Gavin

You have the power. 10pt...MTFA has a hand in those derbys...Tell the bad apples that they arent welcome anymore..

Its not great wading around there...but you have a few options...Huzzah Conservation Area is right across the river...you can wade the Huzzah in a couple spots there..Get a map of of MDC's website...or take Possum Hollow Rd. over to Blue Spring Creek. Have fun.

Will see you down there...Have no idea what the hot fly is....but I usually depend on terrestrial & caddis dries this time of year. The little gray wispy's should be out too.

My wife & I will be headed down to Ozark Mountain Ranch for the Troutbust on Friday...Floating Saturday if anyone wants to work out a shuttle....Tan Vat to Parker most likely. Davinroy, Craig, Keith, Duane, Creepy Steve, Bobber Boy, & the members, associates, and favored sons of the Belleville Piscatorial Society will be down for their fall float & river camp.....Usually a 12-15 boat float...leaving Baptist Saturday Am... Say howdy if your around...Band & Raffle at the Bust on Saturday. Proceeds benefit the Lt. Dan Riordan Memorial Scholarship Fund at my old high school. Say howdy if your in the hood.

Its always the same cast of characters leading those derby's...Its amazing how consistant they are.

Might want to check this link out.... National Park Designations Apparently all units in the Park System have equal legal standing....call it a recreation area if you want....it still holds the same standing as a National Park.

Al, your just trying to rationalize the difference in cost between the cheap POS that you bought...and the rod you really wanted...If its bamboo, or something odd...I make my own...if its a graphite fly rod, I try a bunch of rods...find one the one I like, buy the blank and Tom Hargrove makes a fantastic custom for me. He could tart it up to the hilt, and its not that much more than factory.

Good gosh....How did I get swacked on a Monday? Nevermind...lets roll. I'm not for banning booze because its just doesnt work...Might raise some fine revenue...but its not going to stop the activity. I'm not for for permits for private non-motorized boaters either....Figure that the rentals will grease enough NPS palms so that its impossible to get a permit except through them. Jet boats....are like crack...nobody likes to be around them, except for when they are in them. Then its "OK"..Incredible machines...but way too many already. Horses...stinky, messy, dumb animals....riding a horse is less comfortable than walking....but the horse can carry your fat butt, diet coke, & the rest of your stuff for longer distance than you can walk or paddle...Kinda the same with jet boats. Enforce...yes..and a haircut for the rentals & horse people seems in order...not sure if anyone counts canoes anymore.....but my kin used to get paid a small pittance for counting rental boats down there...Conrad Cabin...bank left between Akers & Pulltite.Seems the numbers have gone up and up over the years. Ruth & her brother David sold that place in the mid 80's after Doc Conrad & Ma died..David's dead...but Ruth is 75 or so fishing & loving life.....She's appalled at how bad its gotten down there.....in fact she doesnt go there anymore....think she wants to go float the 11pt in the near future...Should be fun.

Nice...that is a ton of work! Back & hands were sore from picking up fish and clipping fins.

My selection varies by watershed.....

When is the fish fry? Nice catch!

Have a blast....They have a couple different shock rigs...the one they use on the Current is an old Lowe Paddlejon with a 5hp...There's a picture of it on the link below......Fishing will be slow for a couple days after...The shock rig kills tons of minnows and the fish gorge on them. http://streamsideadventures.com/features/current-river-shocking.html

Not hard at all....tape up the butt and take a fine toothed hacksaw to it. Sand the end smooth and plug it with a dowel and some epoxy...Its a bit more involved if you want to install a new grip...but not that hard. Mudhole or Angler's Workshop sell everything you need in the way of rod building supplies. Cheers.

I'd head Al's advice...he knows those brown bass a heck of allot better than I do...the best fish catcher that I've ever floated with.

Awesome!

Kinkaid sounds like a better bet...and a heck of allot closer to St. Louis...Thanks for the tip!

There is a learning curve.....try to watch the indicator, line, fly, and the fish... If you cant see the fly try to visualize where you think it is...if a fish moves or opens its mouth in that general area...set the hook..Head to the trout park and fish a two fly rig till you figure it out...use a high visability fly like a glo-ball on top, and something small & drab about 18" below that. Pay attention to how much weight you have on too...Add shot until you start catching fish... remove some if your getting snagged constantly. Good Luck.

Good for you guys! Looks like a fun trip!

My link

A couple friends of mine are headed down to Pomme today...Fly & Conventional tackle....Will let you know if they have any success.

I'd bring along some weedless presentations just in case there are allot of leaves in the water... 1/4-1/2oz Spinnerbaits..Zoom Flukes, Jig & Chunk, Weedless Plastics on the bottom, and some Suspending jerkbaits. I'd imagine that the fish will be in their winter holes by then...look for deep water near current and spring holes if your not catching near the riffles. Have fun!

C'mon guys....dont beatch to Justin about what you see elsewhere........the Spencer's do not put up with that....if the rental owners elsewhere did as the do....you wouldnt have much to beatch about.

Sounds like a good trip....FWIW...I've never done that well between Scott's & Indian Springs....not my favorite stretch by any means...lots of river traffic, eroded mud banks & cows....

Justin is exactly right....Rental boats usually have a number on the side...get their number and report them to the outfitter and law enforcement. You may get some satisfaction, you may not. Getting agressive with a bunch of drunks isnt a smart thing to do...Waving a pistol at em isnt either...You dont know if they are armed too. FWIW...a couple choruses of "You Got a Friend in Jesus" and some "Hallelujah Brother's" usually gets the point across w/o being confrontational.

The park tourney's used to irk me a bit....but I got over it. Its a good draw for the park, and some of those MTFA tourney people volunteer a good bit of their time to help out with kid's day. Its a wash, IMO.