Greg

Trav some predictability would be really nice. It will never happen though. But nothing is perfect. Greg

Put and grow is an MDC term not mine: http://mdc.mo.gov/conmag/1996/11/50.html See the 10th paragraph. But it is not just their term. It is accurate. The MO trout parks are put and take. The majority of the trout there are caught and taken out shortly after they are stocked. Not so with the rainbows at Taneycomo. Obviously some are taken shortly after being stocked. But many, many are in the river/lake a considerable amount of time from several weeks to several years. And those that survive grow fast and are not that easy to catch. This is due to the slot limit in the upper area of the lake. When you talk about "15#" rainbows - I assume you mean 15" rainbows? There are many of those as well as many, many in the 16 to 20" size especially in the upper lake. As well as even larger fish. To me that qualifies Taneycomo as a World class stream right there. Add in the brown trout and it's just a wonderful place to fish. I just wish the generation schedule was a more predictable. LOL. As far as the stockers being not healthy, anemic, etc - that may be true for them at the time they are stocked. But give them a few weeks in the river - at that point most of them are beautiful as well as putting up a great fight on a fly rod or other light tackle. Just differing opinions and no reason for anyone to be put out or upset. Greg

I can't remember where I read it but there was a recent article in one of the fly fishing publications about how introductions of pike to a trout fishery can decimate trout populations. The article stated that has happened in several areas to the point where the lake or river has to be systematically poisoned and restocked with trout. Channel cats are an interesting idea. I would doubt they would have a huge affect on the trout population. But I wonder if they have been stocked in tailwater like Taney? And if the affect was studied? You know the bigger ones would probably snack on small bows and browns occasionally but probably not enough to hurt anything. Greg

That was a really nice report. I've always wanted to fish there. But someone once told me that the entire area is very crowded and that the fishing was mostly for put and take stockers (like our trout parks). I see from your report that is not true. Greg

Nice review. I've seen that fly rod brand before but never cast one. I'm kind of an old dinosaur in that I prefer 2 piece fly rods. But you certainly give up a lot of convenience with a 2 piece (although they are somewhat faster to set up and take down). I'd like to have a nice 5 or 7 piece rod for travel. Greg

I fished Roaring River Sunday late afternoon into the evening. I had a good trip but the fishing was spotty for me. OK but nothing to write home about. I caught 5 (brought to hand) in about 4 hours and missed probaby twice that many. I did catch a couple on dry flies towards the end (Griffiths gnat). I also fished the catch and release area for a couple of hours for the first time. Interesting area to fish. There are some large fish there but they are pretty spooky. The high point of my day was hooking a pretty big bow in this area. I had on 6X tippet though and just couldn't get him in with the water flowing so strongly. I had him almost in once and got a good look at him (maybe 20 inches) but he took off and broke me off. Greg

I talked to a place that sells both solo canoes and kayaks here in Springfield today. Dynamic Earth. This place really pushed a kayak over a solo canoe. They said solo canoes don't track or handle nearly as well as a kayak and have a tendency to "spin around". I still haven't totally made up my mind but this surprised me. They also said that they sell about 20 to 1 kayaks as opposed to solo canoes for fishing. I'm not sure if this is a negative regarding solo canoes though or just that kayaks are the newer trendy choice. I suspect the latter. Greg

Hey thanks for all the posts. Sounds like the fishing is great. I can't wait to get there. On Sun I went to Taney - wish I had driven to Montauk even though it is a lot further for me. Taney is just very difficult to wade and fish right now with the high water. Dennis I'll definitely say hi if I see you. I generally wear a black OAF hat so please do the same (if you see me). thanks again, Greg

Well I think you may have convinced at least one person (me) to purchase a solo canoe. The more I research it and look into the subject the more I'm convinced that a solo canoe is what would work best for me. I think the extra $$ would be worth it for me. So I'd like to thank you for posting this subject. I had never even thought about a solo until this thread. Now which one????? Greg

I was up Sun 5/11 and waded the upper part of Taney. Needless to say wading was pretty difficult in the high water. Fishing was just so so. Caught 5 in about 2 1/2 hours. One was a decent bow maybe 18 or 19". I was fishing up above #1 and also just below outlet #2 (on the stairs). Caught the fish on a zebra midge, a g-bug and a Y2K. The good part was the upper lake was almost deserted. Just 3 or 4 other anglers. At #2 just before I left a father and his little girl came partway down the stairs to watch me. As luck would have it I caught the last and biggest fish of the day. The little girl had never seen a trout and thought it was pretty cool. I'm ready for some lower water!!! It looks like the high water might continue for quite some time though. Greg

