eric1978

I tie on a $20 piece of junk, and it suits my needs so far. I'll be upgrading in the future, but there are LOTS of EXPENSIVE materials to buy before I do. My advice would be to buy a cheap vise at first, maybe in one of those kits, and find out if you have the patience and inclination to tie flies. If you discover that you enjoy hours at the vise, upgrade. If not, you haven't lost much. In the long run, tying your own flies certainly saves you money. It's a big investment up front, but eventually it pays for itself, as long as you tie a lot of flies and do a lot of fishing.

I'm not sure about Mill and Spring Creeks, but the White Ribbon section of the Little Piney below Milldam is stocked in fall and winter...not sure about the numbers, but I'm sure a few of them make their way upstream.

Hey, I recognize that boulder! No, not really. Nice fish, and even more impressive on the fly! I'm a little skeptical about a 23 incher, but it's certainly not impossible. I don't think they make too many of those 'round these parts...hope to prove myself wrong one day. I'll bet you had a blast casting to those fish with bated breath. Well done, sir.

That's all true, OB, but the more important factor in why the trout water on the Current drops faster than the Meramec, is because Montauk is at the headwaters of the Current, and the Blue and White Ribbon sections are just below it. On the Meramec, MSP flows into the river nearly 30 miles below the first public access, so there's a lot more drainage area and feeder creeks to raise water levels at and above the park. When the Meramec floods, it backs up into MSP, but when the Current floods, Montauk and the trout water below it are the first to drop back to normal. I have a feeling if MSP flowed into the river up near Short Bend, it wouldn't stay blown out for as long as it does.

Mmmm...okra. Love that stuff. Good lookin' veggies.

I agree, especially when using braid, and I also try to use that type of hook-set when using multiple-treble baits like cranks, hard jerkbaits and topwaters, although my inclination is towards the over-the-top-fall-backwards-out-of-your-seat-Bill Dance-hook-sets because that was the popular style when I was learning to fish...You'd see it in all the shows and in "Bassin" magazine ...tough habit to break. When using circle hooks with Senkos, you definitely don't need a hard hook-set.

Can't wait to see that photo! 22 incher...WOW! Well done! I think I may have tossed the biggest, hookiest lure I had at that guy's face who had the 19 incher on the stringer.

Because of the incredible strength of braided line, they can make higher pound test in smaller diameters than mono, fluoro, or copoly...hence 4/15 or 6/20, for example, means 4# diameter with 15# strength, 6# diameter with 20# strength, and so on. I fell in love with braid when I first started using it, but I'm finding that it has some drawbacks, so I'm in the process of transitioning to using braid only for plastics on spinning gear.

No Cricket, I didn't. It's 15# test with 4# diameter...nice try, though.

One of my staple summertime baits is the fluke. I mostly use the 4" size, unweighted and T-Rigged with a 2/0 EWG. I don't use them for patrolling open water, but mostly for skipping under logs or undercut banks, or in otherwise snag-filled cover. Much of the time the fish will hit the fluke as soon as it touches the water or shortly after, and after a few twitches without a strike, you can pretty much reel it in and cast again. I don't find that fish will often hit the bait more than halfway through your retrieve, but it happens ocassionally. Play with the speed of your twitches and jerks, and the fish will tell you what they want. I find a lot of the time in summer, they like a lot of fast, frantic twitches, which tie their stupid brains into knots and they just have to hit the thing. I like chartreuse, pearl, and AR shiner colors in clear to semi-clear water. Make sure you rig your bait perfectly straight to avoid line twist and poor action. If your fluke is jumping up out of the water on your twitches, you most likely have it rigged crooked. Keeping your rod tip down helps keep the bait from breaking the surface...but sometimes the fish like that, though, so again, let them tell you what they want. Also make sure you are using light enough line. I find that using anything greater than 6# test is a detriment to the action of the bait. I prefer 4/15 Power Pro on a light spinning outfit for flukes, both because it allows for better action, and the braid has enough power to penetrate the plastic. Be prepared to go through a lot of them...after a fish or two they're shredded...good thing they're pretty cheap.

Gorgeous pics! Looks beautiful there.

+2 Thanks for doing that. Even if she ultimately doesn't make it, at least you put forth the effort. Wish there were more guys like you out there.

My wading boots and wet socks are great for wet wading when talking about gravel protection, support, non-slippage, etc...but they're heavy and uncomfortable to walk multiple miles up and downstream with. Wearing them with waders is another story...I can go all day in them, then. But for wet wading, not so great.

Yeah, I already have a pair of wading boots.

I don't fish any of the streams with didymo...and if I did, I would sterilize them afterward. The thought of cracking my head open on a stream when I'm wading by myself, or just pulling a groin muscle slipping on greased cannonballs (which I've done) is enough to make me really want felt. Safety first, right?

Cool report and a great fish, Paul. Well done!

MSP is the stream equivalent of an urban trout program...and it sucks. I'd actually rather go out to Busch. At least you can get a little space out there...until Feb 1st.

I wouldn't imagine it's a big deal unless you impale their eye or gill, as you mentioned. The rest of their head and body is pretty tough. I can't get away from multiple trebles. I'm not taking Sammies, Pointers or Warts out of my box, period. Besides, you can hook a fish through the eye with an EWG, too. Pinching down the barbs helps dramatically. (I'm guilty of not doing this most of the time).

Ditto. In fact, the only time I remember gut-hooking a fish on an artificial bait in the last many years, was once when I left my Senko in the water while picking out a spool nightmare. I got the line straightened out, started reeling in all the slack, and lo and behold there's a 10 inch smallie at the end of it happily digesting his salty snack. I cut the line and let him go, but I don't expect he survived. Innocent mistake. You really have to not be paying much attention to gut-hook a fish on plastics...at least that's how it seems to me. Once I feel the tap-tap, I'll be setting the hook really soon.

We do agree on that my friend. We do indeed. Bob Dylan, Van or Jim Morrison, and...Ozzie Smith?

Awesome, and that's exactly why I like the name so much, too. BD is my all-time fav. I like smallies, and I like catching a lot of them, especially the bigger ones. So anything that keeps more of them in a stream, I support. That's it.

How many other floaters did you see?

Hey, thanks for the offer, but 11 & 1/2s would look like clown shoes on me...I wear a 9. What's your problem with Korkers? They've gotten some good reviews on RS. The Keen Hood Rivers do look like they'd be great for keeping out gravel...they don't look all that light or comfortable to me though. How well do they drain? Chota boots? Or do they make a shoe, too?

1. We haven't had SMAs for 40 years. But you're right, if their rules are not followed they won't help, but some people will follow them so I'd rather have the SMAs than not have them. If it keeps just one angler from harvesting a big smallmouth, it's a good thing. 2. Again, they're better than nothing because at least a few anglers will change their habits. I still think MDC needs to do a much better job of educaction and enforcement of the regulations...that has been my position all along, but it doesn't mean I wouldn't like to see more SMAs established anyway. 3. I do fish hard, and sometimes I'm rewarded. If Tom, Dick and Harry are all eating 18" smallies that I could have otherwise been catching, they are partially to blame.

The problem with tennis shoes is that they let gravel in. So I might as well wear my sandals, since it's a lot easier to get gravel OUT of those. Plus tennis shoes get waterlogged and uncomfortable...to me anyway. I do have gravel guards, and I've slapped them on over tennies before, but at that point I might as well be wearing my wading boots, because that's about how they feel. If they just put a significant neoprene cuff around the ankle, any of the three shoes above could be vastly superior to tennis shoes. As they are, they are only better for drainage and toe protection, slightly improved gravel protection, and one of them has felt.