BredMan

I love drum fishing on the Mississippi. My buddy called me 'drum stick' as a joke and to poke fun at me until I got him involved. I changed his attitude first time out. You can sit and catch the little worm suckers all day but if you know how to pound the rocks in the channels you will get into the big ones. The big ones will rip the rod out of your hands, fight very hard, and make your arms ache after a few hours. One big misconception about drum is that they are a rough fish and don't taste good to eat. Actually they are very tasty if you keep them on ice. I too used to dig the the 'rocks' out of their head and kept them in a big jar. I would show them to people who thought I was joking about fish with rocks in their heads!

Welcome to OAF. You will like it here.

You may want to consider staying in Jackson Wyoming. We stayed in Jackson this past September which is in the Teton National Park area. We drove up to Yellowstone from there to do everything we intended and returned each day. Jackson has many guide services to fish the Snake River and other streams. I used a guide (little pricy there) and also fished random spots on the Snake River myself. Here are the links to where we stayed and the guide service I used there. There are many options to do whatever you chose, you just have to plan accordingly. BTW - September is an awesome time to be there! http://www.rusticinnatjh.com/ http://www.flyfishingjacksonhole.com/

I would say the marabou jig was one. He also ended his shows demonstrating things inside that fish tank on his set. What a great guy and real genuine person to say the least.

I think the percentage of idiots is somewhat minimal at BWL but sadly the percentages increase when their illegal actions are passed on to their kids and buddies. I live relatively close to BWL and my workplace is very close to BWL so I have the opportunity to fish BWL very often. What I notice is that most people obey the rules and regulations and most of those who are uninformed are very appreciative when told the regulations. Although there is a certain percentage of scum that frequents BWL that don't read, don't care, and don't get caught. They know there is a very slim chance of being caught too. The regulations may as well be printed in braille for them. What really peeves me the most are those scum offenders that drag their kids along and teach them the same illegal ways.

Welcome Look through this forum and you will find more answers to questions than you probably can ask. There is a wealth of information and a lot of very knowledgeable people.

That was very cool and worth the 7 minutes and 31 seconds to watch.

I did a drive through at BWL today and as expected all the stocked trout lakes are iced over. With the low temps and not much of a change the next several days, those who like to ice fish may get an early start. The 'toss a log' and 'toss a big rock' on the ice tests have already been completed by someone. Better get those ice augers fired up and running.

I've had Jon at Bullseye fix a troublesome ABU baitcaster and it works fine now. Actually showed me a few things to watch for as well. He was very reasonable on the price too. Seems to do a good business repairing reels because he is always in the back working on them. http://www.bullseyebaitandtackle.com/home.htm

Does any more land need to be developed (destroyed) in the Branson area for the sake of making a quick dollar? When I heard a NASCAR track was being proposed in Branson I thought for sure I heard wrong. I like NASCAR but do they really need an 80,000+ seat 1-1/4 mile race track there? We had a NASCAR track here in St Louis that couldn't make it and closed about a month or so ago. Isn't there enough idle developments and so-called entertainment venues that set empty on once pristine land in the Branson area. If the dream comes true I guess you will see likes of Dale Jr, Tony Stewart, Jimmy Johnson, and 80,000 race fans slinging their lines in outlet #2 before and after race day. Good luck on that venture but I don't get it. Just my opinion.

I have tried different kinds of fishing line for trout and crappie but always looking for something better. One of my favorites was 'Tectan' 7.3-lb with a diameter of 4-lb. Cabelas was the only place to get it locally but stopped carrying it. I don't see a need to pay a premium price to order it on-line at the few places still offering it. I now use 4-lb Pline-CXX and 4-lb Gamma. Just curious to know what others consider their best line in the lighter weight ranges. BTW, not into braid.

My preference is 6' to 6'6" ultra and light action rods. 6'6" is what I use the most. Great for tossing light jigs and the length isn't a problem as you might think. I have no desire to use my 4' and 5' rods anymore. Phil Lilley sells a pretty nice and inexpensive 6'6" trout rod at his tackle shop labeled with his name. I picked one up last year and really like it. I think he told me Falcon made them. I have always used one piece rods too but I recently bought a two piece rod that I really like as well.

