405z06

No kidding. I went through a spell where I was gun-shy. I tipped 4-5 times in a couple months. Lost 2 Loomis rods. One time lost my only paddle and had to empty a plastic tackle container to move me down river to the end of my trip. I haven't flipped in a couple of years. But they always come unexpectantly.

that looks incredible

Nice set-up! I don't kayak, but in a canoe I take two: One baitcaster for spinnerbaits/topwater, and one spinning outfit for soft plastics.

WTF is this nonsense?

Congrats! I've been lusting after a G3 1860 CCJ tunnel hull lately

lol, true

Huh? So the fella who is limiting out on smallmouth several times a month to "ahem" feed his family is doing less harm than me, who keep nothing and takes great care to realease quickly? Let's say I am responsible for the death of one smallie a month, due to gut-hook, over-stress, having a fish consume a soft plastic that ended on the bottom of the river, whatever. The math is still pretty much in my favor, no?

I've never caught a 20", not in Missouri at least. Which is kind of embarassing considering I fish quite a bit in the warmer months, and even a bit in the winter. This would probably be my biggest, caught on the Big River in an area where that there aren't supposed to be many smallies according to some on this board.

hey, dont sweat it. I hate drunk posting the day after, too. Heck, I avoided Facebook for 3 weeks after I sampled Midnight Moon Junior Johnson "moonshine" the first time. It happens.

more navel gazing

Nice Chief impersonation

I'm pretty sure that peninsula was there the last time I was in the area in late-summer. I know that every time I see it I think to myself that it won't be there long, but I think it is still there.

The nice weather Saturday had me thinking about it, but the water temps were probably still in the mid-30's at best, so I decided to sit this one out.

I had seen posts in the past that indicated that the mouth of the Huzzah had moved in recent times and, using the awesome Google Earth, did this simple animated gif showing the changes starting the 1996, then 2003, and finally 2012. Are there any other areas of the Meramec that have changed over that time that anyone can think of?

That pic is about 7 years old, but I just noticed that there is a split ring on that Wart, then the snap. DId they used to come this way? I know I didn't do that, and they don't come that way now.

The Wiggle Wart is my favortie crankbait by far, but I have almost completely stopped using them on the rivers....I'm lucky to get 10 casts before having to break off. And in a canoe it can be especailly tough to retrieve a stuck bait. As a side note, about 10+ years ago I was on LOZ and was tearing up with a funky looking Wart: Blue, chrome, and red lip. I had been going through all my Warts trying to find one that would run true and finally happened upon this ugly blue one that ran correct, even though I wasnt crazy about the way it looked. I was with my step father and he was throwing a wart, too, but couldn't compete with my color combo for whatever reason. In the years since I have never seen that color of Wart anywhere, not Bass Pro, Cabela's, Denny Dennis, Dunn's, nowhere. Well last week I was at Denny Dennis getting some line and just happend by the crankbait isle and was excited to find some more of these colors. I left a few behind for the rest of y'all, but it was a nice haul I still have this original one, too. I have probably lost 50 (easy) Wiggle Warts since that time, but this guy never breaks off.

That'll pull your string! Nice fish!

Fished Redhorse down to 30 on Saturday. I had never fished this section before. There were a couple of nice stretches of water, though the last couple of miles were kinda dead. My buddy and I caught about 15 fish combined. 1 largemouth, 1 spot, 1 crappie, and the rest smallmouth. The largest was a nice 17 inch smallie on a 3.5" tube. It woulda been a poor day for warm weather, but was the best we have done in terms of winter fishing, The weatherman was off on his forecast a bit. It was supposed to be low-to-mid 50's and partly sunny. I don't think it ever got over 43 and never saw the sun.

I tried Berkley Nanofil for the 1st time in 8# on one of my spinning reels this summer. I couldn't believe how far the stuff casts. And It seems very strong, difficult to break off. I've been using Vanish Transition in 12# for my baitcasting reels. More out of habit than any commitment I have to it.

Last year was the first year that I winter fished much. With the mild weather, my buddy and I fished all year, mostly on the Meramec. I never pass up an opportunity to fish, but I can honestly say that I don't remember one trip last winter where we caught more than, say, 5 smallies. We fished slow, we fished thoroughly, we fished holes that we both decided would be target areas based on depth, but we basically fished for a few bites a day every time. Still worth it and enjoyable, but the 50 fish days are over for while, sadly.

I had a period a couple of years back that I seemed to tip over just about every float. l lost 1 rod on the Meramec and two more (all Loomis) on the Courtois. I got to the point that I wouldn't take any nice equipment or phone/camera in a canoe. Now i've gone through a long stretch where I haven't tipped over. Last year I was on the Meramec in a jon boat in Jan. It was about 34 degrees. I was standing and saw an eagle overhead, looked up and lost my balance and fell in, mid-channel. I was soaked head to toe. Somehow kept ahold of my rod. Like the OP, the cold of the water knocked the air out of me. Didn't have any back-up clothes. We had about 3-4 miles left on the float, but it really wasn't as bad as I woulda thought. My buddy was freaking out thinking I was going to get hypothermia.

Very nice, sir

Bleeding Shiner it was bassresource.com

No mention if where he caught it

This isn't me or my fish, i found this on a another forum. Claimed to be 7lbs. I could walk from my home to where this picture was taken, but have never wet a line there. Hmmmmm.