GloryDaze

I guess we have a different type of duck hunting here in the city. I've floated this river 6-7 times but never heard of anything like this: http://www.kshb.com/dpp/news/local_news/kc-man-shot-at-while-canoeing-on-river

Just returned from a 3 night 4 day trip from Alley to 2 Rivers- put in at Alley on Friday afternoon with a buddy and his son under clear skies and a nice warm day. The plan was to take float until about 2 miles above Eminence so we could take our time and not have to worry about all the private land. It had been 7 or 8 years since I had floated this stretch so it was like a new river to me. The river was crystal clear and seemed a little low but still had a nice current. We had planned on good fishing, but soon realized that they just weren't in the mood to eat today. The ONLY fish caught the first day was a nice 17" I landed about 3 miles into the trip. The only other floaters we saw was a nice couple from KC that were headed to Eminence and they had as much luck as us- I think he said they caught just one as well. We camped right next to a beautiful bluff and enjoyed the nice cool night with a big fire, some refreshments and a ghost story or two just to keep his son on his toes. The next morning we headed out about 10:30 and shortly arrived at the Eminence bridge where my buddy and I both caught a few dinkers. Shortly after going under the bridge I managed to land one more and that was it for day two. What is up with all the stalls on river left when you are about 1/4 mile past the bridge? Are those for horses, cows, etc..... we must have seen a 100 of them along the river bank.??? Anyway, we did run into the wild horses at Shawnee Creek- we counted 15 of them and that was actually the highlight of the day for all of us. Pretty cool to see them that close..... The second night we camped just past Shawnee Creek at a nice bend in the river with a great sounding rapid to listen to all evening. We didn't fish day three and decided to just paddle the last 2 miles and enjoy the scenery. We were off the water by 10:30 and I was on my way back to KC by 11 or so. This was definitely as beautiful stretch of river with a constant flow that required little dead water paddling. Of course it was a little shallow, but the entire trip we only had to portage one time. I would love to get back and do this one again when the water and weather are warmer as it looked fishy as hell. I have to give some credit to my buddies son who just turned 6 years old last weekend. He floated the whole section by himself in his own kayak and looked like he had been doing it for 20 years. Quite impressive to see the little guy navigating some of those shallow hairpin turns all by himself! One final question- when we were leaving 2 Rivers we ran across 3 dogs... they all three had antennas coming off their collars.... now I can guess this is some sort of GPS tracking device for their owners, but what would they be out hunting this time of the year?

Jack with all due respect to you friends experiment, I can probably guess why his didn't make it through. If he's a high level exec, more than likely he wasn't applying for a position at the same level he currently holds. Therefore, the filter more than likely did its job in identifying he was overqualified. Speaking from experience and reading countless coverletters and resumes, those filters work most of the time. On the same hand, I am more likely to hire someone that I know or comes recommend from a colleague. I agree, networking can make all the difference. The OP is doing more than I did before I graduated. I think he's on the right track.

Riverman- well be there Friday-Sunday floating down to 2 Rivers. Hoping to catch a few as well.... good luck!

I know- however, around this area NOTHING moves fast. Most residents in the area put up one heck of a fight anytime there is a chance of a big business or new development takes place. If I were them, I probably would too- for the most part, the location backs up to an area with $1 million + homes so I'm sure they picture their home values quickly declining.

All good to here.... rumor here is that it would open in 2015. Told my wife I hope they have a coffee shop, because ill be in there 4 days a week just to look around and waste time. Hell, may even apply during holiday season to make some extra cash and walk home.

Awesome pic... and of your dad makes it priceless! That would be going on my wall.

Looks like they may be opening a new store here in kc about 2 minutes from my house. Anybody familiar with them? Guessing similar to Bass Pro or Cabella'S but not sure.

