GloryDaze

Had never thought about a sasquatch, man am I slow; however after a little more research I think I may have found the answer. I'm leaning towards a Chupacabra, but we may live a little too far north for those. Wonder if the MDC has any confirmed sightings in the past few weeks....

So me and a buddy took a trip down and gave the Litle Niangua a shot this weekend. We were originally going to float from Griswald Ford to Fiery Fork, but some folks convinced us to put in at Mule Shoe instead. Given my experience on the upper section, I came to a few conclusions (some good, most bad) Good: -Totally secluded and private, we only saw two other people on the river in 3 days -We only saw two other people on the river in 3 days -We did catch a lot of fish with a wide variety- hell, I even cuaght a catfish on a rapala crank minnow -I wasn't working, therefore any time on an Ozark stream is a great thing! -Did I mention we only saw two other people on the river in 3 days? Bad: -Portaging, then portaging, then portaging, and on........ -There were so many strainers and total blockages, I spent as much time carrying my stuff around the strainers as I did canoeing - Water was very shallow, so when trees weren't blocking the channel, it was too shallow to float through - The constant smell of cow crap, it seemed like this section was all along cow pastures and the cows had direct access to the river, as there were several sections where the banks were just destroyed. - Had to go under, over 3 low water bridges - Fish we did catch were not very big, biggest of the trip was the catfish I caught Now, I have to admit, after we went under the bridge at Griswald Ford, the river really seemed to change in character. I really enjoyed paddling the last three miles to the take out. It seemed deeper, and more of what I originally expected to see on this trip. In the future, I hope to get back nd float that section on down to Fiery Fork. Maybe I didn't pick the best time to float the upper section, maybe folks that know this river better than me know where to catch the big fish, I'm not really sure, but my honest opinion is I will avoid that upper section in the future and concentrate more on the lower section . I'm sure that many of you who do float and love that section are just as hapy to hear you will have one less person to compete with in that area. I guess my question for you all who float this stream more regularly, is this about par for the course for the upper section or did I just have my expectations set too high? Oh, I forgot to mention- about two miles from the put in we were fishing along a small bluff that looked to have a cave in it about 20 feet up from the water line. As we were fishing, I got hung up and as I started getting close to the shore line I began to here this really deep growl/hiss come out of the cave. We sat there for 20 minutes and tried to figure out what could have been making that sort of noise. The only time it made the noise is when one of us got close to the bank, or I would throw a rock in the general area. It was too deep for a bobcat, so we were baffled, My buddy took a video, but I haven't seen it yet to detrmine if you can hear it. If so, I'll be sure and get it on here- given all this talk about Mountain Lions on here lately, that was the only thing we figured would be big enough to make that sound???

Well, sitting here looking at the radar, I'm thinking the cool weather may be the least of you're concerns. I'm thinking the fishing may be a little on the tough side if the gauge is 8'.

I think it sounds like a great trip, minus the ending point at Alley. No doubt in my mind you should take out at Bay Creek, not only does the fishing slow down after that but the scenery is not much better in my opinion. I also second the idea of utting in at the Prongs... remote stretch, narrow twisty water, no people, decent fishing.....) I'm saying this as a fellow floater who would always float to Alley until someone on this forum (can't remember who it was) suggested taking out at Bay Creek, and it was the best advice I had gotten on this river. Other than that, have fun- but watch out for what I call "chainsaw jungle" it's a really nasty s curve with a lot of stumps and wood to avoid and it's not too far downstream from Jam Up cave. When the water is up it becomes even more challenging. Othe than that, there will be a few strainers and "pucker" moments, but you should have a blast! I wouldn't put on that river if the gauge is over 5' in Mountainview.

I realize water level dictates this trip, so let me preface with that. However, If I wanted to float the Little Niangua, arriving late on a Friday evening with the time to float and fish all day Saturday and Sunday morning, where would I float? I would want to camp on the river Friday and Saturday night and be off the river by 10am on Sunday. I've never floated this before, so not familiar with outfitters, etc...., but would need a shuttle. Any thoughts?

Yeah- they're alright, but he sent me some pics of their property. Wow, that's a lot of water awfully close to their home.

I believe that if someone interferes or harrasses with a person fishing within the banks of a stream or river that has been accessed by way of a public boat launch put in by the Missouri Department of Conservation, then the harrasser/interferer should be punished to the fullest extent of the law. The state of Missouri has laws in place to keep this from happening and yet it still happens all the time. The only way to stop this type of harrassment and intimidation is to punish the law breakers. This stream, Shoal Creek, has obviously been deemed navigatable by someone in the higher powers of the states government, or the MDC would not have put a public boat launch on the stream in order for the public to navigate it. I, Ken Jackson, a non-resident, but a paying customer of outdoor services in the state of Missouri, demand that something be done in order to correct this wrong doing and to insure that it does not happen again.

We floated it at 3.7 one weekend from the Prongs. Fishing sucked, but the paddling was pretty fun. What I remember the most about the water at that level was it seemed that nearly every riffle or bend in the river we had a few options on which channel to take. Obviously, when the water is low you are limited to only the main channel. We had fun and I sure don't recall the river being unsafe, just tricky and swift.

Speaking of keeping smallies, I have a question for you guys. We kept leap-frogging this group of 3 guys throughout our 3 day trip. They all had their own kayaks and were all fishing- the second night, we were setting up camp along the river and along they came floating down the river. We asked them how they were doing and one guy pulled up a stringer on his boat and showed us 6 smallies they were having for dinner. Here's my question- I know the limit is 2 per person with a minimum of 14" per day. However, is it legal for one person to be in posession of all 6, or are they supposed to be in posession of only 2per person??

