WestCentralFisher

I've been working from the same giant tackle box for pretty much my whole time I've fished, 25 years or so. It was my Grandpa's originally, and over the years I occasionally added lures here and there, but mostly just deployed what I needed into one of those little clear tackle boxes and put it back when I was done. As a result, I had a pretty serious backlog of tackle, and outside of soft plastics and terminal tackle, rarely had to buy too much in one go. For that reason, I haven't tracked the cost of tackle too closely. But I've been fishing quite a lot the last two years, and haven't done much replenishing. Today, while prepping for an upcoming multi day float trip on the North Fork of the White, I figured out I was down to my last Rebel Craw. I know next to nothing about the North Fork, but I won't go on any Ozark stream with less than 3-4. On a river with both trout and smallmouth bass, they're especially dynamite as a generalist lure to catch both. Or maybe I will! It turns out these things cost $7 a piece now. At first I thought my tackle store was just ripping me off, but no. I looked it up, and that's just the going rate. Pretty much all the rebel/rapala crankbaits are in the same range. Are people really paying this much for lures? Goodness. At least rooster tail spinners are still a reasonable $2.49. I grabbed a handful of those and just one more deep diving craw. Two will have to get me through. Rebel Craws have always been my go to Ozark stream lure, but I think I'm gonna have to move on from that. Gonna be a whole lot of Ned rigs for smallmouth going forward (though I'll skip bringing them on the North Fork, since both of our planned floats include parts of the Blue Ribbon section) and rooster tails for trout. Or I'll need to buy goggles and a snorkel to retrieve the craws when they get hung up on the bottom.

Years ago, I fished in a very remote network of lakes in the northeastern US that based on a book I read, was supposed to be absolutely full of native brook trout. It was a gamble to base an entire trip of that scale around a few lines in an old book, but the type that can often pan out. In three days, I only hooked one trout. It was probably the most heartbreaking missed fish of my life; it was on the very last day of a wilderness trip, it was conservatively 20 inches, and I lost it right at the canoe. But what I did catch on that trip is, again, conservatively, 100+ bass. The little flatwater creeks and shallower lakes were full of largemouth bass, which were easy to catch, but were stunted and seemed extremely out of place in the north woods setting. The deeper, rockier bottom lakes held smallmouth. There didn't seem to be very many, but they were hogs. An average fish was 17-18 inches. One of the best smallmouth lakes was where I lost the one trout. They did feel like they belonged in that north woods setting, but apparently they didn't. It turns out, 5-10 years before we got there, someone decided that the brook trout only hung out in the deeper water in the summer and wouldn't it be nice to have something to fish for in the shallow water? Well, that logic is my theory, because even where they're common in that area, lake brookies tend to be a pain to locate and often require canoe trolling, which is about as difficult as it sounds. In any case, there was a bait bucket stocking of large and smallmouth bass in the system, and they almost immediately took over. I'm told the trout population is basically gone. Just shows that anything can be invasive in the wrong spot. Heck, brookies are among the top causes for decline in native cutthroat in many western streams.

Yep. A friend from a European country once told me that they only really commemorated/protected the most significant battlefields, because if they did that for all of them they wouldn't have any land left over to farm or build things on.

Thank you for posting. I have been doing a lot of reading about this period of WW2, and I can't imagine what it would feel like to actually see those places. Like probably a lot of people, my interest was initially sparked by Band of Brothers, but once you start to learn more about that moment in time, you realize it's pretty much impossible to understand the scale of the tragedy. I am not really a believer in the supernatural, but in a certain way I think that places where events like this happen retain a bit of the sadness, and are never really the same after. I have never been across the pond, but I have been to many smaller battlefield sites closer to home. Wilson Creek comes to mind, as does Pilot Knob and Pea Ridge. Or Little Bighorn in the Montana high plains. In some ways, they're just quiet places in the countryside, but the air feels a little heavier, and the woods feel a little less empty. I can't really describe it any better than that.

Like everyone here says, anywhere on the Niangua you can get an outfitter to put you on will be party city that day. Or really any river with canoe rentals to varying degrees. The fish on these popular float streams basically turn that into the equivalent of white noise and if you can stay sane and avoid snagging any rafts/tubes, you'll still catch fish. Depending on your temperament and tolerance for silliness, that can be really easy or hard. There are plenty of smallmouth in that area, for sure. Everyone and their brother will ask you what you're fishing for and what you're catching. You won't mind it the first dozen or so times, but after that it'll get old. Best to have a short, stock answer ready to go. Watch the gauges. Quite a bit of rain. Easy float normally, but it's the type of narrow river section I could see getting weird if the water got high enough. Good chance it'll be just fine by Thursday, but just something to keep in mind.

