riverrat

The regulations read that 225' (75yds) below Bagnell is a no fishing zone.

I think Ham is on the right track. I've always had better luck with suspending jerkbaits and and bottom baits in winter. The water is still going to be very cold. Read some of Babler's posts on fishing jerkbaits on Table Rock-same kind of deal. I like to use a jig and pig- black and blue with a black trailer. The smallies will be holding in the deeper holes. I've caught some hogs this time of year-just not the overall numbers of fish as in warmer water. Good Luck

My buddy and I took a 13.5 mile float above the management area on Fri. Aug. 1. It was foggy early, sunny and hot once the fog lifted. We only caught 35 total, not really good for this long of a float. About half the fish were smallmouth, half largemouth. We caught a few early on top water, then they shut off. Caught a few on a fluke. About 1:00 they suddenly turned on to topwaters. I guess this goes to show you to keep trying topwaters in the summer, even in bright sunshine. I was looking forward to seeing the changes the flood had made, but this section had not changed much. The main change was no weeds, the ones with wide blades that grow in moderate current.

Any lure that works on the Meramec should work on the Gasconade. I don't fish the bottom in the summer, chase the more active fish-maybe to my detriment. Good luck

I floated ten miles in the management area today. The weather was nice, overcast all day. There was a topwater bite early and sporadically all day. We ended up catching 40 between us, with 35 smallies and 5 largemouth- no spots. The largest fish were 3 16" smallies and one 17" largemouth. Had a larger smallmouth come unbuttoned at the boat. Besides topwater, they were caught on a fluke. A lot of the gravel has been scoured out of the river. Most shallow chutes are now deep chutes and some of the shallow eddys now have a deep channel in them. As an example there was in the last several years a chute 300 yards long that was weed-choked and 6" to 2' deep. It is now 6-10 ft deep with no visible weeds. Riverrat

What part of the Gasconade were you fishing? Mainly interested in how high up spots have been caught.

Floated the Gasconade on wed. July 16. The river was up about a foot and a little dingy. The visibility was about 18 in. to 2 ft. There was a pretty good buzzbait bite early in the morning. All the bites were below the shoals next to the weed lines. Once the sun got up good, the bite slowed down. I tried a fluke quite a bit and did not get even a follow, which is very unusual for me. Caught a few on a chomper in the swift water. My buddy and I ended up with 30 total with the largest being a 17" smallmouth. Caught 8 largemouth,no spots. The size of the fish was good with only one less than 12". I did catch a white bass which is a first for me on the Gasconade.

You're talking about a spinning reel and anyone who has fished much with one has thrown "birdnests", so we feel your pain. There are a lot of tricks you can use to lessen the pain. You want to eliminate as much line twist as possible. The most important thing is how you put new line on your reel. Place the spool of new line on the floor with the label side up and hold your rod at about 45 degrees. I hold the line between my thumb and forefinger to add tension. Don't overfill the spool, I usually stop about 1/8 of an inch from the lip of the spool. Also when fishing I have trained myself to always close the bail by hand. You can do a search on this forum for spinning reels or line twists and get a lot more tips. good luck, Riverrat

For topwater baits I always use a light colored bait, except for buzzbaits.

I don't ever use weight with the fluke. If I need to run it deeper I just slow down. I also use fluorcarbon line, which helps it sink faster.

I think you are talking about Hwy 54. The road to the access below the dam is on the east side of the Osage River bridge.

Brian, I got a Hobie Quest. Got it on sale and they threw in a paddle, lifejacket,cart and rudder system. It has a little more weight capacity than other SOTs. I like the extra capacity because I'm bad about wanting to take the kitchen sink with me. I've never floated above Hazelgreen on the Gasconade. I've never seen the river this high without being muddy. With most of the gravel covered I can imagine what the Ozark rivers used to look like.

The launch there is just a gravel bar under the bridge, with lots of lose gravel. I've seen people get stuck there. I launch in the Roubidoux which enters the Gasconade at Hwy 17, and I have to push my paddlejon off the trailer.

Just got back from the river. It was up about a foot, but was pretty clear for the Gasconade. Didn't catch many smallmouths about 10 with the largest 15". Caught 15" and 18" largemouth on a buzzbait. I loaned my paddlejon to a buddy and his wife. Floated 10 miles in the kayak. Different world from what I'm used to. Still haven't figured out rod management.

Sorry the fish didn't cooperate better, they are there or they were last year. Haven't floated that section this year. I'm going today in the management area for the maiden voyage of my new kayak. Riverrat

I wouldn't attempt it. There are a lot of shallow shoals and downed trees to dodge. How much water does your boat require to float? Thats a 35 mile float so I assume you'll have several days supplies. The Gasconade is not really that big there. You could do it without the weight of the motor. Jets don't run very far on this section except below the Big Piney.

Brian- I sent you a P.M.

Brian I would gladly work out a shuttle-float with you on the sections you mentioned some time. I just got a kayak I'd like to try out on that section. I'm working weekends thru June. P.M. me if interested.

There are no restrictions. I don't know if the campground is still open it was called Ozark Springs Campground. I've never seen much boat traffic, but maybe I've just been lucky. There is some decent smallie water starting about a mile below Hwy 7.

The distances on these floats are right in the paddlers guide. I have floated them many times. The only acesses that are wrong in the guide are the low water bridge on rochester rd - a new bridge was built several years ago and you can't acess the river from the new bridge , but there is a gravel road that runs alongside the river there you can acess from. I wouldn't recommend floating from schlicht springs to Hwy 17-the river loses some of its volume there and there is a lot of shallow slow-moving eddies.

January 28, 2007

John, I sent you a PM. Does anyone have suggestions for flies and techniques on a small, clear stream for smallmouth in October? By the way John what made you choose the Little Piney? Its a long way from Kansas.

Hi John, the Little Piney is in my backyard and close to my heart. It's where I learned to swim and where I caught my first smallmouth. I would ask that no one post locations on this forum to such a small stream. I have a lot of fishing buddies that wade fish it regularly. If you'll give me about a week I'll ask my buddies about locations and P.M. you. I don't flyfish so someone else will have to help him in that area. Riverrat

Great pics, Phil. I'm not sure but the first picture may be of the railroad bridge at Jerome. The second picture is not of the Gasconade- the Huzzah is a trib of the Meramec.

I own a jet boat and love to fish Ozark streams for smallmouths, but I never use the jet for smallmouth fishing. I can't understand why anyone would choose a jet over floating or wading- it's not the same experience at all.