Memorial Weekend Float Trip

[eric1978]

paola cat, are you saying there are no places to fish with in two hours of St.Louis??????If you are you are truly foolish and just don't know but thats fine with me.Thats more kick butt rivers and streams full of smallies for me that you don't know about.By the way Manhattan,KS is the most dreadful city I have ever been to, I would rather spend weekend in the St.Louis county jail protecting my backside than spend a weekend in Manhattan.

It's an inside joke SB. I constantly whine about being a two hour drive from any good fishing. PC is my boy...be nice to him.

[Paola Cat]

paola cat, are you saying there are no places to fish with in two hours of St.Louis??????If you are you are truly foolish and just don't know but thats fine with me.Thats more kick butt rivers and streams full of smallies for me that you don't know about.By the way Manhattan,KS is the most dreadful city I have ever been to, I would rather spend weekend in the St.Louis county jail protecting my backside than spend a weekend in Manhattan.

SB .... calm down. It's all just some funnin' between Eric and I. He's my buddy. Thanks for your opinion on Manhattan though .... I appreciate it .... your opinion is really important to me . Thanks for the attack. The "protecting my backside in a St. Louis County jail" comment is a classic. I hope I get to see ya on the river (within a 2 hour drive of St. Louis).

[Jlowe]

well I respect all of your opinions, but i enjoy the flavor of fish, and we dont fish often anymore with me going into my third year of college, living away from home and my brother has a job as well so its hard for us to all get together and fish, and yes you may be mad at the fact that I kept and ate a nice brownie but there are people out there who poach fish and do much worse things, and im not trying to start any arguements, just saying dont point fingers and hate because I ate some fish in season

[gotmuddy]

well I respect all of your opinions, but i enjoy the flavor of fish, and we dont fish often anymore with me going into my third year of college, living away from home and my brother has a job as well so its hard for us to all get together and fish, and yes you may be mad at the fact that I kept and ate a nice brownie but there are people out there who poach fish and do much worse things, and im not trying to start any arguements, just saying dont point fingers and hate because I ate some fish in season

There is nothing wrong with legally keeping fish. I choose not to keep smallmouth because they are not stocked, they are native. Goggleye are native too but they grow much faster than smallies.

[eric1978]

I kept and ate a nice brownie but there are people out there who poach fish and do much worse things

Warning: Anyone who doesn't want to hear my opinion should stop reading this post now.

Yep, it's your legal right. It's also one less hard-fighting smallie to catch the next time you're on that river, or for the guy who fishes after you.

It all (of course) depends on what's more important to each individual. It's just too bad that what's important to me helps make dinner for you, and what's important to you helps...make dinner for you.

[Jlowe]

To each his own, but I don't read your posts and comment on how you should have ate the fish though

[eric1978]

To each his own, but I don't read your posts and comment on how you should have ate the fish though

I do eat fish. I'm just selective about which ones are better to eat and which ones are better to catch, which ones are more abundant and which ones are more elusive, which ones grow quickly and which ones take forever, etc.

Yeah, to each his own, unfortunately. Sigh.

[Jlowe]

Now im hungry

[flytyer57]

Now im hungry

Grab a Snickers.

[Al Agnew]

Thing is, you have a perfect right to keep that fish, but don't expect kudos from many on here. Smallmouth that size are valuable as long as they are in the stream. As eating goes, one that size is pretty mediocre...the 12-13 inchers are much better eating, not to mention that goggle-eye and sunfish are even better. I eat quite a few bass, absolutely love the taste when they are dipped in milk and egg, then in cornmeal, and deep-fried. I fried up a big batch of largemouth under 13 inches and bluegill from my pond last week and ate on them for three days. But I won't bother to eat one over 14 inches because the taste goes downhill fast at about that size. Smallies that make it to the 17 inch range are relatively rare, and in my opinion deserve to remain in the river.

Doesn't bother me much if somebody eats every 12-13 inch smallie they legally can. But you might think about how few 17 inch plus smallies there are, and that it took that one at least eight or ten years to grow that big...and ask yourself a question. Did you enjoy catching it more, or eating it more? Given that it was the biggest one you've caught so far, a year from now or ten years from now, will you remember the catching of that fish and will it bring a smile to your face? Or will you remember eating it?