drew03cmc

Pat, I wouldn't be above fixing it for you if you paid to ship it both ways. I have the JB Weld sitting here, and while it is here, I could give her a cleaning and lubing, but I understand the DIY type. I am the same way If you want to try to find out who made it, I can make a phone call for you if you'd like. Our Cabela's fly shop manager and I get along very well.

Post some pictures of the spinning reel. I might be able to help you out. I saved three of my neighbors' reels today.

Guys, obviously, this is a big deal. I have no idea how to stop the leak and obviously the "braintrust" at BP doesn't either. Let's not make light of this, but the Ozarks is miles of waterway removed from this issue. If and when a storm blows this inland, then we can worry about it.

Woolly buggers will catch fish under any condition. Stock up on them and some basic nymphs, and you will do fine.

With a 9' cane rod, you are looking at a 7wt, maybe a heavy 6. You will also need a boat anchor reel to balance that stick at all. Something around 8.5-9 ounces would do the trick. Montague made great rods, but most were looked upon as complete crap because a few of their rods were junk. Could you post some pictures of the rod? What reel did you plan to fish with it? Don't rush the casting stroke with this rod and you will be pleased with it.

Can't make it, but I am wishing you all great fishing from my vacation spot up here in Omaha. On a side note, did some fishing today up here, caught a walleye and two largemouth. Lake was super sandy and shallow with lots of vegetation not conducive for throwing anything moving or the fly rod. Hope your day is as gorgeous as mine has been today!

Sunfish are not perch. I hate when that comes up as anyone who fishes a lot knows this. They are sunfish. There are many species of sunfish and to hear them called perch is insulting to the sunfish. They fight so much harder than a perch does. Our perch species are our darters and walleye. If there are yellow perch in Missouri, them too. Quit calling them perch, for they are not.

Chief, I voted yes and am interested in seeing if those who said no can say so. My guess is Zippy and Bman...

Honestly? The pictures of fish with gig marks on here are enough to enrage anyone. You seem indifferent about the giggers hitting bass. Are you one of them? Enforcement apparently stops at sundown as the agents are seldom on the water after dark. If they were, they could catch some poachers. Sure, call the infraction in, but you will not see anyone there before 8am. Can you honestly say that you cannot tell the difference between a sucker and a smallmouth under one of those gigantic halogens? They are knowingly taking these fish and you seem to think that because there is a tradition of gigging in the Ozarks that we should all just look the other way. Hell no. These people need to be stopped or educated (well, they probably failed that one the first time around). Stopping gigging will help smallmouth populations. Since you seem to believe that gigging does not harm the populations, show us the data to back that outlandish claim up.

Holy Crap!!! We agree again. I wish there were measures that could be taken to prevent stuff like this oil spill, but honestly, it doesn't keep me up at night.

Zipstick, your comment here: "Pretty rare to get this low and clear water in our streams in April and the smallies are bedding now. Often I find just one real bedding community every 10 miles or so, even on a well populated stream, and this week I located two such places. I was fortunate to find them with B Man Monday and Tuesday of this week. These "spawning bedrooms" often have 5-10 adult smallies that usually go 13-20 inches with both males and females vulnerable to just about any well placed lure. These spawning areas can vary a little each year as the rivers change from flooding. A bedroom may shift over a 1/2 mile away, and they do because the bass have found a better more protected area for spawning. B Man and I caught 9 or 10 (we lost count) over 17 inches and here are two of the better fish." is what we are all having a problem with. Inadvertent catches of spawning smallmouth cannot be avoided, but to target them is pretty low. Do you like being bothered when you and your lady are in coitus? I think not. I just want you to give these fish the respect they deserve during this very stressful time of year.

It is always gigging with you eastern guys. You have to have a scapegoat to account for a lack of big smallmouth, but fishing for spawning fish is never it. It has to be rednecks in a gigging boat with halogens after dark in the fall that are taking all of the big smallmouth. You are trying to point out that you do not know these fish are spawning and then you come out and say this, "I woudn't fish these places daily obviously as I pretty much know what's there. I like to let a stretch rest for at least a week if possible" Honestly? You know these fish are spawning as you are fishing likely spawning locales, but you justify it with the argument that you didn't know.

I give up Eric. We agree in principle to the same things, and hopefully we can discuss further.

Funny, Eric, but I thought you could read just fine... Anywho, this discussion was about fishing on the beds...the study mentioned was presumably done in Florida done on largemouth in lakes more than likely, and thus, has no bearing on Ozark smallmouth.

Gee thanks for lumping us with the Pirates...

Oh, well...

Your post also says, "I emailed Michael Allen who was part of the group form Florida that performed a study on whether fishing during the spawn has impacted the fish population." If the study was performed in Florida, it was done on largemouth and in the panhandle, potentially spots. Those fish are not Ozark smallmouth. On the highlighted portion of your post, I will state this: The smallmouth in the western Ozarks, west of the James and flowing south and west, are not genetically the same as those in the five primary drainages in the Missouri Ozarks. I will spare everyone with Neosho smallmouth talk, but the growth rates are not the same as the fish in the rest of the Ozarks. OTF, we agree on something...

