ozark trout fisher Posted July 28, 2010 Posted July 28, 2010 A friend and I are headed down to the North Fork, and I'm planning a two day floating/camping/fishing trip. We're wanting to target trout, especially the wild rainbows. What would be a good two day float down there? I was thinking either Kellys Ford to James Bridge or Blair Bridge to James Bridge. Also, any fly reccomendations or other tips would be great. The North Fork is the one really good Missouri trout stream I haven't had a chance to fish yet, and I'm really looking forward to it. Also, with the weather being this hot, will water temps be a concern especially as we move further in the Red Ribbon area? Thanks
sean c Posted July 28, 2010 Posted July 28, 2010 OTF, Stay between Rainbow Spring and James. We stayed at Sunburst last weekend and did Kelly to Sunburst Saturday(7:00 - 4:30) and Sunburst to James Sunday(6:00 - 12:30). Of course you can make either stretch shorter or longer depending on how hard you fish. We fished hard Saturday and mainly fished just from the boat Sunday. I think the miles for Kelly to Sunburst were 7.9 and Sunburst to James 4.2. Blair is a half mile or so upstream of Sunburst if you are using that ramp. If you are there on a hot weekend expect to start seeing alot of canoes around lunch time. A typical trip for us when we go is Kelly to Blair when we want a full day and Blair or Patrick to James when we want a shorter day. Blair to Patrick is a great short float if you want to get back on the river in the evenings. I would give yourself at least 3 hours for this float because there is a ton of great water in that section. Get on the water early take an afternoon siesta and go back out in the evenings if you want to fish some more. Sean
Gavin Posted July 28, 2010 Posted July 28, 2010 Ditto.....Dont worry about the water temps in the Red Ribbon...Spring Creek dumps in on river right just below Sunburst, and Althea Spring dumps in on river right just below Patrick Bridge....the water is plenty cold till you get down to the frog water above Dawt Mill Dam. Cheers.
Justin Spencer Posted July 29, 2010 Posted July 29, 2010 If you are fishing on Sat. plan on big crowds. This will be the busiest day of the year on the river, have heard most outfitters have all their boats out. Putting in early at Kelly will avoid crowds until they catch up to you probably around noon. Putting in on the lower section the crowds will catch you quicker as they have less water to cover with many outfitters putting in at Blair, or ours putting in here at Sunburst. Putting in at Patrick would give you a little more time as floaters would have to cover a couple miles before reaching you. Catch fish early, watch drunks midday, catch fish late. Good luck! "The problem with a politician’s quote on Facebook is you don’t know whether or not they really said it." –Abraham Lincoln Tales of an Ozark Campground Proprietor Dead Drift Fly Shop
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