Another Float With Wheat

[eric1978]

Thanks fellas. It was a helluva good day.

Yeah Chief, it's the heavy metals in the smallmouth that makes them eggs so tasty. Enjoy your scrambled smallie eggs with a side of fibromyalgia and immunological, kidney and liver disorders!

[patfish]

Eric and Wheatie, I hate both of you.

[Paola Cat]

Eric and Wheatie, I hate both of you.

X 2.

[Flysmallie]

X 2.

me too.

[Mitch f]

Looks like a nice trip. I had planned on putting in around Devil's Elbow this year and floating to the Gas. But I don't think it will happen. I am guessing from the pic's you guy's started on the Little Piney?????? Another float I want to do.

Wheatie, you'll never make chief of your tribe with that hat. You gotta fold up that brim some!

And that smallmouth didn't get that from tobacco. That is a direct result of C&R brownie fishing. That is why you should be a KFC (keep, fry, consume) fisherman. Especially when brownie fishing.

Are you seriously suggesting that the genetically stunted fish was a direct result from catch and release?.........I don't think so

[fishinSWMO]

argh, I hate dial up internet.

But I can get a partial look of the pics enough to know that I will have to agree with patfish, Paola Cat, and Flysmallie.

[ollie]

great looking trip! looks like fun for sure!

[flytyer57]

I'm gonna have to remove you guys from my freinds list if you don't pm me to go along next time.

[eric1978]

Are you seriously suggesting that the genetically stunted fish was a direct result from catch and release?.........I don't think so

Mitch, that fish wasn't stunted...it was fat and healthy as could be, just had a screwed up face. That's not to say it was for sure caused by a hook at some point...it could definitely have been a genetic mutation of some kind, or damage caused by natural predators, who knows. It didn't look like there were any old wounds though, so I would lean toward genetic. I should have gotten some more pics of it. I've never seen one quite like it before. Wheat, didn't you take a pic of it too?

[Mitch f]

Mitch, that fish wasn't stunted...it was fat and healthy as could be, just had a screwed up face. That's not to say it was for sure caused by a hook at some point...it could definitely have been a genetic mutation of some kind, or damage caused by natural predators, who knows. It didn't look like there were any old wounds though, so I would lean toward genetic. I should have gotten some more pics of it. I've never seen one quite like it before. Wheat, didn't you take a pic of it too?

I have fished the Gasconade for over 20 years and have caught a fish like that on every third trip. The fish on the Gasconade tend to be longer, thinner, have a abnormally wider tail than fish on the Meramec. Your right that the fish wasn't stunted, I should have said genetically altered. I caught a 19" fish like that 2 years ago. But I have probably caught 15-20 fish over my lifetime that looked EXACTLY like that one; all on the Gasconade.