mjcoussens

Sorry to resurrect an old thread, but it contains a lot of great information and I'd like to add to that. I brought my float tube and fished the main pit at Catawissa last weekend. Water was extremely silty, with visibility of less than a foot. I did not try to explore some of the other pits in the area, but maybe I should have. I ended up landing a half dozen longnose gar stripping streamers near the surface, but did see lots of carp and an alligator gar about 4ft long. I'm still looking for that perfect float tube/flyfishing pond near STL. It may not exist. From what I've gathered, the lake at Bismarck CA gets pretty heavily covered in lily pads and may be better suited to a canoe/kayak. Does anyone know anything about Port Hudson lake CA? From satellite views, it looks like it has a lot of timber structure. What is the water clarity like? Thanks, Matt

I end up doing a couple of trips to Northern Michigan every year and have seen some pretty good examples of the canoe liveries working with the general public to create a better experience for everyone. Some of the common examples I've run across are: -limiting the amount of alcohol allowed on the trips to a 6 pack per person or craft -No kegs, no glas, no Styrofoam. -no portable radios -limiting the number of large groups -Ensuring that every craft goes out with a mesh orange bag for trash -and most importantly to wading fisherman -educating all canoeists to navigate behind, not in front of them. Penrods on the Au Sable lists a few good examples. http://www.penrodscanoe.com/canoe.html These rules aren't limited to just one livery on one river. I've seen the same on the Manistee, Jordan, Pine, etc. In a perfect world, I would like to see these same courtesies extended to the Ozark rivers and I think it needs to start with the liveries after all they are running the shuttles, loading the vans, etc. They may lose a customer here or there, but I guarantee that I or another like minded person looking for a quality experience will be right there to fill that loss. I have a 1 year old son that I'd love to be able to take out on the river, but frankly the thought terrifies me. The behavior I see precludes the use of the rivers as a family environment and should not be tolerated. Sure, the week days present an entirely different river, but that's not an option for most of us. I'm a weekend warrior just like everyone else. The rivers belong to all of us, and with cooperation can be enjoyed by all equally. Just the thoughts of a lurker.

Glad to hear that worked out for you in that spot. It was nice to meeting you on stream as I've always enjoyed your trip reports. Matt

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Below is a link to what I've been using this season. While not exactly a waist pack, this does have loops that can be easily fastened onto a belt. It's big enough for me to pack a days worth of fishing gear in along with a water bottle and lunch. For the price it's tough to beat as well. https://www.armynavydeals.com/asp/products_...20Fishing%20Bag Matt