Stuartwp

I have caught exactly two carp fly fishing. When I hooked my big one, I just knew it had to weigh ten pounds or more. I was stunned when it weighed half that amount. I can not image what it be like catching a 20 plus pound carp. All I know is it was biggest fight I ever had on a flyrod.

If the weather holds, maybe I will have a story by saterday afternoon.

I have fished truman tail race on several occasions over the years, but never during the walleye run and never when they where running water out of the gates. Maybe I should change my sign in name to Bad Timing.

Guess what I saw today driving from one small town to the next, a very large gobler right along the highway, standing in the entrance to somebodies driveway! I looked at the time;12:15. Wouldn't you know. At least I go to see a gobler this spring.

"What pattern?" Can I come too now?

You have me all fired up to go. Several freinds and I have gone to Texoma for a weekend in the past two years and our third trip is a short five weeks away. Nobody in the group owns a boat so we hire a guide (Capt steve Barnes - txfishingguide.com) but for a bunch of amatures we catch a lot of fish and have more fun than we are really allowed to have. I took my son with us last year and he caught the biggest fish of the boat. It was all he could do to reel it in. The guide said it only weighed about eight pounds, but it looked a lot bigger than that to me, but Dad's are like that I guess.

I am glad this thread is here so I can vent my bad weather frustraitions. The wetherman in Kansas city hadn't hit a rain forcast for months. They hit this one 100 miles per hour. I scouted Thusday night and found two good areas. Friday morning at 8:00 the monsoon had struck and didn't relent until sunday morning. So much for my first availible day to go turkey hunting. It didn't help when the land owner told me that they where thick as fleas either. It is nice to know that at a few guys did connect. Its good motivation for guys like me.

I was sitting on a large rock at Truman lake last week not catching any crappie when three "logs" materialized in the water in front of me in about ten feet of water. These carp looked like they where three feet long. They where headed in one direction but they didn't seem to be in much of hurry to get anywhere. For spite I dropped my crappie jig in front of them only to watch them duck under it and continue on. I had seen several carp working the banks and since they are rooting aroundin the mud I am guessing they where activaly feeding. Just so happens a may fly hatch ws going on at the time too. I was wondering if these "crusing" carp are feeding and if so, are they catchable in that type of situation?

I am impressed and jealous. I have never got a spring bird. Only fall birds. That is a nice turkey. I hope I get mine on Sat.

Wanting to go hunting and getting to go are two different things; much like my fishing. I have never had the oportunity to hunt opening day of spring turkey season. They never cancelled school way back when when I was a kid and so far they haven't cancelled work either. I have a four hour window of opportunity Saterday morning, so I hope it isn't raining.

This is a second hand report from two retired fisherman who get to go when ever they want to. Wendsday they went to Talley bend area and had only fair fishing. Some fish both on and off the banks with minnows. Lots of small fish for each keeper but still managed a few keepers. Thurday at Bucksaw in the Grand Arm. The parking lot was over flowing. Early in the morning they fished the banks with minnows and did a better. Still several small fish for each keeper but more keepers. By 9-10 O'clock when the sun was up good, they switched to 1/16 ounce tube jigs and fished in 12-15 deep water and started catching bigger crappie that where also fatter. The fishing was slower, but more keepers per time on the water. Most females still had eggs. Best tube colors where either blue or chartruse. I am going to go down there Saterday to try to find out for myself.

I really enjoyed KRflyfisher's post of his son's first fish. Lets hear some more member first fish stories, or first fish of your kids stories, or both.

Easy now. I know those brush offs can be annoying, but for all we know, that was the first time in a long time that man has been able to be with his son.

I have used a "grandpa" comb for years. One of those long black hair combs that are tall on one end with the wide teeth and short on the other end with fine teeth: the kind my grandpa always used. The fine teeth do a good job. It isn't perfect but it is a lot better than picking it by hand or with a dubbing needle.

West on Hwy 52 Butler City Lake?

I have heard that old saying myself byt never belived it was true until now. I wasfihsing with a freind in his john boat friday night. I caught and released a largemouth bass. The bass immediatly jumped again like it was hooked, cleared the side of the boat, bounced off a tackle box and fell into the net. It was one of the funniest things I have ever seen and too good a story not to pass on. Happy Easter Everyone.

Try tying twisting the herl with a peice of tag end of tying thread. Twist it up with the thread like dubbing and then wrap it like you normally would.

I went to Tanny for the first time in March of 1985, my one and only college spring break trip. I was a senior at NWMSU in Maryville and it only took eight hours of driving to get to Branson. They where running water below the dam bank full and after two days, I caught my fisrt trout on a zebco 33, four pound line and a red and white daredevil spoon. It was a ten inch stocker rainbow. The next day the water was gone and I got to try out waders for the first time in my life (borrowed from girl freind's Dad). I waded out in the area of what I didn't know at that time was big hole; standing in waist deep water because I could, fan casting with a black and gold rapala minnow. I wasn't catching anything until they sounded the horn at the dam. All of a sudden I caught my first brown trout. A four inch fingerling that had been stocked because they where just starting the 20 inch trophy restrictions. I caugt three more small 7-8 inch rainbows in as many casts and was having a great time when I decided I had better head back to shore because the water was starting to push me around. After a couple dozen steps I realized the water wasn't getting any shallower and I had better pick up the pace. That was my first and last trip to Tanneycomo until 1998. I have been every year since. The only other fisherman I saw back then where in bass boats drifting with the current, except for the last day. As I was walking back to the car after the horn sounded there where three or four people fishing flyrods in a spill way (outlet #2) with what looked like peices of orange sponges. They probaly where too, most likly homemade strike indicators, but I didn't know that at the time either. All I know is, I had lots of fun, and that I never forgot it.

