Daniel Riggs

Just got back to Missouri. I'd be up for a trip to the Finley coming up over the next weekend sometime.

1.) photography/fishing trip alaska 2.) African Safari 3.) find an activity my son and I will always enjoy together outdoors (still working on it, he likes technology).

Thanks for the info

I've been living in Naples for the past three years and ironically haven't had the funds for a guided fishing trip in the gulf. I've had fun catching the saltwater fish, but haven't gotten into it real serious and only inshore and close to shore in a kayak. Jacks are a blast to catch as well as Snook and redfish. I (sadly) haven't caught a Tarpon. Use a live shrimp, let it drift into mangroves with an incoming tide and you never know what you're going to get. I do know a guide personally in the Naples area. He used to fish the pro circuit for bass but I know he has a large boat for the gulf as well. He's a genuinely nice guy with a nice family. He was taught to fish by his dad who was a bombardier in WW2. here

This is awesome. I'm going to have to try for one of these guys sometime.

Thanks for the tips. I should be able to find some good options based on this info.

I am wondering about a good "bang for your buck" baitcast combo. I've got a couple spinning reels, but I like a baitcast reel for certain lures. It has been a long time since I've bought a bait caster, so I'm out of the loop a little bit. I would most likely be using it for buzz baits and crank baits.

I've ran it in the past and I've had to portage due to the obstacles a few times. This is usually only the upper portion by the lake. If I had a chainsaw I'd cut them out myself.

Thanks for the advice guys. I'm all about buying used gear as well, so I'll keep an eye on the boards.

Thanks for the tips. I'm really looking forward to catching some fish when I get up there.

I'm planning to get back into bass fishing when I move back to Missouri in a few months. I was wondering about tackle recommendations starting out? I haven't seriously fished since high school and back then I used mostly rattle trap, spinnerbaits, buzzbaits and mini spook. I fished a lot in the evenings after school. What other gear should I be looking at? I'm thinking of largemouth, smallmouth and maybe some trout and crappie as well. Right now I have spinning tackle only. penn battle 2500 on a shimano tarumar inshore rod (medium 7 ft) and a shimano sienna 2500 on a 6 ft medium ugly stick. ive been fishing mostly live shrimp down here, so I'll be starting fresh with lures.

Thanks. I'm enjoying the forum so far.

Sounds good. I used to float this stretch a lot since my place is in Fordland. I miss river paddling (there aren't many rivers in south Florida).

Sounds good. Have you been on the Finley this year? I know that in the past there are sometimes fallen trees that make things interesting, but they usually get cut down at some point.

Nice looking boat! Sounds like a good float.

I am moving back to Missouri and would like to take a river fishing trip down the Finley. Is anybody else game? I used to paddle it several years ago before moving to Florida for a couple years. I would put in at Linden Lake and float down to Nixa. I wont be back up there until late July.

Looks like fun. I'll be moving up to Missouri late this summer. I wouldn't mind participating in one of these tournaments. Do you have to have any kind of special membership?

I wanted to introduce myself. My name is Daniel and I am going to be headed back to Missouri at the end of July after spending 3 years in southwest Florida. I spent most of my life in Missouri and have a lot of fond memories fishing with my dad growing up and am wanting to get back into fishing. I am a kayak fisherman and recently picked up an Ultimate 14.5 and I have a Wilderness Systems Tarpon 160 as well (I may sell or trade the tarpon for a shorter boat before leaving Florida). I own a home in Fordland and will be moving back there. I enjoy the Finley and James River and also have done a lot of photography at Lake Springfield. I'm hoping to find some people to get together with to have a good time and get "back in the game" with my fishing skills. Im laid back and enjoy being in the outdoors. I also have an 8 year old that I like to take out to break up the electronics craze for a bit. If anyone knows of a group that goes out or is interested in meeting up later this summer let me know.