It occurred to me that today I had about the perfect morning of fishing. This isn't to say that it was the best fishing I've ever experienced or in the most dramatic scenery. But for what one could expect in the northern Ozarks on a random Saturday in the midst of a heat-wave, it's hard to feel like it could have gone much better. The stream I went to looks and feels like an Ozark stream, but like so many on the edge of the region it is a complex blend of habitat reflecting its surroundings. It flows through a watershed that has hills, caves, and springs that would belong in the deep Ozarks, but also plenty of row crop fields and swampy bottomlands. The fish population reflects that. There are smallmouth bass and goggle-eye in numbers that aren't particularly large, but sufficient to make targeting them worthwhile. There are also lots of spotted and largemouth bass too. Based on the available evidence from a half-dozen or trips, I figure the smallmouth bass compose maybe 15-20% of the bass population. That isn't a whole lot, but their habitat is pretty distinct and easy to recognize, so it's rare I struggle to find them. The deep, slow holes where you find the largemouth almost all have a gar or two prowling. In this setting, I fished about an hour and a half, covering somewhere between a quarter and a half a mile. The bass are naive, and will take anything that looks like a minnow or crawfish. I catch all three species of bass, but get the most excited by the one goggle-eye. Even more than smallmouth bass, their presence is about the surest sign available that I'm on an Ozark stream. I play the fish quickly and release them without taking them out of the water. It's hot, and while the water is still pretty cool from the little springs that feed it, I don't want to stress the fish. Most fish come in easily enough, except a gar that knifes through the line almost immediately, and the biggest smallmouth of the day, which threw the hook. The fishing never really tails off, but even though I've been able to cleanly release all my fish so far, that doesn't necessarily mean every single one will survive. Time has taught me how fragile these types of streams can be, and I don't want to take any risks here. It occurred to me that the lady friend had requested a fish dinner. This stream wasn't going to be the place I accomplished that, so I drove on down the road to a bigger river. This one has smallmouth bass too, including some really big ones, but they're not easy to find or target. That isn't the objective today, anyway. I stopped at a gas station, bought some nightcrawlers, and drove to an access on a deep, slow pool. About 20 minutes later, two channel cats of the perfect size are on the stringer. As I load up and start driving away, big, dark storm clouds are rolling in. Perfect timing.

Usually on the bottom, but I'd try both.

I have a love hate relationship with that place. Either the fishing is awesome or I get skunked generally. Glad you still had fun.

I have no idea about the lake in question, but for determining if a small lake or stream has fish (or at least fishable populations of anything) nothing can compare to a half a nightcrawler on a size 6 hook. I am not saying that is the best or most exciting way to fish generally, once I've determined a body of water is worth my time, but I can say that if that doesn't work at all after multiple hours of fishing (as in, no bites/lost fish/etc) it might have some fish in it, but it probably isn't worth more of my time. Usual caveats of fishing during reasonable times of the day and season apply. This method (probably) won't work as intended in January, and may not at 2:20 PM on a blazing hot summer day (i.e. right now.) And occasionally it fails on water that turns out to be fishy in good conditions. But that's really, really rare.

Slabtown to Ross is a very nice two day float. There is an intermediate private/canoe rental access to make it one day, I think. Or there used to be, anyway. Down below that intermediate access to Ross Bridge it starts to get crowded. I can only assume most canoe rentals put in there. I have successfully wade fished at Slabtown, but I wouldn't necessarily plan an entire trip around it. It is not the easiest wading and you're dependent on there not being a bunch of people there swimming/wading. It is right near Paddy Creek Wilderness, so during the fall that area can be a nice combined hiking and fishing spot. That said, if you can't float, access hopping until you find some water to yourself can work fine. It is a beautiful area and you'll see lots of pretty country, in any case. With the exception of the area around Ross Bridge, much of the river is on par with places like the Eleven Point and upper Jack's Fork in terms of wildness and natural beauty. Even the area around Ross is very scenic with lots of bluffs, but you start to encounter much more frog water and the crowds take the overall experience down a notch. The fishing is still OK, but not as good.

Just be careful. At low water the upper/middle Gasconade is as easy as it gets, but the water will be really high, and who knows what new hazards there may be.

Explored the lower part of the lake yesterday afternoon near Powersite/Forsyth. Very, very pretty down there, and so much less crowded and chaotic. This part of the lake is definitely more my cup of tea. Didn't catch or see any trout down there, but it was quite fun fishing for panfish and bass. That evening, just took a drive to see the incredible scenery in that area and get a break from the Branson area crowds. Made it as far as Ava. We didn't stop and fish it, but I am definitely adding Beaver Creek to my list of Ozark streams to fish. It looked very inviting. On the contrary, upper Bull Shoals is so badly flooded. After being on Taneycomo which was high but appeared relatively "normal" I was blown away by what I saw. One of the routes we were going to drive on was very much under the lake. I hope everyone is as alright as they can be.

