Greg

Can I ask if your kayak is a sit on top or a sit in? I've been thinking about buying one. RS I would be interested in what you think too. I recently went on a float trip with my 2 sons. We rented a canoe and a kayak and took turns. I really enjoyed the kayak although it was a bit small for me. It was a sit in. It was remarkably easy to maneuver. It was a bit hard to get in and out of but I'm a big guy. I did like the backrest on the sit in. Appreciate your thought on this. I've been looking at them for some time. Greg

You are right in that there sure doesn't look like there is much shade at eagle's park. I've often wondered why the owners don't plant some trees? It would probably increase the parks value as well as possibly bring more customers. Greg

I've never stayed at Eagles park either but I am going to at some point. I've heard just the opposite. I've heard the owners are extremely nice and that they don't put up with loud parties and such - especially after a reasonable time. You can run into yahoos wherever you are. Last year my family and I camped for a week in the MDC Montauk campground. The first few days (during the week) were great. But when the weekend came it was not so nice. Greg

Both very nice reels. If the seller has a good track record (ebay feedback) and the warranty is still good - I think you would be fine and would be getting a good deal. The radius is a lot like the new Konic. But it is machined whereas the Konic is cast. So at least in theory it should be a bit lighter and stronger. Greg

Sounds like a great day. I've never really caught much on dries at Taney. Were you casting to rising fish? Greg

Brian I sure tried to fish deep. I varied the depth probably from 5 to 10 feet. Ryker and I were throwing prince flies, brown woolys, and stone flies. They were weighted and seemed like they were getting down to the bottom. I added some weight at times too. I definitely missed a couple of hits. I fished for a while to a huge brown. He just sat there mid stream probably 10 or 15 feet from me. Couldn't get a take though. Could have been the time of day too. We were mostly fishing in the middle of the day. We didn't hit the river until about 10:30 AM.

Very nice. Can you tell us a little more about the fish? Was it caught on the White? Or the Norfork? Length and weight? Greg

My 2 sons and I did a float on the North Fork last Thurs July 2. Beautiful day and I really enjoyed the time with my 2 sons. I don't get to see my 21 year old as much as I'd like anymore so it was great to spend a whole day with him. The day would have been perfect except we got SKUNKED. Now granted we played around as much as we fished but still we fished several hours and not a single trout. I got a lot of advice from some experienced people too (Brian Wise and Michael at BCO) so maybe it was just an off day. I did see quite a number of bows and one huge brown. Twice I was casting to a pretty good group of fish but I just couldn't get a take. My younger son was in awe of the NFOW. He said it was the prettiest and cleanest river he had ever seen. We floated from Kelly's ford down to riverside canoe rental. We rented a canoe and a kayak. My older son and I took turns in the kayak. My first time in a kayak. I really enjoyed it. Totally different handling than a canoe. Despite getting skunked we definitely want to make this a yearly or biannual event. Greg

I agree with both of you. I dislike the aforementioned boaters - especially the ones that will come within a few feet of waders without even slowing down. I've almost been hit several times!! Also dislike the shufflers and those that crowd you when you are successful. Fortunately they are in the minority (both). 99.9 % of fly fisherman are not shufflers and keep a respectable distance. Most of the boaters are courteous too. As with anything there are a few jerks that can ruin any given day. Greg

Wonderful story Rick. I've seen the reproduction many times in Michael's store. I'm glad to know a little about the story and the man behind it. Greg

Mine was a male rainbow right around 8 lbs. Not a very good pic attached (disposable camera) but he was right at 25" long with a girth of 16". I caught him in late winter maybe 6 or 7 years ago. On Taney between outlet 2 and rebar. The funny thing is I had caught a female close to the same size the month before in the exact same area. Since then I've caught numerous fish 20" or better but none as large as these 2. Greg

You should check ebay as well. There are always a # of them for sale there. I've purchased a couple of beautiful rods from builders that mostly sell through there (ebay). Greg

