Al Agnew

[FishnDave]

Hey, @Al Agnew,

I tried to send this as a message, but it says you aren't able to receive any messages.  So...forgive this public post and blatant fawning.  I'm sure others have said or thought this:

Your in-depth and extremely detailed knowledge of floating and fishing various streams in Missouri is incredible!

I have the Missouri Paddler's Guide (or whatever its called...its not in front of me at the moment).  That is good information, but what the fishing is like in each section is rarely discussed.

I know you've got a LOT of great information you've shared over the years here on OA.  Every time I read one of those posts, I can't help but think, "You'll never get that kind of information from anyone else!"

You've floated the streams (not just a few!)...that alone puts you in very rarified company.  Your artist's eye and attention to pertinent and important details is keen.  And your ability to recall...and clearly and concisely share your experiences is key.  Any chance you might be considering compiling your immense knowledge into a book at some point?  It would really be useful to a LOT of people...floaters, anglers, or both.  With the increasing number of folks taking part in these outdoor activities, the interest and need for such information is certainly increasing.

There's much good information available online...current water levels, aerial photo maps,...great stuff, very useful...but it still leaves the occasional and even somewhat frequent stream-user guessing as to what the river might be like at various water levels or times of the year.  If you didn't want to directly compete with the Missouri Paddler's Guide, maybe you could write something of a companion book to go along with it?

Anyway, what you have seen and what you know is amazing.  I'm not alone in appreciating when you frequently share.

[jdmidwest]

Explorers learn from experience, get out and see them for yourself.

Missouri's streams change constantly.  Every rain brings changes.  The Paddler's guide from when I was a kid in the 80's is pretty obsolete now.  Accesses have changed due to ownership of the lands.  And, the streams have all lost water for the most part due to alot of reasons.  Some channels have switched back and forth.

All I had growing up was printed topo maps from Rolla, 7 minute sections.  The Paddlers guide.  Mo. Road Maps.  The MDC issued an atlas for the first time in the late 80's, it was spiral bound and rode in the truck.  Forest Service had maps at the local offices.  Some of the Scenic Riverways had maps at the accesses.

The net offers so much more info than we ever had.  Weather reports, stream gauges, and aerial views.  If you subscribe to some sites, even ownership info and real time aerial photos.

 

[Al Agnew]

Thanks for all the kind words.  I'm older than dirt, and by now I've learned a whole lot and probably forgotten half of it.  As for a book, the problem, I've found, is in actually getting one finished, and then getting it published.  I started writing a book on the Meramec river system more than 4 years ago, not long after my wife was diagnosed with cancer and I needed something to take my mind off it all--and I couldn't paint for worrying about it, but I could write.  I got the writing of the book about finished within a few months, but since then I've been working in fits and starts on illustrations, maps, and photographs, and STILL haven't gotten it to a point where I could consider taking it to a publisher or publishing it myself.  By this time I'm going to have to rewrite some of it because it's out of date.  

As jdmidwest said, nothing beats exploring yourself, but it sure is helpful to have the information at your fingertips.  But also, as he said, a lot of info has a shelf life.  I did a mile by mile description of each access and point of interest on all the floatable stream sections of the Meramec Basin as part of the book, going into more depth on some of the points of interest, on the parking situation at access points, etc. than is covered in the Paddler's Guide, but some of that info is already out of date.  The book covers everything that interests me about the streams of the Basin, including history both pre-European and European settlement and up to the present day (covers the whole history of the Meramec Dam extensively), environmental problems, recreational opportunities and conflicts, and all the fish and wildlife.  Most of that won't go out of date for a long time if at all, but there is still a lot of stuff in it that won't be the same for long.

I've always intended to write a book about floating and fishing the Ozark streams, as well, and have gotten parts of it done.  It would be more along the lines of John Gierach's books, vignettes of adventures and things that have struck me on Ozark float trips and fishing trips.  Who knows if I'll ever get it done...but even if I do, I still need to find a publisher.

I also do some writing in my blog...but not nearly regularly enough.  I'm kinda semi-retired, but it seems I'm as busy now on all kinds of stuff that has nothing to do with art or writing as I ever was making a living doing art.  I can't figure that out.  If you you haven't checked out my blog, it's riversandart.blogspot.com.

[Jadesjigs]

Al, it sounds like you are so close that it would be such a loss for the whole community to not to finish it. I know that you are very detail oriented and that it would be very hard for you to publish something that is not quite up to date.  The access / river information would be great, but I am just as interested in the unique history of the area.  If you made a downloadable format on your blog site, then I would definitely purchase a copy. However, it would be very nice having the opportunity to purchase a hard copy as well.  Thanks for all the information you provide!

[Mitch f]

Poor Al, take a break...go fishing. The book can wait!😂

[moguy1973]

On 10/16/2020 at 7:30 PM, jdmidwest said:

 

Missouri's streams change constantly.  Every rain brings changes.  The Paddler's guide from when I was a kid in the 80's is pretty obsolete now.  Accesses have changed due to ownership of the lands.  And, the streams have all lost water for the most part due to alot of reasons.  Some channels have switched back and forth.

 

 

Yep,  I have like 3 versions dated between the early 2000's up to the most recent one.  The early one has Bootleg Access on the Big River as being the furthest upstream that is generally floatable, now it has the starting point as being Cherokee Landing at US67 across the highway from St. Francis State Park..  There's lots of floatable water above that point.

[Gavin]

Would join the Misssouri Smallmouth Alliance and Gateway TU after the Covid panic lifts. Get to meet some folks face to face, then go floating with them. I'll give you a float invite after this Covid lifts. Until then, I'm just floating with family and a few friends.

[Al Agnew]

8 hours ago, moguy1973 said:

Yep,  I have like 3 versions dated between the early 2000's up to the most recent one.  The early one has Bootleg Access on the Big River as being the furthest upstream that is generally floatable, now it has the starting point as being Cherokee Landing at US67 across the highway from St. Francis State Park..  There's lots of floatable water above that point.

Hmm, I have never seen any version but the ones that give Cherokee Landing area as the furthest upstream.  That was the highest put-in in Oz Hawksley's original book, "Missouri Ozark Waterways", from which all the info is taken in the Paddler's Guide, and as far as I knew they never changed it.  I think Bootleg was the highest access in Chuck Tryon's book, "200 Missouri Smallmouth Adventures".

[jdmidwest]

9 hours ago, moguy1973 said:

Yep,  I have like 3 versions dated between the early 2000's up to the most recent one.  The early one has Bootleg Access on the Big River as being the furthest upstream that is generally floatable, now it has the starting point as being Cherokee Landing at US67 across the highway from St. Francis State Park..  There's lots of floatable water above that point.

Shhh.

[Mitch f]

1 hour ago, Al Agnew said:

Hmm, I have never seen any version but the ones that give Cherokee Landing area as the furthest upstream.  That was the highest put-in in Oz Hawksley's original book, "Missouri Ozark Waterways", from which all the info is taken in the Paddler's Guide, and as far as I knew they never changed it.  I think Bootleg was the highest access in Chuck Tryon's book, "200 Missouri Smallmouth Adventures".

Oz Hawksley? Now that’s a name for an outdoors guy!