Four years ago my wife and I started a little tradition where we would go on a 2 night 3 day float trip in late September or early October. You see, this is important to me as she only partakes in this long lived tradition with me once per year. Trust me, this is a good thing, and she knows it. We have the unwritten rule in our marriage that we encourage eachother to pursue our own hobbies while not expecting the other to participate. I camp and canoe and she runs marathons and Ironmans, so things work out just fine. There is no doubt she is a girly girl and doesn't appreciate the finer things that I do when it comes to camping; sleeping on the ground, brushing my teeth with a stick, days without a shower, sand in my food. You guys all know what I'm talking about and probably could add a few that I didn't mention. So I take this trip serious, you could call it my "show and tell" weekend- she loves it when I explain the the details of water levels and watersheds. Or the different characteristics of each stream I float and why I think it makes that stream special. But she particularly enjoys when I try and teach her the tools of paddling a canoe. You know, the strokes you use to turn left, right, slow down, speed up and on and on. Her favorite game to play is the old "if you were steering the canoe through this rapid what line would you take?" Ahhh... the finer thigs in life. But what makes this great for me is she takes most of it in gest and realizes, although she could really care less about all the stuff mentioned above, she knows that I get just as much joy out of sharing all this information with her as a kid during show and tell and she at least flatter me. Sunday, we pushed off from Pulltite with the dog and limited supplies since we were just floating to Round Spring to pick up the car and then head back to Pulltite to camp for the evening. I decided to bring our really expensive camera to capture the fall foliage and hopefully get a couple "wall hangers"- It was a cool morning, probably in the low 50's and overcast as we made our way within sight of Pulltite Spring. There were a few people on the gravel bar cheking the spring out and I noticed what I thought would be an award winning picture with the bluffs, trees etc.... so I pull out the camera and start shooting. From the bow I hear "put that thing away, you are notorious for runining our good stuff." I of course tell her I've been floating 1,000 times and there is no need to................" Next thing I know I'm under water trying to figure out what just happened- seems that literally right where the spring branch enters and the water gets deep there is a stump standing about 3" under the water. We hit that and kind of high-centered, she leaned one way and the dog leaned the same way at the same time and it was yard sale time. I could not touch as it was too deep, and frankly I was grasping for air as the cold water was keeping me from being able to take a deep breath. The dog is swimming one way, my wife the other and the canoe is sinking as it goes downstream. When we flipped, my wife fell out right by the bluff on the right side so she swam over to the rocks. I on the other hand was right in the middle and was having trouble making progress towards the shore. Thankfully anothe kayaker was right there and she paddled over and let me grab on to her where I proceeded to catch my breath. She then helped me get to the gravel bar that is part of the Group Camp #2 campsite. Too keep this story from being too long, she ended up hiking up the trail and back to the campground and I paddled to Round Spring to get the car. Now, the story ends well, but I have to tell you there were a few lessons that I already knew, but obviously needed to be reminded of here: 1) Never take things for granted- as many times as I float I assumed everything would be just fine and we would NEVER flip 2) Be prepared- I'm not saying I will always wear a lifejacket, but should have had extra clothes, paddle etc... I was fortunate this happened within walking distance of Pulltite. 3) Compensate for the dog- it's amazing what 50lbs of force can do when it all leans to one side at the same time 4) I needed to be humbled a little- I have never, never sunk a canoe in 25+ years of paddling. But I realized just how fast things can go wrong. 5) darn that water is cold! I had no idea I wouldn't be able to respond to swimming due to the cold. 6)Always, I mean always listen to your wife when she says to put the camera away!! I got more dung about the camera then I did flipping. All in all, it was just another day in paradise- leaves were beautiful, river was in great shape and I got to spend another weekend showing my wife what a great paddler I was. Doesn't get much better than that!!

My wife and I will be going first weekend in October. We usually base camp at Pulltite. We put in at Aker's, they shuttle car down to Round Spring. First day we float from Aker's to base camp. Next day we head down to Round Spring. Gives us 2 nights at Pulltite with plenty of time to explore, hike, etc.... Probably not as far as you nay want to go, but a great trip either way. Can't go wrong with any float on the Current in my opinion.

With all the rain here in KC - 6.5 to be exact, I decided to float the upper section of the river. Put in at Kenneth and Holmes and made the 5 mile journey down to Blue Ridge. Water was up and muddy as expected. Turned out to be a very peaceful and fast trip. There are a few fun spots along the way, normally under a bridge is where you can find minor rapids. The one thing I noticed on this trip is the rocks are much larger than a typical Ozark stream. I guess what I mean is when you hit a submerged rock you don't typically slide right over. Its more of a jolt and hard impact, so boat control is pretty important. I didn't fish, since I have no idea how or where to fish a little stream that's up and muddy that primarily holds catfish, carp and drum...... any thoughts? Took me 1.5 hours to go 5 miles and was off the water by 10:30am. I did see a group if whitewater paddlers putting in at Blue Ridge headed down to Red Bridge. I almost went with them but decided not to because of my transportation. I'll post some pics tonight.

