jdavis

Myself and a buddy put in at Hootentown this morning at 6am. The water was still up and murky. We floated 5 1/2 hrs to the unofficial access below McCall bridge. We caught between a dozen and fifteen smallies together. Most of them were caught on grubs in deep slower moving water. We did land a couple on different crank baits. Most of the fish were around 14". This one my buddy caught was 17".

I will be heading to Bennett Sunday morning (12/31). There have been no recent reports. How has the fishing been? Any hatches? Many people at the park? Happy New Year!

After being away for more than a month, I decided to fish Saturday night. There was a noticebale improvement in the numer of fish since my last visit. In 2 1/2 hours, I used nothing but white. Woolies and mohair leeches. I took six from below shoot two before heading to the stretch between the rebar and the big hole. Caught another six fish in the stretch before heading home. Nothing over 15" and a couple were sub 10" Neosho stockers. I even caught a sculpin. While I only brought a dozen fish to hand, I must have missed forty plus strikes. The fish seemed to be striking out of agression. I rarely went more than a couple of casts without a strong strike. However, they did not seem to be taking the fly as much as they were atacking it. I even foul hooked two fish.

Fished from midnight to 3am. I caught six fish on various dark colored leeches. The first fish of the night was a 17"-18" brown. Fat and healthy. I also caught a couple nice rainbows and of course the one that got away. We could have used a little wind. It was dead calm for most of the night. I continue to have trouble catching any real quantity of fish at night, but the quality of fish seems to be on the rise. I noticed one nice brown in the chute above outlet two as I left.

10pm and no generation. I'm going.

I took a day off of work Friday so I could fish tonight. I will not be happy if they run the water like they have the last few nights. Has anyone tried to fish up by the dam with the water running? Is it worth making the trip? Should I bring a spinning rod? Is there any sign that they may change this crazy generation pattern? I can't immagine why they need to generate electricity in the middle of the night. Especially when the weather is mild and the lake is low.

I saw the new Lamson Velocity on thier web site. It looks like the only thing that was changed was the spool. Does anyone know if the new spools will interchange with the old reels?

The generation and weather caused me to stay in this evening. I may give it another shot tommorow night.

I was just wondering if anyone on this site would be fishing below the dam Friday night. Maybe some of us could get together in the parking lot before we went out. I have only met a handful of the regular members on this forum.

I have just recently purchased a new 7wt that I use at night on Taney. Since I have begun using it I have been getting some wind knots in my leader from time to time. What kind of casting flaws cause wind knots? My assumption is that this newer faster rod is causing me to be a little off rythm at times.

I fished last night as well. Caught five fish in two hours. All of them were rainbows and none of any real size. The action slowed down after the moon was gone. Altough the number of fish caught doesn't show it, I did have more strikes last night as compared to the last few weeks. I still seem to be getting a lot of short hits.

Definitely take a look at the Lamsons. I am very happy with mine. According to Michael at Backcountry Outfitters here in Springfield, Lamson is making some changes to their line up. I don't know what kind of changes are being made but I'm interested in seeing them. I assume that the reels currently on the shelf may go on sale as the new ones come in.

Ducky, I went with a TFO 9' 7wt TICR and a Lamson Velocity 3. The rod picks up the line well and I can cast bigger flies further with much less effort and a lot less slapping the water behind me. It is a faster rod than I am used to but I have no problem casting it and it makes it a perfect choice for its intended uses. I also looked at the Scott A2. I liked it as well but it was a little more expensive and with the exception of being a slightly slower action, I could not tell much differance. The TFO line is a great value. The Lamson Velocity is my first large arbor reel. It has a very smooth sealed drag. Although I wasn't planning on spending as much as I did on the reel It is still a pretty good deal for the kind of quality you get and it makes a great outfit. Not that apperance is a huge factor but, It is a pretty sleek looking setup. What size rod are you looking for and for what applications?

I am planning on going down this Friday. Let me know if you are heade down too.

Michael, I must have gotten in at the big hole right after you guys moved. I could hear you guys down stream. Sound travels real well down there. I had pretty much the same kind of night. While I don't have any "Evil Leperchon," I did catch most of my fish on an olive mohair. Things started off hot for about the first 45 min to an hour and then cooled off considerably. I ended up with six fish. All but one out of the big hole. 16" bow was the biggest.

Has anyone established a generation pattern for the weekends? Are they turning them on later or off earlier?

Bork, Are you looking for a sucker gig or a frog gig?

Michael, Thanks for all your help getting me set up. I couldn't wait to use the new outfit so I had to sneak down to Taney last night. Fishing was once again pretty slow, but the rod was a whole new experiance for me. I have never been able to throw as much line as I did last night with such little effort. It was easy to feel the rod load a keep my timing. I already love it and I'm sure I will learn to love it more. Thanks again.

This calls for a duel. We will start below outlet two at dawn. Wade fifty paces turn and cast. Crappiefisherman with a spinning rod and SilverMallard with his fly rod. I'm giving the edge to Crappiefisherman. A roostertail in the face could be ugly. Seriously guys. Lets not get worked up. My guess would be you are both on the good side of the fishing ethics issue.

I use a 5wt for Taney during the day. It seems to be just about right. A 4wt would probably be fine too if you spend the majority of your time at Bennett but is probably to light for Taney. I am currently shopping for a new 7wt and will probably end up with a TFO rod. They seem to be about the best value and they have a lifetime warranty.

Has anyone been fishing at night lately? I have been a couple of times in the last few weeks and have had little success. Wondering if I'm missing something, picking bad nights or if conditions just aren't right.

SilverMallard, What do you mean by overkill? Over priced or simply too much rod for the situations? Please educate me a little. I am still learning about the technology involved in fly fishng equipment. Is a fast rod a negative in certain situations.

Michael, What about a reel? I like the Ross Rythem, but it is a little more than I was planning on spending. Are there any good buys that would balance well on the TFO or Scott and offer a decent drag? I may stop by the shop in the next week or so to check things out. You don't carry the TFO line do you?

I would also be interested in a night fishing seminar. I seem to have mixed results at night but love the quite. Hey newbie, Either you have some beginners luck or I don't know what the heck I'm doing. I had a terrible night down there last night. What color and size did were they keyed in on?

I am looking to get a new outfit for the fall run on Taney. I am still fishing an entry level Orvis 5wt I used as a kid. I would like to step up to a rod that can throw some bigger flies. Matbey a 7wt? Because I can't afford half a dozen rods. I need this one to be versitile. I would like to be able to use it on the rivers for smallies and spring white bass. What wieght? Fast action? What brands/models? - I have heard a lot of good things about the TFO rods What kind of line? Thanks in advance for any help.