8 to leadwood

[Al Agnew]

23 hours ago, Gavin said:

Fisher folks are pretty ignorant when it relates to species. The term I hate most is "Meanmouth". Utter that term, and you are in my idiot camp. There are at least a dozen bass species in the USA, and there are hybrids of many.

 

Yup...I usually explain what the original "meanmouth" was, and it wasn't a spotted bass/smallmouth hybrid, whenever somebody uses the term.  But it's gotten so common in usage these days that I think you and I are fighting a losing battle.  And there's no doubt that most anglers don't have a clue about species other than what they commonly catch, and half the time they use the wrong names for the ones they ARE familiar with.  If it's a small fish of some kind, they don't care in the least what species it is...when the question is asked, you can expect several people to answer "bait".  But those small fish of the various minnow species and others can be some of the most beautiful critters in the river, and have some of the most interesting life histories.  I love them all.

[Gavin]

Like the American Fisheries Society’s Facebook Page, They do a “What is this Bass Wednesday” post every once in awhile. Lots of hybrids to ID. I like to catch em all, and I want to know what they are.

[Smalliebigs]

On 5/25/2020 at 8:17 PM, Al Agnew said:

I have caught quite a few 20-21 inchers, and not a single one of them was anywhere close to five pounds.  The closest I've seen was one my brother caught last year that was about 21 inches and weighed 4 lb. 12 oz.  I've also never seen a 19 incher that weighed 4 pounds.  Basically, it takes a pretty healthy 20 incher to weigh over 4.  And a REALLY fat 21 incher to weigh 5.  My two legit five pounders were 21.5 and 22.5 inches.

Not always the case though..... I caught a couple under 21 that were over 5 and some 19’s that were way over 4 and close to 5. This first Smallie was 19 + but, not 20 and weighed 4 ++++. The second Smallie was barely over 20 and weighed 5 + but, Al is right though as these both as you can see looked more like a Northern fish in girth than most you will see in Ozark rivers hahaha

[Al Agnew]

6 hours ago, Smalliebigs said:

Not always the case though..... I caught a couple under 21 that were over 5 and some 19’s that were way over 4 and close to 5. This first Smallie was 19 + but, not 20 and weighed 4 ++++. The second Smallie was barely over 20 and weighed 5 + but, Al is right though as these both as you can see looked more like a Northern fish in girth than most you will see in Ozark rivers hahaha

Dang it, Scott, you're killing me.  I've been through a long dry spell on big fish.  Out here in Montana now, but couldn't seem to tag any real big ones this year in Missouri.  The Yellowstone isn't an easy river to find a big trout, but I found one today...a hidden pile of rocks that used to be a rip rap point before the river ate its way around it and left it in the middle of the channel, right below a fast riffle.  The river is just now low enough to really see this rockpile, and I doubt if many people fish it because they are mostly too busy running the riffle and it sneaks up on them.  But Mary was practicing her rowing, and leaving me to drift a big fat hopper imitation right over that rockpile, where a brown trout as big around as my leg came up and took it...and didn't get hooked.  It's less than a mile below the house, so I plan on trying that fish again soon.

Ain't it fun talking about big fish?

[Gavin]

Old Scott Pics Al. Have seen em before. Hardly fished this year, last years best bass mighta gone 18”. Way to busy this year with the COVID stimulus money, and delayed tax season. Got 20 biz returns in on Tuesday. No time, so will file something then amend them all next month. Or later.

[Gavin]

Where is that structure the put in to block the lead mine tailings? How is that working? Have not floated the Big in 3-4 yrs...would gladly drive another hour or so to fish someplace else.. Not really on my radar.

[top_dollar]

17 hours ago, Smalliebigs said:

 

 

 

darn!! That is a big posterior fish.

[top_dollar]

5 hours ago, Gavin said:

Where is that structure the put in to block the lead mine tailings? How is that working? Have not floated the Big in 3-4 yrs...would gladly drive another hour or so to fish someplace else.. Not really on my radar.

I may be wrong, but I think all that mine tailings were below leadwood.  I don't think the upper big is really on anyone's radar, and probably for good reason.  Those fish in smalliebigs pics are not the type that you catch on this stretch. 

[snagged in outlet 3]

9 hours ago, Gavin said:

Old Scott Pics Al.

Old picture or not that's a slob!  Nice, @Smalliebigs!

[Al Agnew]

19 hours ago, Gavin said:

Where is that structure the put in to block the lead mine tailings? How is that working? Have not floated the Big in 3-4 yrs...would gladly drive another hour or so to fish someplace else.. Not really on my radar.

The structure, called a Newberry Riffle, is a short distance below the mouth of Flat River Creek, about a mile below the Highway 67 bridges just north of Desloge.  It's basically a low dam, but instead of just one big drop over it they stairstepped it into 4 different drops.  It's still a huge pain in the butt to get around.  It's four lines of big boulders running across the river.  There are gaps between the boulders that you could run a canoe through, but the gaps don't line up from one drop to the next, so you have to move the boat sideways after you run one, in order to hit the next one.  And that would still be doable except there just isn't enough space between the drops, only about 15 feet.  So it's pretty much impossible to run unless the river is high enough that it is seriously scary to run.  

I've watched them work around it, and I finally understand what they are trying to do with it.  Pretty much, the dam itself will back up the river just a few hundred yards, but slow it enough that in high water the mine waste silt is supposed to settle out, then periodically they come in and dredge out the silt.  If I understand it, the "riffle" is supposed to be designed the way it is in order to allow fish passage through it.  I suppose it is working.  But I think you'd need to have one of these about every couple miles between Desloge and Bonne Terre to really make any kind of dent in the mine waste.