My wife and I just returned from a 10 day trip to Jackson Wyoming and we spent a lot of windshield time roaming about the Tetons and Yellowstone. This was our first time and the pristine beauty of the land and animals was totally overwhelming to both of us. Our only regret was that we should have made this trip long ago. I consider you to be a very fortunate man to have done this many times. I really enjoyed the detailed description of your road trip.

I was in Jackson Wyoming a few weeks ago and spent a day fishing the Snake River with a guide. I was told not expect to land any lunkers. Over there it's mostly small cutthroats, rainbows, and white fish. That's pretty much what I caught. The Snake River was awesome to fish and the scenery was breathtaking! I would guess Idaho being right next door would be much the same. If you get the opportunity to fish the Snake River don't pass it up! Dry flies( Wulffs-Stimulators), hoppers, and nymphs (Hare's Ear-Pheasant Tails-Prince's) were the choice of the day.

FeatherCraft must be more focused on their internet sales. They don't seem to keep the store stocked as well as they have in the past. And the day guy working the store side sure isn't the most friendly or helpful person in the world. On the flip side, the Hardgrove folks are always friendly, helpful, and what a great atmosphere. They may not have the inventory of FC but they usually have what I need. Hardgrove's is my first stop. I only wish Hardgrove was closer to my home.

Stories of this nature continue to pop up these days. Any and all sports driven by the almighty $$$ seems to produce some method of cheating. Many sports call it "getting the edge on the competition, if you don't get caught you have succeeded". It's very sad story but it will never go away. In this case it appears there was an option for some redemption but the angler refused. I agree then, do whatever you can to make an example of him. Good job to those who caught this as well.

Welcome Flyflinger. There is a wealth of knowledge on just about any subject you care to discuss here.

Nice fish! A moment in his life that will last a long time.

Watched that video three times and it got better each time. I swear that guy was doing the 'Michael Jackson Moon Walk' in waders. And what's with his line? Couldn't of had 10 feet of line out and he was jerking that rod from one side to the other and over his head. That is a classic video Phil. Good job shooting that one. Needed some good humor today to suppress the depression from one rain storm after another up here.

I noticed that the floats seemed real high too. They had a big jon boat docked in one of the first stalls when I was down in late April of this year. Looked like it would be a long step down to get into the boat. Also thought the upstream end would be prone to collect a lot of debris with the current flow on that side and being just below Fall Creek. I must say it looked real nice then even though it wasn't finished. And just below the downstream end was a good spot to catch a few every time I was up that way. Phil, do you anticipate this may cause some boating congestion up there now?

Years ago I fished Dardenne Creek right under the bridge at HWY-40. Nice big hole for crappie and some bass and bluegill. Then as the highway expanded and housing developments popped up everywhere the fishing suffered. About 6 years ago I waded some portions of it and caught a few small large mouth and sunfish but that was it. The hole under the HYW-40 bridge is now shallow from lane expansions on the bridge and highway. I am sure there are a few holes with some fish yet but they are next to someone's backyard now. There is a lake on down in the Baret Haven subdivision that is water basin and takes in some water when Dardenne Creek is high or flooding. Not sure of the fishing regulations there.

Learned my lesson years ago on Mark Twain Lake. My daughter and I decided to go fishing after some t-storms had finally passed our area. Unfortunately there were more storms still headed through the lake area. All seemed OK when we arrived but later we got caught in a cove as the storms rolled in and they never let up. I decided to head for the dock area and tried to stay as close to shore as I could. We just got out of the cove and high winds and high waves hit us. I was scared to death for her and had her put a larger life jacket on over the one she was wearing. We somehow made it to the dock through high waves that I barely could see over. A couple other boats had just made it in as well. Everyone was visibly shaken except my daughter! She had no idea of the danger we just dodged. She turned to me and said, "Hey dad, I'm going up to the truck and eat a sandwich. Do you want one?" Needless to say I had no appetite.

Hey Phil, I want a 'red button' just like yours. The power of that 'red button' is awesome. Do you have them for sale at your shop?

Thanks to all. I really appreciate everyone's "two-cents" on this subject. It certainly is much more information than I ever expected. I did not realize there was so much to a canoe. The reports from 'Al Agnew' are very impressive and informative as is the advice from everyone. I definitely realize now that the smart thing to do would be to try some different models first before making a compulsive purchase.

I would want a tandem setup. May have to take 'Ma' along once in a while. The length is another concern that I have and not because of storage but for stability.