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Posted

I don't post very often but I recently enjoyed a great day on the upper Meramec (pretty sure I saw Al Agnew pulling into a gas station in Steeleville as I was headed out of town) and though I would share a report.

Sunday May 18th:

While the thermometer in my truck registered 36 degrees on Saturday morning, today was much warmer. I was able to walk around in just my hoodie. I drank two cups of coffee and ate a big breakfast of scrambled eggs, potatoes, and leftover brats before I helped do the dishes and break camp. Last night we sat around the campfire and decided that, since we’d already fished the Courtois and the Huzzah, we would fish the upper Meramec so Dan took the lead and our three truck caravan pulled out of Huzzah Valley and head towards this morning’s first stop: Klein Ford. Even though Chuck Tryon wrote “…there’s all kinds of parking…” (p. 144) back in 2000, I recalled seeing purple painted boulders blocking the gravel bar there when I last floated from Wesco to Cedar Ford. Fortunately, some things change for the better and we found enough space for at least two trucks: one off road on the upstream side and at least one on the gravel bar. We then took the Klein cutoff and made it to Cedar Ford, which is about 2.2 river miles downstream of Klein Ford, in about 15 minutes. We left Brad’s truck parked on the gravel bar on the North side of the low water bridge at Cedar Ford and then returned to Klein where we unloaded Brad’s gear, shifted my gear to Dan’s truck, parked my truck, and wished Brad farewell. Dan and I then drove upstream to Delcour (Delcour as in the landmark legal case Elder v. Delcour. For more info about that you should read Harry Styron’s great blog for a great primer on water laws http://styronblog.com/law/missouri-water-law-primer-streams/). On the way we stopped to look at the access in Wesco (room for at least two trucks on the West side of the bridge) and then continued driving to Delcour via Cook Station. The water at Delcour looked great and had great flow (a welcome change from the very skinny and clear water at Seller’s Bridge on the upper Huzzah with which Dan had to contend when he fished from Seller’s down to the John Coleman low water bridge on Saturday) but there wasn’t any room for parking. We quickly unloaded Dan’s Coosa and his gear. We shook hands and I was quickly driving back downstream to my put-in at Wesco with the radio off and my windows down.

It was sunny and warm enough at Wesco to warrant changing into some swimming trunks. After hauling my canoe and gear down the rough concrete overflow on the downstream side of the low water bridge I moved Dan’s truck a little farther of the road. The sun felt great on my arms and legs and I just let it soak in as I laid out everything in my canoe as I like it. I snugged my boat up against some rocks and then took a few minutes to fish upstream. There’s only 3 river miles between Wesco and Klein Ford and I wasn’t in any hurry to reach Klein Ford. I wasn’t wearing a watch but I guess it was about 10 a.m. when I finally started to slowly float downstream. Unless we enjoy an unusually wet Summer I don’t think there’s enough water in this stretch to float it without constant dragging if you fish it anytime past May. Today the river was full enough today to enable me to keep my Wenonah Vagabond floating most of the time today. Even though this float isn’t very long there is plenty of good cover, with the usual mix of holes, riffles and runs and anyone interested in taking their time (and you should really take your time) could spend the better part of a day thoroughly fishing it. I caught fish throughout the water column on soft plastics (a green pumpkin yum dinger on an 1/8 oz. wacky jig caught numerous goggle eyes and smallies) and hard baits (my standard brown Mann’s Baby 1 minus and a ghost colored Yo-Zuri Zippin’ Ziggy were the two baits on my baitcasters all day). While the water on this stretch of the Meramec had much more color than the Huzzah it was still a sunny day and the fish were holding fairly tight to cover and in the shade. So, I enjoyed slowly working my way downstream and catching fish.

As I slowly paddled up to the gravel bar just upstream of the low water bridge at Klein Ford I watched two older ladies who were sitting at easels and intently painting the scene in front of them. While Klein Ford isn’t the most scenic spot in the area, they were enjoying some absolutely beautiful light that afternoon. As I unloaded my canoe and made several trips back and forth to the truck I thought about writing this post. I wanted you to see the swift, dark shadow of the 15.5” smallie that flew up from beneath a log jam and hammered my Baby 1 minus about two seconds after it hit the water just inches away from the bank. I wanted you to hear the Hawks cry and the Redwinged blackbirds call. I wanted you to feel the short shock of the cool water, see its murky greenness, and enjoy the thrill of the current as it pulled you downstream when you were taking a swim. Do you ever feel as refreshed as when you take a swim and then dry out on a hot gravel bar?

After a long, shitty winter Summer is almost here. Get out there and enjoy some river magic.

Matt Wier

http://missourismallmouthalliance.blogspot.com

The Missouri Smallmouth Alliance: Recreation, Education, and Conservation since 1992

Posted

Great post! Thanks Matt!

"Honor is a man's gift to himself" Rob Roy McGregor

Posted

"I wanted you to feel the short shock of the cool water, see its murky greenness, and enjoy the thrill of the current as it pulled you downstream when you were taking a swim. Do you ever feel as refreshed as when you take a swim and then dry out on a hot gravel bar?

After a long, shitty winter Summer is almost here. Get out there and enjoy some river magic. "

Well put, and thanks for taking us along.