Simms makes the best quality waders IMHO. Mine are 4 years going on 5. Actually I love all their stuff - waders, boots, vests, etc, etc. Greg

Didn't do any night fishing. But did get to fish Sun in the daytime. Just an awesome day of fishing. Best I've had post-flood on Taney. Mid morning a guy next to me caught an 18" female bow that was just a pig. Shaped like a football. He asked me to help him photograph and measure it which I did. I'd already caught several decent fish but was wishing I could catch one like it. 10 minutes later I hooked and landed a male bow that was just a bit bigger with a really impressive kype. That was the biggest of the day but most were nice sized. And a lot of the fish were acrobatic doing multiple jumps. Also caught 3 browns. Bring on the low water!!!! At least for a while. OKflyfisher I'm glad you had a good trip too and hope you don't mind me tagging on your thread. Greg

Hope you don't mind my adding my report to yours. My wife, son, and I got out Sun evening to the upper lake as well. We got there late afternoon and after about an hour of decent fishing they blew the horn. Dang!! But surprisingly the fishing actually got better. We switched to slightly bigger flies and I added a single shot to each rig. At that point we all started catching much bigger fish. We all caught several in the 16 to 20" range. Last fish of the day right at sunset my wife Tina caught maybe her biggest rainbow to date. An extremely fat and lively bow that was a solid 22". No pics I didn't have a camera much to the wife's dismay. I hope we are going to see some lesser generation. I have missed fishing Taneycomo. Greg

I think the 4 piecer's have far overtaken the 2 piece in popularity BUT I still have a strong preference for a 2 piece. They just feel better to me, are slighter quicker to put together, and are less likely to break (IMO). But I do have a couple of nice 4 piece rods that I use at times. One is a backup that's behind my truck seat all the time. I also take it or the other when I fly (not often). Greg

I haven't been to Bennett in a few weeks. Last time I was there the water was up quite a bit but the fishing was very good. i think that was about a month ago. I'm sorry about your job too. I hope you find something soon but that you get some quality fishing in the meantime. Greg

Good for you!! As a healthcare professional I see people every single day that cigarettes have caused very severe health problems. And it's tough to quit too. I work with a guy that been trying to quit off and on for 10 years. Greg

The cigarette butts drive me crazy too FG. I see it all the time. I think the butts break down in a year or so but still.......no excuse. Glad you had a good day. The high water is driving me crazy too. Can catch fish but just not as fun. Looks like we are stuck with the high water for a while though. Greg

I hate cheaters too. But can someone really go to jail for cheating in a bass fishing tournament like that? Greg

I'm with everyone else - had no idea they were in MO. I caught several in Canada years ago but nothing that big. Congrats to the new record holder. Greg

They are made overseas. In China I think. My only bamboo rod is not a headwaters but it was made in China. It seems like a pretty good rod although I haven't used it very much. I've done some reading on chinese made bamboo rods. Some like them and some hate them. My opinion based on mine is that it would be a good starter bamboo rod. Greg

I really never was much of a rod builder Terry. I built several but I could never get the wraps quite up to par. They were very functional just not very pretty. I do have one 7.5 ft 4 wt that I still use but I've given most of the others that I built away. I'm more of a collector now. Greg

Terry we generally go straight down 65 and then cut over on 62 just past Harrison. Not a bad drive but much further than the 45 or 50 minutes to Taney (for us). I do know there is a shorter way to that general area (Mountain Home) but the time we drove that way we didn't like it. Very hilly and curvy and lots of 2 lane. I think it actually ended up being a little longer in travel time for us. If you know a better way I'm all ears. Greg

I agree totally. I have quite a few rods but find myself using an 8'6" 5 wt 95% of the time. BPS, Cabela's, and Scientific anglers all make pretty good starter outfits for not a lot of $$. I used a Cabela's 3 forks rod when I was first getting back in fly fishing 8 or 9 years ago. It was a good rod. Greg