brownieman

Not a taney expert here but would say it's like anywhere, early and lates the best...no such thing as too late, ask leonard, lol. depends on what you want to catch...big bait = big fish...generally not the numbers, to me it's what you want to catch. Myself, i'll take one monster as opposed to a truck load of dinks...everyone has their preference though. bm

very interesting, most hybrids have very low reproductive capability, don't know about these...they do appear to look like a carp/minnow hybrid or something, would like to know more. if an adult is small the only eco-system impact i could see would be the consumption of various fish spawns and planktons and other small forages...as for them they would become forage themselves for larger species. i believe several variables would have to be considered. so many times the introduction of non native species is not a good idea...just depends on so many factors. most of mans efforts to change, improve, control good ole 'Mother Nature' often end up with unfavorable results even with good intent/purpose. if they indeed stay alive as advertised I would treat myself to them on occasion, after all, it is a convenient world we pay for. bm

Leonard, If I lived closer I'm sure you'd get sick of seein me...especially for the next 3,4 months, lol. bm

Hey SK, Never heard of them, minnows I take it? Sounds great to me, I know some don't care for various reasons for bait fishing but I enjoy fishing and CATHING fish...over the years the power of live bait has proved itself time and time again...but it is a pain in the butt to get sometimes and a hassle to keep alive. post up with what they are, finding them, etc. bm

...reminds me...my fishing buddy for years fished himself right out of a marriage. We fished many places over the years, upon his divorce he bought a boat and we started fishing the lakes more as opposed to the rivers. As the years passed he eventually got back together with his wife, so, back came the wife, I bought the boat due to my old 22' river jon being destroyed while parked by my fathers garage by a reckless driver running from the law...I had used the boat twice after completely restoring the old boat from about a 15 year break. Sorry, got off track there, lol...anyway, he used to wear a pair of those 'fishermans' glasses that have the side panels to avoid glare. At the end of the day when he took em off he would have what we called 'The coon eye'...burnt red face and big white areas where the glasses were...we had a many a good laugh about the old coon eye. bm

hey you guys, what time does the fog lift off the water enouph to throw a boat on and see halfway well ?...i can't stand it much longer. in the back of them brownies minds they gotta be thinkin about it...they got me thinkin about it too, lol. thanks bm

Thom, i've heard of Bowfin refered to as Dogfish, they are native to the bootheel region in Mo. Grasses are almost identical to a muski, just much smaller and have different markings. A 4 lber would be a big grass...that size sounds more like a chain...it's hard telling. bm

Or burned out, lol...couldn't resist on that one.

i use the free avg also...it's set to auto update itself which it does seems like daily. it seems to work if you run a check a couple of times a week. i also use spybot, it's free and is a spyware check...it's all over my old head, when i was young the only computer in the school i went to was as big as a room. mine has totally crashed 3 or 4 times and i have lost everything on it...if i want to be sure not to lose something i still keep it the old fashioned way...piece of paper in the file cabinet. the hackers seem to always stay one step ahead...wish they would stop hacking and find another hobby, like fishin or something but hey..that would take a little physical effort and i'd hate that for them...so the geeks keep on a hackin and this old fart will just keep on a fishin...least maybe i get to eat a little fresh fish now and then, lol the hackers if the truth were known are probably the creators...pretty good job security, lol bm

pretty much just tryin to keep rollin these days john, lol good memories though bm

That's a pretty cool memory Dano...how much weight did you 'sweat out' in the meantime till the news was verified...talk about pins and needles, you were on the 'hot seat' my friend, lol. I doubt you will pop somes bubble about the existence though...although if I were one your experience would make me wonder. That has to be a memory of extraordinary proportion!...glad you 'reluctantly' posted that. bm

lets see...guess i was just out of college applying myself well pumping gas at a 'full service' gas station and cruising rockaway beach when i could get down there in a 56 chevy...ah, the good ole days. never was much of a fan but apparantly many were huh. bm

Neat looking boat...don't get me wrong but it looks like a giant toy, but it will be a money making toy, lol...when it's your living it's a good investment. You know how men are viewed, big boys with more expensive toys, i'm guilty myself to an extent. Brian S....from what little I have seen in pics of your drift boat it appears to be wooden...I would like to see a picture of it...to an old fart like me nothing compares to a wooden craft...it's just such a plastic world anymore...to me nothing compares to the beauty and nostalgia of wood but that's just me and ways of the past. BW...unlike wood that boat will last many years with little maintenance. bm

did the noise sound like it came from the bank or the water? i've been startled before by beavers smacking their tails on the water at night in smaller lakes...sometimes they make a pretty loud pop on a still night. just a guess...shows how sensitive fish are to sound though in or out of the water.

