Live at BSSP

[Terrierman]

It's still dark. 

The place is overrun with people getting ready to fish.

There are nearly as many cops as fishermen. 

Cameras aren't exactly scarce either. 

The dining lodge opens at 7.  

 

 

 

[BilletHead]

                  YEE HAWWW The rodeo is happening!

Trout Cam Live Stream Via YouTube | Missouri State Parks (mostateparks.com)

 

[Terrierman]

It's pretty easy to get jaded about catching hatchery trout.  And maybe moreso in the parks.  But just watching people enjoy it is "refreshing ".  Especially seeing the dad herding six kids fishing off the whistle bridge.  But he had a system with a bucket for each kid and it was working.   Suffice to say it is a good morning. 👍 

[BilletHead]

32 minutes ago, Terrierman said:

It's pretty easy to get jaded about catching hatchery trout.  And maybe moreso in the parks.  But just watching people enjoy it is "refreshing ".  Especially seeing the dad herding six kids fishing off the whistle bridge.  But he had a system with a bucket for each kid and it was working.   Suffice to say it is a good morning. 👍 

            It really is Rick. I don't care what folks say about fishing there. We don't like we used to maybe once last season. It is so cool watching people have a good time. Makes me smile. 

  PS we need you to go stand below trout cam and give us play by plays via this post. No sound on the trout cam. I swear I seen someone's fly box go over the dam under a fisherman. 🤪

[fishinwrench]

4 hours ago, Terrierman said:

It's pretty easy to get jaded about catching hatchery trout.  And maybe moreso in the parks

To me Bennett is like a trip to the gym.   I usually spend equal amounts of time exercising my skills at.....

Short line nymping in fast water.

Sight fishing.

Swinging or stripping streamers/wet flys in tailouts...and in slower water

Fishing attractor dry flys.

And matching hatches (when one is happening).  

Trout are Trout no-matter where they were born, and they all bite and fight in the same fashion.....so hook setting and landing fish is no different there, than in a "wild trout" setting.    A few days at Bennett every month of the year can keep your skills sharp and have you prepared for trout fishing ANYWHERE & ANYTIME.   

Of course none of this applies if all you do is stand at the outlet and fish mop flys under a bobber all day. 🙄

[tjm]

Just what wrench said. If I'm not keeping fish anyway what does the hatchery taste matter? I often slack the line after a couple of jumps so that the barbless hook falls out and I don't have to handle the fish. The park is as good as a mountain top in Idaho to practice fly presentation and line control. And having fished wild mountain tops in Idaho as kid those trout were easier than the park trout, only fewer numbers made them seem harder.

[Flysmallie]

9 hours ago, tjm said:

The park is as good as a mountain top in Idaho to practice fly presentation and line control.

I love fishing the parks. It's a lot of fun. Especially some dry fly fishing. But the park aspect of it keeps me from "honing my skills". And to be honest, I'm probably done honing those. It's not that I don't care, I'm just happy. I know I'm not the best at t and I'm okay with that. Yes, I could stand there with everyone else and get better, everyone knows that. But I get bored and wonder off. Before you know it I'm all by myself on a creek that is seemingly a million miles from anyone, with thousands of dollars worth of equipment, laying out some beautiful presentations to a gang of bluegill. And having the time of my life. 

But I have also been the other way. Had to be the best of the best. Best equipment, best tackle, people coaching me and paying my way. It was a blast and I would never give that up, but it put me in a really bad place and I kind of turned into a jackass. I know, it's unbelievable isn't it. LOL. Luckily I figured out what I really wanted and that was the love of fishing this little fat kid sitting in a float tube, on a farm pond in Oklahoma had. I found it.

But I'll still hit one of those parks from time to time. Just not with Wrench. No reason to get totally embarrassed. That cat can fish. And I sure as hell don't want to fish next to Amber. I have some pride. 

[fishinwrench]

1 hour ago, Flysmallie said:

And I sure as hell don't want to fish next to Amber. I have some pride. 

Listen, it's getting to where I prefer to put some space between her and I too.   She's got it figured out proper.  She fishes just enough to avoid picking up any bad habits.....So everytime she goes she gets increasingly better, with zero backsliding.   

There's something to be learned there !   🤔 

If she fished MORE then she'd learn how to screw up better.   

[tjm]

 I should study bluegill on the fly, I've caught very few of them in the creeks when catching bass. And I don't think I've ever taken a catfish on fly either, but trout are an easier target and my car never gets towed in the park. It hasn't been towed on the creek yet either but the signs are there and I've seen other cars hauled off. When we still had lots of access, 20-70 years ago, I'd have rather been after smallmouth, goggle-eye and the occasional crappie than to practice on trout.

Somehow I usually manage to find a stretch of water for myself on the ~3 miles in RRSP on the days I fish and the access is always  easy, a greater concern each year. Most Park anglers get stacked up on the pools where they can see 10,000 trout and skip over the stretches that only hold numbers that one would find on a wilderness stream. I only need ~150' to "be by myself" since I'm not a distance caster.  Honing skills doesn't necessarily mean getting better, it can mean just staying  in shape and maintaining rather than losing skills. 

[BilletHead]

1 hour ago, tjm said:

 I should study bluegill on the fly, I've caught very few of them in the creeks when catching bass. And I don't think I've ever taken a catfish on fly either, but trout are an easier target and my car never gets towed in the park. It hasn't been towed on the creek yet either but the signs are there and I've seen other cars hauled off. When we still had lots of access, 20-70 years ago, I'd have rather been after smallmouth, goggle-eye and the occasional crappie than to practice on trout.

Somehow I usually manage to find a stretch of water for myself on the ~3 miles in RRSP on the days I fish and the access is always  easy, a greater concern each year. Most Park anglers get stacked up on the pools where they can see 10,000 trout and skip over the stretches that only hold numbers that one would find on a wilderness stream. I only need ~150' to "be by myself" since I'm not a distance caster.  Honing skills doesn't necessarily mean getting better, it can mean just staying  in shape and maintaining rather than losing skills. 

    You are missing out by not pursuing other species with your fly rod. Bluegill and a hoot with the long stick. I have been really blessed with channel cat and blue cat on the fly rod. Some are targeted and some were a bycatches while targeting other fish.