ozark trout fisher

I am not much of a hunter usually outside of deer and turkey season, but lately that's been about the only thing keeping me sane. Breaking through the ice for stocker rainbows is an option still (although with all this cold weather, getting through with the ice pick is getting kinda hard), but I've had about as much as I can stand of that, and there hasn't been time lately (and it doesn't appear that there will be time in the near future) to go do some real fishing somewhere like the Current Rver or Little Piney. So besides the stocker rainbows, I've been spending a lot of time with my 20 gauge Browning at a little tract of private land about 10 minutes from home that I've got permission to hunt. Up until now, I never thought you could get so much enjoyment chasing around squirrels or busting up an old field for rabbits... Until about 2 weeks ago, I hadn't been small game hunting in quite awhile, and I seem to have forgotten that it can actually be pretty difficult too-especially with the rabbits. I don't have any dog that's suitable to that kind of work (the dog I do have spooks at even the sight of a gun, the wimp ) so it takes a fair bit of work both busting up the cover and getting the shots off. Squirrel and rabbit hunting was something that I did a lot when I was a kid, but it's one of those pleasure's that I've kind of forgotten about when I became more serious about deer and turkey hunting-kind of like a trout fisherman re-discovering how fun bluegill fishing can be. Plus they are awfully good to eat, especially the rabbits. Anyone else going squirrel/rabbit hunting to stay sane in this weather?

As I said a few posts back, I was joking/stirring the pot when I called the White a ditch. It does appear to be somewhat like a ditch right below the dam, but I will admit it is as beautiful as any Ozark stream in some areas, especially down around Buffalo City. I was not seriously trying to offend or hurt anyone's feelings.

Greg, I'm afraid the somewhat joking nature of that post didn't quite come through. I am not a big tailwater fisherman, but mainly I was just stirring the pot for fun. I will admit to having had some good times on those "ditches" too. And the White is rather pretty in some areas.

"Look, no doubt that Arkansas has great water, better than Missouri." I haven't followed this thread, and I have no interest in getting into the trout management debate again-and we have had this debate so many times. Instead, I'll argue against the supposition that trout fishing is better in Arkansas than Missouri. If you like fishing extremely crowded water that is entirely controlled by an unnatural dam for admittedly large and numerous stocked fish, then Arkansas is better. But if you prefer to fish wild trout water, or resident trout water that isn't super crowded, then I'd say Missouri is far better. I've fished quite a bit in both places (although admittedly much more in Missouri) and I vastly prefer most Missouri trout streams (Current River, Eleven Point, Little Piney, Mill Creek etc) to the White River and all the other ditches they call tailwater fisheries. Yes, I said ditches. Arkansas can keep them-and I'd be happy to give them Taneycomo too.

I will do the same. The next time I am at Little Piney I will be fishing to Vida Slab to sorta see what this is all about. I'm interested to see if they'll give me any trouble. But on the same note, I would warn everyone that fishes that area to be extra polite and responsible-that is not to say you should leave if asked (because the landowner has no right to make you leave) but try to not be any more confrontational than you have to, and just politely explain to any landowner that may confront you the legality of the situation, that you will be releasing your fish, picking up any litter you see, stay below the high water mark, and generally be a good citizen. There's no need to make the landowners hate fisherman more than they already do-it will just make it harder on everyone.

I fish at Vida Slab quite a lot at the times of the year when the fishing is good down there (not now). I have not really been given much trouble by landowners, although in the area above the access a few have sorta looked at me like they didn't want me there-being unfriendly and such and not responding when I said hello. But no real trouble. But I entered it from a public roadway, I think it's a navigable stream (and frankly I'm not very worried about it even if it isn't, I'm not causing any trouble and I'm releasing the fish) and I will continue to fish at Vida Slab (and be friendly to the landowners and pick up whatever trash I see along the stream)in the future no matter what any landowner says to me, unless I am threatened with a weapon, in which case I will report them to the county sheriff. That's just how I see it. P.S. You can still access the creek at Lane Spring. It just requires a short walk from the gate-and the fishing is far better in that area this time of year anyway. Different story in some parts of late spring/early summer and again in fall, when it it can be very good down around Vida.

Fly fishing through the ice for dumb, pellet fed trout is making a point that seems a little too obscure for me-although that doesn't mean I won't try it sometime.

The fishing is certainly good in the North Carolina part of the Smokies/Blue Ridge-been there once. I spent a week fishing the South Toe River a few years back, and the fishing was excellent for rainbows- and brookies once we got up in the small streams near the headwaters. That was before I started fly fishing, but I'd like to get back there with a fly rod sometime. That'll be a great area for you to live and fish.

Sure it is... If I agree with you then how can I argue with you?