Too funny- we knew if he had any experience he wouldn't believe us! We both actually have tape measures, mine on my cooler and my buddies is on the inside of his. Problem was, he slipped out of NY hand before I measured him. Although I have to admit it would be quite a blast landing a 21". I do remember he had a cool yellow lab just chilling out in front of the boat. Tell your buddy the two guys on the gravel bar enjoyed pulling his leg.

Welcome! I too have recently "discovered" the Niangua. I've always avoided it due to the reputation of the party river I hear a lot here in KC. However, after floating darn near every stream in the Ozarks and many long drives, my past 2 experiences in the past month have me thinking otherwise. I've enjoyed floating, camping and fishing the river and see many trips in the future. Like you, I've been keeping my eyes peeled for an opportunity to buy some property and build my little piece of heaven. While that may be further down the road for me, it's nice to hear you were able to pursue that dream. Thanks for the post and pics.... Makes me want to skip out of work and head down there this weekend.

Bummer to hear that- putting in Friday at Barclay and taking out Sunday at Leadmine. Hope we have better luck, but if we don't it looks like weather will make it a great trip' mid 80's during day and low 60's at night- perfect!

Just floated from Barclay down last weekend- only had to get out of canoe one time during the trip to walk. I was pretty heavy loaded up for a 3 day trip as well. There are a few spots you need to take the right line, but it shouldn't be too bad.

Thanks for the guesstimates....but I'm going with Justin's, I dig that 23-24" range, ha! Joe, I honestly don't remember but if I do the math from when we got on the water to the time I caught it that would be about right. I'm going again in two weeks so I hope to snag another one this size. Oh, I forgot to mention, the second night we camped just after blue spring and just above some cabins on the right. While we were setting up camp a Guy came upstream in his jet boat and ask if we caught anything. We figured what the heck let's have a little fun. We told him I landed a 21" he asked if we measured it- well of course we did and we had pics...... he said about once or twice every year or so do they catch them that big. He was a really nice guy, but I just couldn't tell him the truth. I guess that little fib will make its way around forva while..

So I don't fish nearly as much as some folks on here, so I need a little help. This is the one I caught from my trip report and never had a chance to measure. I realize most have cuaght bigger fish but this may be pushing my all time high. Would love to hear opinions on the length- here's mine: 18"

Forgot about the cows in the river.... they honestly weren't too bad. But do have a question about trash. When we took out at leadmine we had a big bag full of trash, some ours but mostly from us cleaning up when we would stop. Can someone help me understand how it can be an access point with camp sites and nowhere to put trash? I wonder how many people get off the river and just leave their trash at the ramp since there is nowhere to dispose. I know where the campers put theirs..... apparently the fire rings there also double as dumpsters. I just don't get it.

Well , me and my buddy put in at Barclay Friday at 5pm and took out at Leadmine today at 9am. We had never floated this river so we were both excited. I'm gonna get this out early- by far the dirtiest river I have floated. I have never seen so many empty beer cans on the bottom along with pretty much everything else one could think to put in a canoe. Pretty much every gravel bar that had signs of humans was littered with foil, bean cans, cigarettes, etc.... What a darn shame. Friday we floated down to just below te old bridge piers. Pretty uneventful float, caught plentyof smallies on soft plastic and a top water popper- biggest fish of the day was 13". Crowds were decent and we actually enjoyed floating by all the campgrounds as everyone was hanging out in the river by that time. Saturday we woke up and there was a nice chill in the air. I really enjoyed this section of the float as it had a nice current and some good fishing. Fishing was better today, with me snagging the fish of the weekend. Around 11:45 I told Rob this certain hole looked really good...... Deep water after a little flow and in the shade. First cast..! Bamm....... I knew it was big the second I set the hook. After a few minutes of her pulling my boat around I finally landed her. Rob got a few pics, I was going to keep her in the water before laying her on the cooler for a measurement. Well, she shook my grip and away she went- oh well. I guesstimate she was a little more than 18" but you can make your own guess once I post pic. I'm on my iPad and don't have pic but will post tomorrow. Ended the day with a visit to Blue Spring and camped about a half mile from there. Ended the night pulling a nice 16" out of the hole by the campsite. Woke up today to some rain, which felt great! Spent part of morning cleaning up someone else's trash they left prior to us being there. Didn't fish at all today, as we just enjoyed the final 2-3 miles of our float. Forgot to mention there are some really nice cabins along the way. This section seemed to have a few long slow stretches as we neared Leadmine. There is one section that obviously is a collection area for trees during floods. Someone has done a ton of work clearing all that wood so canoes can get by. And the property owner along there obviously doesn't want anyone on his property. I have never seen so much purple on a river (I'm sure he's sick of cleaning up after all the people who trash the gravel bars) Anyway- pretty section of river with plenty of flow, only had to get out one time. Sad to see all the trash, but fishing was solid, gravel bars were easy to find for camping, and once we floated past Mountain Creek we only saw one canoe. Hope to get back there sometime..... Maybe in the fall.

