Thinking Of Doing A Fish\float\camp This Mon-Tuesday...

[burninworm]

Good idea? Bad idea? I'm actually planning to show up in the area saturday afternoon to wade fish for a day until my buddy can join me for our float. have our own canoe and two vehicles, so if there's available parking, self shuttling is an option. We can float the entire day monday, but need to be done floating by 4 or so on tuesday. It's my first time visiting the river, so any advice would be very much appreciated. We definitely are both conservation minded, have our stream team bags, and don't keep any fish of any species. Thanks again for any input.

Burninworm

[Guest]

Sounds like a great idea. Camping on the river or staying at a campground?

[burninworm]

Ideally the river, but open to a campground. We would be camping but not floating sunday night. We could start the float first light on monday if the self shuttle is workable.

[Al Agnew]

Lesterville to Hwy. K is a possible two day trip. Public access at K Highway (Corps of Engineers). MDC Access at Lesterville, but last year the river had changed and the river channel was several hundred yards from the parking lot. Don't know how it is this year...maybe Ron Kruger could give you info on that if he chimes in. I took out at the MDC access last year, and was able to drag the canoe down the old channel, which had little pools but no flowing water. I don't remember how far it is and don't have my float book with me, but I've done that float in a long day, so it should be a short two day trip. If the MDC access isn't convenient, you could make arrangements with one of the Lesterville campgrounds to use their place for the put-in, since you're going to be there the day before anyway.

[mzrealfish]

In 2010, while driving back from Charlotte, NC in the middle of May, I hit the public access Missouri Gazetteer Map 2104 just north of Poplar Bluff. Fishing from the bank with a nest robber pattern rattle trap and a jig with a Yam fat Ika, I caught 7 smallmouth and 4 largemouth in less than 20 minutes. 1 largemouth was about 3 lbs. and 4 of the smallmouths were over 2 lbs. To makes matters more incredible, there was a group of at least 40 people tubing less than 100 yards up river. Other than not quite seeing boobs incessantly, I thought I was on the Niangua. I have always meant to go back for a canoe trip, but that is a long ways from KC to see lopsided boobs!

Maybe someday I will make it back down....

MZ

[burninworm]

Al, that seems like a good float, thanks for the advice. Since there's two of us I think we can handle a portage at the mdc access. Any ideas for camping? can we just camp on a gravel bar in that stretch? MZ, great story. I think we want to avoid the lopsided boobs, he lives in cape, I live in kc so between the two of us we've seen more than our share. I think that poplar bluff is too far south for this trip.

[burninworm]

Ron thank you for this advice and all your informative posts. Hope to meet you some day. If you end up in the area Saturday - Tuesday and see a tall skinny guy who looks like he doesn't know how to fish, it's probably me, so please introduce yourself. We haven't decided the details of our float. We may just try and do a short float monday through jeff's outfit, and wade fish the rest of the time.

[Jerry Rapp]

bworm. I live in the AV area also. If you have any questions or need help I will be glad to help in anyway. I try to help Ron anyway I can also, LOL! I am not a much of a floater, but would be glad to help shuttle or offer info if needed. Send me an email my name at yahoo.com and I will give you my cell #. Have fun.

[The Kayak Kid]

_{burninworm - Did you already do your float? I can echo Al on this one - a trip from Lesterville to K Bridge is a nice 2-day trip. 12-14 miles, as I can recall. I am one of the property owners near the pavilion (about 4 miles upstream from K Bridge), and I certainly do not mind you guys overnighting on our gravel bar. In fact, there is an island just a couple hundred feet downstream from the pavilion that is nice for camping. I've used it a couple times. Or, just downstream there are a few large gravel bars. Private property, but I've never heard of problems. Ran into a couple guys setting up camp this past Saturday night - wasn't you, by chance? Had a nice conversation with these guys. I was wade fishing with the kids.}

_{Anyway, happy to help. I live in Arnold, but I'm down there 2-3 times each month. Thanks for being "conservation-minded"....music to my ears!}

[Greasy B]

_{burninworm - Did you already do your float? I can echo Al on this one - a trip from Lesterville to K Bridge is a nice 2-day trip. 12-14 miles, as I can recall. I am one of the property owners near the pavilion (about 4 miles upstream from K Bridge), and I certainly do not mind you guys overnighting on our gravel bar. In fact, there is an island just a couple hundred feet downstream from the pavilion that is nice for camping. I've used it a couple times. Or, just downstream there are a few large gravel bars. Private property, but I've never heard of problems. Ran into a couple guys setting up camp this past Saturday night - wasn't you, by chance? Had a nice conversation with these guys. I was wade fishing with the kids.}

_{Anyway, happy to help. I live in Arnold, but I'm down there 2-3 times each month. Thanks for being "conservation-minded"....music to my ears!}

While Black River is not one of my haunts I sure appreciate your tolerance of well behaved float campers. The ability to float and camp on our Ozark rivers is a treasure that I never take for granted. Rest assured I only leave foot prints and take nothing but memories. Thank you.