppers and are sill going, Red Hot Chillis going well, and Poblanos are about ready. Bush beans producted 3 good pickings and are done. Pole beans were slowed by a japenese beetle invasion. They are flowering great now and should produce late Sugar snap peas died early. Cucumbers are out of control Squash and Zucchini did great until white flies all but killed them. I don't really know why everybody else is having such problems. Maybe I've had less of the rain, although I had a lot early. I am fightign early blight on tomatoes, which I hear is bad this year. I lost 3 of 4 mr. stripeys already. The last one produced ~5 fruit and is about to croak.

Defininitely lots of fish in tailwaters caught on sowbugs. Not many off, and I wouldn't characterize "most" of the trout water in Missouri as tailwaters. My point was that saying you can catch big trout anywhere in missouri on a sowbug is a little biased towards tailwaters, since there are only a handful of them compared to the ozark trout streams. And the beds of tailwaters are nothing like a natural bed. It's like having a 100 yr. flood 5 times a week. The effect on the channel and overal structure is emense. My real point was the tendency of tailwater fly fisherman to generalize the minority of trout water (tailwaters) to be the norm. Trout behave pretty unnaturally in these odd conditions.

"Day fishing, sowbugs, fished on the bottom, equals big fish in all of Missouri's waters. " Make that Missouri's TAIL-waters. I've noticed the tailwater guys (most everybody here) don't seem to really realize that a tailwater is a different beast than an ozark stream. They are just different, have many more of the sowbug/scud crusteaceans, much greater population of a midge population thus many more fish caught on the midge nymphs. Much less vegetation, and structure than natural streams. They're just a different beast. Maybe I'm wrong, but outside of the artificial environment inside trout parks, I don't see a lot of fish being caught on sowbugs - and in the parks I'd argue that they generally look like trout chow, or fish are just curiously trying foodish looking things.

Don't get me wrong. I have a special tie to montauk too. I think it's the best stream in the state, and in winter during C&R it's my hands-down favorite. I don't look down on it at all, and I love the early morning siren routine. The stream is kept in near perfect condition in my mind and is rarely messed with. The "in the woods" feel is tough to beat. I'm not one that catches 20+ fish routinely, in fact more than 10 is a rarity for me most days - so I don't count it as easy. The only complaints I have is the crowds, the put/take trout that don't REALLY behave like normal trout. I've never fished CO, but even the wildER trout in the blue ribbon areas here are a different animal altogether. It's generally a trick to get a trout to hand in the blue ribbon current w/o a net. I rarely need to use one for stockers. Really though, I don't look down on you...I'm in the club.

My experience is that the mass of floaters is from about 9 or 10 till about 4. They generally move slowly. 99% are day trippers and are hitting the major input to major outlet points. IF you can float these stretches early, you'll be in better shape. It's tougher on the more popular rivers w/more access points, but on the current, if you put in at ceder grove at 7, you'ld pretty much miss the crowd until you hit akers. Then you'ld pick up the akers to pulltite crowd, but most would be alreay put - in by the time you hit akers and you'ld be behind that crowd...maybe...if you took a liesurely lunch...ah who am I fooling, you'll be disappointed if you try to avoid crowds on the weekend druing the summer. I recommend weekdays or waiting until school starts up to avoid crowds. But I only like floating if it's pretty much perfectly serene. Good luck

By the way, you can take "reservable" sites if they are not reserved on the day-of. They put "available for X nights" signs on unreserved sites. Not that it matters, everything is now reservable at montauk.

Check: http://www.icampmo.com/SearchPark.aspx Select Montauk; choose loop/options. See what's available. one available on loop 2, two on 3, nine on loop 4. You're good - I personally like loop 4. Very quiet at night. You could even make a reservation still if you could choose a site you like - map and pictures + descriptions available.

I love montauk, but you must be the only guy in the northwest that longs for a daily stocked put and take hatchery-fish trout park in missouri. Aren't you surrounded by "real" trout water? I will check out your blog once you get it going. Good luck with the lunker. I've never been a lunker hunter - can't stand to pass up good looking fish spots to keep looking for the big one...and I think that's the trick, keep walking and scouting and don't waste your time until you see the monsters. Also use big fat flies.

Watch out in fly only areas. Likely considered natural bait... Which reminds me that I need to invent the trout chow beetle fly and prepare my argument that it meets the "any material" tied to a hook criteria...It's gonna revolutionize the sport.

not many floaters if you stay above cedar grove. you can camp at montauk, eagles park, ozark mountain campground, or just sleep on a sandbar.

I've been kept up at Montauk too...I seriously wonder what the hosts are there for most of the time. Good luck getting them to enforce quiet time or even helping you get a ranger to. I don't know, eagles looks like a big open field to camp in. I kind of like the park like feel at montauk even if it's crowded. At least there's usually some shade - nothing worse than trying to catch a nap in a sunny tent. I'll stop knocking eagle's park now. I just don't see it as a comparable alternative to real primitive camping on a sandbar. apples and oranges.

