RSBreth

I was going to ask if you had access to watercraft that would let you get out on the lake, but you probably don't if you're asking about the kayak thing. Kings River near Eureka Springs and Berryville is some nice water, I've used these folks -> click here: Riverside Canoe<- to put in and float back to the 62 bridge on the Kings. Good float, pretty good fishing.Can be busy on weekends though. Oh, yeah. Love the pic with Dee.

5 crashes in more than 10 years isn't too bad for a VFR type grass airfield. There isn't a tower, and there is only one route in and out, due to power lines on the west side of the property. Have you ever been down there? If you see it, you'll understand. Plenty of room, but light aircraft pilots are really on their own to make decisions, kind of like driving a car. Speaking of driving, have you seen the statistics for some of the intersections in "Springberg"? I drive by the worst one 5 times a week. Campbell&Republic Road Crash Frequency Tops List Lucky I'm not dead yet. I feel so sorry for the families.

I used to have a different model of Walther (O.K. actually the wife had it), and it was very well made, as Walther is known for. I haven't seen one, but I do know how to search the 'Web. http://www.gunblast.com/Walther-PPS.htm[/ur http://concealedcarryforum.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=954://http://www.gunblast.com/Walther-PPS...sp?TOPIC_ID=954 http://gunsandammomag.com/cs/Satellite/IMO...ry_C/Thin+Is+In There you go.

It's not big water in that area either way, really. But it is easy to wade most of the time upstream. Check your messages.

As another member of the "solo canoe posse" I'll second Al's post. Solo canoes or kayaks are about equal as far as paddling upstream, canoe is better for actually fishing out of, kayaks are available for less money most of the time. You'll find it easier to get out and wade through most stuff people worry about paddling against. It's like bicyclists peddling uphill at -5 miles an hour when you could simply hop off and walk it up quicker. Whatever you get, let us know how it goes. A solo watercraft will open an entire new world of fishing for you.

I've done that trip dozens of times. In 5- to 8-mile increments. How long to go the whole way? Forever.

Veracruz access, where Hunter Creek dumps into Bryant. Veracruz<-click here Party spot on weekends, but if you can swim across one spot, either Hunter or Bryant upstream are great for wade fishing. One of my favorites.

It's hard to find really good bank fishing for little kids around this area. I know of plenty wade and fish spots, but for the "vertically challenged", that can be an issue. Canoeing is the real option. Or Taney or the trout parks.

Very cool. Good for both the PAA and Central PA. Thanks Eric.

Any of the In-Fisherman series of books or DVDs' are good. Subscribing to the magazine is good, too. In-Fisherman<-click here. I don't think much of the North American Fishing Club, but I do have a couple of their books, and those are actually pretty good. The tip about your library is a good one, I use COOLCAT to request books from area libraries transferred to the Ozark library. I don't know if your library is part of that system. Fishing with an experienced person for the fish you are targeting helps. Ask someone from the board who is close to you to go some time and pay for the trip or gas or whatever. You're already doing something by asking here, most of the people here will be glad to help answer any reasonable question.

I use either 4/10 Fireline with an 8- or 10-pond Fluoro leader (Usually Vanish these days) for small cranks or finesse plastics. 6/14 Fireline w/a 12- or 14- pound test Fluoro leader for flipping jigs or plastics into cover, or sometimes for cranking murky water w/bigger lures. Fluoro works. You can use heavier line and as far as I can tell, the fish don't notice. If you ever go over to RiverSmallies.com (or even just ask Al A here) lot's of guys use superline tied direct, and really do well, so figure that one out. I've been using 40-pound test (same diameter as 10-pound mono) Stren Superbraid tied direct for spinnerbaits. I don't lose many fish to break-offs.

Yeah, I'm one of those people, too. I was just alerting people to the fact that it probably wasn't a smart idea to trespass there. It's always drunks and morons who make it hard for us honest fishermen.

It's a problem spot. (Green Bridge) People who go down there under the bridge and shoot off fireworks and get drunk tend to make the landowners less than friendly. I have permission to park my truck up from the bridge in the end of someone's drive, but that's because I've been here a while and ask very nicely. The landowner right across from Riverside has had problems, too. They do have a couple of not-so-nice doggies who after several years of familiarity have still not warmed up to me much, so unless you savor the thought of getting a chunk of your hamstring munched off by a couple of large Chow-Shepherd mix canines, don't trespass there. You're safe in the river though.

