fishinwrench

On the wall of the old Camdenton courthouse there are some old pictures taken during the clearing of the land before impoundment, a couple of them were photos of some rough lookin' old dudes (probably loggers on a day off) holding stringers of bass, at least half of them you can tell are Smallies, the writing below the pictures say they were taken on "Buffalo cr. near Zora". I'm talkin' stringers of 20-30 fish..... all NICE ones ! There were also some photos of the confluence of the big and little Niangua rivers, it was either a popular ford or a ferry crossing back then and the river looked really awesome...even in black and white. It would be amazing to see what lies on the floor of this lake, wouldn't it ?

Wish I could get away, looks like she's a foot or so high....'bout perfect ! I'm hoping that the fast water washed all that gravel out of the riffles at the access. Give us a report when you get back. Good luck

Oh it would be cool to see the plug pulled on this pond. Just think of the MILES of smallmouth rivers it would reopen...Gravois cr., Mill cr., Soap cr. the Glaize, the Buffalo's, Cole Camp, the Niangua's...... I hope I live to see it.

I was looking over the zippered waders and the zippers don't go down far enough. I mean, I don't know how well you guys are equipped....but I'm pretty sure I'd still have to drop the shoulder straps and pull them down to take a leak. Reminds me of that story about the old farmer that just reached in and pulled out the side of his overalls..... We are derailing at a tremendous rate...aren't we

a "REAL" flyfisherman wouldn't walk all the way to the porta-john.....he'd fish 'til he couldn't see straight anymore, wade to the bank, toss his rod gently in the weeds and frantically shuck his vest, rip off the wading belt and drop the waders to his knees .... streamside. After the big exhale he then checks to be sure the coast is clear. That guy was obviously a poser...

Here's a good mohair combo for really dirty water, I think it's the little bit of contrast that gets their attention. Mustad 9672 #10 1/8 black tungsten bead w/ 10 turns of .020 leadwire behind the bead. black marabou tail. black mohair body with 3 turns of white mohair for a collar behind the bead.

Cool, Thanks ! You've been suspiciously quiet lately Cricket, you're tearin'em up ain't ya ? Oneshot, Got a special recipe for tree rat ? I used to just roll them in flour and pepper and fry them, but I got some big old Reds this Fall and I was afraid they were gonna be tough as a shoe, so instead of frying them I baked them in a foil covered pie pan with butter, mushrooms, sliced onions and baby carrots.... it was good !

Anybody driven over the bridge or anything ? I was wondering how muddy it got and hoping to give it a shot by mid-week.

Just flushing the leaves and debris from last Fall, which was a welcome event from my standpoint...... They'll fall out quickly I think, there's no more significant rain in the immediate forcast. Shouldn't be any "fish kills" because of it. Doesn't look like the Current, or NFOW got hit very hard in comparison.

I certainly don't sell the trout parks short, I love them. The parks are the best place on earth to hone your skills, or "spar" with fish. Every technique I use that catches fish elsewhere for me, I originally learned in the parks. (I started to say "perfected" but I'm not quite there yet). Your line (or indicator, if that's your thing) reacts the same to a bite in the trout park as it does in Patagonia, and interpreting strikes is a MAJOR key to success everywhere. I wouldn't be half as good as I now am if it weren't for the thousands of bites I've had in the parks. You also get to watch fish react to all sorts of things in the parks...you get to see the "types" of places that they prefer to hold, or hide in. That is something you don't get many oppurtunitys to do when fishing for "wilder" fish. They act the same way in the wild, only difference is you can't always wade in amongst them without disturbing their behavior. I don't get very proud of myself for hooking 30-40 fish a day in a trout park, but I definately get better (at casting, mending, interpreting strikes, setting the hook, and fighting/landing fish) each time I do it, and that pays off bigtime when I fish areas with fewer and spookier fish. The parks are a good place to test or tweek new flys and play with presentations also, if those sore-mouthed, often leader-shy hatchery fish will eat it you can bet your dog the wilder fish in more remote areas will eat it too. At least that's been my experience.

