Gasconade River, Osage County

The Gasconade River in Osage County, Missouri stood in marked contrast to the Big Piney River. It was wider, deeper, faster, and generally poorer for fishing.

Looking downstream from Pointers Creek Access pre-sunrise.

 While the Big Piney had many deep holes with steep rocky banks, the Gasconade was full of featureless plains under the surface, which made fishing challenging at worst, and difficult at best. Still, Kyle and I managed to combine for ~30 fish through the day.

I had no problem catching small Largemouth Bass on the Gasconade River. This monster measured in at just over 9".

We floated from Rollins Ferry Access to Pointers Creek Access, which was roughly 8 miles. We heard from a fellow kayaker that the distance can be covered in a little over 2 hours when the water is up, but the water was way down last Saturday. In fact, it was only flowing at ~1300 cf/s instead of the average of just over 3000 cf/s! The slow speed of the river, coupled with our desire to fish more than paddle, made for a pleasant 6 hour journey.

The Gasconade River just as I like it: empty.

When we launched the kayak at 6:15am there was only one other group in the parking lot, and they headed upstream after launching their jetboat. We wouldn't see another group for ~6 miles, and in the end we only saw two other boats total. We were surprised to see a handful of empty trailers at Pointers Creek around 12:30pm and over a dozen upon our return to Rollins Ferry at 1pm! I was thrilled to generally have the river to ourselves for the entirety of the trip.

The day started out cool and cloudy, but it didn't take long for the sun and heat to overtake the river.

I had trouble right from the start. After having a perfect trip on the Big Piney, I quickly lost two lures and a lot of line to the Gasconade. I believe I ended up losing five lures due to my own miscasts.

At the time of this photo, this was my personal best Longear Sunfish (6 1/8").

Still, we eventually found some fish with the lures. I was king of the Largemouth Bass, while Kyle seemed to exclusively hook Smallmouth Bass. I also managed to bring in some good-sized Bluegill (8 1/8") and Longear Sunfish (my personal best, 6 3/8"). Kyle also brought in a Goldeye! Forgot to get a photo of that one, though. He also managed to lose a very large Largemouth Bass that was likely over 2 lbs.

It's always fun to catch big Bluegill. This 8 1/8" fish was photographed underwater just before bringing him into the kayak.

The trip was relatively uneventful until we pulled up next to a half-dollar sized map turtle. Kyle lunged at it with his hand, and the next thing I knew we were both bobbing in the water with an overturned kayak! Kyle ended up losing his rod and reel, while I lost a box containing my favorite lures, my folding net and my fishing journal. We also both lost our cell phones to water damage. The worst part was that we were only 1000 ft. from Pointers Creek Access!

Big Piney River, Texas County

On 27 April 2012 Matt and I took my inflatable kayak to the upper Big Piney River in Texas County, Missouri. We decided to float ~14.5 miles from Baptist Camp Access to Mineral Spring Access. The water level was extremely low in places (only inches deep), and we spent a lot of time portaging the kayak until we passed Dog's Bluff Access. All that portaging made our trip take 12 hours instead of the planned 8-9 hours!

I was really impressed that my kayak (an inflatable Advanced Elements Dragonfly 2) handled the stream with aplomb. This was her first trip off of flat water. She seems to have survived without a scratch (literally) despite running a few small rapids and being extensively scraped along the bottom riffle after riffle.

The best fishing was between Baptist Camp Access to Tony Hogan Bridge, but we were able to catch fish just about everywhere we stopped and tried.

I spent the entire day using a small (~3") brown Zoom! crayfish on a 1/8 oz jig and managed to bring in 25 fish. Most of the fish were Smallmouth Bass, but I also caught a few Rock Bass, Green Sunfish and a Largemouth bass. There were lots of Longear Sunfish nipping at my crayfish, but they weren't large enough to get hooked. The Rock Bass were all around 8", while most of the Smallmouth were 9"-11" in length.

This 8 1/8" Rock Bass took the crayfish imitation while it was laying motionless on the bottom.

The day started out perfectly. About 65F and partly cloudy, but as the day wore on the wind picked up, the sky darkened and a torrential downpour was unleashed. After a few nearby lightning strikes Matt and I made it to the Rt. Z bridge and hit for about 40 minutes. While there we were surprised to hook several little Smallmouth Bass. Once the rain stopped and we moved on, I managed to bring in a pair of ~14" Smallmouth Bass that weighed about 1.3 lbs.

One of many Smallmouth Bass in the upper Big Piney River.

The largest fish of the day was a ~15" 1.4 lb. Largemouth Bass (the only one of the day for either of us)!

We watched this fish disappear as our kayak drifted near a few minutes before I hooked her. The hit was so subtle I thought I was snagged on a submerged log.

Matt tried to use the same lure set up as me, but had almost no success. The only thing different between our setups was that I was using 8 lb. fluorocarbon line and he was using 15 lb. braid. I'm of the opinion that using a clear line is very important on the Ozark streams.

Next up....the lower Gasconade River!

