jdmidwest

Montana Creek in Alaska. 1 mile hike thru some bush in bear country off a beaten gravel road. Found the stream, banks covered in moose droppings. Felt the need to use a 5 wt that day, it was a small creek, right. 15 inch trout were stream born and well trained in the art of the fight. I learned that day what a drag and backing were for, all the while waiting for something big to come crashing out of the 12 foot high brush that lined the stream bank.

Find some Ely Match and give them a try. They should be price comparable to the mini mags. Trouble with the little hollow points like the mini mags and the golden bullets is the tips get deformed and don't fly as well. Ely Match is a 40 gr solid that flies better. A few years back a group of friends went out west for prairie dogs. The soon got tired of shooting 223 and one of them brought out a 22 lr bolt ruger. It became a game for them taking turns lobbing 22 lr at the dog mounds and scoring hits. And it was lots easier on the wallet and shoulder.

Kum-ba-ya. Looks like we all just had a group hug. Is Phil giving an extra fish to someone in another boat in his new avatar or what. Kinda hard to tell......

Looks like more info on the new System has been released from MDC. Old Yellow will still be around for at least another year. E Permits Available Online March 1 It is that time of year again to ante up for our favorite charity, MDC.

What a great idea, wader wash stations are in place for the season opener of all 4 trout parks. A wash with 5 percent salt solution is all that is needed to keep the dreaded rock snot at bay? 8000 Expected at Season Opener.

Head south, the rivers are low and clear. Current River, Eleven Point, and Spring River are all great.

You forgot the Taneycomo Squid.

I have never been a fan of the big mouth mounts like that one, especially one without any bend in the fish. It does not look natural. Probably some amateur taxidermist trying to unload one after the customer refused it.

Off work at noon on Thurs. and on the road to Spring River for a little R&R. Arrived at campground and setup camp before dark. Wind was whipping and the tent almost became a kite a few times. Cooked supper, enjoyed the fire, and the river basked in the almost full moon lite. At one point, I almost considered night fishing, it was lit up that well. Woke up to a cloudy damp dreary day. I had packed the pontoon boat for a float but decided against it. Fished for a while near camp till the first sprinkles hit my face, headed back and packed everything in the truck. It never really rained, just misted and the temp never got above 60. Fished the waterfall between camp and the Bayou, caught a few small ones. River is low and clear, in fine shape. Trekked up to the Bayou, came across a new no trespassing post on the trail. The markings were so confusing, I don't know if he was blocking the trail or blocking the river. You really could not make out any lines or direction, just scattered signs in a lump. I noted the email address on the sign and will contact him to find out what he bought. The Bayou riffle produced a few more, nothing to brag about. After lunch, I fished Lasseter's for a while, I had the place to myself. Again, only catching a few small fish. Average fish was only about 8 inches. I was not able to determine if there had been any stocking in the past few weeks because of the weather. Back at home for the family by 7 that night. I am glad spring has finally sprung.

This forum is more than just a "fishing only forum" and should have been renamed to Ozark Outdoors a long time ago to reflect what it represents. Phil has tried the offshoots, a Hunting forum that failed and a broader Mid States Angler that fizzled too. Nobody seemed to stray away from this forum. So it covers Hunting, Fishing, Conservation, and other outdoor related topics. And sometimes a little humor. If we were just to post fishing reports, I really don't think there would be much interest. If you post a report that crappie are hitting good at X spot, tomorrow, you will probably have to go somewhere else because many will be fishing the X spot. I think many on here have learned that lesson. Trip reports, methods, lures, tactics are something entirely different. Lures and tactics will always lead to discussions, probably some you don't want to hear. Personally, I think things would be pretty bland on here if we only discussed fishing reports.

Its hard to get a good 100 yd group out of a short barrel 22lr. What ammo was you shooting in the 22? Try some Ely.

DNR issues permits for the gravel mining of the stream banks of Missouri. Active digging in a stream is covered by that. Here is a link to the page. Mo DNR.

Your bucks still have antlers this time of year. Ours were getting loose in muzzleloading season.

I keep the agents for the counties in my PDA, but not my phone and I did not have it that day. But, sound carries over water and the guy heard me on the phone while a friend was looking it up on the net. The Game Thief number takes a little longer, they have to go thru channels to get to the agent. If you call the agent direct and he is close, you may get results. Otherwise, get detailed description, license #, or anything else that may help. Ark. is pretty thin on agents, MDC has at least one per county. But they may be working other areas, on vacation, or in meetings. Spring River usually has 2 working on it from time to time. But they work nights on poachers, days on the stream, out in force on season openers for either hunting or fishing.

