Flooded

[Daveinozark]

being new, this is the first time I've seen the flooded Finley. So what will this mean to fishing? Does this flush them all down? I'm wondering how long it will be at this level. Any insights?

[Chief Grey Bear]

Just give it a few days and it will be back to normal.

No it won't wash the fish down. Now some of this years hatch, I am sure some of them get moved on down but the old timers, they will still be there.

[ozark trout fisher]

being new, this is the first time I've seen the flooded Finley. So what will this mean to fishing? Does this flush them all down? I'm wondering how long it will be at this level. Any insights?

Yeah, I don't know the Finley in particular, but I know of a few streams that flood massively from time to time. It doesn't wash the fish downstream almost ever, except as Chief said maybe a few small ones. Smallies are surprisingly tough, and they are adapted to survive these kind of floods year in, and year out. So in other words, when the water comes back down, the fishing should come back to normal almost right away.

[Wayne SW/MO]

There are always current breaks for the fish, and many will simply hug the bottom where the friction slows the current. This isn't new, in fact that's why the Riverside is wanting to close, too many floods, too often.

[RSBreth]

I can tell you that after all the flooding in '08, I had one of my best years fishing the Finley, for Bass, Crappies, and Rock Bass.

Better than this year.

If all the fish washed away when it flooded, wouldn't eventually all fish get washed away?

[ozark trout fisher]

I can tell you that after all the flooding in '08, I had one of my best years fishing the Finley, for Bass, Crappies, and Rock Bass.

Better than this year.

If all the fish washed away when it flooded, wouldn't eventually all fish get washed away?

Yeah... It is amazing how they can survive on a creek, that for example runs 50 CFS normally, and suddenly spikes to about 15000 or 20000 CFS. It just shows how well adapted these fish are that most all of them can survive. I guess they just hug the bottom where current is least.

I do know flooding does cause negative effects on fish during the spawning season, which explains year classes that are either missing, or almost missing on some streams. I know of a few examples where I suspect that occurred, because their simply aren't many small fish the next year. Then the next year, if there are less spring floods, there will be plenty of small fish, but very few two year-old (aka small, but not young of the year) fish. But that's a different issue entirely, since no fish I know of spawn this time of year.

[Daveinozark]

good to hear it helped in 08, guess we'll see how it goes. not used to this weather, I'm from Phoenix where it only rains for 2 minutes

I can tell you that after all the flooding in '08, I had one of my best years fishing the Finley, for Bass, Crappies, and Rock Bass.

Better than this year.

If all the fish washed away when it flooded, wouldn't eventually all fish get washed away?

[ozark trout fisher]

Fish do get moved around d

Yes, some do. But for some reason, I've always heard the healthy ones move upstream, as opposed to being moved downstream. It seems counter-intuitive, but I believe it's true. For example I've found various big-river species (catfish, carp, white bass, etc) move up into tributaries when they flood. I'm not sure smallmouth react the same way by moving upstream, but they might. Honestly, I bet most of them will just hold steady behind a boulder somewhere on the bottom until it recedes.

[Buckshotdad1960]

Fish do get moved around during flood stage. Although I’m not so convinced that the water is forcing them to move as much as maybe it’s just allowing them to travel up and down the river with ease. I find that good holes are still good holes after a flood if not better because their restocked.

How many times have you heard the old farmer story about where he found a big cat fish stuck in a puddle in the middle of his field when the water went down? As a young boy in the summer I fished the Gasconade when it was rising and when it was lowering. I found that the rising stage was better than the lowering stage until the river had settled. Then things were back to normal. I believe fish know how to get out of the main current where all the debris being washed away is moving. That’s not to say some fish don’t go back up in holes in the bank or hide in the rocks but this could be risky due to the fact that these places could be covered up with gravel or mud. I believe fish that learn to survive learn to move. The water doesn’t force them to move up or down the river as much as it just forces them to move out of the way. If they travel up and down the river it is because it is what they want to do. You’ve heard of catfish being trapped in holes due to low water levels but when the water level rises they travel from hole to hole. Catfish holes that are fished out are restocked because of this.