Here's one from the bank of the Niangua river last November

Yep, I have one that I wouldn't trade for anything. It has been many-many miles, upstream and down, lived through two wives... and even lived through a head-on attack by a F2 tornado. The Guide 147 is a fisherman's canoe....perfect blend of propertys for the job. I may get a 169 Discovery and a Penobscott to play in...but I'll never get rid of my Guide 147. I can get down right sentimental 'bout it.

Blue Ribbon sure "sounds" better, but honestly there is only one BR river in MO. that I always find myself truly looking forward to returning to. Never really thought about it before now, but with equal time spent on all I must say that I have had more consistent action, and the most enjoyable times in White Ribbon areas, by far. Taneycomo tailwater, which to me is just another trout park, is my least favorite.... mostly because of the unpredictable flow.

Looks Awesome! What are all those smaller lakes like, that dot the countryside everywhere ? are they mostly shallow sandy holes, or deep crater type lakes ? What's in them? Crystal creek lodge sure looks like a prime location ! What is the name of that extremely crooked river that feeds in there ? That's where I wanna be !!!

The reasonable (do-able) figure I come up with is 3600.00 for 2 people. Much more than that and I could never even consider it....unless I hit the lottery. Personally I would not figure in extra for "seeing a bear", matter of fact I'd throw in a extra 20, if I could, to insure I didn't see one. LOL And no meal is worth more that 40.00 to me, regardless who cooks it or where I'm sitting at when I eat it. A guide for a couple of days would be needed to get a feel for things, but after that I'd want to do my own thing at my own pace. That is unless the river in question is one that requires fishing mostly from a boat ? Bill & Phil, Can you post a google earth image of the stretch of river that you guys guide on ? I'd love to take a birdseye look at it.

It is good to hear from time to time that certain streams are doing ok (fishing well), but in all fairness some really good points are being made here.

I absolutely agree, with a slight exception. I don't believe Crane to be one of them, but there are a few good fisheries in our state that need more "friends". You have to have enough people that love a certain stream and care enough about it so that if any disaster, or rediculis government oriented discision threatens it you have more than just a few guys fighting for it. Does that make sense ? In the case of Crane cr. I believe it is represented well.

"there are quite a few guides in AK who don't like beads... but we out fish them everytime." out fish ? LOL Naw, I'm not gonna go there. To each their own. A grass waving dry fly purist would probably hock-a-loogey on ME for swingin' muddlers, so who am I to say what's fishing and what isn't.

That's the thing, it isn't unethical (to me) if the hook is attached to the bead and you have to physically interpret the strike and set the hook. The theory behind the bead pegging method works like this: The fish take the bead....the hook swings down against the fishes OUTER jaw-line...when the fish expells the bead the hook usually pokes the fish. If you are trying to "catch fish" using this technique and aren't getting it done, then quit "trying"...and you will. For best success do not try to interpret strikes, or set the hook. The rigging is basically a "snare". And that's all I'm gonna say....'bout that

pegging beads is kind of an ethical issue, the technique is designed as a way for lazy guides to simply get a fish on the line of someone who lacks skills .....it is more like politically correct snagging ! whoo Boy, bet I get it for that comment...but that's how I personally see it. Whether it is truly ethical or not is up to the individual I suppose, but It certainly isn't "flyfishing".

Aren't there a few bass clubs that hit the Meramec several times during the year ? Get some side pots going (put a bounty on 'em) and thin them out real good this spring, say in April or early May. And Again in October. Is it legal to keep river spots right before memorial day ?

swEET! I have no room left in my smallie boxes....But who can resist that one ?

All of a sudden, over the last day or so many pics and videos only show up as empty boxes with an [X] at the left-hand corner. Has something gotten screwed up in my settings or something ? Anyone know of an easy fix for this, or something I could check ? I did all the java, media player, and quicktime "updates" but still can't view a lot of the pics and videos that I was able to see just a few days ago. Thanks

Midges have a flavor all their own... pungent, but not overbearing. Less bitter than dogpecker gnats. Pound for pound, I'd take a dish of them over DUCK anyday. "prepared properly" of course.

Once it drops into the teens it might as well be 40 below, far as I'm concerned. Those midges at the high-bank yesterday (Monday), were rediculis. I inhaled/swallowed so many that I didn't have room for the sandwich I took, the cab of my truck is still full of them this morning. What is their lifespan anyway ?