Gavin

Bill, Since your old SLR was a Nikon, I'd see if your existing lenses will fit a new Nikon DSLR body. There's a good chance that the lenses will fit. My wife had a bunch of lenses to go with here old Canon SLR, and they work fine with her new Canon DSLR. FWIW, most camera stores will order stuff for you and match an online price. Cheers.

Missouri's trout fishery is heavilly regulated, monitored, and highly dependant on stocked fish, so I'd say that its OK to take limit of trout in Taneycomo and most of our other trout fisheries. I'd draw the line at taking wild rainbows out of the N. Fork of the White or any of the small blue ribbon trout areas. Cheers.

The Z-Axis is nice, a little faster than may 9'5wt SLT. I like it a lot. The Loomis is a great rod too. Cast them side by side. Try short casts, medium casts, long casts, roll casts, accuracy at different distances, etc. One will probably work better for you. You cant go wrong with either of them. Cheers.

I like a 5.5' or 6' medium light action rod for tossing rapalas though I'm partial to the larger sizes (9's & 11's). I usually pair it with a larger 2000 or 2500 series reel as well. I've been disapointed with my Shimano Sahara's because they bind occasionally when the reel gets wet. I plan to get a couple new Daiwa Exceler's before the next outing. Anyone have any comments on the Daiwa's?

A farmer in Springfield? That's odd, the winning ticket was sold at a Dierberg's Supermarket in South St. Louis County. I worked at that store many years ago, and my mom still shops there. If she only played Lotto.

I like then in foil on the grill or oven, I also like them smoked. The trick to smoking them is to soak them in brine overnight before you smoke them (but not longer or they get too salty). Make your brine in the container you intend to soak the trout in. Fill the container with enough water to cover the trout, then add salt until a raw egg will float in the brine. Then add a cup of brown sugar, and 2-3 cap fulls of Zataran's liquid crab & shrimp boil. Add whole trout with skin on and soak overnight. Remove the trout from the brine and let them sit on a cookie racks for about an hour before you smoke them. There skins should look slimy and be sticky to the touch. Its important to let the slime layer (pelicle) form before smoking to help hold the juices in. Smoke the trout with your wood of choice. When done wrap them in foil and refrigerate. Eat them cold. Cheers.

A friend is trying to sell a inflatable boat. Its an Achilles Inflatable boat, around 9' long, and it will accomodade an 8hp motor. Think its the Achilles SPD-96 model but I'm not positive. The boat was purchased as a sale boat dinghy, and shows little or no signs of use. Purchased new for around $1,500. It has a Missouri title and registration #. Make offer. They are also looking to get rid of a Nissan (Tohatsu) 3.5hp two stroke motor. Short shaft, in good used condition. boat pic is available on the manufactures websight under dinghies & tenders. http://www.achillesinflatables.com/mainfra...age=product.cfm Boat and motor would be ideal for a sail boat tender or a portable boat for running around on a small lakes & ponds. Boat & motor are in the St. Louis Area. PM me if interested.

If your using a midge as the second fly, I'd go with something that you can see as your first fly. A glo-ball, flashy nypmh, wooly bugger or mohair leach, etc. Use the first fly as your gunsight.... I usually tie droppers to the bend of the fist fly. Cheers.

John Gulley is really good too. Cheers.

Ashley Creek is about a mile downstream of the Baptist Access. I'm not aware of a road access. FWIW, Ashley isnt THE place to fish. Just saying that I've been catching a lot more fish between the Park and Ashley Creek, than I have been between Ashley and Cedar Grove. Cheers.

That sounds great...all that water should be good for the spawn.

I've fished it several times this winter and the best fishing has been above Ashley Creek. If the water is up, go with flies that look like banded sculpins or shiner minnows. They are the main forage for the larger browns. If you see some risers try small caddis or bwo's or midges. Go with a glow ball or a mohair leaches in olive, cream, or brown if you want to catch numbers. Your best chance for a big one is to get there first or be there last when the sun is off the water. Cheers.

