Thought I'd Join

[Smallmouth Addict]

Been chasing smallies all my life. Grew up in Brainerd MN along with some other good Brownie Chasers! Live in KC but know Quetico better than anything around here. Hundreds and hundreds of canoe miles later my back is now shot. Ensley always told me there was good to great Smallmouth fishing in MO/AR. I can still canoe but the 2-3 mile portgages are in the past. Looks like a great board and looking forward to learning more about the the fishing/canoeing opportunities around here!

Jeff

[Greasy B]

Welcome to the site and to Ozark Smallmouth fishing. We have a lot of wonderful rivers that offer great scenery and solitude and you only need to carry your canoe from your car to the creek. I would invite you to read some of the ongoing forum conversations about the fisheries and the various issues as well as the wealth of previous post.

[Smallmouth Addict]

Appreciate it! Think I will give Niangua a shot this weekend. Left all hair jigs in WI and assume water temps in mid 40's so will ask specifics in that section!

[Greasy B]

A couple of years ago my brother and I spent a week Smallmouth fishing the Mississippi River between St Cloud and Elk River. What a great experience, what a great river. I’m looking forward to more time spent on Minnesota’s Smallmouth Rivers.

Niangua is one of the best Ozark Rivers for floating and fishing. It will take you some work and time to figure out how to find your version of outdoor experience but it can be done.

[Smallmouth Addict]

Thats a great stretch for Smallmouth! They implemented new regulations and since then it's become top notch. You may want to try Cloquet River as well. It has great bass and offers peace and solitude! St Louis River is another to consider. Along with plenty of bass it coughs up some huge Muskie as well. Good friend of mine guides and has a show up in WI. He regulary takes clients on St Louis. Too much water and too little time!

[FishinCricket]

Thats a great stretch for Smallmouth! They implemented new regulations and since then it's become top notch. You may want to try Cloquet River as well. It has great bass and offers peace and solitude! St Louis River is another to consider. Along with plenty of bass it coughs up some huge Muskie as well. Good friend of mine guides and has a show up in WI. He regulary takes clients on St Louis. Too much water and too little time!

What change was made to the regs, if you don't mind my asking.. Our state is currently considering the possibility of a reg change, but some aren't sure of what change should be made and what impact it would have on our fisheries.

So.. Do tell!

[Smallmouth Addict]

On that stretch of Upper Mississippi all bass between 12-20 inches must be released. I think you can keep three outside of that range. I belong to Wisconsin Smallmouth Alliance as well. The issues up there are very different. My lake Cabin sits on LCO Indian Reservation and they gut and kill smallmouth as they believe they ruin the walleye fishing. It's one big mess!! I hear all the time about 5 and 6 pounders being caught by Walleye anglers who subsequently just kill the fish and leave them in the water. Our northern zone for example has implemented total catch and release to concide with with pre-spawn through most likely the end of spawn. Cool spring last year and smallies still on beds at beginning of harvest which is mid June. Its all political manuevering in some form or fashion.Everytime Im up there someone is complaining about this or that.

[FishinCricket]

Hmm, sounds like Missouri!! lol

[Greasy B]

There are areas where Smallmouth are not native and are considered an invasive species. My trip to the Missisippi was very interesting on many levels. For one the river was void of fishermen and recreationist, apparently most folks are lake centric. The river is so large you could combine the volumn of water in every creek and river in the ozarks and it would less than what flows in this section of the Missisippi. I thought about posting a report on the forum while back, this is an easy destination for Ozark Smallmouth enthusiasts.

[Smallmouth Addict]

Greasy B...You are right. The rivers and streams recieve very little pressure. The Walleye hunters stay away for the most part. You are left with smallie and Muskie people.There is a river east of my place in the Chequamegon National Forest. The last ten days Ive spent on that river Ive had the entire 8 mile section to myself. I expect 6 lb bass every trip. Its not a numbers fishery by any means but produces very large bass.The Ojibwe have no use for that river. Lower reaches have 45 inch Muskie. The whole thing has me thinking today...about lots of issues. I saw your report Cricket on the Niangua with pictures of filleted bass. Makes me ill and sick....But as Greasy said it's not the ethical fisherman abiding by the limits but the DNR or whatever they call it here that ultimately decides the fate of these beautiful stream bass. Its really quite simple. The term "valuable resource" has a different meaning to different fisherman. We see stream smallmouth as a gamefish that we associate with beautiful settings, peace and solitude. Others see it as a meal. I dont know these streams like you guys and would be interested to see if any changes the DNR has made has had a significant impact on these fisheries over past few years. I didnt post in your thread Cricket as looked like it had run its course. Me personally would like to see strict C&R for all stream bass or at a minimum do what they did on Upper Miss. Guess I will have to read previous posts to see what officials are proposing. Always a battle when it comes to these conservation issues. Greasy did u get any 20 inchers on your MN trip?