Never stayed at eagles. Probably never will. If you're into seclusion and a natural experience, do the gravel bar thing - lot's of options down from baptist, just bring something to float your gear on-it's not that far to wade. Oh, and if you choose the right spot, you can get some night fishing in without really needing to wade too much in the dark... I wouldn't put eagle's in the category of secluded or natural, in fact it looks like a good place to be kept up all night with partiers who aren't getting up as early as you to fish.

Fishing was good. The river is probably in the best shape I can remember it. Water is just slightly off color and running at a really nice level. Didn't fish all that much, spent some time at the swimming hole at Tan Vat to keep cool. Caught fish on mohair leeches, PMS, stimulator and scuds. Suprisingly light trico hatches. I'm used to seeing clouds of the things at about 8:30 or so this time of year. My theory is that the nymphs really like vegetation, and the flooding over the past two seasons is really cleaning the stream bed out - which is nice, but I really like a little fishing around cress beds where fish can hold. The heat really kept the crowds down, which was a nice suprise. Sunday was cooler and beautiful, which made it really tough to leave.

And, anybody that thinks the place is getting less popular is crazy. You can't get a campsite during the week unless you plan for months in advance. If it does cut down on the crowds then I like the natural concept even more.

Just got back, and I have to say: "what moss" and "Don't touch any banks, and really don't clear them" Go to meremac springs if you need easy access to banks. Th only moss problem I see is maybe in the bait area pools, but there is much, much less vegetation in the water up in the fly area compared to the past few years. Keep montauk more natural. It's not a jungle, but it is a forest, and we should keep it that way. I love feeling like I'm fishing in stream in the woods. If we put a road or nicely trimmed lawn right up to the stream then the whole experience is diminished.

Gotta say that I don't see a whole lot of stoneflies on the current - just an occasional big yellow one fluttering by itself. If stonefly patterns are hot on the current river, it's news to me (and I'd be interested in what pattern and when.) I have heard of people (myself included) having luck with stimulators, which are more of an attractor than a stonefly. They also work well for trailing a nymph off of the hook bend - I think there's a pattern here, or you can get it anywhere, and you can play with colors all you want.

Yup. I've done the one day there and back fishing from buzzer to buzzer (on only a few hours of sleep - ya know the night before trout jitters...) and almost fell asleep on the drive home. Nowadays I tend to do Cardiac for single-day trout.

I'd suggest spending a few bucks on waders. My limited experience on Taneycomo is that shore fishing is limited at best even if the water is down, it's wide and witout great shore access. If the water is marginally wadeable (like 2 generators) you still need to get in pretty deep even to get to most of the outlet areas It's also dang cold, so if you were imagining wet wading, even in the heat of the day, I would pass.

Oh and if you only want to do bass 8'-9' 6wt. If you want to seek perfection, harmonize yourself with nature, cleanse your aura, please the Lord, and learn to fish for trout (while still wanting to go after bass); then 8'-9' 5wt.

Temple Fork Outfitters makes arguably the best rods for their cost. For like $90 you can get a rod that is of very acceptable quality and construction. For $50 or so more you can get a very nice rod that will rival rods that cost twice as much. For my money, the $90 ONE series is what I recommend for beginners (and veterans that don't fish often). You can go to cabelas (sorry for plugging the enemy) and get it "bundled" with a decent reel and they essentially throw in a scientific anglers GPX line that normally costs ~$60. The line is a great line, which is potentially more important than the rod when you're learning to cast.

Add up the cost of $10/pair and a new pair for almost every trip-assuming you're like most of us that loose, scratch or break the cheap things beyond any reasonable use. You can justify a better pair very quickly, they will last longer and you will learn to take better care of them. I finally broke down but not for "fishing" sunglasses. Yes, they are much better in clarity and polarization. I can't read my radio display, gas station LCD displays with them unless I tilt my head just right. I have rayban normal perscription sunglasses, polarized and they are terrific. I needed something that wouldn't make me look like a cataract patient when not fishing. Variable density would be great, I find myself not using mine until about 8:00 or so in the morning, and miss out on a lot of fish I nearly walk on, but I just can't see the fly or much else with the sunglasses.

Okay that probably came across a bit harsh. I just think MDC is doing a dis-service to the people who don't want to fish a tournament and plan a vacation around a weekend when fishing is RUINED by trournaments - I've been there, if you're not a meat hunter during a tournament you will be very annoyed by an awful fishing situation. Competition makes crowding acceptable, and walking through any spot where you don't see a lunker suddenly becomes the norm. Get them out of the parks, make it free to fish if you're not interested in the tournament, do something. It really transforms the park into more of a zoo. I'm just glad I'm arriving on the 7th and not leaving on the 7th.