Very impressive!

Thanks. May get there tomorrow. By my standards, the water was just so hard to read. I was also surprised that I didn't see really anything cruising in the shallower water. I finally figured out the slower pockets+lots and lots of weight is the ticket, but I never exactly started reeling them in hand over fist. One thing that happened that I am choosing to say was funny and not annoying. At one point, an older couple came in on their boat, and they were struggling a bit with the fishing and said it had been slow. We talked a little about fishing, just a normal friendly conversation. At this point, someone who I'm guessing was a guide (his name and phone number were on the boat) came by the boat dock, and loudly interjected that he'd caught 40 and no, it wasn't slow. Yes, sir, I am sure you are much more dialed in on catching Taneycomo trout than me, a guy who has never been here, doesn't have a boat, and knows nothing whatsoever about rivers bigger than the Niangua and was sneaking in a couple hours of fishing on an anniversary trip. You really showed me. Thankfully I had the willpower to just ignore the guy.

Yup!

Well, the high water, and my extreme lack of knowing how to fish such big water gave me a good run for my money, but I did catch my first Taneycomo trout. It was quite beautiful, and there were a bunch of eagles. Also a lot of people for a Thursday morning lol

Thanks, all. I am looking forward to it. We're looking at it as a chance to explore a new section of river in a cool place. Given the apparent multi-species nature of the fishery, I figure I'll throw the usual assortment of general-use Ozark stream stuff out (rebel craws, spinners, baby bombers, etc) and just be happy with anything I catch. That's something I've learned recently. A few years back, I planned an elaborate trip around fishing some hyper-famous trout/salmon water in Northern Michigan. Timed it to perfection, had everything lined up to make it a successful trip, etc. And then the water was way too low and warm to do any of that. I was sad for a short while until I realized the lower parts of those rivers have great smallmouth bass fishing, and I turned a dud of a trip into one of the most memorable I've been on. Having no expectations of what success entails means you can call most anything a success. Unless I get skunked, drown, or catch one creek chub the whole trip, I'll find a way to call it a success.

That may be true, but I've got to at least find that out for myself. The challenge of it intrigues me.

Thanks! Super helpful. Our trip is a few weeks out, so I'll be watching weather/water levels with fingers crossed.

Appreciate the input. I also prefer shorter floats. However, I'm trying to work with what's available on the North Fork. Short floats on the upper portion of the trout water are not available really, unless I am missing something. There is Hammond Camp Access, then Blair Bridge 10 miles later, and the couple rental put ins around it. Not really anything in between I am seeing. I was just curious if anyone had tried that specific float, since every river is different. For example, the 11 mile stretch of Niangua from Bennett to Prosperine is a challenging one day float with much fishing at all, while I find Turner to Riverton (~14 miles) very doable with a fair amount of fishing, though maybe not a "get out and wade every gravel bar with a nice pool" type situation. The river section matters a lot, and I'm not familiar with this one.

Yup! I used to do it a lot. I've gotten out of practice with the fly rod, but this is the perfect creek to change that with. The fish seem pretty naive and the casting situation would be pretty easy. I can just about guarantee a olive or brown wooly bugger bounced along the bottom would kill it.

Would guess you are correct, and intend to test that out shortly.

Visited again today. Went a little bit upstream, and found a couple smallmouth. Low quality pic as I was in a hurry to release him.

Stay in Rolla and fish the Big Piney and Gasconade. Great scenery, lots of fish, pretty easy floating, some real nice fish here and there. Pretty much the whole Big Piney is excellent. I prefer the Gasconade around and above Jerome. Gasconade is bigger water and will take longer to round back into shape after these rains and will have more jet boats. Now isn't gonna be the best time, though. Let the water drop a bit.

Resurrecting my old thread from a year ago. This time, we are not chickening out on doing the North Fork for our big annual trip pretty much no matter what, save flood conditions or horrendous weather. In terms of trout fishing, we'll go in with zero expectations and if I catch one or two it'll be a pleasant surprise. We're cool with that. I just want to see what it's like down there. One quick question: is Hammond to Sunburst (12 miles) doable as a one day trip with a reasonable amount of fishing? I like the idea of doing some of the float above the springs where I assume there are more smallmouth if the trout fishing is likely to be slow, but I also don't want to be in such a rush I can't fish. We'll most likely be in kayaks. Tentative plan is to reserve a campsite at Sunburst, and Hammond to Sunburst one day, then maybe downstream from Sunburst the next. (I know the water is likely quite high now. This trip is a few weeks out yet.)