Great Day

[ozark trout fisher]

I got to Baptist Camp at about 1:30, and there was no one else there. I fished this area for a couple years now, and I can tell you this is the first time I have ever had the whole place to myself. The water was up just a smidge, and the tiniest bit off-color, but water conditions were just about perfect overall.

The river was just a knockout today. It was as sunny as it can get, not a cloud in the sky, just a perfect day to be on the Current. I started off fishing a fast, rocky riffle, with an orange egg pattern. I got one on the second or third cast. It was only 8" long, but definitely an honest to goodness streamborn rainbow, white fin tips, and all. I don't see as many unquestionably wild fish as I'd like to on the Current, so I got a real kick out of that.

The fishing stayed solid pretty much all day. I did the best in the riffles, but had some success in the deep pools further downstream-but the fish really did seem more oriented to the riffles and faster runs for sure.Number-wise, the day was somewhere between darn good and out of this world. Size-wise, there wasn't much going on. The largest fish was probably only 15" (I tend to guess high), and they were all rainbows today except just a couple small browns. Still, the river was beautiful, the fishing was steady, and I had the whole river to myself. You can't ask for much more than that.

Fly-wise, beadheaded orange and tri-colored egg patterns definitely did better than anything else. I also caught fish on a heavy #12 brown stonefly nymph. No extra split-shot or weight was necessary at any point-the weight of the flies got them down plenty quick.

[Chris Barclay]

Sounds like you had a great time! I nearly (made the decision to find smaller water at the last minute as I was approaching the exit) went there yesterday. I heard the fishing was good at Tan Vat yesterday from a friend of a friend who caught a 5lb 3 oz rainbow. Maybe I should have gone to the Current? No regrets though.

[jah]

Thanks for the report! Glad the water came down for you. Aren't you glad you didn't go to Meremac Springs??

Jim

[ness]

Wow -- Baptist all to yourself? That's a rarity for sure. Sounds like a great day

[Gavin]

Nice...it was kind of cold yesterday AM and I elected to spend some time with the our daughters yesterday and start packing...

We had a great morning on Saturday...My buddy Kip & I got on the water at Baptist Camp just before dawn. Kip and I caught several in the 14-17" range at the access then hole hopped our way downstream for 3/4 of mile or so... Water level & clarity was perfect for cranking and the fish were definitely related to the faster water. Absolutely beatiful morning with lots of frost flowers and frost glistening in the tree tops...To top it off... Kip landed a 24.5" female brown...not his longest one this year but within a half inch, but probably the heaviest...fat one and its head was probably 3.5" across....Figure it would have gone 7lbs or so. Things really slowed down after 8:15, so whe hiked back for breakfast.

My wife did pretty well in the park on Saturday as well. Dropped her off at the Rock hole around 2:30 and picked her up at the White Oak hole and hour later with a big grin on her face. She was fishing a tandem rig, with a micro-egg above a prince nymph. Great weekend to be at Montauk, campground was darn near vacant. Cheers.

[jah]

Nice...it was kind of cold yesterday AM and I elected to spend some time with the our daughters yesterday and start packing...

We had a great morning on Saturday...My buddy Kip & I got on the water at Baptist Camp just before dawn. Kip and I caught several in the 14-17" range at the access then hole hopped our way downstream for 3/4 of mile or so... Water level & clarity was perfect for cranking and the fish were definitely related to the faster water. Absolutely beatiful morning with lots of frost flowers and frost glistening in the tree tops...To top it off... Kip landed a 24.5" female brown...not his longest one this year but within a half inch, but probably the heaviest...fat one and its head was probably 3.5" across....Figure it would have gone 7lbs or so. Things really slowed down after 8:15, so whe hiked back for breakfast.

My wife did pretty well in the park on Saturday as well. Dropped her off at the Rock hole around 2:30 and picked her up at the White Oak hole and hour later with a big grin on her face. She was fishing a tandem rig, with a micro-egg above a prince nymph. Great weekend to be at Montauk, campground was darn near vacant. Cheers.

Sounds like a great time Gavin. I also noticed that the campground was empty and I wished I was staying there rather than driving back home Friday. If you don't mind sharing, what did you catch the larger fish on?

Jim

[Gavin]

We catch most of our better fish on minnow crankbaits....usually 3.5" to 5.5" long models on 8lb line. They all work at times...but timing and approach are the real key...I've said it time and time again.....just gotta get there before dawn, tie on something big enough to interest a big brown trout, sneak into position, and make your first cast count..Move on quickly if you dont hook a good one in a couple casts.

[XP 590]

Thanks for the info describing the stream born rainbows. My brother and I were there a week earlier on Thursday (also had the place to ourselves) and we each caught a few of those. They were 6"-8" and had the distinct white fin tips. A few of them still had par marks on them. I thought those were probably stream born but wasn't sure. We also caught a few nicer rainbows, in the 15" range that had very deep red coloring, unlike stockers-I think anyway. I'm becoming a big fan of the Current.

[kdan]

It was only 8" long, but definitely an honest to goodness streamborn rainbow, white fin tips, and all. I don't see as many unquestionably wild fish as I'd like to on the Current, so I got a real kick out of that.

Stream born????????????

But it does sound like you had a great day.

[ozark trout fisher]

Stream born????????????

Yes, stream born. The Current does have some wild trout-it's just not the majority of the population. A population of wild rainbow trout is one requirement for a stretch of stream to be declared Blue Ribbon.

This quote is from Missouri Trout Hunter.com , about the Blue Ribbon stretch of the Current.

"This portion of the river holds a very nice brown trout population, as well as rainbows, a few of which are stream-bred."

Also, from Missouri Trout Hunter about the Blue Ribbon stretch of the Current

"The Current River has always had a few stream-bred rainbows present in the river, accounting for pretty much every rainbow trout you catch that's smaller than 10 inches or so."