stlfisher

She Looks like a keeper.

I don't think the flooding affected the fish in the stream that much, but the flooding killed many of the fish at Sherpard of the Hills and other hatcheries because it caused the water temperature through the hatchery to rise to lethal levels. It also decimated the eggs and such while they where trying to spawn the fish. I remember reading (admittedly I can't remember where) that they lost 30% of the fish and many of the adults as well. I had a reliable fishing friend also tell me that Meramac had a fish kill last year right before the C&R season. I didn't fish Meremac until last year so I can't compare it to anything else, but it seemed the fish only are in a few spots. I do agree that there were so many fish at Bennett in the past that we probably got spoiled. There are still fish and I like a little challenge, but my expectations won't be as high as the used to. Regardless, it is always a great time to fish the stream with a few friends.

I think it is a two fold problem. First, there is clearly a lack of fish and I think it has to do with all the flooding a couple years ago. All the parks and especially Shepard of the Hills hatchery lost a lot of young fish and we are seeing the inpact last year and this year. The stocking rates are lower because of this. Secondly, less people probably fish due to economic concerns and since the park is usually stock per aniticipated angler then that mean less fish are present. There are still plenty I am sure, but they aren't so crowded anymore and that gives them more room to swim around and find better hiding spots away from the crowds. it kind of makes it seem more scarce than it probably is. Last time I was there zone 1 really seemed deserted to me. I am going down May 21,22, and 23 with a group of friends so I will be sure to report back what I find.

It was a joke. You must have missed it.

I too am glad they are back and not at all worried about being attacked by one. To be honest if I had to go early then why not go out in style. Future generations would tell their grankids a story about a relative back in the day who was mauled to death by a bear while landing a state record trout. I would live on for generations. And someone mentioned it earlier we are the problem not the bears or the wildlife. I hope we learn that before it is too late.

I to had horrible luck in late March when I went down. I thought the stream seemed pretty devoid of fish. I saw no one with any fish that day and I only managed a few. I am heading down the weekend of May 22 and 23rd so hopefully I will have better luck. Montauk is much better IMO.

I have seen this at least on two separate occasions, but in a little different situations as yours. Both times it was this time of year, but in my situation it was a pond not a stream. I too chased after them for hours, but they behaved the exact way you described. I got the distinct impression after watching them for awhile that they were sunning themselves and enjoying the warmer weather. My thought, and this is purely speculation, was the water temperate had warmed enough that the surface water was now the warmest water in the pond (kind of spring turnover thing), contained the most oxygen, and was pretty much optimal. I also think the bass were spooky because they use this as a sign the water is becoming warm enough and stable enough to start the spawn. I think they are getting geared up for that. Kind of a calm before the fun begins. On both occasions I was curious enough to go back a few days later and I couldn't not find any fish near the surface, but did see some beds. Anyway, my theory may be totally crazy, but I know exactly what you mean and it is strange.

Glad you got out to give them a shot. Keep us posted when you get one. Only about what 9,000 more castes or so:)

I like them quite a bit myself and I have on occasion found them to slip. I usually just twist the line a few times if it is close to my tippet and that has worked fine. The do leave a kink which is kind of annoying, but they are so conveniant and durable that it makes up for it IMO.

Thanks for the tips guys. I tore them up today....30-40 fish...I just stopped counting after awhile. The stream seemed pretty empty so that was an added a bonus. I caught fish on pretty much every fly in fly box. I started throwing all dry's toward evening as that is my weakness. Even managed a few. I hooked into the biggest trout of my life as well. After a few minutes she just came unbuttoned...not sure why...but it was a very large fish. I did fish the bait area for a bit, but I missed the best water as it was crowded when I checked. Instead I tried the skinny water in C/R area and the slow pool of the C/R. I managed a few, but they were the small ones. I really liked the skinny water of the C/R area. It was a nice change of pace to a fun, but very long day. Good luck fishing.

I am heading to Montauk tomorrow and was curious if anyone had fished it lately. I lost my fly box a few weeks ago so I need to tie up a few before i go...so if they are hitting anything particular I am all ears. Also, can I fly fish in the bait area? I will be the young looking guy in a pair of green waders zinging around some green fly line. Stop and say hi if you see me.

Like anything else there is probably not one fly rod that can cover all bass fishing situations and I am sure many different opinions. So these are my thoughts...that really aren't worth too much:) I use my 6 weight for bass. It works fine and I have a blast with it, but I will be buying a 7 or 8 weight for two reasons. The first is I want throw the really big cool crap and this is tough on a 6, especially if you add weight. In my opinion you should match the weight of your fly rod with the size of the fly you will be throwing more so than the size of the fish. My 6 works fine for small to mid size bass flies in open water, but It becomes tough when I start to get into the larger bass flies. Can I get buy with a 6...yea probably...but I like casting too much and in IMO a 6 isn't enough for the large bass flies without sacrificing my casting stroke. It will flat wear you out casting large flies too! Secondly, when I fly fish open water without lot's of vegatation I think a 6 is fine. However, if I am fishing lakes or ponds with lot's of cover I feel under armed with a 6. In these cases I want an 8 to have a chance to horse fish out of cover if need be. You really need to be fishing in the cover too...that is where the big fish are! Overall, I wouldn't go lower than a 6 for bass. I think a 7 is perfect for Mo smallies and most largemouth. I would upgrade to an 8 if you live down south with a realistic chance for a double digit largemouth or will be fishing in heavy cover.