Ok Brian, trading in the paddles for oars huh, lol. that'll be fun...i've often wondered when drifting would make it to this part of the country...been a prevalent fishing method on numerous streams for years, oh well...they don't call this the "show me state" for nuthin. good luck...that will put a little more pep in your step so to speak, ya know. bm

Just being curious on others opinions. Having caught my fair share of big trout over the years I am a little less reluctant to share my methods and techniques than I was in my younger years. I don't have the stamina to trunge the miles like I used to...yes, the golden years...golden in some aspects, tarnished in others, lol. I used to keep my rather unusual methods to myself and where big fish were because I enjoyed catching them several times. Most trophy size fish end up on a wall or table somewhere (as did my first 2 big ones which is what my avatar is) which makes it kinda hard to catch them multiple times, lol. I have bested those 2 ( being a 29" female & 31" male ) several times these being caught about 20 yrs. ago. If you share a honey hole you may as well expect it to not be a honey hole for long...this especially applies to the smaller streams... not so much on bigger water. Two friends and myself kept journals in the past of where and when we hooked or spotted big fish. It was kind of a 'buddy agreement' between us and due to sharing this info with each other we caught an amazing amount of big trout over the years. Your opinion as fisherman is my interest here...I know what has and still works for me. The conditions, several variables, barometer, water color, lighting conditions, etc. have always delegated when and where I fish of if I even go. Just asking of you guys what you think the ideal conditions are for catching trophy size and trout in general are. Thought it might make for an interesting topic. To me it makes one heck of a difference if you pick and choose your times...I have proven to myself the difference it makes many times. bm

My opinion for what it's worth, The end of september is when the best fishing conditions ( for browns anyway) is starting to come on. Water flow is low in most streams now and that time of year try to avoid the shedding of leaves...no matter your method of fishing the leaves can be a real hassle in the fall. My best trips on the NF for big fish has probably been in late oct. through november and even into the first of the year. My largest fish from the NF is about 12 lbs. (brownie) but i have caught many during the winter months between 5 & 10, bows and browns. If possible fish it when the weather conditions are right...imo it has everything to do with when they feed. hope this helps bm

Grasses are the smallest member of the pike family and fairly well distributed throughout the state as opposed to other pikes. Our native species are fortunate that graasses don't get very big for they are very efficient feeders. Muskie is the larget member and the only non-native species to Mo. Hatchery efforts have introduced muskie to a few impoundments in the state, Pomme de Terre being the most successful by mosts standards. Their feeding habits are a little different than most species...this is what makes muskie hard to catch, they feed big instead of often. bm

Michael, imo, from personal experience the dept. will admit to little failure and imo will take great effort to cover such things...bad pr is highly frowned upon within the 'powers that be'. imo the 'educated idiots' will set you straight if need be...being the experts they are or should i say profess to be...whatever...it's been done this way for 30 yrs is the prevalent mindset. very little i have seen is well thought out...just seems like the thing to do at the moment...generally to appease a pet program imo and an attempt to show us results of our tax dollars...whatever. give them some 'common sense reasoning' and they'll take it alright...imo the only decision is which round file cabinet to file it in yet a very nice facade is presented. us 'little guys' just sit back, scratch our heads and wonder...this being the case with me. imo sad to say the least. bm

Leonard, Michael, i appreciate both your advise...like to enhance my chances to the best of my ability and knowledge. you guys fish it the most so whom better to ask. i have fished various waters and if i can return the favors on info you're welcome to ask i've caught my share of biguns in my life but i would really enjoy catching a few that would push 20 lbs. or better and i really feel it is possible on taney. not to worry...all i would want is a few pictures...they have survived that long and i would just like to have some pics of an old fart with some old fish, lol thanks guys bm

Thanks much Leanard, sounds about right...figure if anyone you would know. does the dam accomodate the spawn with decent water for any particular period or is it still hit a miss with the water flow. do you think these new stairs will make any difference in the amount of water released in the upper section this year? in the rivers neither of these has to be considered as much. thanks bm

hey Leanard, what's the best time to chase the big browns moving up (pre spawn) behind the dam? i'm thinkin mid november...it's a pretty far drive for me so i would like to hit it when it's good would be glad to hook up with you and 'compare notes' so to speak if you would be up for something of that nature. i've caught several big browns on the rivers at night but never have night fished taney...would consider it a treat to have the local 'night pro' along...might avoid stepping in over my head in the cold, lol. thanks bm

hmmmmm...guess that would fall under Outreach and Education I suppose?? just wondering...again