MOsmallies

Great looking fish Ron! Mitch - I also use P-Line CX Premium exclusively and would definitely recommend it. I've bought 3000 yd spools of it in 8, 10, and 15 lb test. I use the moss green color in 8 lb for spinning gear (6 lb in small, clear water) and 8 or 10 lb for my baitcasters. When I'm at LOZ i'll usually spool up with 12 and 15 lb for all my baitcasters and leave the 8 lb on my spinning equipment. It has great knot strength, pretty good abrasion resistance, its limp and easy to handle on both spinning and casting equipment, and like others said it has a thinner diameter than similar lines of the same size. Give it a shot and if you don't like it I'll be glad to take it off your hands Paul MOsmallies

If I can catch 20 fish between 14"-16", I'd take numbers but If I'm only catching 10"-12" fish, I'd rather have the one 20" smallie

What an awesome dog!!! I have a german short hair named Bruno that I would love to take on the river, but he gets a little spacey sometimes and I worry he might take off. Like Mitch said though, there is nothing better than a dog. They never judge you and always love you. How'd you do on the Black the other day? Can't wait to get down there for my annual vacation with Smalliebigs at the end of June. Paul MOsmallies

Wow!! Nice Spot... Great looking fish and caught on a fluke in February nonetheless. Looks like you might not even need our help. Thanks for posting... Always enjoy pictures! Paul MOsmallies

Eric makes a good point. I gave you quite a few options that all do similar things. It probably would be beneficial to only focus on one topwater, one mid-column bait, and one bottom bouncing bait. If I had to narrow down what I suggested for a Smallmouth newbie, I would pick... Topwater - Heddon Tiny Torpedo (Shad colored or black) Mid-Column - Zoom Super Flukes (Pearl or Albino) rigged weightless on a 3/0 EWG hook Bottom Bouncing - 4" to 6" finesse worms Texas rigged with a 1/16 oz. bullet weight (Any shade of brown or green) or the tube

If you're somewhat new to smallmouth stream fishing from a canoe or kayak I would start by throwing some moving lures and trying to elicit a reaction bite. In the warm months Smallmouth tend to be aggressive so moving baits can be very effective. Also, being new to canoeing/kayaking can make it difficult to fish slow moving lures until you get comfortable with boat control. Don't discount slow moving soft plastics or jigs though, as you can always get out and wade the good looking holes. Here are some suggestions for fast moving lures to trick those smallies in the warmer months... - 1/8 or 1/4 oz. Buzzbaits (White, White/Chartreuse, or Black) - Heddon Tiny Torpedo (Shad colored or black) - Pop-Rs (Anything with a white belly) - Zara Spook Jr. or LC Sammy 85 or 100 (Shad colors) - 1/8, 3/16, or 1/4 oz spinnerbaits (White or White/Chartreuse) - Crankbaits such as a Wiggle Wart, Strike King KVD 1.5, or Rebel Craw (Any shad or craw color) - Zoom Super Flukes (Pearl or Albino) - Rapala X-Rap (Olive Green) Here are some ideas for slow moving baits to really pick apart good looking holes... - 4" or 5" Chompers Hula Grubs on 1/8 oz. Stand-up jigheads (Any shade of brown or green) - 3 1/2" Tubes with a 1/8 oz. egg sinker pushed into the cavity and tex-posed with a 2/0 or 3/0 EWG Hook (Any shade of brown or green) - 1/8 oz jig and craw combo (Black, Green or Brown) - 4" to 6" finesse worms Texas rigged with a 1/16 oz. bullet weight (Any shade of brown or green) - 4" senkos tex-posed weightless with a 2/0 EWG hook (Any shade of brown, green, or smoke) - Zoom Baby Brush Hog (Any shade of brown or green) These should be a good place to start and allow you to cover all water columns. Good luck! Paul MOsmallies

You getting a Coosa? Would love to see some Depth Finder setups for yaks. I have a Coosa, but don't have any immediate plans to install a depthfinder. I'll mostly be fishing rivers, so there's really no need. The only aspect I'd really want it the Water Temp reading. Good luck with your search and setup. Hope to see the pics once you're done! Paul MOsmallies

Thanks for the replies! Looks like I'll be downloading the Navionics app. Can't wait to start playing with it.