GOOD scissors (not expensive scissors) will cut any of the superlines easy. Cut ends will fray a bit. Don't be overly OCD about it, as long as your knots are good, a slightly frayed tag end won't hurt anything. A dab of superglue on the knot doesn't hurt, either. I can picture it, one of these days I'll be paddling along and hear rocks clicking together, then I'll round the bend and see Al on the gravel bar, flint knapping.

I took my son and wife down to Bull Creek Saturday, just a spot down near Goodnight Hollow. Short trip but I did catcha couple of little Smallmouths, and she caught a few Longear Sunfish. (If there was ever a Longear tounament, she'd win it.) My son mostly threw rocks in the water, which was slightly up, but very clear. Caught everything on either popping bugs, or small motor oil colored grubs on a Slider head.

Yeah, this is a great topic for the James, or really any of our rivers. I've started and stopped writing a big comparison article of fish advisories from across the state, but I'm kind of at an impasse right now. After you talk to enough biologists you kind of get to where you throw all of the little comments they say "off the record" together, and come to the conclusion that we all are exposed to things that are iffy in the environment, whether it's from the commercially raised meat or veggies we buy at X-Mart, or the fish we keep and eat out of the most remote stream. I wouldn't hesitate to eat a Walleye or Rock Bass out of the James every once in a while, just like I eat an occasional Crappie or Rock Bass out of the Finley. I feel fine. Most of the time, I feel great.

I fished the James near McCall bridge today from dawn until about noon. I didn't do as good as I have in that area, but I did catch a few nicer Smallmouths, mostly on my little compact spinnerbait. I caught a few on a Bomber crank, too, but the most interesting thing was when I was drifting back to the truck I put on a small XRap jerkbait, and right by a nice looking downed tree I hooked a good fish, and got a little excited that it would be a great 4- to 5-pound Smallmouth, but it was fighting a little strange, then when I finally got it near the canoe I saw why: it was two smallmouths, one on each treble hook! Neither was bigger that about 3-pounds, but still, it's not everyday you manage a trick like that. I tried to gingerly bring them in, but as they got closer to the canoe they started thrashing around more, and the larger one (of course) came loose. I did take a picture of the smaller one because I was ready to get them both on film, but it really isn't the same. Water is still up a little bit, but it's starting to get clear. Oh, yeah, I caught a small Walleye on a crank, too. That doesn't happen every day. One of the nicer Smallies:

That's pretty cool. He'll never forget it.

They work well around cover in all but the coldest water. Smallies have to hit it or let it go by, most of the time, they nail it. Cast them tight to cover that breaks current in the upper part of a pool. Sometimes it takes several casts to get them to hit.

I sound like a broken record, but spinnerbaits and cranks usually are the big fish lures when the water's up and has some color. I'll throw a jig or soft plastic to a spot to fish it a little more thoroughly, but usually do better on the lures that have some vibration and thump.

Below "the normal spring high water mark" is public property. I don't think anyone along the James would argue with that. So on the gravel bars is O.K.

Nope. didn't weigh it or measure it. I didn't expect it so that picture was more of a mug shot- my wife hates that picture. "Could you change that?"

You never know, could have been Bass. There's lot's of different fish in there. In mid-summer you can catch some Bass by using jigs or soft plastics on any cover by the bluff banks, but it's slow fishing. More action up in the current away from the park itself.

Hey, nice pictures of the rock fence posts, reminds me of home. (I grew up outside Wichita.) My little sister lives near Great Bend, so I see Wilson sometimes, and Pheasant hunt near that whole area. Pretty neat.

What always happens when you forget the camera? You catch some nice picture-worthy fish, of course. I fished somewhere above Hootentown, can't be any more specific than that. I started early. Really early. I caught them on a little of everything, Bomber 4A and Rapala DT4 cranks, my little compact spinnerbait, and a few on the smaller 08 size XRap, in the high-vis "clown" color. One nice one on a finesse jig, too. High point was 3 fish over 15" - 16" - in three casts! The biggest wasn't quite 20", but was close. These were on the spinnerbait, all around a huge downed tree on a big rock snag. I caught several other 15"+ fish on the cranks, and missed another really nice one that nailed the XRap, it was hooked only on the rear treble, and freed itself by doing that spinning backwards kamikaze jump that Smallmouths do like no other fish. What else can you do when that happens but laugh? I also talked to a MDC employee who was picking up some trash left over from drunken fools, but also from a stream cleanup. Lot's of tires. Water was a little off color and clearing, and only up a little from the rain over the weekend. I tried to rig the camera in my phone to take some pictures with the built in timer, but it was pretty much a fiasco almost resulting in the loss of said cell phone into the depths. I put it back in the dry bag, and just fished, which was kind of nice instead of always worrying where the light is best and what's in the background, every single time you catch a good one.