Money is just ink and paper, worthless until it switches hands, and worthless again until the next transaction. (me)

I am the master of my unspoken words, and the slave to those that should have remained unsaid. (unknown)

Posted

You probably did see me, Matt...I was in the area for my bi-annual Mystic Fish of the Meramec weekend. I floated the same stretch as you guys did on Friday (except I floated just about all of what you broke into three different stretches). Fished the Little Piney for trout on Saturday, won $32 playing poker with the guys Saturday night, and got up early Sunday morning for the drive home. Had good fishing both days...caught 85 bass up to 17 inches on Friday, mostly on topwater and twin spin, and caught a decent number of trout up to 17 inches on Saturday. That was the first time I'd floated that stretch in more than 20 years.

Posted

MItch and Daryk: Thanks for the compliments, I'm glad you enjoyed reading my scratchings.

Al: Sounds like you had a great weekend as well. I didn't catch the numbers of bass you did (no suprise there) but was really pleased to catch all of my fish after lunch on Saturday on Topwater. Started out with the Zip N Ziggy but that was a bit too fast moving for them so I switched to a skitter pop and that was the ticket from about 1 until 6 pm! I didn't fish Friday at all but Dan put in on the Courtois at Blunts on Friday morning (I had to work) and I picked him up at Scotia about 7 pm. He said the water was up a bit and it was cold in the morning but the fish were more active in the afternoon. How do you like the new Wilderness?

Matt Wier

http://missourismallmouthalliance.blogspot.com

The Missouri Smallmouth Alliance: Recreation, Education, and Conservation since 1992

Posted

Great write up Matt. Thanks for sharing.

Posted

Matt, didn't get a Wilderness, got a new Vagabond. I immediately changed the seat...I find the tilt adjust on the seat to be very clunky and pretty much useless since I almost never kneel. I'd be really happy if they would have made the seat adjustable forward and backward instead of the tilt feature; I moved it forward and made it fixed. I actually got the boat late last summer but never used it until now...I kept using my old one because I was floating really skinny water. Figured there would be enough water to float easily that weekend, but forgot to take into account having to drag the canoe over a dam and a low water bridge, so it got its first scratches.

I had no problem getting the fish to come up to fast moving topwaters all day long Friday, but found that in some stretches they were more active than in others. The little stretch between the dam at Wesco and the low water bridge was full of active fish. When they'd slow down on top, they would be on the twin spin.

Posted

Andy, thanks for the compliment. Saturday was good but Sunday was great. I felt completely satisfied and rejuvenated by the end of the day.

Al, I guess I have the Wilderness on my mind since I'm trying to figure out how to justify spending $1300 on a new canoe, which I covet more than need, to my wife. My Vagabond still fits the bill just fine but I've rubbed all the way through the green royalex outer coating in back and its time to install some rub strips. I made a classic pennywise yet pound foolish decision when I bought it and didn't spend the extra $75 or whatever small amount it cost to have them installed at the factory. My Vagabond is old enough that it doesn't have that newer seat hanger which almost nobody seems to like.

The fish on the Huzzah just weren't connecting with the ZipnZiggy for me on Saturday. They would rise and wack at it but then shy away (I think they might have been seeing me in the crystal clear water (or I would get excited and mess up my candence when I would see the fishing swimming out after the bait. I guess that's the fishing equivalent of buck fever). To be honest, I love to catch fish as much as the next guy but I'm just as thrilled when a fish just knocks the snot out of a topwater and sends it flying. That said, on Saturday I got aggravated after a bit and switched to the popper on which I caught fish the rest of the day. On Sunday, they were whacking the ZipnZiggy pretty well but the water in the Meramec had much more color than the Huzzah. You could see 6-8 feet down in the Huzaah no problem.

Matt Wier

http://missourismallmouthalliance.blogspot.com

The Missouri Smallmouth Alliance: Recreation, Education, and Conservation since 1992

Posted

Glad you both got out and thank you for the report. We spent the weekend at Meramec State Park with the kids and some of my wife's life long friends from Washington. Took the girls out from the campground boat ramp down to Sand Ford on Saturday. The rain got the best of the little ones, so we paddled straight through. Not many people out. Saw one guy in a aluminum riverpro with an orange stripe, water patrol, 4-5 canoes, and one of the tour boats from Meramec Caverns. Took the girls out again. Sappington Bridge to the CG boat ramp. Didn't fish much...The water was pretty muddy, Maybe 18"-2' of visability. Saw my first air boat in Missouri.Louder than a jet and two or three times the wake. Plenty of people out, mostly rafts & rec floaters, a couple jets, but not a Zoo like down by Onandaga. Had one swipe at a Sexy Dawg Jr...followed up and caught it on a Ned...all of 8" long. Through the Minus, and a Swim Jig a bit but no takers...Maybe 100 casts for the weekend, but still a lot of fun.

Posted

It's nice hear some fishing reports, thanks,

On the few trips I've taken so far I have found the rivers wonderfully quite. Its zoo season now so it's time to get creative, let's hope the headwaters stay passable for a few more weeks.

His father touches the Claw in spite of Kevin's warnings and breaks two legs just as a thunderstorm tears the house apart. Kevin runs away with the Claw. He becomes captain of the Greasy Bastard, a small ship carrying rubber goods between England and Burma. Michael Palin, Terry Jones, 1974

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