Geez, it's hot!

[Al Agnew]

Got back to MO over the weekend, and had my annual three day solo float planned for this week.  I kept looking at the long range forecast, and seeing little to no chance of rain during the week, so I figured it would be great weather--I hate doing overnight floats if there's a chance of thunderstorms.  But...I didn't really pay attention to the forecast temperatures.  Stepping off the plane in St. Louis, I was hit by a wave of humidity that was worse than a sauna.  So I paid a bit more attention to the forecast, and saw the temps in the 90s and 100s and the humidity.  Well, maybe...I've fished all my life in hot weather, and it never much bothered me, but I think I'm getting more sensitive to it as I age and as I spend more time in the negligible humidity of Montana.  And Mary, who doesn't do heat well, is always worried about me when I'm gone overnight in such heat.

 

I needed to do some stuff around the house yesterday, so I got up at 6:30 and walked outside, again being hit with the wave of humidity, temperatures already in the 80s.  I thought that it wouldn't be comfortable sleeping on a gravel bar in this kind of weather, and was coming to grips with the fact that I wasn't going to do my solo float this week.

This morning I worked a bit more in the yard, then decided, heck with it, I was going to do some exploring and checking out some spots to wade and fish; surely it wouldn't be too uncomfortable if I was standing in the water, would it?  Having made the move to our place on the Meramec, I was a good distance from all the wading creeks I had usually fished, so I needed to find some new spots.  I loaded a cooler of drinks, some topwater lures, and my creek fishing cast rod, and headed for the first creek I wanted to check out.  The first bridge I stopped at was fairly far down on the creek, looked slow and a little murky.  First cast at the low water bridge I got a strike from a nice green fish, either a largemouth or spotted bass.  Missed it.  I waded up the creek about a quarter mile, caught a couple little largemouth and a couple small spotted bass.  Never got wet up to my shorts legs.  It was hot.  As far as I could see, slow, shallow water.  Decided to check it out farther upstream.

I stopped at another bridge, with a lane leading off the highway down to the creek.  Looked it over...not much water flowing, a little clearer, could be fishy...but still wide open to the sun.  I wasn't too impressed, decided to check out a couple other spots a little farther upstream.  Neither looked all that great, mainly because there was really no good place to park at the low water bridges.  So I gave up on that creek and headed for the far upper reaches of the Bourbeuse.

I had checked out several road crossings on the Bourbeuse a few years ago when researching for the book I was writing on the Meramec river system.  The book has never gotten quite finished, and I didn't know if those accesses were still viable.  The first one I stopped at was good looking, except that even as high up on the Bourbeuse as it was, the water was very murky.  There was a big, deep-looking pool above the bridge, and what looked like short pools and big water willow beds everywhere downstream.  I started wading downstream, fishing that same topwater.  In the first pool, I got a strike from a really good fish, had it on for a bit, and lost before seeing it well enough to tell what it was.  Next cast I caught a small largemouth.  Next pool, I caught four straight smallmouth from the same 10 foot section of bank.  Third pool was too shallow.  Fourth pool, three more smallmouth.  None were over 14 inches, but plenty of fun.  Long section of shallow water.  Very tough wading on chunk rock.  Finally reached another decent looking pool, caught one small smallmouth at the head of it, nothing through the rest of it.  I suddenly realized that I was REALLY hot.  I'd been wading up to my waist in places, but the water was warm, had to be in the 80s.  The sun was beating down.  The humidity was stifling.  I was beginning to worry that I might be getting a little bit of heat exhaustion.  I stripped off and got into the water, submerging head and all, lolled around for a bit.  I felt a lot better, but the thought of wading farther and then having to trudge back up to the truck just didn't sound appealing.  So I headed back.  Got to the truck, dug a cold beverage out of the cooler, and started the drive back to the house.  Took a nap when I got home.  Dang, I must be getting old!

[fishinwrench]

The heat the last several days has been miserable.  There's shade and big fans in my shop, but it's like standing in an air fryer. 

Step outside and everything you touch can fry bacon.   Not much relief after the sun goes down either.   I know this is TMI but I'm not comfortable doing anything that resembles physical labor when it's too hot for underwear.🥴

I have no desire to do any fishing in this climate, except for maybe throwing some hoppers and ants on a cool Trout stream somewhere.    Tried doing a little bass fishing Saturday but after 4 hours of fighting boat traffic without a single keeper bite I was ready to give up.   It just ain't that important to me anymore.  

[Terrierman]

This week I've tried to stay in AC as much as possible.   It's just awful.

[JimDog]

My son is a welder down in Cape.  121 heat index IN his shop yesterday.  Add to that a welding hood, leathers, and of course the heat thrown off by the welder.  I guess not ALL millennials are snowflakes. 

[David Unnerstall]

I am in the process of painting my house.  I worked all day the first day it hit one hundred degrees.  I chew ice cubes -- it cools you from the inside.  I learned that when I had a work vehicle with no air conditioning.  But this week I am just waiting for the weather to change.

[Dutch]

And I thought I had it tough pouring jigs in a 94° garage.

[Quillback]

For the first time all year I have put my afternoon walks on hold.  If the predictors are right, we have a nice cold front coming in Monday.

[FishnDave]

As a youngster, I spent summers working in cornfields/bean fields all day.  Hottest day I recall was 112 F.  Didn't bother me then.

Does now.  I've had a few instances in the past 10 years while fishing that heat got to me to the point I threw up!  Some of those days were only in the upper 80's!  Could have been the cigars I was smoking back then, too...  either way, not fun.  I DO think age might have something to do with not being able to handle the heat as well these days.

I try to avoid that now.  I can usually tell when I'm getting overheated...my nose will start to run.  Why?  This past weekend I managed about 3 hours of fishing  in the afternoon before I had to throw in the towel.  Drinking water didn't make me feel better.  Other anglers left at the same time I did, complaining of the same issues, and they looked to be in their mid-20's.

[MrGiggles]

1 hour ago, Quillback said:

For the first time all year I have put my afternoon walks on hold.  If the predictors are right, we have a nice cold front coming in Monday.

You know it's bad when you get excited to see that it's only gonna be in the 90s this weekend.

[BilletHead]

1 hour ago, MrGiggles said:

You know it's bad when you get excited to see that it's only gonna be in the 90s this weekend.

                YES, SIR and what excites me more is the low of 60 Monday night. I will be out at daybreak or before taking deep breaths of that cooler air.