Greg

I look forward to meeting you and wish you all the success in the world. Springfield needs Backcountry Outfitters. Greg

Thanks for the clarification and your statement echoes my thoughts on the subject. I think at times our beloved Taneycomo does get unfairly lumped in with stocked areas that are strictly put and take. Taney is a whole different animal IMHO. I've never fished the put and take urban stocking areas so I don't really have an opinion. Does anyone have any idea how much MDC spends on those areas? Greg

We are not talking Taneycomo here are we? Greg

I've fished it several times in the winter. Greg

Awesome story and fish. That's what makes Taneycomo such a great fishery. From time to time you hear people blasting Taney and saying it's not a world class trout fishery. This is proof to the contrary. Greg

Eric I'm a fly fishing equipment junkie so I'll throw in my .02 I own a 5 wt Sage Launch and I absolutely love it. My 2nd favorite rod is a Sage SLT that cost about 3 times as much but I really prefer the launch. Even though it's not that expensive (compared to high end rods) - It's just a great all around rod. I'm old school and I do prefer 2 piece rods although the 4 piece is definitely a bit more convenient for travel. The 2 piece rods just seem to have a slightly more consistent and smoother action to me. Plus even the best ferrules are week points - I prefer to have 1 rather than multiple weak spots. I have a Konic and its a very nice reel. Best drag I've ever used. I don't think you can go wrong with the rio gold line. I slightly prefer SA's lines to Rio but both are very good. I think even their lower priced lines are pretty good. Good luck, Greg

Anyone else catch the recent Fly Fish America article about a head to head test of felt soles vs the new generation rubber? It was an interesting article and a good read. It was encouraging to me too given that felt will be outlawed at some point. To sum up the article all of the testers preferred the new generation rubber soles. The testers found them superior in all respects: walking, durability, and safety. I think the test was done pretty fairly too although none of those types of things are perfect - there is always some subjectivity and bias. Greg

Good luck Michael. Greg

The only way I can think of that I could be served better is in the area of hooks (which Phil already mentioned) and tungsten beads. It just seems like wherever I go I have difficulty finding what I want especially decent hooks at what I consider a good price. Boxes of 100 would also be nice. Tungsten beads - seems like whatever shop I go in is always out of a certain size and it's generally (murphy's law) the one I need. I shop at the area small shops much more often than I do bass pro or cabela's. But I am guilty of going to both on occasion for 2 reasons. One is the hours. At times I work late and bass pro in Springfield or Branson is my only option (because the fly shops are all closed). I do realize it is just not possible for the shops to stay open like a big box store. The other is that I do really like the Bass pro white river brand hooks. Quality hooks at a fair price in my opinion. Some quick kudos though: On other forums you read about fly shop nightmares at times. Rude or snooty owners and/or employees and such. I have never experienced that in MO. I frequent BCO more than anywhere else but I've also been to Tim's fly shop, Lilly's, River Run outfitters, and many others. I have always been treated with courtesy and respect and given good advice. And over the years become pretty good friends with several owners and/or fly shop employees. Greg

I went to Dogwood a time or 2 as a kid. It was fun but a pretty quirky place. For a year or 2 there was a ski resort there too. I skied there one winter day and unfortunately broke my ankle. I knew it had closed but didn't know what had happened to the property. I haven't read "the earth is enough". I looked it up and also Harry Middleton. Looks like an interesting book. I'm going to try to pick up a copy or reserve it from the library. Looks interesting. Greg

I just saw this. Sorry no one answered. We have a TomTom One 130s. Didn't cost much and works very well. Takes a lot of the stress out of traveling Greg

XX Greg

Really nice fish. I used to keep every big fish I caught myself (years ago). Funny thread - can't say I've ever fished "under the influence" though (LOL). Greg

I agree. It's too bad too. I think the fishing for the browns would have been spectacular on the upper lake this year if the rain would have held off another few weeks. Greg

I know what you mean Jeremy. I started out fishing the outlets too. And I still do fish them occasionally when the water is really high and the options are limited. But I don't think some fisherman ever outgrow them. I see a lot of the same guys standing in the same spots (at the outlets) week after week. I'm not knocking that either if that's what they enjoy more power to them. Greg

Chris I'm in Springfield too. It's really a good place to be for MO trout fishing. You may already know all this but you have Taneycomo, Roaring River, and Bennett Spring all an hour or less away. Then you have Montauk (and the upper Current), North Fork of the White, Norfork (arkansas), and the White (arkansas) - all 2 hours or less from you. Plus Crane Creek is about 30 minutes. Lots of great choices. Late fall and winter is actually a great time to fish some of those areas too. I especially like the trout parks during the winter. Greg

Very nice. Greg

I used to do that all the time and it works fine. Like someone else suggested I always used a swivel. You will get more strikes using 2 lb test than 4 lb especially if the water is off. Greg

Nice pics. Looks like a great trip. My family and I were there in Aug. How was the weather for you? Greg

Uh I think we should take a pass on pike in Taney. That's enough to make a trout fisherman cry! And there's also this: "> " type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="445" height="364"> Greg

Sounds great. Greg

Thanks Tim Greg

Hey I've met him. I can vouch that he's not a serial killer. Nice guy actually. But I've been laughing at your jokes too so I'm not sure what that says about me either (LOL). This has been a funny, light hearted thread. Unlike a few we've had recently. Greg

How far up did RR come up with the recent rains? Is it still fishable with a fly rod? I was thinking about heading there tomorrow. Thanks, Greg

I'm certainly not an expert on pond management. But I thought I might throw this out there just in case it might help someone. When I was growing up my father had a business client that had a fair amount of land between Springfield and Nixa. He had a good sized pond on his property. I fished that pond fairly regularly for about 10 years. Had a blast. Initially the pond was stocked with bluegill, channel cats, and bass. Great fishing for all 3 species. BUT at one point he decided to introduce crappies. Just a total disaster. It ruined the fishing. Within a couple of years about all you could catch were stunted crappie. He ended up somehow killing all the fish and starting over. I remember being there at the pond (before he killed all the fish and started over) when a MDC worker was there and him saying "you should have talked to us before you did this. we don't ever recommend crappies being stocked in ponds". But that was probably 30 years ago...... Not saying this would be true in all instances and all ponds. I'm just relaying my only experience on this subject. Greg