PB!

[MoCarp]

well done!...IMHO keep all 'dem spots!

[MOsmallies]

The MAN!! Awesome fish brother!!!

[evilcatfish]

Nice work ! Great fish right there

[top_dollar]

Is that your PB walleye outta there?  If not what was?  Incredible trip BTW. 

[Big Keene]

some days it does pay to get out of bed!!

awesome fish...both!

[Stein]

Absolutely great outing!

[Hog Wally]

5 hours ago, top_dollar said:

Is that your PB walleye outta there?  If not what was?  Incredible trip BTW. 

I've caught two walleye slightly under 29" on the meramec.   The big ones usually get away.  They are violent in the fast water   

[rps]

9 hours ago, Hog Wally said:

I've caught two walleye slightly under 29" on the meramec.   The big ones usually get away.  They are violent in the fast water   

Unless summer wasted, in the Ozarks a 29 inch fish will be right at 9 pounds to 10 pounds.

[Hog Wally]

22 hours ago, rps said:

Unless summer wasted, in the Ozarks a 29 inch fish will be right at 9 pounds to 10 pounds.

I find our meramec fish to be a little skinnier than other waters.   Although I usually only catch summer and fall fish. I have a very accurate and calibrated scale now but I think my brother caught a close to 10 lb walleye about 5 years ago.  A 9 3/4 lb was gigged upriver from me that I personally laid eyes on and it was clearly a 30" fish.    

[Al Agnew]

I suspect the Meramec fish are a different strain than the Black River system fish (Current, Black, Eleven Point, Spring rivers).  I've never heard of one over 10 pounds being caught on the Meramec, but plenty of 15-18 pounders have been caught on the Black and Current.  I'll keep saying this...those fish have the potential to grow to world record size, but it'll never happen as long as practically everybody who fishes for them or just catches one accidentally keeps it to eat.  I know they are good eating, but in my opinion, crappie and other members of the sunfish family (even small bass) are as good or better.  I started a crusade to get my fishing buddies to release big walleye way back in the days when I fished for them a lot, but never succeeded even with guys who had a decent conservation ethic.  Just seems like killing every legal walleye you catch is automatic in the Ozarks.