Gavin

Looks like he took the bait again! LMAO...

Havent fished for buffalo...but it appears that they are mainly a plankton feeders.... http://mdc4.mdc.mo.gov/applications/mofwis...aspx?id=0100011 Small inverts, crayfish, or worms might work...or you might have to draw a reaction strike. Suckers appear to be more carnivorous...mostly small inverts and aquatic worms.... http://mdc4.mdc.mo.gov/applications/mofwis...aspx?id=0100128 Good luck with your quest.

Fly fishing for smallmouth is good right now, but it will get a lot tougher in October. Float the James now if you can...then float the Eleven Pt. in October. Cheers.

Given the water level...pretty low...I'd head way upstream, pack light, and be prepared to drag...Otherwise...I'd go someplace thats not so well served by canoe rentals..

Ozark Hideaways is a good book..Think I paid 5-6 bucks for it on Alibris or Amazon. Might be a few tresspass issues involved with some of his recommendations though. FWIW, the mill pond above Dawt usually holds a few bass if your floating down that way. Cheers.

Looks OK, for a sit in kayak, but you might enjoy something else better...there was a recent thread on the subject...check it out. Also, if your worried about price.....make sure that you budget for any accessories that you might need...life jacket, paddle, a rack and some straps to car top it, etc...Used boats pop up on craigslist all the time....might get a better deal there. Cheers.

If you cant find a site in the park...Eagles Park has some RV sites available....head out the downstream end of the park for a half mile or so and it will be on your left...Ozark Mountain Ranch is a bit further...Pine Crest is up the hill and back toward Salem aways. Cheers.

The best beetle that I've ever fished with.. http://ozarkflyfishers.org/fly/beetle.html still have around a dozen tied by Jerry when he tied for Hargrove's, I only break them out for quality fish that have refused other offerings. Cheers.

Vida slab, and the Forest Service Fire ring on the way to MDC's Mill Dam Access are popular local party spots...Should be OK if you fish them in the AM...but lots of folks will be swimming, etc in the afternoons...I'd go to Lane pay the parking fee and fish downstream. Mill and Spring Creek arent far away if the LP is crowded. Cheers.

I borrowed a friends Buffalo 16 for a self shuttle float with my my nephew and his dad a couple weeks ago...It paddled just fine. Not sure what all the buffalo options are but the one we had didnt have a carry thwart (piece of aluminum tube instead) and it was a bit on the heavy side....Not a bad boat for the price, but I'd add a carry thwart and some better seats. The ones it had were molded rubber pads. Better than the OT rotomolded butt huggers, but you couldnt put a sit backer on them. Cheers.

Scissors, vise, bobbin, flat jaw pliers for crushing barbs, and decent lighting is all I need for most patterns..but I couldnt be without a couple different sized hair stackers, comb, dubbing loop tool, and a couple kinds of hackle pliers. I have a few specialty tools also, but I couldnt do without any of the above. Cheers.

I'm not a fan...They catch fish but its not the way I like to fish...To me, fishing a senko is similar to dead minnow fishing with no weight...cast upstream, let it sink and wait for your line to move...snore....easy to gut hook fish if your not paying attention too.

My opinion...coffee is a food substance...therefore, illegal..plenty of other effective beetle patterns to choose from...Been finding a few beetles & tons of crickets in my pool skimmer basket. lately.. Cheers.

My wife and I have stayed at Rockbridge on several occassions...Its a nice place.....Think its $95 for C&R fishing, but at those prices, its cheaper to fish for a couple meals worth of fish and quit..Lots of other stuff to do there...shoot, hike, do the Mill tour, eat, drink at the Mill Bar, or fish for smallmouth on the Bryant. The motel units are nothing special, but they are very clean...The steaks at the restaurant are good, and they have pretty decent wine list. Make a reservation if you intend to eat there. Cheers.

Largemouth...26" or so..big private lake near Elsberry, MO in June...White 1/4oz Buzzbait off a log in 4" of water MO Smallmouth 19" on the trout section of the Meramec in August, White Zonker around 4" long.

Whats the basis for your desire to ban treble hooks and for catch & release in all of our blue ribbon areas? Are you noticing an abundance of beat up hook scarred fish, or has there been a sudden decrease in the fish population caused by angling pressure? I can see a need for barbless and no treble regulations on some fisheries, but not on others. The C&R areas on the White...it makes sense...Upper Taney... it makes sense. The other blue ribbon streams in Missouri just dont get that kind of angling pressure, so I see no need to go barbless or ban trebles at this time. Cheers.

