Greasy B

In our beloved Ozark rivers good crayfish habitat often equals good Smallmouth habitat. As goes the crayfish so goes the Smallmouth. The prospect of invasive crayfish upsetting our aquatic communities is frightening.

Cool bait. How would you rig it? Hook eye at the tail I’d guess, so it looks like its fleeing when retrieved.

My sentiment exactly, you can go way back and find that history has been learned over and over. I want to thank whoever suggested The River Why further back in the thread. What a great book. I had kind of given up on fishing books, novel or otherwise but I’m enjoying the heck out of this.

Mitch, can you elaborate on the Clearwater Craw?

You’re probably going to find bedding fish off and on for another month.

I parked my truck at Rich's a couple of months ago, the folk were great help. The old owners were great as well. I don't complain much about shuttle cost, a persons time is worth something and the drives are pretty long on BP. You are also getting more than your vehicle moved you are getting security as well as a contact who is aware of you being on the river, that's something that is invaluable if the water should rise or if some mishap should come along. Ozark outfitters have to be somewhat threadbare operations due to the unreliable seasons and limited revenues. The spiffy outfitters are usually the ones supporting the idiot zoo crowds.

I'm in. But if I had to choose between Kings River Ar and Smith River Mt I'm afraid Montana would win. Smith River has always be on my life list but the hassle of permitting and the cost of hiring an outfitter kind if pushed it to the back burner. I always looked at Smith as being the Jacks Fork of Montana but like every thing else out west on a much larger scale.

No, and that's a little unusual, normally I'll spook a few in the shallows. The cold front sure put the breaks on the bluegill. Sunday the fish had very dark spawning colors and they were super aggressive, last night was pretty slow, the males I did catch were pale colored kind of like they looked a month ago.

Gosh I hope I'm never too old, I wouldn't have any reason to live if I couldn't fish. At 51 I have slowed a bit but I still think I could carry a 40 lbs pack 8 or 10 miles into the back country, that is as long as my knees don't give out, and my back doesn't act up, and my heart doesn't fail me, and..... Oh well I guess maybe I can't, but by god I'm going to enjoy the heck out of doing what I can.

While Black River is not one of my haunts I sure appreciate your tolerance of well behaved float campers. The ability to float and camp on our Ozark rivers is a treasure that I never take for granted. Rest assured I only leave foot prints and take nothing but memories. Thank you.

Good grief $85 is a bit much. I had my tongue somewhat implanted in my cheek when a described it as literature. it is a fun and informative home bound publication. But if the only thing you gleaned from it is what a great and effective fly a Tups Indispencible is that would be worth something. Oops, I didn't intend to let the cat out of the bag on the Tups.

Angling literature without equal! Good luck in your quest because to get my copy you’d have to pry it from my cold dead hands. In all seriousness it would be a great find for you, it comes from a bygone period and attitude that fishing is not that darn complicated and should be fun.

This year in the central Ozark streams I frequent we have July water levels in May. The low water is sure going to throw a loop into my Smallmouth float routine. Typically I’ll fish as high up a watershed as I can early in the season then follow the water down river as it drops out, fishing the barely navigable water that most folks avoid. Once the low water of late July forces me to the crowded main stem sections I Armor All the canoe and go back upstream to tough it out dragging and wading. It looks like I’ll be going through a lot of Armor All this year. We’ve been blessed with good water for the last several years; fish numbers and size reflect this. When advocates of tighter catch and keep regulations speak up to folks who have been catching and keeping decent fish their pleas fall on deaf ears. I recall many a season after several droughts year when you were hard pressed to catch any of the 15” to 17” Smallmouth that make for quality fishing. If this is the start of a prolonged period of low water we’ll be doomed to several seasons 10 and 12” Smallmouth, the upside would be a greater recognition of the need to preserve stream bass for growth.

Well said, thank you for a voice of reason.

I don't think I like this forum so much anymore. I am a flawed person who may well expose my flaws by making a post here. When I was in a bad marriage my x made it her goal to rub every miss step in my face. The only recourse I had was to go away. I wish Ron good luck, he did the only thing he could.

Yep, my favorite Bluegill lake has a LMB slot. The small ones go in the pan. I haven't had a need to flavor them any different that the bluegill but the butter and potato chip bake in the oven recipe sounds awfully good.

You may not have the opportunity to shop locally. Many of the smaller shops will almost certainly go out of business once the big box stores move in.

Forgive me while I clean the boogers that flew out my nose onto my phone at the suggestion that forum post have journalistic integrity, hilarious. Good grief next thing you know someone will demand grammatic accuracy. if that's the case uneducated rabel like myself will have to bow out. When these threads devolve into mindless blather nobody can really win an argument. It's much like when barroom blowhards get into a debate about things they know little of. In the end everyone goes home, sobers up so they can do it again the next night. Nothing learned, nothing accomplished, just another hangover.

If you compromise your expectations just a bit you have countless alternatives to JF. You just have to take the time to explore those rivers or sections of rivers not served by liveries. If you can find wonder in scenery that is a bit less dramatic, get used to looking into water a little less clear and deal with suttle logistics that are more work, a whole world of float fishing opportunities await.

Oh yes! This next week will offer the best bluegill fishing of the year. If for one reason or another you think bluegill is not a worthy game fish my heart goes out to you, for you have much to learn.

Between 6x and Ross you will miss some fine scenery and what is usually some so so fishing. Your float from Mason to 6x might just be the sweetest water on the whole river. FWIW 6x is private, I don't know if that matters.

If you time it just right you can catch a bunch of these guys with a fly rod and popping bug. Once the summer comes on they will go deep.

You don't necessarily need to stay in the water. There are no simple explanations, that why the threads about the subject are so in-depth. You can just go fishing, use your best judgement, respect the stream side and don't worry too much about it. Good luck and good fishing.

Advances in photo technologies will soon make post production more important than what is in your view finder when you snap the picture. I don't think there is any debate to argue. Craft can take many forms and how you choose to practice that craft is entirely up you.

You might want to read the other Little Piney thread again. The land along streams are not public unless owned by a state or federal entity. You have an easement over private land. Just a heads up.