South Farm R-1 Lake, Boone County

I visited South Farm R-1 Lake (Boone Co.) twice this week (12 and 15 October 2011). It's only an eight minute drive from the house, so I'm a little surprised I hadn't fished there since May!

Actually, I'm not terribly surprised. It's a small pond, the water level dropped about three feet (the pond is used to water some corn fields for the University of Missouri) and the shallows are choked with vegetation from late May until winter.

Here's a look north, away from the better fishing areas along the "dam."

In the two hours I was there (one hour each day) I ended up getting distracted by birds, so I didn't really fish all that much. I was happy to pull out a total of four Largemouth Bass, including this "monster" 11 1/4" fish (by far the largest fish I've ever seen get pulled out of this pond).

Little Dixie Lake CA, Callaway County

This afternoon I was back at Little Dixie Lake with the kayak! The weather was still warm (~80°F) and sunny, but today featured a 15 mph SSE wind. A wind from that direction means that the kayak can be blown the length of the lake, south-to-north, without paddling. It makes it very easy to get to the fishing spots, but it sure made it tough to get back to the car!

Ordinarily, a stiff wind would make it impossible to hold in a fishing area, but today I bought a 12 lb. river anchor and 50 ft. rope! It took a few tries to figure out how to best attach the anchor to the kayak (hint: it's not a good idea to wrap the rope around your ankle), but once I worked it out I was able to sit stationary in a steady series of waves. The only problem with the anchor is that it got stuck in the mud a few times, and when it was ~25 ft. deep it was very difficult to retrieve. I may look into replacing it with an 8 lb. mushroom anchor next Spring.

Since I was able to fish anywhere I wanted (thanks, anchor!) I was able to park the kayak just off one of the main jetties and pull out an 11 7/8" Largemouth Bass!

The water level at Little Dixie Lake is still about three feet low. In the picture below you can see where the water level usually is...right up to the top of the rocks. I can't wait for the lake to refill over the winter!

Little Dixie Lake CA, Callaway County

This evening I went back to Little Dixie Lake to try my luck with catfish one last time in 2011. I was using all three rods to try for catfish until sunset, when I switched one rod to a silver rooster tail. It turned out to be a good move, as I quickly landed a 9 1/8" Largemouth Bass!

The sun faded into twilight just a few moments later.

I planned to leave around 7:30pm, but when the time came I had just started to read an article on my phone. I decided I would reel in my last two lines when I finished the article and head home. So, I finished reading and wasn't surprised to see both of my bobbers still floating on the water's surface. I grabbed the rod on the right, reeled it in, stripped the chicken off the hook and prepared it for the walk back to the car.

When it was time to put the second rod away I couldn't see the bobber. It was underwater! I grabbed the rod, cranked the reel a few times and pulled in an 11 1/8" (11 oz.) Yellow Bullhead! I love ending a fishing trip with a fish!

Little Dixie Lake CA, Callaway County

It took me over nine months, but I finally took the kayak out in 2011! I've been reading about a guy in Singapore who outfitted his inflatable kayak for marine fishing expeditions, so I thought I could try something similar in a more tame environment.

All I've managed to do so far is make the kayak easier to control by myself (it's a two-seater) and I used some PVC pipe to make one fishing rod holder (I hope to add two more very soon).

Since Little Dixie Lake Conservation Area (Callaway County, Missouri) is the closest lake to our house, that's where I headed this morning. It was sunny, about 70°F and there was almost no wind. I paddled across the lake in about five minutes and was ready to start fishing.

I started out using a silver/white rooster tail. After about a dozen casts I landed a Largemouth Bass, my first ever kayak-based fish! It measured a whopping 7 1/2".

 

I decided to paddle over to the jetties on the north side of the lake. I've only fished there once or twice, but after today I think I'll stop by that area more often. After switching to a chrome Rapala lipless crankbait I hooked what turned out to be a 14 7/8" (1 lb. 5 oz.) Largemouth Bass! This is the largest fish I've caught at Little Dixie Lake to date. Since I was very close to shore when I caught him I decided to beach the boat and take a few pictures on land.

I paddled back to the east side of the lake and managed to catch my very first mussel.

After today I'm really wishing I had started fishing from the kayak about six months ago rather than waiting for the onset of Autumn.

The Pineys

This morning I fished Little Piney Creek just south of Rolla in Phelps County. I set out with the intention of catching four species: Rainbow Trout, Rock Bass, Smallmouth Bass and Longear Sunfish. In the end, I caught all of my targets except Rock Bass, but I also managed to bring in several Largemouth Bass and a Bluegill.

The morning was chilly (a bank in Rolla pegged the temperature at 43F), but by the time I left I was drenched in sweat from walking against the current in 70F sunshine.

It's a fairly small stream, but it's full of wild-reproducing trout! I ended up catching six Rainbow Trout this morning. The largest was right around 12" long.

The water in Little Piney Creek is crystal clear.

