Saw The Guru On The Water Today

[solus_vero]

By the looks of the photos you guys really know what your doing. GREAT JOB !

Back in the late 70s catching fish of that size was common place. Catching 30lb flathead cats, 8lb red horse, 10lb drum and seeing Giant hellbenders (It is believed hellbenders live for more than 50 years) was quite common. In the early to mid 80s all the real large fish seemed to be far and few between. In the 90s they seem to disappear all together. The same thing happened in the Big Piney and Osage Fork.

My Grandfather said it was because the rivers had been "Gigged out". I didn't give it much thought until one day I went fishing for drum where the Little Piney drops into the Gasconade (at Jerome?) and on the bank I found a pile of fresh fish, Carp, redhorse,drum, etc. Obviously someone had been gigging all night and for what ever reason decided to just throw all the fish up on the bank. I was a PITIFUL SHAME!

When I seen the fish you caught that had gigging scars it really makes my blood boil.

It is, however, good to see large smallmouth / largemouth still being caught in the rivers. I have no doubt you practice catch and release. I only wish giggers were able to do the same.

Personally ,, and I say this not to make anyone mad ,,, it's just my opinion,,,, I don't think gigging is regulated enough and it wouldn't hurt my feelings at all if was outlawed altogether. IT"S JUST MY OPINION.

[Bman]

When I seen the fish you caught that had gigging scars it really makes my blood boil.

Thanks, Makes our blood boil too!!!

We practice catch, (maybe photo) revive, release.

[zipstick]

Guru went to Lake Ozark to fish the American Series of FLW last week. Some of the competitors there located and caught some fine smallies up the Glaize to finish in the top ten. I worked the jerkbait too much in the Niangua and barely managed a check. And so it goes in March for me. This month has the stream smallies scattering quite a bit and much they are tougher to catch consistently. By mid April, we'll start back up with big girls again.

[patfish]

What's with the third person? First "Trav" and now "Guru" or "zipstick" posts like they are a ghost writer or a caveman or some craziness. Take some lithium and get over yourselves. Sheesh!

Atuk zug-zug Lana...

Cheers

[eric1978]

George likes spicy chicken.

[Chief Grey Bear]

Back in the late 70s catching fish of that size was common place. Catching 30lb flathead cats, 8lb red horse, 10lb drum and seeing Giant hellbenders (It is believed hellbenders live for more than 50 years) was quite common. When I seen the fish you caught that had gigging scars it really makes my blood boil.

Wow that Meramec must have been some river. To catch fish like that every time must have been something. There were not many rivers in Missouri that I know of that could on a regular basis boast numbers like that.

That looked more like a 7hp Evinrude prop mark than a gig mark.

George likes spicy chicken.

That was freaking funny!!!

[Guest csfishinfool]

George likes spicy chicken.

LOL Jimmy doesn't like kramer

[Al Agnew]

Actually, the Meramec WAS terrific fishing in the mid to late 1970s and early 1980s. This was pre-spotted bass, and pre-jetboats. The river got far less fishing pressure back then, although there were LOTS of rental aluminum canoes on it on weekends. The best stretches for big smallmouth then are now infested with spotted bass, and the advent of jetboats resulted in much greater fishing and gigging pressure. There was a period of time mostly throughout the 1990s when the fishing was pretty bad. In recent years it seems to have improved somewhat.

One of the best single days during the summer that I ever had for big fish was on the Meramec below St. Clair. Bob Todd and I were floating and I needed a picture of myself with a big smallmouth for some PR for a fund-raising print I'd done for the old Smallmouth Inc. conservation organization. We fished all morning without even seeing a smallie over 12 inches. About 2 PM, three fourths of the way through the float, I finally hooked a big one, close to 20 inches, and got it to the canoe before losing it. I figured that was my only chance for the day and I'd blown it. But just a few casts later I hooked another one, which I boated. That was the beginning of a couple hours of amazing fishing that resulted in the two of us boating 8 smallies between 19 and 21 inches.

To get an idea of what the whole river was like, my buddy Clyde and I did a 12 day float from Short Bend, the highest put-in in the MDC float book, to the old Times Beach Access, a total of 163 miles, back in 1982. It rained on us 8 out of the 12 days, and while the river never came up very much, it was too muddy to fish well between Maramec Spring and Steelville, and again below the mouth of the Bourbeuse. But on the days it was clear enough, we caught numerous smallies over 18 inches, with 2 over 21 inches and two more over 20.

Fact is that I wasn't nearly as knowledgeable back then about catching big smallmouth, but on the Meramec I just about expected to catch at least one or two over 18 inches every time I got on the river.

[zipstick]

Al, like you I've fished thse streams for many years, and in the mid 70's we started fishing the Meramec with Arkie jigs with a #11 porkfrog. The bass had never seen anything like them. I would just take two different baits to the river, one 1/4 oz. jig and 3/8 oz. jig. I believe that many days we released over a 100 good smallies. In the early '80's just about the time the river accesses became more numerous along with the advent of jetboats, I began to take lots of big bass with Spook type baits. Didn't like their poor action, so started manufacturing my own. It was common to see as many as four good smallies chase that bait back to the boat. Those were rip roarin' days. Maybe my skill level has gotten better, and I have much more time to winter fish, thus the greater number of big fish have been taken the last fe years. Most folks now release their bass, so that's good, but a few lawbreaking giggers have a way of decreasing our lunker potential as you have written about previously.

Also, you have to take the blame for this Guru name deal. I think it was you that started this, and others picked up on it. Zipstick is really just plain ole Nick, and many anglers out there are as much as a guru as am I. Good luck at your seminar and let me know if you want to go north this summer.

[solus_vero]

Wow that Meramec must have been some river. To catch fish like that every time must have been something. There were not many rivers in Missouri that I know of that could on a regular basis boast numbers like that.

Actually ,, Chief ,,,, I was talking about the Gasc and the Big Piney. And no, it wasn't "EVERY TIME"

Funny,, you just proved my point from another post.

You still don't get it and probably never will so I wont waist my time typing more to you ,,,, Chief.