I grew up in Pulaski County, and there the Gasconade has a branch that breaks off from it and runs through Waynesville which winds back around and meets the gasconade again at the Crocker Bridge. From Waynesville to the Crocker Bridge it’s only about 2 miles. From Waynesville to where this branch breaks off the Gasconade, I have no idea how far it is. I only know the branch from Waynesville to about five miles up and I’m sure it much farther than that to get back to where it branches off from the Gasconade.

In Waynesville there is a spring in town that of course runs cold water, but above the spring for a mile or so this branch runs warm water all year round even if there’s not much flow. Above that for the next 4 miles or so of the branch I know it only runs water in the spring when the Gasconade floods and the over flow fills this branch that breaks off of the Gasconade. Now, I have painted this picture of what this branch is like and said all that I said so I can say this. The area above the 1 mile mark which is above the spring in Waynesville always dries up for the summer after the spring flooding. As it dries up you find fish (and some times big fish) in these shrinking pools of water all up and down the 4 miles of it I’ve fished and I have no reason to believe that the same scenario isn’t being played out up and down the entire length of the branch that breaks off from the Gasconade. Now, if fish don’t move up and down the river on their own free will, what are there fish doing there? Look at all the places they could have found to get out of the current if they where interested in or wanted to stay in the same place they where at before the flood. Perhaps some do decide to stay in the same place while others prefer to move.

I don’t think the size of the fish has anything to do with anything. Because if a small fish can be washed away but a big fish can’t then what about the smaller fish like minnows? If the wash away small fish theory was correct the big fish that remained after the flood would have nothing to eat then.

[ozark trout fisher]

Fish do get moved around during flood stage. Although I’m not so convinced that the water is forcing them to move as much as maybe it’s just allowing them to travel up and down the river with ease. I find that good holes are still good holes after a flood if not better because their restocked.

How many times have you heard the old farmer story about where he found a big cat fish stuck in a puddle in the middle of his field when the water went down? As a young boy in the summer I fished the Gasconade when it was rising and when it was lowering. I found that the rising stage was better than the lowering stage until the river had settled. Then things were back to normal. I believe fish know how to get out of the main current where all the debris being washed away is moving. That’s not to say some fish don’t go back up in holes in the bank or hide in the rocks but this could be risky due to the fact that these places could be covered up with gravel or mud. I believe fish that learn to survive learn to move. The water doesn’t force them to move up or down the river as much as it just forces them to move out of the way. If they travel up and down the river it is because it is what they want to do. You’ve heard of catfish being trapped in holes due to low water levels but when the water level rises they travel from hole to hole. Catfish holes that are fished out are restocked because of this.

I grew up in Pulaski County, and there the Gasconade has a branch that breaks off from it and runs through Waynesville which winds back around and meets the gasconade again at the Crocker Bridge. From Waynesville to the Crocker Bridge it’s only about 2 miles. From Waynesville to where this branch breaks off the Gasconade, I have no idea how far it is. I only know the branch from Waynesville to about five miles up and I’m sure it much farther than that to get back to where it branches off from the Gasconade.

In Waynesville there is a spring in town that of course runs cold water, but above the spring for a mile or so this branch runs warm water all year round even if there’s not much flow. Above that for the next 4 miles or so of the branch I know it only runs water in the spring when the Gasconade floods and the over flow fills this branch that breaks off of the Gasconade. Now, I have painted this picture of what this branch is like and said all that I said so I can say this. The area above the 1 mile mark which is above the spring in Waynesville always dries up for the summer after the spring flooding. As it dries up you find fish (and some times big fish) in these shrinking pools of water all up and down the 4 miles of it I’ve fished and I have no reason to believe that the same scenario isn’t being played out up and down the entire length of the branch that breaks off from the Gasconade. Now, if fish don’t move up and down the river on their own free will, what are there fish doing there? Look at all the places they could have found to get out of the current if they where interested in or wanted to stay in the same place they where at before the flood. Perhaps some do decide to stay in the same place while others prefer to move.

I don’t think the size of the fish has anything to do with anything. Because if a small fish can be washed away but a big fish can’t then what about the smaller fish like minnows? If the wash away small fish theory was correct the big fish that remained after the flood would have nothing to eat then.

That branch of the Gasconade you are speaking of is Roubidoux Creek, a major tributary to the Gasconade.... That's interesting though, I had always thought Roubidoux above the spring was devoid of fish.