We got ours last week. However we won't be buying anything fun or exciting. We need a new roof due to the recent ice and hail storms. Insurance is paying about 3/4 of the bill but that still leaves us with a hefty amount $$$ to fork out. Greg

A few days ago I posted another thread asking for advice about a fishing kayak vs an inflatable pontoon. I had just about decided on a sit on top kayak. I had never thought about a solo canoe. It sounds interesting for sure. One drawback to the solo canoe though is cost. From what I've been able to gather the cheapest you can get into a solo canoe is about $800 or about twice what a SOT yak costs. Not that everything always boils down to $$ but it is still a consideration. Greg

No posts regarding Montauk recently. I'm wondering how the stream is fishing and how the water level/flow is? My family and I are heading down the first week in June for a few days. I hope the river is not up too much. Greg

Thanks for all the info. It definitely helps. I'm still kind of undecided but I'm leaning towards a SOT kayak. Greg

I have decided to purchase either a kayak or one of those one man inflatable pontoons. I'm looking for advise and comments from any fly fisherman (or spin fisherman) that either have one or are knowledgeable on the subject. I do realize they are each better at certain things and either is likely to be a compromise. But I'm only going to purchase one at this point. I live really close to Lake Springfield (in Spfld MO of course) and I'd like to use it there. When I was younger I had a Jon Boat and had a lot of fun bass bugging out of it. Caught some decent bass too. But I'd also like to use it on some rivers like the North Fork of the White and possibly the Norfork and and White (arkansas) and Taneycomo during low water to access some areas that are difficult to wade to. Advice? Thoughts? Any help would be appreciated. Greg

I stopped at Crane for a couple of hours several weeks ago. I got skunked too. But I'll be back. Those man eating snakes can't keep me away. Greg

I've had several pairs of BPS waders. They fit me well and were comfortable but despite taking what I thought was good care of them all 3 pairs only lasted about one year. So for me it was much more cost effective to buy a $200 pair of simms waders. I've now got 3+ years in the simms with no problems. If I had $100 to spend on waders I think I would do as webfreeman said and go with the ll bean waders. I hear good things about their waders. Greg

Fox I'd like to thank you too. Really nice looking pattern. For some reason I've never done that well on scuds. I catch my share of fish but scud patterns have never been a top producer for me. I tied up some of these yesterday and am going to give them a whirl. Greg

The SLT is a fine choice. I have one in a 5 wt too. It's a very smooth casting and versatile rod. I read a review a year ago stating it is one of the finest all around trout rods ever made. Greg

That's very nice Terry. Way back in the late 70's my Dad and I made something kind of similar because I kept cluttering (and scarring) up up the kitchen and desk with my vise and supplies. It worked well but was really crude compared to what you've done. Greg

Leonard I love Montauk state park and the upper current trophy area. But I don't get to go as often as I would like because when you are done fishing - there just isn't that much to do in the area. That's OK with me because I could fish all day and evening long. But my wife and young son are really bored there. You've probably already seen this Montauk links page but in case you haven't: http://www.missouritrout.com/montauklinks.html Hope you have a great time. Greg

Those are incredible. Any idea where they were taken? Greg

Really nice pic. It makes me want to go camping. We may go in June if it's not too hot. Greg

I think the previous suggestion about building some inexpensive custom fly rods and selling them at a reasonable cost is a good one. That would really get your name out there. Offering them on this board would probably work if Phil was OK with that. I would probably be interested. Batson makes really nice reasonably priced blanks. For around here a 5 wt is kind of the all-around standard (for trout). But certainly 3, 4, and 6 weights have their place too. Dano's suggestion about glass rods has a lot of merit. I think glass is a growing market but there are very, very few glass fly rods on the market. The only ones available are fairly pricey. A moderately priced quality glass rod would probably be a hit. I really like custom built rods. I've got several. I really have a lot of respect for the builders too. I've built a few rods. They turned out OK but not anything like what a good custom builder turns out. I hope it goes well for you. Greg

I think you are making some real solid equipment choices. G Loomis makes a great rod. Both of the reels you mentioned are good. One small point is that while the Hobbs creek is a good reel - it is cast metal and if you drop it on something hard (like a rock or a concrete parking lot) it will probably bend and may be ruined. I think the venture reel is machined and is probably somewhat tougher. I think SA makes great lines. At least as good as Rio. One other thing - and this is for you to decide. A 4 wt outfit is a decent choice and even the best choice in a lot of circumstances. But in my opinion it is not quite as versatile as a 5 wt. A 5 wt will throw line better on very windy days and will also handle bigger streamers and indicator/splitshot/nymph rigs better. A 4 wt can do those things as well but not as easily. I think a 5 wt is the best all around outfit for tailwater trout fishing. Just my opinions. Others may have different ideas. Good luck, Greg