I would like to encourage everyone to take a camera with them when they go fishing and the the post of the big rainbow trout by Showme in Tannycomo yesterday is a classic reason why. It is a great picture.........and Showme and Uncletube are lucky that Mr. Miller was there with his camera to save the day. Now that moment in time has been saved for them and and enjoyed by me. Fishing is fishing and you never what the next bite might turn up. Taking a picture is a great way of making a good memory even better, or a funny moment even funnier. While it is certainly nice, you don't need somebody else there to take a photo either. Case in point is last friday evening. I arrived at a pond an hour before dark for some general "I can't stand it anymore" fishing. I took a spinning rod, a fanny pack......and a camera because it is a habit now. I caught six fish that evening and one just happened to be the biggest crappie of my life (...so far). When I regained control of my lower jaw, I grabbed the camera. Even the cheap disposable cameras take good pictures these days. They also make waterproof dispoasable cameras now too. They can keep in a tackle box or fly vest and they don't cost much more than what a crankbait cost. In some cases less. And if you get a good picture, by all means post it here on the forum so that guys like me who don't get to go fishing very much can at least live vicariously thru the rest of you who do!

I use Florecent green chartruse, I have never had an oportunity to use yellow, but it would probably work. I tie on a no.6 Mustad 3366 ring eye hook. Use extra spall dumbelle eyes, or 1/8 inch brass dumbells. I also use silver or rainbow kristal flash. I tie them spase and like to leave the sparkle tail out past the buck tail about half an inch. From eye to the end of the last christal flash can be 3.5 inches long. It seems like its on the long side but 9 and 10 inch crappie don't have any trouble. I have never caught any crappie on it that I remeber, but another color combination on clouser minnows I like is brown/orange with gold kristal flash. I tie these shorter, 1.5 to 2 inches long.

If you have one of those electric george forman grills; give both side of the grill a good spray with some non stick stuff like PAM. Put fillets on and sprinkle them with lemon pepper. Its not fancy, but its fast and clean up is easy because there are never any left overs.

I have a freind who reaises a lot of cattle. We where talking about Mountan lions last year and his position is if they show up in his cross hairs, they are certainly endagered. I was also talking to a customer at work and he told me he had a freind around stockton who found one of his calves dead 12 feet up in the fork of a tree. The conservation Department told him it was a bobcat. I don't know if this is true or not (a good story never cost anything extra) either way, it would take a very healthy bobcat to drag a 70-100 pound calf that high up a tree. Also worked with a lady who Father raises cattle south of Butler. He had a yearling calf show up sick and when he brought it in, it had a series of even cuts on both sides that where about five inches a part. The conservation Department also told him it was a bobcat. I have never seen bobcat tracks, but again a five inch spread and still be able to reach around to the ribs of a 400 pond yearly makes for a pretty heafty bob cat. And why would a bobcat jump on the back of 400 pound yearling in the first place?

In the spring I like a use a grey (rabit fur) micro jig about inch long tied sparse. Probably resembles newly hatched fry. In the fall and when the water is clear, I have used chartruse and white closer minnows fished around docks. No fancy rig, just a six weight rod with a 8-9 foot level leader of six pound test mono.

My father-in-law built and rebuilt rods for 30 years. I will pass on to you what he told me. Rods do not flex where the tread is tied on. Therfore, if you want to stiffen a rod use double foot guides and wrap the windings a litttle longer. You can also add an extra guide. This will not change the action. If the blank was designed to bend over half its length, it will still bend over half its length, but it will take more force to do so. You could also experiment casting with lesser weight fly line to see if you like that better. Just because 6/7 is printed on the rod dosn't mean that is what you have to do. In general, to actually modify the action of a rod requires trimming. Trim the butt and it becomes softer, because you have moved "the curve" futher down the over all length of the rod. The revese is true if you trim the tip; it become faster. However, I would excersice a lot of caution if trimming the tip of a fly rod. In so many words a fly rod has a different job than a spinning or casting rod so if you take away too much tip that is what you would end up with. With that thought in mind, if the rod still is not what you want for a fly rod, consider converting it to a spinning rod. Take your old fly reel seat off. Next, find a broken rod and try to locate a section that will slip over the butt of your fly rod. Build up the fly rod butt with bands of masking tape to get a snug fit with your new rod section; the same way as if you where fitting a reel seat to a blank. Once it will slide on with a snug fit, slide it back off and build the spinning hnadle and spinning reel seat on your new section. When its finished, glue it your fly rod. The original fly grip will now act as the fore grip of you new spinning rod. Add spinning guides and a spinning tip and you got a spinning rod that will work very well with light lines and light lures. Think of it as a nine foot long ultra light. Because of the lenght, they make good slip bobber outfits too.

I just joined the forum a couple weeks ago So I apologize if this replay seems late. I am more of a warm water guy myself because the trout are a four hour drive from me, but my favorite micro jig is peackock hearl. Twist the hearls with copper wire and they are very durable. My next choice would be a toss up between black and what ever color natural rabbit is (mostly gray I suppose with some brown showing here and there). This may not work in Tanny and Bennit because it may not be legal, but I also like to add rubber legs to these jigs too. The same kind you would find on a sponge rubber bug. The finer, the better. The grey colored jigs (minus the rubberlegs)that are tied with a sparce tail, inch long +/-, works very well for crappie in May when they start feeding on newly hatched fry. Good luck and don't surprized by the variety of fish you will catch.