Hello All, I finally joined the 21st century with an iPhone last week. I'm 26 years old and had the same sliding phone for 6 years. Find me another 26 year old with that old of a phone. Anyway, I was wondering if you guys could suggest any useful Missouri map apps. I'm looking for something that could provide GPS capabilities and/or topographic details. I mainly want this for Lake of the Ozarks, but any additional lakes/rivers would be a bonus. If this is not out there, no biggie! Just thought I'd check with those that have been using the technology. I would be willing to pay a reasonable price for this kind of app, but free is always good to. Thanks for any suggestions! Paul MOsmallies

Not sure if you're looking for an actual in-store retailer (which I don't know of any), but Tackle Warehouse carries several of their products... Including the Swing Impact http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Keitech/catpage-KEIT.html

Awesome video's Mitch! I just had my 3 year old niece ask me to take her fishing and now I can't wait for the weather and water to warm up to break her out. Getting more kids hooked on the outdoors is an awesome thing. Also... I'll take 100 count order of the Mitch Craw please. Just tell me where to send the check

You continue to impress me with these videos and I think it's awesome that your kid has such great skills at a young age and really enjoys fishing with his dad. Now we just need to get someone on this board to put together some smallie fishing videos as well. Thanks for sharing!

COOSA

Awesome pictures and a beautiful river! What kind of camera are you using? Go Pro? Looks like it has a rounded lens to be able to get such wide photos.

I use an anise spray on just about every Bass soft plastic that doesn't already have scent (Chompers). It may do nothing, but it gives me more confidence and therefore I tend to make more/better casts and fish more thoroughly. Al stated that he doesn't use it and look at the numbers and size of smallies he catches year in an year out. He has confidence in the scentless lures that he's throwing and I think that's one of the biggest factors.

Cool pic...Thanks for sharing!Is that a falcon? Where was the shot taken? Paul MOsmallies

If they could they didn't... I guess I should have asked. I may try and contact them again.

Back at the end of June, I caught a tagged smallmouth out of the Black River. For reference, this fish was 13.5". When I mailed in the tag, the MDC sent me back a little information on my fish.... When they tagged the fish, it was 13" or a little shorter (If I remember correctly) and it was tagged about 10 or 11 miles downstream from where I caught it. This post has got me thinking that when the tagging took place (March or April I'm guessing) that the Smallies may have still been in or near their wintering holes. This smallie was tagged about a mile above K Bridge where the river really begins to widen and deepen. There are quite a few good, deep wintering holes down around K Bridge, but there is also a couple good wintering holes near where I caught the fish. This in no way proves long winter smallmouth migrations, but it could show long migration patterns for some smallies out of wintering holes and back into their summer lairs. Just thought I'd share my personal observation for what it's worth. Paul MOsmallies

I'm very interested in this and would vote for Al's time frame of June 15 - August 31. I personally like the idea of a two day format but I probably wouldn't have a tough time getting away for a weekend (no kids). I can understand the other side as well though. Please keep us posted on this Mike!

My report is a little dated, but not too much... I was in the Mid Lake section (25 MM) for Thanksgiving week. Fished Thursday (Thanksgiving), Friday, and a little in the rain on Saturday. Water temps were 54 in the mornings and 57 in the afternoons. Those have probably dropped a couple degrees since Thanksgiving. Between me and my father in law, we caught about 25 bass with about 6 keepers. Quite a few barely shorts mixed in there as well. The majority of our fish came off steeper bluff banks half way back in coves and chunk rock/pea gravel transition banks. We did not do well on dock ends like I thought we would, and the only fish we caught in the very backs of pockets were small and inconsistent. The bite definitely picked up in the afternoons. I did the majority of my damage on a 3/8 oz Omega Jig (chobee) with a Chigger Craw (green pumpkin) trailer, a KVD 1.5 squarebill (sexy shad), and a white spinnerbait. Father in law caught them on an older Rapala squarebill and a white spinnerbait. I threw a buzzbait and swim jig quite a bit, but only mustered a few half hearted strikes. The reports I've been reading since I left though have all talked of a killer buzzbait bite. If I could go back down soon, I would spend even more time chunking a black buzzbait on the back corners of docks and the same bluff/chunk rock/pea gravel banks. An 8.75 lb bass was caught on 11/27 in the AiA Tournament on a black buzzbait. Like Smalliebigs said, the jerkbait bite will get going soon as well. Hope this helps, good luck, and let us know how you do. Paul MOsmallies

That's awesome! That 10pt rack is huge.

Turned out great Mitch! Can't wait to hear tricks and see how it works out for you. Smallies are going to go crazy for that thing!!!! -Paul

Great picture! Really captures fall fishing in the Ozarks.

Unbelievable Smallies!!!!! Beautiful markings and very fat. I'm extremely jealous! Great paint jobs as well!

Awesome looking mold Mitch... I look forward to seeing how the mold and baits turn out. What colors are you planning pouring at first? Paul MOsmallies