jdmidwest

4 to 6 inches easy.

Pamlico 120 by Wilderness System. Gun straps to bow in float case, dekes go in back hatch, decoy bag goes on top of hatch, any extras get towed behind. Depending on how and where I am hunting, I can safely carry over a dozen standard mallards in the hatch and between my legs and keep the boat lite and trim for waves. If it is still water, I can carry on the back hatch and tow a bag also. I attach leafy camo sheets and some burlap and disappear for a blind. Pack a blind bag, motion decoy, cooler, and am comfortable all day.

I agree with Brian, if you have to go that direction, Fourche lake or McCormack would be your best choice. Looks like all Ozark rivers are going to be a wash out for the next few days. Fourche Lake is a nice place, primitave camping and good fishing. McCormack has been good for pickeral and bass with some big gills too. Some kind of small boat would make things better at either place. Check with MODOT website, lots of flooded roads down in the Ozarks..

Anybody know of a good little stream that has enough water to float a kayak in on Friday? I think I can launch a yak in the stream that feeds the sinkhole in my backyard now. Cape Girardeau area has broken a record for rainfall today, 8.53 inches today till 4 pm. and it was raining cats and dogs at 4. Coworkers were stranded and could not return home due road closures. I live on a ridge and have a back way home. All usual roads have been closed all day. I was planning a float Friday on the St. Francis above Wappappello Lake, but the crest is expected to top out at 34 feet at almost a record crest, up from around 5 feet this weekend. I was really wanting to catch a few white bass out of the yak. Anybody else have any rain yet?

I had to wash off the mud on the duck boat kayak this weekend. We floated the Whitewater River above Sedgewickville for a 5 hour float. The water was lower than expected and running clear. There were several pullovers, but fish were in the deeper holes as expected. One deep run had a school of 50 goggle eyes running around in a cluster. They did not pay much attention to any lures. Several single goggle eyes hiding out around rocks were fair game and took white twintail jigs fairly easy. My buddy caught several of the goggle eyes, largemouths, and a few smallies. I was keyed in on largemouths, I landed around 20, the largest was 18" on a white twintail. We had cool weather and cloudy day except for a short sunny period when the fishing turned off. I was trying out a new lip gripper from BPS, worked like a charm, I can hold the fish and stay away from the trebles on a shad rap. Kept my fingers dry and warm also. I have a few pics, one is of a unique balance rock on the side of a bluff.

The west coast fishery from Calif to Wash has been bad for years. This will probably put more pressure on the Alaska fish as commercial fisherman move north. I know some of the areas in Alaska had poor runs of silvers last season. Kings have been off too.

You should be able to scare up someone around the accesses at Centerville, Lesterville, or K Bridge. Each has float outfitters, I think someone should be at the ones in Lesterville or Centerville. Floating should be good this time of year, water is flowing good. I am heading out in the morning to float the upper Whitewater River in the yaks. Check the river gauges at USGS website for river stage.

You should be just fine. The only way I have is backroads, 72>21>72>B>K>E>119 to the park, it takes 3 hours from Jackson. It winds thru Fredricktown, Arcadia, Glover, Lesterville, Centerville, Bunker, then to the park. The scenic route. The other route 72>21>32>F>E>119 has steeper hills pulling a camper.

BTW, I like the way the new forum inserts linked urls, you just have to copy and paste.

http://www.missouritrout.com/events.html Calendar of events for Bennett, Montauk, and Meramec. Plan your trips around the tourneys for the best fishing. Weekdays are best if possible.

http://www.missouritrout.com/events.html Lilley, here is the events calendar off MissouriTrout.com. Ladies tourny is March 29. We have reservations for the storytellin weekend, it may be a hoot. It is also Youth Turkey season and me and the daughter may have to find an ole bird around there for camp food.

Kick me when I do something stupid would wear the soles on my boots out too fast, maybe in one day if it is a weekend. I almost planned a trip up this weekend and realized it was Men's Tournament Sat. I can only imagine the kicking going on with all of those "professional" guys looking for the trophy....

Cedargrove is fields and bottoms with a pit toilet above and below the low water bridge. I think most camp above the bridge except during the busy season when they camp out in the field below. The bridges is the boundary between the trophy water and the put and take water. I have been by a few of the others but have never paid them much attention. I assume they are like the other NFS sites, pit toilet above high water line and a few clearings with firepits.

I always take a whole trout without the head, spray it with butter flavor pam on the skin and the inside cavity. I sprinkle liberally Lemon Pepper seasoning inside the cavity and on the outside skin and cook on the charcoal grill over low coals. When the insides are white the trout is done. Peel the skin off and pick meat off the bones. Whole trout with the skin on seems to steam the inside meat and its nice and moist. You can stuff with mushrooms or onion. This is the way I cook them at camp. At home, fillet and place on top rack of smoker with lemon pepper. I have a 2 tier charcoal smoker and usually do meat for a week when I fire it up. Chicken and butts first and towards the end a rack of trout fillets as it cools off.

