Fly Fishing For Trout In Missouri

[Danoinark]

It appears Ozark Mountain Flyfishers published all if not most of his books...

Dano

[Paola Cat]

Dano ... Right on! I had forgotten .... Mr. Agnew did the smallmouth artwork in Chuck's "200 Missouri Smallmouth Adventures." I also have a signed copy of it. It's a great detailed and descriptive read. I wish it included the smallmouth country closer to the southwestern part of the state .... my own selfish desire .... with me being from the KC area. PC

[Aaron J Scott]

Sooo, apparently there is a fourth revised edition published in 2005, too.

[ness]

Yep - it's a great book. Good general information about flyfishing, and a good outline of the trout waters in Missouri. Some of the info in mine is a bit dated, in part due to the trout plan, but it's good for getting you there. Mine's all marked up, dog-eared and taped up where pages have worked their way loose, but I still keep it handy. Wasn't aware there's a 2005 edition out there. Amazon sells used books, and there are a few available out there now.

In around 1995, I was pulling up to fish Mill Creek, book on the dashboard, and a car pulled up next to me in the parking lot. It was Chuck, and I held up the book and smiled. We chatted for a while, and he steered me to a couple locations along Mill. Good guy.

As far as I know, he's still around. I guess it's only been a couple years since 200 Smallmouth Adventures came out.

[msamatt]

Gents:

Chuck is still alive and well. All of his books are really invaluable starting points for all of us seeking out new trout and smallmouth fishing destinations. Like you've all noted, some of the info is a little dated but that can't be helped as roads, bridges, and rivers all change over time. 200 Missouri Smallmouth Adventures was published over seven years ago but it's still a valuable resource when you couple it with a good atlas, the Floaters guide, and online resources like Google earth. Mr. Scott mentioned that you might be able to get a copy of Chuck's book's via our statewide library consortium MOBIUS. He happens to live in Sprinfield and the Springfield Greene County Public libraries and Missouri River Regional Library system are the only two public library systems in the state which belong to MOBIUS. So, if your local public library doesn't belong to either of those systems and you're not a student at a college or university here in Missouri, then you're not going to be able to request a copy of the book through MOBIUS.

[Trout Stalker]

This book has helped me several times with phone numbers to locations.

[McManus]

MSAMATT,

Any thought that Chuck will add the smallmouth fisheries in southwest MO--with an updated book?

Please say yes.

[Aaron J Scott]

Mr. Scott mentioned that you might be able to get a copy of Chuck's book's via our statewide library consortium MOBIUS. He happens to live in Sprinfield and the Springfield Greene County Public libraries and Missouri River Regional Library system are the only two public library systems in the state which belong to MOBIUS. So, if your local public library doesn't belong to either of those systems and you're not a student at a college or university here in Missouri, then you're not going to be able to request a copy of the book through MOBIUS.

Thanks for the clarification. I was on an assignment shadowing Annie Busch (the recently retired director of SGCL) a few months ago and she talked about having joined MOBIUS and trying to get other area libraries on board. I assumed that, by virtue of the Consortium, the other Ozarks libraries would have access to MOBIUS.

Back to trout streams – after being back home for a few days at my parents' farm, next door to Ha Ha Tonka SP, I just had to wonder what kind of trout stream the branch below Ha Ha Tonka Spring would have made if Bagnell Dam not been built. It's output is up there with the rest of the springs that feed most of Missouri's trout stream, but it makes a pretty brief run before dumping into the lake. I bet I would have gotten into all of this a lot earlier if I had a stream I could walk to. Of course, that's a pretty big if, and a lot of other things would be different if the dam wasn't there.

[laker67]

Back to trout streams – after being back home for a few days at my parents' farm, next door to Ha Ha Tonka SP, I just had to wonder what kind of trout stream the branch below Ha Ha Tonka Spring would have made if Bagnell Dam not been built. It's output is up there with the rest of the springs that feed most of Missouri's trout stream, but it makes a pretty brief run before dumping into the lake. I bet I would have gotten into all of this a lot earlier if I had a stream I could walk to. Of course, that's a pretty big if, and a lot of other things would be different if the dam wasn't there.

Aaron,

Ha Ha Tonka was a trout stream years and years ago. It was called Trout Glenn. It was well before your time but I'm sure your parents would remember. It was private and held several large rainbows. History claims that a 25 pound rainbow came from Trout Glenn. There used to be a sign by the spring, that told the story. I'm not sure if it still is there. My very first lunker was hooked and lost there in the early 60's. It was owned by the Herbert family and operated for many years. People like Lee Farmer, Russell Foster, and Frank Sallee all had pictures of the large rainbows they caught. The pictures were displayed at the old lodge. I know that you will recognize some of these names. After the state purchased the property, a petition, to re-stock trout, was circulated by some of the local business people. The state did not stock any trout that they would admit to. But in the mid-eighties, myself and friends caught several brown trout from the spring branch. Mike Parker caught the largest at 6 pounds. After a period of time the trout seemed to disappear. Caught and kept no doubt. I hope you enjoy this little bit of Ha Ha Tonka history.

[Aaron J Scott]

Aaron,

Ha Ha Tonka was a trout stream years and years ago. It was called Trout Glenn. It was well before your time but I'm sure your parents would remember. It was private and held several large rainbows. History claims that a 25 pound rainbow came from Trout Glenn. There used to be a sign by the spring, that told the story. I'm not sure if it still is there. My very first lunker was hooked and lost there in the early 60's. It was owned by the Herbert family and operated for many years. People like Lee Farmer, Russell Foster, and Frank Sallee all had pictures of the large rainbows they caught. The pictures were displayed at the old lodge. I know that you will recognize some of these names. After the state purchased the property, a petition, to re-stock trout, was circulated by some of the local business people. The state did not stock any trout that they would admit to. But in the mid-eighties, myself and friends caught several brown trout from the spring branch. Mike Parker caught the largest at 6 pounds. After a period of time the trout seemed to disappear. Caught and kept no doubt. I hope you enjoy this little bit of Ha Ha Tonka history.

Well, there you go!

Yeah, that was definitely before my time. I know my dad has said that they used to stock the stream, but I assumed it was pre-dam days. I forget that the state didn't acquire the land until the late seventies and someone would have done something with it up until then. Is that Herbert as in Mrs. Herbert and A Bear Video, etc.? I believe they still have a house over by the entrance to Minnow Brook, near the Sallee's old farm. And I'm not sure if Russell is the same Foster, but the Fosters owned my family's land prior (or shortly prior) to my grandparents buying it back in the sixties. Anyway, that is very interesting. Thanks for filling me in.