Last time I was at Bass pro I picked up some jig heads in 1/124 size and found the hook size was also marked on the package. I can't remember the size off hand, but it was clearly marked on the package and there was good assortmant of sizes and weights. I found them in aisle facing the back wall of the fly tying section at the Bass pro in St. Louis. I have good luck with them both floating them under an indicator as well as stripping/jigging them back like a maribou jig. They come with chrome head's and have a horizontal type presentation. The weren't to expensive if my memory serves me right.

I would say they water temperature was about 40 when I was out. My guess is they have crept up in the mid 40's. They should warm up pretty steadily over the next few weeks with the increase in daylight.

Thanks for the replies. I think I will give it a shot and see how it goes.

I would attach the braid to the fly line via a loop to loop connection.

This may be really dumb question (so don't be too harsh if it is), but does anyone use braid as a leader on your fly rod? I was wondering if there would be any advantages to this while fly fishing for bass (not trout obviously). I would use this setup on stained lakes with lots of brush and vegetation. I would use a 6 weight or 8 weight fly rod and maybe add a small section of mono tippet. I figure the braid would help me feel the softer bites and last a little longer.

Yeah I am done with the trout lakes until next November as well. I will still hit busch for close to home fishing, when I can't away to other places. Hopefully, there wont' be anymore idiots throwing beer bottles in the lake. Unfortunately, trash is always an issue at Busch.

I had some free time on Sunday and decided to make a trip out to Bush and fish Lake 28. The weather was great, quite windy, but the fishing was pretty slow. I caught a couple fish on a size 18 Pheasant tail, but could not find the fish. The wind in my face made casting difficult and the very crowded conditions have probably cleaned out the lake pretty good. I only managed 1 trout and 3 crappie in 5 hours of fishing. I did see an agent at 28 that was checking licensing etc...good too see...everyone seemed to behaving themselves. I left 28 and drove over to lake 21 and tried my luck. I walked around the lake to the point on the far side and this is were I caught my only trout. a few minute later a group of 3 individuals showed up (saw I caught a fish) and proceeded to stand in my hip pocket. I understand it was crowded, but this was ridiculous and was worse behavior than at a trout park. I said to the guy you really need to move...I could not cast they were so close. His buddy was sitting on cooler full of beer directly behind me. I was very annoyed, but with my fly line zipping there the air they got the hint. They finally moved over to the darn. I too decided to work my way back to the car....when I noticed 3 beer bottles that were thrown in the lake near the shore. It was obviously them. As I was fishing them out a dad and his daughter and son came over and we fished the reamining bottles out of the water. He was as annoyed as I was and said he would have the kids carry them out. I thanked him we talked a little fishing (nice guy) and they left. Later, as I was walking back to the car I had a few words with the group of 3. I not so politely told them to take their trash elsewhere. About this time the agent from 28 showed up and I told her the story. She could not issue them a ticket for littering and there was no evidence (the guy and his kids had left). She did ticket one guy for not having a license hopefully they won't be back. Overall it was nice to get out, but I can't get over the complete disregard this group had. I hope the agent scared them off and they don't return. Can't wait to hit a stream in the next few weeks.

I would definatley be in favor of the wi-fi at the campgrounds. I am on call for work 6 months out the year so if I can bring my laptop and access from the lodge or campgrounds that is many more weekends I can fish.

Maybe the advertising logo could change hourly through out the day to keep the advertising cost's to a minimum for each company or organization that would chip in. It might be easier for the local tackle shops to get involved. The companies could sign up for specified amount of time each day for the whole year.

That is what I thought it was for and I like the idea and the concept. Any discussion's about an underwater camera? Not necessarily in any area that would give away a lunker's hiding place, but I think it would be a good marketing tool and it would nice to look at a few fish when I am stuck at work. I know ESPN has an a link to an underwater bass cam. I would be in favor of other live cams at other trout parks as well. I think it should end at the trout parks though....nothing outside of the boundaries.

Cricket thank for the laugh:) If I was tuning in and saw someone being dragged out of the woods in handcuffs with crappy pants around their ankles I would laugh my @ss off. I would feel bad about it later, but I would laugh. I guess I can see others viewpoint about about survelliance, but it is a live web cam, not really a surveillance camera. A surveillance camera you would be able to actually make out who the people are and record hours of tape. A web cam would actually have to be set up to record the information. I am sure that can be done very easily, but we don't even now if they are doing that. It isn't like they have a vault under the dam so "CSI game and fish agents" can poor through hours of tape. It is not like this is a big secret operation...I mean it was advertised on the MO State Park's page.

ha!

For those don't like it Can you really make out who the person is from the camera? I can't even tell if it is a man or woman. I don't really think it is about surveillance at all. I guess maybe you could have a creepy employee doing something he/she shouldn't, but that seems as likely as some weirdo camping out in a tree along zone two. I mean they have agents watching and other fisherman watching you that can actually see who you are so what is the difference? Now if they are using it for other purposes or scanning the campground and spying on things they shouldn't see then that is a completely different story, but I don't see anything sinister behind it at all. Solitude and privacy aren't really going to be possible at a trout park anway. Personally, I think it is a way for people to stay in touch when they are stuck at work all day and dreaming of fishing. I like the concept and in fact I would like them to add an underwater camera too.