It is catch and release, artificial lures only till Feb 1st, you must have a trout stamp to fish anytime during the trout portion the way I read it. After that it is catch and keep till they are gone. We only get one stocking here. I have not been there since around Christmas, it has been froze over. That day, there was a guy fishing with corn but left when he heard me calling a friend for a local agent's number. The guy that got caught was probably the one rumored to fish in the morning, lunch, and after work and keep 3 limits. Glad they caught him. It was not like it was a secret, he liked to brag about it at the local bait shop. I have only fished it once in the past on the Feb 1 opener with a friend and his 2 sons, we were checked by the local agent that day. Otherwise, the Park and Rec guy comes by and checks on things from time to time. I actually fished it more this year with my daughter after work than ever, but that stopped with the time change in Nov. We went by there a couple of times on the weekend till it froze out.

Pretty simple, you will need bucktail and a good heavy tying thread in the color you desire. A vise, bobbin, scissors, and some thread sealer. Bucktails are just a bunch of white tail deer tail hair bunched up on a jig and tyed in behind the head. Google How to Tie a Bucktail Jig and you will find several videos.

I have 4 bird feeders up this winter and they have been going thru the seed with all of the snow. The usual fare was a mix that I bought at the local Farm and Home which had sunflower, crack corn, and milo. It run $7.45 for a 25 lb bag. The last bag was so full of trash and dust, it clogged the bottom of the feeders so I went looking for something else. Local Co-op feed store carries a mix of milo, wheat, and crack corn called chicken scratch and it is $7 for a 50 lb bag. They seem to like it and they don't really miss the sunflower seeds. Doves are back this weekend, probably the ones that raised here last year. Woodpeckers have left because of the lack of sunflower seeds. Been getting a few starlings and several sparrows. Cardinals, Blue Jays, Snowbirds, and others. They are all fun to watch and it is always a surprise to see a stranger pass thru.

Fly Anglers Online On the left hand side you will see a link for Beginning Fly Tying and it has a great list for all you will need to start tying. Avoid kits for the most part, they are stuffed with things you will not use. The initial investment will exceed what you will spend on flies for several years, but you will have the satisfaction of catching fish on something you have created. That part is priceless. Find a friend or a shop that will offer lessons and learn from them.

Back in 2005, a pumped storage electric facility failed and breached, sending water downhill and damaging alot of Federal and State Property. The company at fault paid out alot of money to clean up the mess and retributions. I was reading the local paper tonight and noticed local counties have been selected for a National Ozark Heritage Feasibility Study and noted a link to the sponser, Ameren UE. Ramped off to their site and noted a link to the Elk Restoration, did they have to pay for that too? Did the flood uncover some ancient Elk Bones? Any how, I am going to provide some input to the Heritage issue. Taum Sauk Fund.org

Well the decision has been made, bought a Cruz Ereader Tablet with Android OS. Not just a dedicated reader and no cell connections, wireless only. I did not need that, I have a Blackberry for that. What I did get was a 7 inch tablet that handles Office files, movies, music, pics, internet, email, and of course, books with a decent battery life. It is color and has a good clear screen. And it only cost $125 from Staples, less than many others. Plus side, I get a new OS to play with and it does not have anything to do with Apple. Cruz Reader

How in the world can you make an assumption that I resent the fact that I can't shoot the National Bird out of what I said???? You really need to get off the peyote or whatever grows in the mango forest and read the post. I merely stated that just because it is damaging your property, you can not automatically kill it based on different levels of protections offered to certain species, ie, the Bald Eagle. You can't go shooting geese in your lake because they are crapping up your boat dock either, they are protected Federally. You have to go thru channels to control them. A Mountain Lion is different, if it is attacking your property or person, you have every right to kill it on the spot, it is a dangerous animal. A Bald Eagle may be a nuisance, but it is not classified as a dangerous animal. And you are right, they have been delisted, but they are protected like all other birds of prey.

Sorry to hear that, I was wondering where he had ended up. He stopped by the shop one time, back then he only had the one book. Great guy.

Be sure to check the specs on that handheld. I thought the Triton was rated for IPX4 waterproofness till my buddy dropped his in the lake in about 4 foot of water running. Filled with enough water to short out and make it useless. Mine is in the dry bag or clipped to one of the straps on the seat. It is water resistant, not submersible.

Nice thing about Peacocks, they molt those tail feathers every year so you should have a good supply. I still tye off ones I collected off ours at the farm back in the 90's and share them with my friends. They sit in a vase in the work room. One full feather tyes alot of flies. The swords are the shorter feathers on the tail, the herl has a curl to it and a softer stem with a rounded end. You will use them on full dressed salmon flies and some wet flies, the Alexandra comes to mind as the only one I have tyed with them. For the most part you will only need the tail feathers for the bulk of the patterns. Note the curl and the sheen.

It seems like they have moved up the major river systems into MO. One was killed here locally a few years back by a car in the middle of town. Others have been spotted moving up the Mississippi River system. The majority have come out of Arkansas thru the Ozarks and are staying in the wilderness areas of the state. I look forward to what the study produces, it may surprise some of us that we have the bears in our neighborhoods.