Expectations

[Greasy B]

Can anyone on this forum who has smallmouth fished in other states honestly say that Missouri has better quality fishing? Not me. Whenever I fish out of state I always fish under more restrictive regulations and I always catch more and bigger fish. Joe D is correct; the state of smallmouth fishing in Missouri is deplorable.

For those who think we do have quality smallmouth fishing, you have no idea what your missing.

[Old plug]

I was raised in the city. I do not believe in hanging a name names on groups. And say Agnew. I would like you give a good clear definition of what you mean a hoosier mentality. And JoeD why don't you explain to us how the groups that now inhabit the area around Bevo Mill have interbred and produced a inferior race of people. You post using a glass of booze. Bad bad subject you all got into here.

[fishinwrench]

The Hoosier mentality is rampant during the Spring White bass run, but is considered "acceptable" then.

When it falls upon a Smallmouth stream or blue ribbon trout creek is when it gets frowned upon....and admittedly does the worst damage.

[Seth]

In regards to Seth's last post.... On one end it sounds great that those tournament fish may be doing fine after release and are biting again, but at the same time it's really concerning. Tournament anglers are purposely trying to catch previously weighed and released fish over and over again. The amount of physical damage and stress these anglers are putting on these river fish is sickening. You said it yourself. There's not that many 5 lb fish in the Gasconade and your club is continuously catching the same poor fish weekend after weekend, dragging it around in their live wells, lugging it in a bag to a weigh in and then after many hours dumping it back into the river to be caught again. Eventually enough stress is going to be put on that fish that it dies, and that's one less 5 lb bass in the Gasconade that could be spreading it's genes every spring.

Not to mention these tournament anglers sound like they're not that great of fisherman. Go find your own fish. Seems pretty easy to sit around and wait for someone else's released fish to bite again. Really no skill in that. I wish all river tournaments would be CPR mandated.

They are just doing what it takes to win. These same guys are usually the ones who are taking every bodies money during the normal tourneys no matter if it is on the Meramec, Gasconade or Osage. You could look at the results of a few of the bass clubs and figure out pretty quick a few of the names because they are in the top few spots most of the time.

It's several different clubs not just one. Some guys fish several clubs, especially the really good anglers. They usually try to work around each clubs schedule so the same areas of the river don't get hammered over a short amount of time but sometimes it happens and camping the ramps becomes an issue. I am not a fan of it either personally but it is what it is.

[Gavin]

Our smallmouth catching does suck in Missouri....We catch lots of wee dinkers, and few with any mass...Go to places were people eat walleye and perch...and your average is 14" plus....20" plus possible always.

[Goggle-Eyed]

seriously??? a question about your fall fishing expectations turns into a BS rant? Boys, Boys, Boys the fish are biting... I get it during the winter but it is catching time not griping time! Let's get back to what your expectations are for YOUR fall catching, not why you can't catch them, whine some where else not on this thread!!! Please!!!!

[Bird Watcher]

Or Catfish, Or Stripers, or Hybrids. You'll not see many of those fish returned after being caught.

The Hoosier mentality is rampant during the Spring White bass run, but is considered "acceptable" then.
When it falls upon a Smallmouth stream or blue ribbon trout creek is when it gets frowned upon....and admittedly does the worst damage.

My fall expectations...I don't know that I ever expect anything but a good time. What I would like to see is the shallow fall topwater bite for Hybrids on Truman Lake and I would like to do the same for Stripers on Beaver.

[Al Agnew]

Old Plug, I think I have a right to use derogatory terms for some local Ozarkers, given that I'm one myself, having never lived in a town of more than 5 or 6 thousand people, having grown up lower middle class, and having lived my whole life in the Ozarks. And I call them hoosiers because "hillbillies" is NOT a derogatory term as far as I'm concerned. "Hoosiers", when used in this context, refers to people who believe they have the God-given right to catch and kill everything they can all the time before somebody else gets them all, and that it doesn't matter because the supply is inexhaustible. And I guarantee you that 99% of these people don't NEED the fish to feed their families. For some it's an ego thing, so that they can brag about loading the boat, for others it's more of a thoughtless, heedless tradition...Daddy did it so it must be the right thing to do. It's a mindset that might be slowly changing, but in my opinion the whole Ozark area would benefit from some of these people being forced to live someplace like Kansas or downtown St. Louis for a year or so, so that they would begin to appreciate what we DO have in the Ozarks a bit more.

As far as the original subject...we might get some fall weather about November, the way things are going. Man, it was hot today.

[fishinwrench]

I would have gone for an evening trip today but I was so tired of fighting sweat bees and horsefly in the shop all day that I just wanted to retire to the house.

Looks like we might get a cooling shower here soon though, and that's bound to help everyones bite......and attitude

[Guest]

My problem ain't Hoosiers, its clear water.

Matter of fact, I obviously have no idea what a Hoosier is. Maybe a northern term. I'm sure somebody could enlighten me.

As for pussies, they're not allowed in the boat.

Fishing sucked on Sunday but I'm not complaining. It sure beats thinking about fishing all the dam time.

As for lures, I've got too many. They would've bit a cigarette butt. So most of my time was wasted trying to force feed spooky bass with bubba techniques.

My expectations haven't changed, later is better.