That is a load of crap. I hope you find out more Gary!

If you disagree, tell us why. Don't just sit there and say you disagree. Why do you feel that mentioning the stretch of river where you were fishing couldn't potentially increase pressure? You may not fish every day, or may not monitor the activity on the stream, but more publicity does invariably raise pressure. Why do you think people don't post the names of creeks or accesses for their primo fishing holes?

Seriously? You have never seen a longear sunfish watching the bass beds? You need to look closer I think. I am envious of you for fishing all winter long for these beautiful creatures. You don't agree with me on the fact that pulling a bass from their beds is potentially detrimental to that year's spawn. It may be noticeable or it may not, but if eggs are eaten, they can't hatch and potentially become that next 20" brownie. Florida must have a booming smallmouth fishery somewhere. Oh, no? Really? Wow, those study results don't even pertain to Missouri stream smallmouth. Mitch, what we were told is that the top end size of Missouri smallmouth bass has decreased due to the increase of runt spots. Are you familiar with the prominent smallmouth fisheries on the east coast (Potomac, Susky, etc)? They catch fish that size all the time too. Is this a result of management or better water quality and forage base to grow these larger fish? Hmm, another person swearing by statewide regs. We had that discussion on here, regarding the holy grail of smallmouth management in Missouri, the White Paper. Statewide regs based upon five drainages in the eastern half of the state benefit those five drainages. C&R for smallmouth is what I would like to see, but it will never happen.

If by PETA you mean, People Eating Tasty Animals, okay, I will accept that. It does not matter how many miles of water you have to work to find bedding bass. I figured that any conservation-minded angler had it in their minds to avoid targeting bedding bass in streams that have a finite amount of these amazing creatures. I guess if you have the "expertise" that you supposedly have, that makes it ok? No. Fishing for bedding bass is easily avoided unless you are intentionally targeting these fish. I am not judging, but if this is the case, you should not be advertising how rewarding it is to rip a 16+" bass from their beds. I hope you consider what I am saying without getting defensive as you did before. I hope you can see that you are potentially doing irreversible harm to the smallmouth population. Bream are notorious egg thieves, and a minute off a bed allows the bream more time than they need to swim in and eat a couple hundred eggs. No, I would not cast someplace where bass are bedding. I prefer to conserve that natural resource rather than exploit it. You don't have to worry about inviting me. Even if you did, I would decline as I would rather not fish with someone that feels this way about a natural resource that is becoming more and more rare in the state of Missouri.

Randall, in the KCMO area, check out Coot Lake at JARWA. Also, fish the Missouri River backwaters.

You might be a "guru", but the act of targeting bedding smallmouth in streams is pretty bad. Why not fish for the bass that are not bedding or is it just easier to catch the bedding fish? You may not have hurt the fish themselves, but bream will go right in behind that fish you just removed from the bed and devour eggs. That hasn't hurt that fish, but rather the young of the year. I am not on a high horse, but rather am thinking of preserving the smallmouth bass in all of our streams.

Royals baseball...what a subject. Hillman is finally gone, Ned Yost is the new guinea pig. I think that if they get him some talent, he will be fine. Money does not equate with winning in the MLB though. The team concept is gone from most of these teams, but the teams that have it are playing very, very well. San Diego has a payroll of HALF of what the Royals do and they are in first place in their division. The Rays payroll is equal to the Royals, give or take a few bucks, and they have the best record in baseball again. The Royals need to package up everyone but Greinke and trade for middle relievers. You can win with shitty offense, but are destined to lose with shitty pitching. I like Callaspo and Butler, but if we can get a middle reliever for one of them, the deal is done. If someone wants Greinke, depending on what we could get for him, I would be open to listening.

Poker, what everyone is saying is that in a fragile ecosystem like the smaller (preferred to remain unnamed) creeks that you and I both fish down there, the smallmouth are a precious commodity that we have to actively protect. When I come across bedding bass in a stream, whether it is the Blue River near Kansas City, the Wakarusa near Lawrence or Shoal Creek near Neosho, I WILL NOT fish those fish. I don't care if they are spots, largemouths or brownies. It will not happen. Do not mention where you are at on the smaller flows as they are susceptible to fishing pressure far more than larger streams. On Indian Creek, those smallmouth are not your average Missouri smallmouth. I don't know if you are aware of this, but since you presented yourself as a degreed and certified wildlife biologist, I would assume you would know what I am talking about. If not, just say so and we can school you on the subject. I would appreciate you taking care of these fish the way we have been proposing to do so on this site. Treat them as a natural treasure and promote the growth of the population by not targeting them on the beds.