Well darn Bobber, I had left before I read your post. We end putting in at Ponca, a little low but floatable. We caught a few fish along the way but nothing sizeable. From what I hear, we also got a little lucky to miss the rain while we were on the river. We woke up Saturday morning to a few sprinkles, but then it just stayed cloudy. On another note, when we were takiing out on Sunday morning at Ozark we ran into a couple that was putting a raft in there. You didn't happen to be putting them in did you- wearing a hunter orange stocking cap?

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Anyone else who knows the upper river pretty well. We're considering making the drive down from KC and STL to float Ponca to Pruitt this weekend. Any thoughts on floatability, I'm guessing by history we may be looking at 24-27" of airspace (we will put in Friday morning at Ponca) Also- how does the shuttle work if we put in there- we will park one car and leave it at Ponca and will need one shuttled to Pruitt. Can you do that or do we have to use BOC?? Thanks for the help!

Would love to join you Red, weather looks perfect, but the weekend's booked. May try and make trip down the weekend of the 25th if the weather holds. Good luck and post some pics!

That my friend is a good point- just checked the weather here and looks like we will be enjoying that warm up as well!

Better get to shoveling my man, that's getting pretty deep! Here in KC, at my house last week we got 14" and man that was a back breaker. The problem up here is the wind, we had some drifts along our house that were darn near 5' tall. I can only imagine how bad it is down there....

That's good to hear Chief- as I posted earlier, I assumed they were taking their time and exploring all avenues before they gave a knee-jerk reaction to a few unhappy people. I'm glad to hear they're at least making some progress and weighing their options and developing a plan to implement. I'll be curious as to what their final decision may be.....

Just kidding with you Phil! Just keeping you on your toes.....

Or.... Driving it into too shallow of water and getting stuck in the mud. Then AFTER you read the manual realize it has a depth alarm that you can turn on with the flip of a switch. Or..... Taking off while youre anchor is still in the water I could go on and on about how much I learned from the school of hard knocks on boating.

Wacky and I are good buddies, so he's always on the look out for me. Actually, I missed out on buying the property right next to his about 2 years ago. I wasn't in the position to buy at the time and still regret it.

I have started the process of gathering some information on buying a cabin. Here are the must haves: Riverfront Property 3 hrs or less from KC Electric Water Not located on big water (Osage, etc...) I know these are basic, but it's a starting point. If anyone knows of any properties for sale or the name of a reputable realtor with knowledge of these types of properties, I would appreciate any information.

You've heard the old saying about what boat sands for: B.O.A.T = Bust Out Another Thousand!! Or the other: "best two days I owned my boat, the day I got it and the day I sold it" Honestly, after the experience I had with my boat- a 18' runabout Four Winns, these were both true. But then again I pobably shoveled too much out to buy it, which was why I had trouble swallowing all the expenses that went into it. Wow, do I sound a little bitter or what? That's why now I only have boats that I can paddle and have no moving parts.

So I noticed my dog acting strange this morning when I took a look out in my back yard. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw what she was looking at: Now, this isn't the first time we have seen them or heard them around my house. But it is definitely the first time I have seen one this close and in person. I took a bunch of pics, but only one turned out good before it ran off into the field.

So I noticed my dog acting strange this morning when I took a look out in my back yard. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw what she was looking at: Now, this isn't the first time we have seen them or heard them around my house. But it is definitely the first time I have seen one this close and in person. I took a bunch of pics, but only one turned out good before it ran off into the field. (I'm sorry the pic is too big, I'm not sure how to make it smaller - - I'll try and re-post) If you look at the pic on the other post, it's better

Outside Bend- one would think they would have a better plan, but the reality is over that span there had only been 14 confirmed sightings. So, I'd be willing to bet their resources have been spent in other areas. I would guess after the first killing a few weeks ago they were thinking- "well, one killing in "x" amount of years, not need to panic" And now their probably thinking " oh "sh$%, this is something that may not go away" now we really need to get our act together." It's a tough spot, because it seems to me there is a lot of gray area in the law as it's written now....

I like to try and make a comparison of the MDC's actions to what I think many major corporations or non-profits would most likely do in a public situation- first and foremost they have to be sure they have ALL the facts...... of course this can be dicey at best. Once those are gathered, there is usually a very long and drawn out process on how to proceed (typically conversations involve attorneys, board of directors, etc...) then of course a plan of action is discussed. Most times, decision are made based off simple formula: "how can we address this situation and still retain the most amount of support from our customers and still look good in the public's eye" In some situations, that's by divulging all of the information up front. In some cases it's by slowly divulging the information in phases, and certainly in some cases that's by withholding more infomation than divulging. With that being said, in my observation and experience, the best answer almost always directly relates back to funding and image. The corporation typically makes the decision that will have the least financial impact to their bottom line while keeping them looking good to the public. Now, if the MDC makes a bunch of quick knee jerk decisions to satisfy a few concerned citizens, will those decisions ultimately hurt their image and long term sustainabiity? Maybe, maybe not...... but I would be willing to bet they will put many, many hours of collaboration and planning to ensure whatever they decide will satisfy the mass audience. So I guess in the long run, maybe give them the benefit of the doubt for now, but if they do not come out with a plan of action to address the issues in the near future I would say all of this is falling on deaf ears. Of course, I am making many assumptions here, but it's just my 2 cents worth