Seth

I could be wrong, but I swore there were campers down there the past few times that I've gone down.

I've found that the pink power worm is still highly effective when the water is clear and the sun is out IF you get it deep enough. I'll fish the worm 10'-12 deep in areas where I just start to lose sight of the bottom and make sure I'm sitting at least 20' away the area that I'm casting at. Without a long rod though, it's easier to just fish a jig in those deeper areas. If you're a bit crazy like me, toss the worm out and then hold the rod between your legs while you fish a jig at the same time. Works with a micro jig too, but they hold on that pink worm a lot longer. 😁

Water was up slightly and pretty dingy. Caught 7 in a few hours on a black/yellow 1/16oz marabou jig just above the next dump below the bathroom hole. Missed a lot of bites since I had to detect bite by feel alone. Bait definitely works better in the dingy water but didnt have any treble hooks handy to try it.

This pike was caught about a month ago below Bagnell. That's the first I have heard of them coming from the Osage, but apparently a few guys I fish bass tourneys against have encountered a few on the Osage over the years as well.

I wonder why the Meramec river system has grass pickerel, but not chain pickerel? Every so often, I see a grass pickerel hanging out in the weeds in the Maramec Spring branch. I've got a few of them to bite a jig and a trout worm, but have never been able to keep them on long enough to land one.

Good catch. I change my vote to chain pickerel then too.

Chain pickerel or a northern pike. Pike have more prominent spots like that fish versus the pickerel having lines so I'm leaning towards a small pike. There have been a few pike caught on the Osage this year too. It's definitely not a gar. Northern Pike Chain Pickerel Muskellunge

25 for 2-4# line and 30 for 6# on up. I’ve never used anything over a 30.

I have used Pflueger President 6925 for years. They are the best bang for the buck IMO. Last year I splurged and bought a Shimano Stradic FL and that thing is SWEET! It’s my first Shimano so I am not sure what the binding deal is. This one is by far the smoothest spinning reel I have ever owned.

The middle and lower Gasconade doesn't seem to be getting hit any harder than it usually does from what I can tell. Fishing has been pretty awesome so far this year. The Meramec on the other hand seems worse than in recent years. I fished last Thursday evening out of Onondaga and the floater traffic was nuts. I don't remember it being that bad on weekday evenings in the past.

Are the crappie ever NOT on docks at LoZ? I mean, they might be on main lake bluff docks or secondary point docks more so than others on certain days, but you can always catch crappie shooting docks on that lake.

I film and post a video of every tournament we fish. All of my buddies I fish against watch them and see exactly what I am doing. A lot of people are secretive about there fishing and can't understand why I would do that. My main reason is that if I could keep going to the same spot and consistently catch winning bags of fish, then I may think twice. Rarely is that the case though. It seems I have to do something different every time I fish in the summer months so I quit worrying about it. As Gavin said, there are no secret spots so timing and presentation play a big role in getting the right bites. It's always nice to hear somebody says "Man I fished that same area before you that day and didn't catch squat!". 😁 I wish my editing skills were even half as good as some these fishing channels. I'm not even close to many of them. My videos show the meat and potatoes, but they aren't nearly as pretty. It's fun to share your experiences with others too. Last weekend I caught a 4.05# largemouth on a Whopper Plopper 130 on the Gasconade in a tournament and I got all sorts of fired up once it hit the net. Being able to go back and rewatch moments like that is awesome!

I don’t even wanna know what I blow on the boat and fishing. I’d probably be sick.....

Hmmm..... fishing a tournament or going to work. Yea I would rather go fishing......😂 That’s an easy choice. Winning enough to fish for free and then some is just a bonus. 😉

Electronics play a big role. Wheeler doesn't have an electronics sponsor so he can run all three brands of graphs on his boat. Giving up that sponsorship to be able to do so has definitely been the right move for him. With that said, you can still compete without all of the electronics. Jon Cox was #2 on money earned for the year before this tournament and he fishes shallow water in an aluminum boat everywhere he goes. Wheeler will surpass him by quite a bit after today though. Cox was in 6th place today before today started so he should get a decent pay day as well. Kyle Welcher is another one who shines at the shallow water deal. He can catch them on a frog or pitching bait everywhere. http://www.bassfan.com/rankings_money.asp

Being a hammer/stick/etc and versatile aren't the same thing. Look at how many guys did well on the 5 fish format, but sucked it up in the MLF style. Two come to mind and those are Greg Hackney and KVD. KVD is a power fishing master and Hack is the modern day Denny Brauer with his flipping/pitching. Now look at Wheeler, Martens, Thrift, Defoe and other guys who are more well rounded. They produce results in both formats. The two exceptions to that rule, and maybe they are more versatile than I give them credit for, are Edwin Evers and Jordan Lee. Those two don't seem as well rounded at different methods and techniques, but they have done well in both formats. You're right though. They have ball been called <insert term for good angler> many times over the years.

I could see it happening. Aaron Martens was always up there near the top and was one of the most versatile guys fishing. He finally hit a skid the past couple of years. Wheeler has better closing power than Martens though. It seems like if he is in the hunt, he is winning where as Martens had the second place curse. Jordan Lee is a hammer, but just doesn't seem as versatile as Wheeler in my opinion, but I could be wrong.

If I'm not fishing a bass tournament or off hunting, I'll definitely be there!

Wheeler is always in the hunt no matter the location or the format. The guy is a machine!

I've always had a tough time getting bit after they go from 0-2 units up to 4 units above Cooper Creek. The only way I've been able to get bit during those times is to run down lake and fish around Monkey Island or the Landing. After 1-2 hours, I can usually go back up and start catching them again.

You are gonna have to go way up the Gasconade to be able to wade fish it. Paydown access is in the middle of a deep hole.

It stunk at Sappington yesterday. We caught 9-10 fish and only one keep. Pretty well the story for everybody. Just came down to how luck you were on getting the keeper bites. BB was 2.65 largemouth and I think that was the only green bass weighed in.

I wish I had a mask last yesterday evening on the Meramec to protest the stinkin bass not biting worth a flip!

I would have bought one of those CI4's for that price. Earlier this year I bought a Stradic FL 1000 to pair up with my Mike Riffle custom built trout rod. That reel is amazing! The Daiwa Tatula spinning reel is another one I would like to try out sometime.

I picked up that exact same reel last year on sale and I love it! My Lews tourney pros have been good reels and I still use them a lot, but I think my future reels will continue to be these Tatula SV reels.