AJ Brown

I was hoping you'd change gears and ask about SOTs - because I can weigh in there. I've got the Heritage 12' SOT (I think it's the same model as the 10', just longer) and I've got the Ascend FS12T (Ascend's 12' SOT). Both are great boats for day trips, and heck I've even done an overnight float with them. The Ascend SOT is a little bit more comfortable due to the fact that the boat is actually molded up behind your back, but the Heritage is less of a barge in the water. Both have plenty of storage (in rear and in the boat) - if price is an issue, the Heritage won't do you wrong.

Do you know of any regulations for hunting on rivers, especially the James? I'm pretty familiar with it from floating - but I would have never thought about duck hunting on it. I guess I'm confused how, in terms of trespassing, etc., that would work. As long as I stay on the river/river banks I'd be legal to hunt there?

Hey all, I'm new to waterfowl hunting as of this season - and I got hooked hard and fast. We hunted up near Stockton and did alright, but it was a decent haul every time we went. I was talking to a guy who said his buddy hunts on the James River just upstream of Delaware Town Access. Anyone have any info, regulations, words of wisdom, etc. regarding hunting on the river? It seems like it would be a little tricky considering only the actual waterway is public area. Any input?

You're right about seeing mostly yaks, canoes and rafts on the Buffalo - especially if you're renting from an outfitter. I'd recommend staying at Gilbert. There are several outfitters that use Gilbert as a take out, and there is at least one outfitter that has cabins about 50 yards up the road off the river. You can be shuttled from Gilbert up to Baker Ford for a decent 5-6 hour float (depending obviously on how often you stop). If you're looking to get out on the water really early in the morning, you could probably make the float from Woolum to Gilbert also, but it would definitely be an all day float.

I guess I hadn't thought about gigging. It really might be the culprit...

We floated from Delaware Town to Shelvin Rock on Sunday - and noticed loads of dead fish. They were floating in slow pools, near brush piles, and on the edge of the bank. Mostly catfish and suckers. Anyone have any idea what's going on with the river?

I would also suggest a rack. Here's the exact ones I ordered from eBay. http://www.ebay.com/...6132ef9&vxp=mtr The "temporary installation" hardware (J-shaped bolts) didn't work a bit for me, so I just permanently bolted the mounting plates. I bolted the mounting plates closest to the cab under my toolbox and just bolted through. Nice thing is that the rest of the components break down and I store them in my tool box when it's not set up. $140 total for front and back has been well worth it. I can put my canoe and two kayaks up there all at the same time. IMG_0466 by hunter2601, on Flickr 383503_3175978395766_1154760018_32671094_47828397_n by hunter2601, on Flickr

Not sure how to delete this, so... it's sold.

I'm selling my Pelican "Manistee" 10' kayak. It's nothing fancy, but I've upgraded and I'd like to get another SOT for the lady. I've used it less than a half dozen times, but I have added two rod holders, paddle clips and a cup holder (nothing too special). This kayak isn't the fanciest thing around, but it's affordable and gets you on the water. I'm looking to sell it for $175 or open to a trade for a comparable SOT kayak.

That video dates me by over 20 years - but is still incredible. I don't imagine there's anyone out there who fishes/floats that wouldn't agree. Thanks for posting.

I can't speak from experience, because I haven't had the chance to float down towards Galena (although I hope to this Spring). According to my Paddler's Guide, however, the James isn't really floatable past Galena.

I'd love to get the chance to float the Kings. We've camped at Rockhouse numerous times, and we always thought it was the secret of a select few. It's odd but cool to see that it is really a common point on Kings river floats. Hopefully we can get down there soon to float some part of it.

Shouldn't need more than some carriage bolts and treated 2x10s and 2x8s or something close to make a big A-frame out of 2x10s with 2x8s spanning across.

I ran into the same issue a few weeks ago. I was getting my fishing license at the regional office and asked about them, she said that not only were they out but no one had them because they haven't released the update version yet. There's a number to call on the MDC website to order some, but she said even they were out. I called anyway just to see, and sure enough they did have some. I had to pay a few bucks for shipping but all in all I only spent $11. I'm thinking I may have the updated version because there's quite a bit about the Missouri River and quite a few northern rivers. It's a great book... anyone know if Arkansas has a version?

Well it was a great day out on the water. I did more paddling followed by relaxing than I did fishing... still a good day nonetheless. I caught a sunfish and then a little logperch, but a ton of bites on the good ol worm. I paddled up from 65 to where I would have needed to mess with a decent portage... a good 40 yards or so, so I just decided to turn around then. Great relaxing day, I might head out on Saturday to do the same trip with the girlfriend and the dog.

I may take the camper down to Hootentown and try that out and make a fun weekend out of it some time. For tomorrow I think I'm going to stick real close to home. I like the rope idea for pulling it through the shallow parts. I'm just now being enlightened by all of the possibilities of floating and fishing in the area, I guess I just never opened my eyes to it. I've never been to Lake Springfield, where should I put in? Is that access you can see from 65 the best bet?

Thanks for the input. While I have both a 14.5' canoe and a little 10' kayak, I do plan on using the kayak. I guess I'll just put in at the lake and see how far I'm willing to paddle back upstream. I also hadn't really thought about heading further downstream, I guess it's really not too much further from Springfield to do something like that. Looks like I have so deciding to do.

First post here, lots of useful info. I've got the day off tomorrow and I'm looking into floating/fishing somewhere on the James and/or Lake Springfield. My problem is this - I don't have the luxury of having someone else with a truck, jeep, SUV, etc take me from the bottom back to the top. Anyone ever come up with a crafty solution to this problem? How far have any of you paddled back up the James from the lake and floated back down? Thanks