brianbarker

I can probably come closer to telling you whats in the water at Lake Springfield than whats in those McDonalds cheeseburgers everyone eats every day. I hardly keep anything to eat but I have been told by MDC agents down there that they are perfectly fine to eat.

I haven't floated it this year but the last time I was around Licking it was about right for floating. That was before this last big storm though. My favorite floats are Boiling Springs to the new Mason bridge, Hazelton to Six Crossings or High Logway eddy to Slabtown. Only the last float is less than a long full day, the other two take a while, we usually go daylight to dark. I have caught tons of big smallmouth on each float, and never fail to catch a limit of goggle-eye. The biggest smallmouth I've ever caught on piney was a 22 incher from a logjam just a few hundered yards above the takeout at Six Crossings, last year it was still there. Lots of smallies and goggle-eye on all of the floats. Any float around Ft. Wood is always good unless its Memorial Day weekend, there is some trophy water through there with lots of 15-18 inch smallies. I usually don't take anything on piney besides some 2-3 inch crawdads and 1/16 or 1/8 jigheads, and the smallies like zara puppies and pop-r's.

Thats one huge catfish for Springfield lake. 99% of the ones I've caught or seen caught arn't bigger than your hand. Nice

A friend of mine from Success caught 2 flatheads over 20 pounds in '07 less than 1 mile below Hazelgreen where they usually camp. They catch catfish on trotlines in the Gasconade throughout the year. I've only seen 1 gigging on the Piney but a friend also fishes the bluff below Mason bridge at night and catches flatheads all spring and fall. I've only caught 1 channel cat from the Gasconade and that was right at the I-44 bridge on a 6' curly tail worm fishing for smallmouth. He wasn't huge, only 15 inches.

Don't believe there is any hybrids in Fellows. None have been stocked and without stripers, there couln't possibly be any hybrids. Fellows only connects to the Little Sac river and McDaniels lake, neither of which have stipers or hybrids, so they were surely big whites. With all of the shad I would never figure a white to be feeding enough on bluegill to be productive bait but who knows... I've seen weirder things fishing.

Best place to almost always find crappie is McDaniels bridge. I don't think I've ever been down there and not seen atleast 1 person catch a crappie. Even though sometimes it is only 1.

Along the road where it crosses the lake, especially where the chute lets water run under the highway, on both sides. I catch more out of the lake side than the no-boat side, but have caught them from both. Lately its been a chart/yellow sassy shad on a 1/8 white jig head. I've been using the 2 1/2 inches, they seem a little big but something smaller won't get hit and the bigger stuff fished slower pickes up even little crappie. Haven't caught anything huge but lots of keepers, but I haven't kept any. I usually try letting it sink diffrent depths before I start reeling until I find them. Use the count-down method. Also... 1 white bass last week that was 17 1/4 inches...a good fight on my crappie rod.

Is Burrell park open to fishing right now? I have heard some say yes and other say no. I have been down there once and the only fish I saw were huge goldfish or koi. I would still try it if it was open for fishing.

I did drive down to Sequiota when someone said they used to fish it and it was closed, and I did see alot of bass in the brush and limbs around the walkway but the biggest one was only 10 inches. Probably wouldn't be worth fishing if you could. Anyone caught anything big out of there before?

I read about this trout in Outdoor Life, they said that ice tore through rearing tanks, something like that, and spilled all of these mutated trout out into the lake. I don't think they would count as a record, unless it was a seperate class for geneticaly altered fish.

Nice bucketmouth for Springfield Lake... really nice. I've been looking for that guy all spring, but looks like you got there first. I really think there are some really nice bass in there, but finding them is pretty tough. Awesome fish! Congrats

Caught this bass at a pond on my dad's farm last weekend. I know hes a pond bass and all, but he makes a good pic. Didn't measure his but he weighted 7.8. Caught it on a super fluke.

I was down there the 4th, and they were open then. He mentioned something to some guys feeding the ducks that it was his first day open this year because the dock got washed out into the lake and I guess they had to put all new floats under it. I only fished one day this month down there, the 12th, and found a guy who was catcing them at the earth dam, where the road crosses it, all along the bank on the East side of the highway. He was using chart/yellow sassy shad and all I had was white, which didn't do so good, probably 3/1. Get some sassy shad and 1/8 jighead and fish the sides of the highway and you'll probably catch a few. McDaniels is OK, only stopped by and didn't fish. It is a little off-colored. Was last weekend anyways. People were catching small crappie from the west end of the bridge. Everyone I saw catch any was on minnows.

I don't flyfish but I love trout fishing and though everyone might like this video. It is underwater footage of some huge trout just lounging and taking insects off the top.

I called about ValleyWater Mill lake and it is closed "for quite a while" because they are building 3 fishing peirs and some walking trails so I guess its out for a little while, and I can't find anything about Sequiota park allowing fishing so I guess I'll drive out and check it out, I'm really close to it. I went out and fished the little pond East of Fremont right by JR Freeway this morning and dispite the light snowing and cold I caught 2 little largemouth on a 8" worm and 1 palm size bluegill on a road runner. I'm going to go check out the ponds on Scenic by the golf course latet today I think. I don't guess that it is a park, can't find a name for it anywhere. If there isn't any signs I'm fishin'. Thanks for all the info!