Local streams are up and muddy. Not much around for local ponds that I can do any good at in just an hour. It just messes up the Acacian Cycle..

Okay, first year for the new daylight saving law put into effect by the wonderful government that has to regulate every aspect of our lives. I awake as usual this week at 5:45 am and its pitch black dark. Excitement kicks in, I must be going fishing or hunting if alarm goes off before some sort of daylight. Then depression sets in, its Tuesday and senses realize "Its a workday". Come home and look outside, its 7:30 and its still daylight. Man, I could be doing something in the yard or the garden. Then depression sets in, its the second week of March and nothings growing except for mud. I can't even plant taters till St. Pattys. What to do, its a shame to waste daylight indoors when the sun is shining. What is the reasoning for this time change anyway? Last fall it prolonged the summer activities for a little while longer, but the early spring sucks. Any thoughts......

Yeah, and did you hear the one about you only need one rod, one reel, and one fly line......... OH THE MADNESSS....

DAng, off to the store to buy more beers. I hate that when that happens...

Yeah, and if you really want to look cool, you will have to tye your own flies also.......... Don't worry, you will save alot of money tying your own........... And you will learn how to hide whole paychecks from the spouse in a little bag of fur, feathers, hooks, and tools......... Lessons learned in life aren't cheap!

I believe the origin of the spoon was just that, somebody attached a hook to a eating spoon and the lure was born. Do fish seem to prefer any certain type of beer?

Zone 3 at BSSP has always irritated me also. It has the best fast water in the park and you can only fish it with bait. Most bait slingers like the slower holes to drift bait in. What is Missouri's definition of bait anyway? Can it be used with or without a spinner? Is it treble hook only or can it be placed on a single hook? Does it have to stink or can it be scentless? Can hot glue salmon eggs be used here because they are kinda soft? I make up for it by catching the hell out of fish at Montauk in the lower portions with a fly rod and flies. It really drives the power bait guys nuts when you catch a fish that pukes green powerbait and they can't match the hatch.......

Its okay, but there is a difference in the quality from the BPS stuff. Its all made in a foreign country so it really does not matter as that goes. I have bought some on clearance and have noticed it fades quickly and does not hold up long. I still like military woodland camo for turkeys and use army surplus BDU's, it's cheap, comfortable, wears like iron, and keeps the color. The broad patterns break up outlines well and does the job. I buy high end stuff for ducks because I like to stay dry and comfy.

The term Conservation is the wise use of the Existing Resources and the managing of them for the future. The MDC goes a little further than just fish and animals, they manage forests, soil, streams, and all of the resources of the state of Missouri. The Conservationist magazine trys to address all aspects of their job. The letter to the editor was probably printed to show that there are some in this state that would like to do away with the killing of animals for sport and food. These groups go by names like PETA, Humane Society, Brady, and others. Everyone should be aware that there are people out there that are trying hard everyday to affect the outdoor sportsman's way of life. The MDC has a vital role in managing those nuts too, hopefully to extinction. Their views negatively affect us all, as this letter did. But the letter did point out something about the way non hunters percieve us, be a little more discrete about the transport of downed game. Have a little more respect for the animal that gave its life for our food and not tie it on the hood with blood running everywhere. Don't give the kooks extra ammo. The MDC is on a big drive now to get kids away from the video games and TV and out in the field. The future of hunting and fishing is probably more interested in the latest Wii game than nailing a few squirrels or panfish for supper. Alot of the publication is devoted to the younger future. The magazine is a great publication, great photos and stories, with lots of good info. Best of all its free, you can even download it or read it online to help save paper.

Roubidoux is a great little area, although far from remote as it runs thru town and has a sewer system dump into it. Back in the wet wading days, I never fished below that outlet... I met the rock retrieving pit bull there, a local would toss a rock into the stream in front of me and the pit bull would jump in and grab the same rock he tossed in. I kept looking for a 50 lb rock for the both of them, but never could blame the dog. While there, hit the stream at Ft. Leonard Wood, Mill Creek, Lane Spring, Little Piney, Blue Spring Creek, and Spring Creek if you are looking for a grand slam. It has been about 5 years since I have been to any of them, but they all have reasons to be there. They are all in the general area. I used to fish them Summer and Winter for a change of pace. No Secrets here, they all get hit as they are easily accessible from I-44 from STL.

Night fishing for browns in the upper Current River would definitely be a chore. Unlike the artifically backlit tailwaters that normally get fished on this forum, the Current would be a dark stream with lots of overhanging trees throughout the most part of the Brown trout stocked Blue ribbon area. If you are comfortable in the woods at night and know the area and stream well, the browns would be a good target as most are nocturnal except for breeding season. I would say that it is not a common practice on the Current River, so the tactic may pay off.