jdmidwest

If all else fails, wally world usually carries a foam spider or a few poppers. I have been having best luck on San Juan worms in brown, a black soft hackle pattern, foam beetles, poppers, and a Lite Brite minnow imitation. Does the fly shop in Indy carry any flies?

If hunting or floating remote areas in MO, there is always a handgun within reach. Usually nothing of bear caliber, but something for self defense from all manners of threats. Last float on the Castor, the parking lot was littered with cotton balls, somebody was cooking meth and did not have a headache. Streams are a popular place for the druggies to make their products and coming up on them could cause problems. I have used it a signaling device when idiots fire guns in the stream or fireworks. It just lets them know I am there which in heavy vegetation it is hard to tell. Stray and agressive dogs can be an issue to while wading streams. I take small game in season while fishing sometimes with a pistol. I have even used it to shoot thru limbs and retrieve a plug or 2. I don't carry in crowds, I don't have a CCW permit, so open carry intimidates some folks. I am discrete and don't draw attention. I will carry in Alaska, just like the last time. The grizzlies aren't as skiddish as the blacks. Make a little noise and a black will leave most of the time if you ever see one at all. Grizzly is different, more aggressive and more plentiful in Alaska. I will take a .45 cal, not really enough for a bear, but I will count on 8 well placed shots center mass if needed. The high power rifle or shotgun slug would be better, but too heavy to carry while fishing.

Judging from the vague description, it was probably the adult form of some nymph like creature. Did it say anything to you? If not, it was probably not Jimminie Cricket or any of its cousins. I would eliminate any of the V shaped species because of the T shape. I hope this helps. Cheers!

With MDC calling for bear proof food containers and pet, livestock feed storage, bears must be becoming a nuiasance somewhere. I was surprised about the one here in a residential area away from any large tract of wild timber. There have been other sightings locally since. Like most other wildlife, they keep to themselves and stay out of sight. One was shot last summer in a neighboring county while raiding a feed house and threatening a dog. I have seen tracks on the upper current river, 11 pt, and our farm in Wayne county. If we get a few more, maybe we can have an open season. As far as the otters, the article states that it sounded like a good idea when they introduced them but they may be getting out of hand. I had a family of them pass through at Wappappello Lake last duck season in flooded timber while I was floating in my kayak. 2 of them pulled a large carp onto a log and started feeding on it.

MDC news 6107, Its not just a chance encounter. MDC released this last week, 500 are in state. I have seen tracks years ago on 11pt. One was hit by a car last summer here in Jackson. I think they traded turkeys for them. They also fess up to the fact that otters are becoming a problem in their monthly magazine this month!

Thanks for the links. Just bought a new used jon boat, 14' Monark, 9.5 Johnson, bow mt Minn Kota all 1974. Motor needs some work, everything else in great shape. No leaks.

Back in 96 during a red run on the Russian River, a friend of mine spoke with a lady on the bank next to him in the crowd. She was from OK and stated there was only one other place like it she had been, Montauk on opening day! Of course the scenery is better and the fish are bigger. Naknek is a little more remote so that will help. Kenai and Susitana fisheries get the most attention.

KFF, you might want to pack a spinning rod and reel just in case, medium heavy with 12 to 25 lb. mono depending on the fish. You did not mention a target species of fish. If you are keying in on a red or a king in a run on a popular stream, you may encounter a crowd similar to Montauk on an opening weekend. They define the sport of combat fishing up there in the heat of a run, locals and tourists next to each other. Most salmon will not feed after getting into fresh water. If you are fishing a red run or kings, it will almost be like snagging them. Silvers are the only ones that will strike after they hit the river. The guys standing shoulder to shoulder with you will not let you fight one very long on a fly rod. You will need a spin rod to get them in quick. If you are targeting rainbows, dollies, or grayling and have a little private access to a stream, the fly rod will be all you need. I fished the fly rod exclusively while up there last time, but it was Sept. and all the crowds were gone.

Here is a good example, scientists are going to introduce an exotic species to eradicate an invasive, destructive species. I am sure you have seen the signs in campgrounds the last few summers about the ash borer and firewood brought in from afar. They are going to bring in a wasp that attacks only the ash borer to kill it off. What will happen when the ash borer is gone, will the wasp die off or will it adapt and improvise? Anyone remember how the ladybug got here? Anyone ever have a problem with swarms in the fall of ladybugs?

Democrats Need Retreat! Dems Not Right? Rusty, I feel you may have dealt with DNR on that issue. I know how you feel, I contacted the MDC a few years back on a water quality issue on the Big River near Highway 8. Cattle and Fences across the stream, and alot of S__t in the stream. Water quality went from great smallmouth water to stuff a catfish would gag in. They suggested I contact DNR, without a fish kill they had no beef. Weeks later their investigation turned up nothing, they could not find the problem area. Did I mention I give them the GPS locations of the affected area along with accurate descriptions. You can file all of the complaints you want. Most are just good buddy locals and you are a tourist. Just another government agency that wastes my hard earned tax dollars without any effect. No offense to the parks division of DNR, they generally do a good job.