Worth a shot...have em mark a map for you, and ask em when the would go there to fish it in the next couple days based on their knowledge of the tide table. Best time to scout is at low tide...look features that will funnel water and baitfish when the tide changes and for holes or structure that might hold fish when the tide is in. Falling tide fish the outside of the funnels, rising tide fish the inside of the funnel and have an escape route planned, high tide, fish the deep spots inside, slack low tide fish the edge outside and have an escape plan. Cheers.

I have a couple in my smallmouth box...They seem to work better on riffle water with a frantic splashy retrieve to draw a reaction strike..Cast em out and strip like mad for a fast splashy erratic retrieve...Havent tried it, but I'd imagine it would be a great bait for white bass or stripers busting bait balls on the big lakes. Cheers.

Downstream in my solo....I use a regular paddle...It's easier to make minor corrections, and I can scull it so I dont spook fish with a yak paddle waving in the breeze like a giant yellow butterfly. Upstream--kayak paddle has the advantage.

You can fish the beach, or hunt around for some wadeable flats, or fish the bridges at night. Its not hard to catch fish with a fly rod, if you can find them.. but finding them can be tough w/o knowledge of the area, knowledge of wear to be depending on the tide, or some type of watercraft so you can cover a lot of water.......Best bet would be to hire a guide for a couple hours of night time dock light fishing. Docklighting isnt very demanding, and its usually fast action... The hard part is picking out the better fish.....Lots of snook, trout, jacks, and occasionally a small tarpon. Cheers.

There is plenty of public access on the Grand, and its easilly wadeable most of the time...just pay attention to the regs...much of it is C&R only fly water. Hope you have a great trip..make sure you order your pasty's with ketchup, and get some smoked whitefish...If your headed through L'anse stop at the Hilltop for the giant cinnamon rolls. As for Canada...I think youll need a passport these days. Cheers.

I've done a bit of fishing in the central U.P..Its brutal fishing...small water choaked with tag alder, jack pines, lots of channel braids that lead to nowhere, mosquitos are plentiful, tons of deer ready to leap in front of your vehicle, plus a good population of wolves and black bears. Its the only place that I've seen wolves in the wild outside of Y. Stone or AK. Easy to get lost up there because it all looks about the same. There are some campgrounds around Seney and a motel, but there is better lodging, and food in Grand Marias. In that area I'd try the Fox, Driggs, Sucker, Two Hearted, and the Carp. Here's a good source for maps and access in the UP. I'd recommend a 4wd to get to the more remote areas. Especially after a rain. http://www.fishweb.com/maps/index.html In Ontario...I'd recommend the Grand River near Fergus...its a tailwater, but regs are pretty restrictive....There are some nice little B&B's and Restaurants in Elora...Lots of info on the Grand and other streams in the area at grandrivertroutfitters.com..I've fished with Ken and my friend John has many times...He's a top notch guide. Might check out hipwader.com and grindstone anglers for info as well. Cheers.

The NFoW and Bull Shoals in MO currently has only one water patrol officer...I'd prefer that they kept him on staff. I really couldnt care less about folks having fun, but I think there needs to be some sort of LEO activity in the area. LEO's have the power to introduce a lot of misery into your life if they choose to, but for the most part they play a positive role by providing some deterance. Last thing that I want to see is the NFoW to become a haven for rowdies because LEO activity is non-existant......The NFoW gets a lot of float traffic on the weekend, but its never as bad as some of the more notorious rivers around the state. I'd like to keep it that way. Cheers.

A loss of $41,000,000 of revenue spread over how many customers?...I'd imagine that it works out to less than a couple pennies a day for folks in their service area.

I usually avoid the Rainbow to Blair stretch of the NFoW when its snotty or I fish down between Blair and James Bridge...the moss never seems to be as bad down below Blair and the fishing is often as good or better than above...I rarely float James to Dawt cuz its the ugliest stretch of river IMO..No trees on the bank on the Northfork Ranch Property, and a plethora of ugly trash palaces on the bluff side. I've had some decent bass fishing in the mill pond on occassion though. If we are lucky well get some high water to flush it out before fall. Cheers.