Gavin

Hareline does allot of rabbit...if you want a bar-dyed McLeans does that...Wapsi too....Might try looking on the distributor sites to find a color you like, then order it in through Hargrove or some of the big catalog outfits like Feather Craft or Bob Marriot's....sometimes stuff just isnt available at the distributor level.........Guess you can always dye your own....buy some tanned rabbit, and some RIT and play with it. Cheers.

Awesome!...

Thanks, but its already done...brined for 3.5 days & cold smoked for 8 hours on Sunday.....Sliced it up and fried some last night...Darn good! The rest got vac packed for the freezer....I'm sure the -10 degree temp in the freezer & the heat from a hot frying pan will kill off anything that the salt & smoke didnt take care of. Cheers.

I'm sure that someone is going to look into this and there's still plenty of time to file charges if they are warranted...Well just have to wait & see.

Sounds like a great time had by all! Need to get down there again.Can anyone guess were my avatar pic was taken on the 11pt?

I dont worry about it much.....seems that risers will eat a caddis most of the time......bout a size 18 this time of year...grayish brown mostly.......A caddis will usually turn the trick even during a "midge" or "blue winged olive" hatch...if not...break out some small stuff...little thread midge style stuff, CDC may & midge patterns in the 22-26 range......and put em behind a dry caddis. I'm expecting lots of dinks from a recent stocking...That should have things mixed up a bit. Resident fish & FNG's sorting out the pecking order..so who knows what is in store. Think I'll bring my bait caster and a 7" long brown trout colored Rapala.

Your outrage...is what it is...but c'mon..... Hoosiers shoot stuff....They should be charged with shooting a protected species......but the price is negotiable...Jail time...nope..not worth it...not a crime against a person.......I'd assess the fine somewhere in the range of a 1/2 a side of beef from the butcher shop at the low end....maybe the price of a 4 wheel drive to your deer stand and eat a box a twinkies gizmo at the top. Cheers.

Clinger mayflies, and golden stones are pretty common on many streams in MO...But since brown trout & smallmouth are present...I'd be more inclined to fish something the size of a stoneroller or bleeding shiner minnow. Think the unidentified bug is a riffle beetle larva, or an alderfly larva..not sure. Cheers.

See what happens when you go fishing in the cooler first!

Thanks for the link...Of the 11 confirmed sightings...3 were in counties surrounding the Upper Current..Texas, Pulaski, and Reynolds County...none confirmed in Shannon or Dent County yet.

Who's the chick in the pink hat? Is K.D. Lang in Branson now?

No worries..FWIW, I've heard another report of a cat in that area..but I've never seen a cat, or any cat tracks.

No worries...Everybody S/B in camp at least 2.5 miles down from Baptist by Saturday AM....If you see a group of floaters on Saturday, its not us. Good luck to you!

No reason....

Havent been down, but Baptist & Tan Vat are gonna be busy places on the 6th & 7th....

Thanks again...bacon hit the brine a couple hours ago...It's in a cooler in the garage mixing with a brine based on the Alton Brown Recipe with a few tweeks....used apple juice instead of cider(no cider to be found).cut the salt back a tad, added a splash of Maker's Mark, and a touch of Zatarains liquid crab & shrimp boil for some kick...nothing to do but wait, smoke, and wait some more. Fun experiment so far!

Thanks for the tips..Cut down an apple tree last year, so thats what I'm using...Would be interested in some pecan but no source...would be glad to pay postage or pick some up...Have chainsaw...will travel for BBQ wood.

Just picked up a 1/2 a pig for the freezer...Anyway, I didnt like the way the butcher cured the bacon last year so I'd figure I'd give it a go myself. Any tips? I have a whole side of bacon....bought 12-13lbs...Thinking of brining the it in some salt, sugar, apple cider, and molasses with for 3-4 days...Then cold smoking it with some apple wood for 4-6 hours. Not sure about the smoker setup though...I have a large offset smoker...figure I'll toss a couple bags of ice in the bottom, add the deflector plate, keep the fire low and monitor the temp closely. Anyone have some other ideas?

I left some waders in bag, in the garage once.......the mice really had fun with the contents. I hang mine up in the basement now.

Cant think of anything more fun than topwater flyfishing for smallmouth. My 3.5year old & 18 month old are getting a little more independent so I hope to do allot more of that this year. Pays to have some good casting and mending skills if you want to be successful at it though, especially in clear water. This little bugger was my best fly rod smallie of 2009...didnt catch any bigger this year. Give me a holler if you need an on stream lesson. http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=368354&l=1fb1dfc844&id=1647470288

Blue spring fishes best when the water is up... Had my best day ever there when the Meramec was in major flood stage...The Meramec was up over 10' at Onandaga, but BSC was only up about a foot and a tad milky. I'd start with a peach egg, and a flashy nymph below that. Sneak up and make your first cast count. Cheers.

I have the REC Recoil Titanium Guides on my BIIX...they squeak when your really ripping some line...I've never gotten used to that.

I've never messed with the Streamdance Series from Loomis, but my 10' 5wt Z gets the job done..The factory rod comes with a little half wells and no fighting butt, so I had Tom Hargrove wrap it to my specifications...Full wells, amboyna burl seat, fighting butt, and oversized guides (same sizes they use on the 10' 7wt Z axis). Its great for roll & switch casting with a big bobber, lots of shot...up to 3SG's (maybe a bit more) and a couple of heavy stonefly nymphs...Good overhead to, but I like my 9' 7wt BIIX better for streamer fishing. Its been a great replacement for my 9' 6" T&T 8wt that I used to be my primary NFoW stick. Most fly shops dont carry allot of 10' rods...Your welcome to cast it if you want, or have Jack Birkner drop one by FC or Tommy's for a test drive...The 9' 6" 5wt Z was just OK...but the 9' 6" 4wt Z was really nice.

Yeah, the 10' Z 5wt is great for thingamabobbering with big flies and a ton of weight...I'd be interested to hear about your 11'er and how your applying Euro methods to fishing in the Ozarks...leader, weight & fly setups..Havent read much into it, but some of it sounds like what Joe Humphrey's put in his book years ago..Will look for your report.

Thanks for the tip...will give that a go next time I need to do a complete re-season.