Thats OK...I got mine of Alibris for approx $10 including shipping. Another good one is "Stars Upstream" by University of Missouri Press. Not much about wooden boats, but its has some great stories about the Current and Jack's Fork.

I build a bamboo rod every know and then. Havent planed one in awhile though. I dont wrap graphite rods, but if your in St. Louis check out Tom Hargrove's custom rods...His wraps, finish and feather inlays are fantastic. He is also a great source for rod building components and advice. Cheers.

Thats one of my favorite short stories by Waterman...if youd like to know more about that era in the Ozarks, I'd recommend a copy of Larry Dabblemont's book "Rivers to Run" its got a couple good chapters on Barnes & Owen. Plans for a couple wooden boats, etc. Cheers.

Cabela's has a good rod building catalog, but youll find more stuff at Mudhole or Angler's Workshop. Dan Craft and Rainshadow are also a good source for blanks. In purchasing a blank you might want read up on the the Common Cents System and compare amounst the various rods that people have rated. http://www.superbob.org/CC_Data.htm The system uses a deflection test to compare rod actions instead of manufacturer's rod rating, which may or may not be accurate. Find a rod he likes, then find a blank that is similar. Cheers.

WFT went well, Todd bought himself a hot new crankbait and caught a 20+ brown between the Park & Tan Vat on Wednesday. A little rain, but nice weather Thurs-Sunday. Lots of bald eagles out and about but the fishing was slow. Good time had by all and Kip's cousin Slosh announced that he was getting married. Fun weekend. Looking forward to the 11pt in February. Gavin

Its small and shallow, and its challenging fishing for small wild trout. Havent fished it in a year or two, but there are still a few trout there. Its not a place were you can expect to catch a lot of trout or big ones (most are under 8" long) but the ones you do catch are really cute, parr marks and all. Cheers.

Dont forget the glo ball. Cheers.

The eagle claw feather lights (FL300) arent half bad. I had one as my first fly rod 25+ years ago, and still fish with one occasionally. They can benefit from the addition of a few more snake guides though. Cheers.

I think the 1305 is a 7wt, but as Terry said try lines in 5-8wt and see what works best on it. Its not high quality rod, so feel free to fish the heck out of it, and add guides if needed. As for the Cortland Sylk...I had one and I thought it was a horrible line. It was thinner than a standard line, but the finish was sticky and it didnt float, or shoot that well. Frankly, I think that Cortland lines dont hold a candle to lines from SA or Rio so you would probably be better off looking at a standard line from either of those manufacturers. Cheers.

I cant recommend anyone specific, but here are a couple suggestions. 1)Take a fly out trip and fish the Alaskan back country for trout and salmon(best chance to see bears) 2)Rent a car and drive down the Kenai P., stay near Cooper Landing and float the Kenai for rainbow trout & dollies. Wade fishing for trout and dollies on the Russian. 3)Take a halibut charter (lots of hard work, but lots of fillets) I'd also check with your cruise company regarding half day trips when you are in port. Cheers.

There are lots of motels up by the highway, but not much down by the park. If your looking for something nicer, I'd stay at Windrush or Westover Farms. Both have excellent accomodations and great trout fishing. Cheers.

The upper section can be hit or miss. Cardiac is usually poor winter fishing, this time of year I do better up closer to the spring. Better luck next time. Sounds like a good smallmouth trip..too bad about the gigged smallmouth. There are a few giggers that target game fish down there. Five or six years ago I was camped out alone near Suicide Hill and I spotted a boat full of yahoos gigging in the Suicide hole. I watched them for about 15 minutes and the gigged a couple trout and smallmouth. They put the gamefish in a bag on the front deck of the boat, while the suckers got scraped off into the fish box behind the giggers. Guess thats so they can toss it the water if someone comes?

If your leader is longer than your rod, hook your fly on one of the line guides and loop the rest around the reel foot.Cheers.