I am a fly fisherman. 90% of my fishing is done with a fly rod, and a fly, preferably with a dry fly. And I am also almost exclusively a catch and release fisherman. But I break all those rules in winter when the big freeze comes, and fishing options become much fewer. For a mile from my house, there is a small pond that is stocked each winter with rainbow trout. It is frozen most of the winter, so usually the only way to fish it is to go out on the dock, break a hole through the ice with an ice pick, and dangle a hook baited with Powerbait through the hole. Fly fishing isn't even possible, and it probably wouldn't be very effective even if it was. This is not the kind of fishing that will keep you up at night in anticipation, but it is the only game in town this time of year (when there isn't time to go somewhere like the Current River), and it does have it's own sort of charm. So I've been sitting out on that dock quite a bit lately, dangling my line through a little hole in the ice, waiting for the rod to twitch with a bite. Sometimes I'm waiting there a matter of hours between bites, where I reel up to check the bait every half hour or so, but for the most part I just watch and wait. This is the sort of fishing where it's a good idea to bring a book along, and that is really what keeps the slow times from being dreadfully boring. But in any case, it's better than sitting inside, and it is fishing, at least in a since. If the weather is warm (above freezing), it will be very pleasant, but things can get a little grim when the temperatures is in the low 20s or colder. Not only do you freeze your hands off in this kind of weather, but you also have to constantly stir around the water in the hole to keep it from re-freezing. But then the bite comes. It almost always does, although on a slow day it's possible to get no more than one or two. First you'll see the line jiggling around a little, and then the pole starts to vibrate up and down on the dock. That's when you set the hook. The fish will make a little dive toward bottom, and it's best to let it tire itself out for awhile. When it get's a little tired, you reel it up onto the ice, and then bring it onto the dock. The fish probably swallowed the hook, so you'll keep it. The limit is three on that pond, and if I can catch that many I usually don't feel bad about taking that many home. They'll all be baked and eaten by the end of the day. And don't believe what they say about stocked trout tasting bad-if you bake them with lemon and butter, wrapped in foil, they're a regular treat. And why not keep them? They'll die when it warms up in spring anyway. When spring does come, and there are other options, the little ultralight Powerbait fishing rod will be put away for the year. It will be back to the fly rod, and the hoppers and the woolly buggers, and the Pheasant Tail Nymphs. Back to the roll cast and the double haul, and all the grace, poetry, and complications that go with fly fishing. But for now, I' m plenty happy sitting on the dock, waiting for a bite, and generally enjoying the heck out of this hillbilly trout fishing thing.

Stoneroller, the fact that I think it is the Democrats now who are doing most of the conservation work doesn't mean I didn't like Teddy Roosevelt-his is a conservation hero, and I believe every liberal (and conservative) who is a conservationist appreciates what he did. But the Republican party during Teddy Roosevelt's day is entirely different from now. The main difference is that many Republican politicians in Teddy Roosevelt's day were conservationists. Now most of them (but that is not to say all of them) belong to the rape and pillage lobby of natural gas, coal, and big oil- and all other corporations and big businesses that don't give a darn about our natural resources. I agree that it should not be a political issue, but the fact of the matter is that most Republican politicians want to put big business before the environment. Am I supposed to look the other way and pretend that is not the case? That said, any conservative, Republican, or Libertarian who is willing to stand on the side of environmentalism and conservation, I am entirely willing consider a friend in this. This is scary. It seems that I am agreeing with Chief Greybear on two controversial threads in a row.

I don't really think that there are any such people on this forum... At least I don't know who you'd be talking about. I consider myself to be a liberal and an environmentalist (probably what you would call a bleeding heart), but I still fillet bluegills, hunt rabbits, and heat the house with firewood. The key is being responsible and not taking more than what you need to get by.

I agree that it is a blackhole for money-worth every penny of it though. But a servicable fly rod can be had for a heck of a lot less than $400-even a heck of a lot less than $200. A $60 9' 5 weight Scientific angler is what I started with, and it worked absolutely fine. I fished with that one for quite awhile, until I happened to luck into a good deal on a nice St. Croix set-up, and it really did get the job done. If you're just getting a feel for fly fishing, there's no need to splurge on an expensive rod. Try a less expensive one to start off, and make sure you're in it to stay before you buy a high quality set up. I'd start with a 9 foot 6 weight probably since you are more inclined to the bass side of things-and a 6 weight will work excellently for trout too in most situations. For the reel, just get the cheapest one you can find that is still servicable. A good line is very important though-that will determine a large part of how hard or how easy it is to learn to be a good fly caster.

I suspect this thread will be deleted soon. I am very tempted to go on a rant right now,but it is enough to say that I have irreconcilable differences in political opinion with Smalliebigs and JDMidwest, so I will hold my tongue, so as not to be the cause of another deleted thread. But I will say if it weren't for those "darned liberals", we would have just about nothing to hunt and fish for, and Missouri would generally be a pretty crappy place.

There are places you could probably camp around the Milldam Hollow Access on the Little Piney... That's in the White Ribbon trout area-certainly there is some decent trout fishing down there but it is further downstream than I prefer to fish. As Gavin mentioned you can also camp on FS property near Mill Creek-and that's what I'd do if I were you.

