Mdc Fishing Report Errors

[Wayne SW/MO]

They'll be biting tomorrow at Bennett, and the next day, and the next day, and....................................................................so on.

[ness]

They'll be biting tomorrow at Bennett, and the next day, and the next day, and....................................................................so on.

Tell me what fly to use and where to stand please

A little local knowledge always helps, if you can trust the source. But when planning a trip away from home, I can't take the risk on having enough time to "try different stuff until I find something that works---hopefully before I run out of time". Again, the source has to be credible and should be someone you have history with. I don't really go by the fishing reports either.

Mitch -- sure, some local knowledge is good. And you're right -- if you travel, you want to get the odds in your favor. But over the years, I've come to realize that the local knowledge is often worthless. I can think of a bunch of 'hot flies' or 'hot spots' or other tips that never panned out.

I'll never forget the tip I got at a fly shop in Colorado:

Me: 'What's working?'

Kid: 'They're hitting on files.'

Me: 'What kind?'

Kid: 'Dry flies.'

Thanks, putz.

It's not always easy to get the long-term relationship you mention, but it's sure a good thing to have, and, worth working toward. Part of the art in all this is being able to cozy up to the guys and draw the info out of them. My approach with that guy was a part of why the info was so worthless. But he was still a putz.

[jdmidwest]

Elks Lake today, bluegill fair on crickets, all other species slow. Wind blowing like hell as usually, whitecaps in middle of lake out of the south.

[ozark trout fisher]

I never read any 'latest fishing report' to make any decisions. If I'm going, I'm going. When I get there I'll try different stuff until I find something that works -- hopefully before I run out of time. Of course those decisions will be based on an accumulation of knowledge over time. I gave up copying the last guys success a long time ago.

I suppose there would be somebody who'd complain if they stopped printing them though.

I pretty much agree with that. All said I have been pretty disappointed when trying the flies and techniques that are suggested in fishing reports. Maybe I'm not fishing whatever fly correctly, maybe the conditions are different, and maybe the report that I've based my trip on was a lie, or at best a half-truth. There's no knowing. I am not just talking about the MDC reports, but any fishing report, whether it's posted by a guide, a fly shop, or even on here.

I do much better when I go to the stream with an open mind, willing to try a bunch of different things until either I find what is working for myself or it is time to go home. That even goes for long trips. I am of the sort to go to some region like the Adirondacks with a fairly wide selection of flies, and just pull off at any body of water that looks likely to hold fish. No plans, no local knowledge, nothing but a map,a rod, a one man tent, and the pure fun of exploring new country. I either get the reward of catching fish in a new place or the consolation that I gave it my best shot, and had a whole lot of fun in the process.

[Al Agnew]

When you're traveling to some fly fishing destination that has several fly shops in the area, the best way I've found to get a good idea of what's working is to walk into the fly shop, go to their fly bins, and look for whichever bins are empty or nearly so...those are the flies that the guides are recommending their clients buy, which is why they are almost gone (or completely gone). A good part of the time, if you ask the guy behind the counter at the fly shop, he'll point you toward flies that they still have plenty of, or even flies they can't sell.

[zipstick]

The MDC reports are a joke. They have been for years. Even when they get the conditions correct, the "how" to catch fish is laughable. Of note was the report way back in the early 90's when our bass club was ready to travel to Norfork lake for our opening event in Feb. The report published in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch said that the shad kill was enormous, and fishing was poor, and anglers should not try to fish the lake. At the club meeting two days before the tournament, members discussed changing the lake or postponing the event, but we decided to go ahead and travel all the way to Norfork and catch little or nothing. We didn't see a shad kill, but we did catch lots of limits of bass. Some of the best angling w'ed ever had!

Like Al, get familiar with the Corps River conditions and the USGS plots. I check them especially when travelling out of state to areas that I have no reliable contacts. If you can find pretty normal conditions, you'll catch fish if you have the skills to do it. For lakes, the best approach, if you have no one to talk with is to check the latest bass tournament results for the lake you are planning to fish. And just don't assume that you'll catch the winning weight! Instead, figure out how most of the field did when fishing hard for 8 hours. If 40 entrants or teams out of the 50 entered had limits, that's the best report you can find! AIA, Joe Bass, Heartland, CPA, and Bass World do a good job of reporting their reults in a fairly timely manner.