Joe thanks for the info.. we actually don't fish as hard as some folks. I enjoy floating and soaking it all in as much as fishing so should be a good mileage. Pretty cool how you have observed the river change. I've noticed changes on the big sugar creek just in the 5 years I've been floating it. I can't imagine the difference over 30 years.

The Bird Island number is disconnected.... I called Linda, per Oneshot's advice and she's hooking us up from Barclay access to Leadmine. She was absolutely delightful on the phone and gave me all the advice I needed. Their shuttle fee, with us using our own boats is $30.... not too bad.

Nice article in the Star This morning, great job Kyle really enjoyed the read and great pics of you, your dog and boat!

Ness- We put in there right where the old wood bridge crosses (actually right underneath it). No doubt it can be a little scary around there so I have my wife drop us off and then call when we get to Blue Ridge to pick us up. I can't remember what the CFS was last time I floated it on the upper section, but there is a USGS gauge at Blue Ridge ( I want to say it was 230 or so). Catfish is all I have caught (off a rubber worm) as I was trying to catch bass. But some of the guys I seen floating there say they catch carp and drum from time to time. I ran into a guy one time wade fishing right at the Red Bridge takeout and he had 5-10 crappie on a stringer he had pulled out from under the tree. Most of the river runs right along some biking and hiking trails called the Blue River Parkway system. In the fall and spriing I hike there all the time.... that's actually how I learned about kayaking it, as I was hiking I saw 3 guys coming from upstream so I stopped them and asked where they put in.

Ness- upper stretch I put in just South of Martin City off Holmes and Kenneth. There's an old park there refferes to as old polo grounds. Float from there to Blue Ridge and take out at the MDCaccess. Its right at 5 miles. Another stretch is put in at the MDCaccess at Blue Ridge and go down to Red Bridge. Its about another 5 miles. I've run into a few other floaters on those stretches. Like I said nothing like the Ozarks but its moving water that has same characteristics of upper stretches of Ozark streams. But ultimately it gets me on the water 5 minutes from my house.

Not telling you what you will or will not like, but at 6'4 and 250+ your'e not exactly a tiny dude. I'm 6'4 and 220 and have a little Perception Swifty I use around the creek and small lakes by my house. My legs are a little too long for the kayak and if I was any bigger there would be no way I could fit in there. However, I'v always said, float whatever the hell you want to float- if you can fit in it and it suits your needs then go for it. The only catch to that is you may find your needs change rather quickly. For example: My first boat was a Mad River Synergy sit on top 12'- it got me on the water but after about 2 years I realized it didn't exactly suit my needs. It was too heavy, I got too wet when paddling, difficult to turn, etc.... So I thought I would try another kayak, a Wilderness Systems Tsunami sit inside. This proved to be a better fit as I was a little faster, stayed completely dry, had plenty of storage, etc... well, I got sick and tired of trying to squeeze into the tiny little cockpit. Finally, made the switch to a MR Legend 15' Canoe....... Let's just say, for the needs I have I will never be getting another primary boat for my Ozark trips. It has been perfect, it's light, stays dry, more than enough storage, turns on a dime, tracks decent! The only reason I have the Swifty is to paddle around the creeks by my house, I will never use it anywhere else unless a friend needs it on a trip.