Good luck. Although nothing's sure yet, it seems as if I will be leaving behind Ozark country here pretty soon myself. So I kinda know how you feel about how you're gonna miss the place. The Ozarks are certainly awesome.

I think the Missouri Department of Conservation is making a big mistake by not prosecuting in the Mountain Lion case. But I will not in any way get behind the wholesale attacks on the MDC. I would say their record on working to bring back native species has been very positive up until this point. They successfully reintroduced River otters, despite heavy criticism. And I do maintain that was the right thing to do, even if it happens to make the fishing a bit tougher in some areas. They are in the process of reintroducing elk. They have given black bear the necessary protections needed for them to re-introduce themselves. They have brought back deer and turkey from near extinction in Missouri. So yes, they made a mistake. A big one. But I'd be willing to say that the MDC, over the course of the years, has done a lot more good than just about any other wing of the government. Everyone on here knows that often criticize the MDC about many things, (trout and smallmouth bass management especially, and now this) but that doesn't mean I don't think they do a good job as a general rule.

12 poles!?!?! Goodness gracious To each their own, but I'd get a headache if I carried that much stuff around...I'd never be able to find what I wanted. I'll stick with the $30 Shakespeare set up. And just one pole goes in my "sled" (canoe) at a time.

The idea of shooting a deer out of season to feed your family is a tough one... On one hand, I am of the tendency to say to heck with all poachers of all varieties, but when it's entirely necessary for a poor person to feed their family-it's just hard for me to think he should get the same penalty for poaching as a guy who was just doing it for fun. If I was desperately poor, and had a family to feed, and the only way I was gonna do it was to kill a deer out of season, hell, I don't know what I'd do. I'm just glad I've never been in that position and don't foresee it happening.

I'd float the Eleven Point. For a five day trip, you'd probably want to go from Cane Bluff down to the Narrows. It flows almost entirely through wilderness country, with no development whatsoever along the stream. The fishing is a mixture. From Cane to Greer Spring-the first 8 miles or so its a typical warm-water fishery-smallies, goggleye, etc. From Greer to Riverton (20 miles) it is a trout fishery with a good population of smallmouth bass mixed in. From Riverton to the Narrows, it's smallies and goggle-eye again. It is probably the most scenic float in Missouri, and maybe the best in the Ozarks. It's got the whole deal-springs (including Greer, which is the second largest in Missouri and incredibly beautiful) caves, bluffs, and it isn't crowded. There are float camps along the river.

How about A River Runs Through it? It was of the best and most beautifully written pieces of American literature ever, and certainly the best book ever written where fly fishing played a major role. Then it was made into my favorite movie of all time. It's tough to say whether the movie or the book was better in that case, but I'll go with the book just because I love the way Norman Maclean writes. The last paragraph of that book is what really makes it great.

They are a native species and therefore belong here. No more needs to be said.

Are mountain lions a little bit dangerous? Yes. But if we're going to remove everything from society that is dangerous, cars, trains, airplanes, bikes, boats, swimming pools and countless other things in our daily lives would have to go. All those things I mentioned are infinitely more likely to kill you than even a large breeding population of lions. Oh yes, and we'd have to get rid of all the deer too. Those pesky things get in the way of cars all the time-and sometimes kill people. And no fishing either-you might drown! I am sorry that you are frightened of the infinitely small possibility that a mountain lion will hurt you. But honestly, I think there's a good chance you'll be okay.

Point #1 You are trying to tell me that, based on the distance between the two glowing eyes, that the guy couldn't have known this was no coon? Point #2 He didn't "come clean". He told a darn lie and then changed his story, leaving us all to wonder what really happened. If the turn of events here doesn't make you a little suspicious then I don't know what to say. Point #3 The first thing every hunter learns (or should learn) is that you should never shoot at an animal unless you are 100% sure what it is. You can't just be shooting at any old set of eyes you see up in a tree after dark. It could be anything.

“The true circumstances of the incident were more clearly within the provisions of the Wildlife Code than the story they made up,” said Yamnitz. “Based on the evidence and statements by all the parties involved, you can make the case of self-defense. There will be no charges.” This is very, very fishy. It sounds like the guy who shot the cat may be changing his story to make sure charges will not be filed. You can't be sure, but that is what I suspect. If nothing else, isn't it illegal to lie to a law enforcement officer? I honestly don't know the answer to that question. It sounds like these folks have the "shoot any animal that moves" attitude that is so prevalent around these parts. I know all about that attitude, having some extended family members who fully subscribe to it. It's clear that either the MDC is looking to avoid a fight for some reason or another, or else they do not want mountain lions in Missouri. Seeing as how mountain lions are a native species to Missouri, neither explanation for the way they are handling this is acceptable. Having spent some time in areas where they exist, they are an extremely cool creature and I hope they do re-establish themselves in Missouri-although it looks like it will have to happen without any real protection from the MDC.