I have to disagree on that one Taxidermist. As a landowner and a farmer myself and my family too, we are educated enough to water cattle from ponds and not the stream itself. We keep a buffer zone of trees between our fields and the creek that runs through the land we own. We keep the livestock away from the stream banks to prevent bank erosion. We keep the fences away from the streams, floods just wash them out anyway. We don't clearcut our forests, we manage the timber and selective cut to prevent erosion. We fertilize our pasture with manure from the feed lots and barns with manure spreaders. We are living on a century old farm that was homesteaded in the 1800's. My Great Grandparents have started here and through the years we have made several livings off this land. I harvest all types of game and fish from this land. We have gone away from row crops and converted it all to pasture and timber. The problems lie in the major operations, not the family farms. Large dairy farms, feeder cattle lots, chicken houses, and major hog operations are the culprits here. Commercial operations with concentrated waste, toxic spills and runoff are to blame. Like any other industrial accident, someone should be held accountable for their actions. A local hog operation here lost a waste pond that spilled into a creek that resulted in a fish kill. MDC was on the case and I believe fines were levied per fish killed. Government grants and programs are in place to prevent such things from happening. Monies for watering wells or ponds, MDC has landowner programs for land management, local extension offices have trained professionals to help. There is no real excuse. With most of Missouri in private land ownership, landowners should take care of what they have.

There you go, I thought you were talking about the Spring River in Arkansas. I bet some of the others thought the same too. Crap!

As far as livestock pollution, it would be hard to pinpoint as there are cows everywhere. I think that they might even have a river access or two around Riverside Camp on the right. Multiply it by all of the feeder streams that runoff into the river from the hills during a rain. The Spring River drainage starts up around West Plains so it would be hard to narrow down. Then there is the South Fork. It could be coming in from Mammoth Spring itself, runoff into a sinkhole somewhere. I always get a kick out of the locals that come down to Lasseters to fill up jugs of the fine spring water. Fish guts, Ducks, runoff from town, yummy. You know what their gut feels like!

Thanks for the AK porn, 72 days and counting here. Are the Kings running around there yet?

I don't know about alot of fish, but some watersheds have several pickerel. They can be hard to find sometimes. I have kept a few in the past to fry if they were hooked too deep, they are good eating. Some of the watersheds that used to hold them have been fished or gigged out. I know that Castor river and its tributaries used to have alot of pickerel, but it has been many years since I have seen one around there. Water quality is important, they need clear running streams or lakes just like the larger cousins the pike.

The entire length of the 11pt is managed by MDC with a special 15" length, 1 fish smallmouth limit already. It also has an 8" limit on goggle eye and an 18" limit on walleye and sauger. MDC manages it for warm water species also, and the fishing has improved over the past few years. The walleye are on the decline and they are trying to figure out why. With the exception of the areas around Greer and Boze Mill springs, the warm water species do really well. You can find many Smallmouth fishers below Turner any time you go down. The river above Greer is excellent also producing 18" to 20" fish consistantly.

Pickerel are found in several colder streams in southern Missouri. 11pt, Little Black River, Cane Creek, Hurricane Creek to name a few. Also Duck Creek and Stanley Creek have a good population of the Chain Pickerels. Excellent fish on a fly rod and are worth a trip. I have caught fish to 36".

Well I have noticed that since Greer to Turner has the new regs and the Rainbows have declined, the Smallmouth fishing has gotten better. I was given the low flows and the warmer water temps the credit, but it may be the decline of the trout. I do not want to stop the MDC from the stocking of rainbows in the 11pt, the fishery between Turner and Riverton is excellent. How about a world class brown bass stream? Wait a minute, MDC is trying to make it that also with restrictions in place already.

Well said Coldwater... There are evil forces at work here.

Hey CC, what's the website address for the Sierra Boat Supply? Did a google and did not come up with it.

There is one big invasive species, Man! We drop new species where they don't belong and they become a nuisance. We dam up streams and change the habitat. We farm to the edge of a stream and cause them to silt up. We raise animals and let the manure pollute and kill the streams. We clear cut timber and let the gravel and soil runoff and choke the streams.

Great info CC, just bought a 73 Johnson 9.5 on a 14 ft Monark w/2 trolling motors for a song. The local boat shop is only interested in new ones so I don't get much help there. I just got the service manual from ebay and was going to start to work on it. Already have new fuel system to the carb and new plugs. It runs, but floods and sputters. I was thinking carb rebuild next.

Scrape the bulbs and make sure you have good contact. Buy a circuit tester or a meter to find the shorts or problems. Make sure the wires match your plug on the vehicle. If all else fails, buy a complete new set and redo the whole thing. Make sure you have a good ground.

Gold and Black Floating Rapalas, solid or jointed. White or Black Twintail jigs. Yellow or White Sonic Roostertails. Firetiger Rapalas. Shad Raps, Copper color or Crawdad color.

The front one is a Mainstream Kingfisher sit on top. Its my fishing boat, dry storage in front, big area in back for a cooler and other stuff. It comes rigged for fishing with rod holder holes, paddle clamps. Its stable and self bailing for getting out wading. I paddles a little slower that the other and is tough in a strong wind. Weighs 55 lb. The other boat is a Wilderness System Pamlico 120 recreational kayak, the base model w/o dry storage. I duck hunt out of it. Paddles great, lots of attachment points. A little lighter and easier to carry to ponds.