My next stop was the Big Piney River, just a bit west of the Little Piney in Pulaski County. The Big Piney is much larger than the Little Piney. The current is also much more swift, but the section I was in was fairly shallow and lacked many fish-holding holes.

The fish were few and far between in this part of the Big Piney, but I did catch two of my target species for the day. A little (5 1/4") Longear Sunfish:

And a couple of small Smallmouth Bass:

 On my way home I stopped at Painted Rock Conservation Area to try for a Warmouth, but all I caught were a couple of small Largemouth Bass.

 

South Farm R-1 Lake, Boone County

Last night I visited A. Perry Phillips Park in Boone County. Phillips Lake looks like it could have some decent fishing, but the shallows were choked with algae and I didn't fancy removing algae from my lure after every cast, so I moved on to South Farm R-1 Lake.

I spent about an hour catching nothing. At one point I had something on the line, but when I went to tighten my drag (it was almost all the way open to start with) the fish got off the hook. Then, all of a sudden, fish started biting!

I caught two small Largemouth Bass and a decent (8 1/8") Bluegill before it was time to go home.

Little Dixie Lake CA, Callaway County

On Friday, I went to Little Dixie Lake Conservation Area in Callaway County, which is about 10 miles east of Columbia. Little Dixie Lake has a surface area of 205 acres and is my favorite fishing spot around our home.

It was raining Friday, but Diana was out of town so I headed to the north side of lake to try fishing in the rain for the first time. My goal was to catch a catfish, so I threw a nightcrawler on a hook, tossed it in and waited. I'm not a big fan of just sitting and waiting, so I also put a buzzbait on another rod and quickly pulled in a small (9 1/4") Largemouth Bass. After going 20 minutes without a nibble I moved to the disabled access jetty on the east side.

I started out the same way as on the north side and caught another little (9 1/4" again) Largemouth Bass right away. As I was putting it back in the water I thought, "Where did my bobber go?" Right then it popped back up! I reeled it in and my worm was gone.

I put another worm on, watched the bobber and tried for the next 20 minutes to set the hook in whatever was eating my worm without luck. Since I was running out of worms I switched to shrimp and crossed my fingers that the fish would take the shrimp. Sure enough, the bobber started bobbing and the next thing I knew there was no shrimp on the hook. I was positive I had a catfish down there messing with my hook, so I added more shrimp and waited.

After another 40 minutes of playing with me, I finally hooked the fish and got it to shore. To my bewilderment it was a 6" long Green Sunfish! Still no catfish for me.

This morning I was at Little Dixie Lake around 6:15am, armed with my favorite rod and reel combo. In about 2 1/2 hours I managed to catch seven Largemouth Bass, two Bluegill and a Green Sunfish. I lost several bass when they shook my lures loose on some fairly decent jumps. I had never seen Largemouth Bass jump clear of the water until this week.

Toward the end of my trip I caught my largest Largemouth Bass yet at Little Dixie Lake:  13 1/2" long, 1 lb. 5 oz. On the very next cast, with the exact same lure (a chartreuse 1/4 oz. rooster tail) I caught one of my smallest Largemouth Bass: 5 1/16" I couldn't believe such a little fish would try to eat something so large!

Grindstone Creek, Boone County

The South Fork of Grindstone Creek flows just behind our home in Boone County. It's not very big, but it has a few decent-sized pools. My favorite pool is about 250 meters away from the house. I'd guess it's about 20m long, maybe 10m wide and probably about 3m deep at best.

I took my 7' 6" 4 wt. fly rod with a self-tied chartreuse and white Clouser minnow (size 10) to see what might be around this Spring. In the past I've found ~12" Largemouth Bass, a smattering of panfish and some medium-sized Creek Chubs in the pool.

The Creek Chubs were there tonight. I only brought one all the way in, but I could see about a dozen or so swimming around the murky water. I also caught two of the smallest bass I've ever brought in on a hook. The first is estimated to have weighed only 0.8 ounces!

Weather

62°F

7 mph NE wind

Clear

Time Fishing: 5:40pm-6:00pm

South Farm R-1 Lake, Boone County

This evening I fished at South Farm R-1 Lake near Columbia in Boone County. This little lake is owned by the University of Missouri, but stocked by the Department of Conservation and open to the public for fishing.

The south end of the lake is rocky, the east side is mowed grass, and the rest gets pretty weedy by the end of the summer. The "lake" is also already filling up with algae, so it may not be a fun place to fish in a few weeks.

Yesterday, I was able to pull out a few 8+ inch Bluegill, but today was pretty slow.

 

This evening I used my MicroLite with 4 lb. mono-filament and I brought in a 9 1/4" (~6 oz.) Largemouth Bass on an orange 1/16 oz. rooster tail on my third cast, then went the next 70 minutes without landing anything. I had bites on a pink 1/16 oz. rooster tail, a 1 1/2" Rattlin' Rapala, and mini hopper crank bait, but couldn't bring anything in.

I also had a line with a Carolina rig trying for catfish, but had no luck with cheese scented Catfish Charlie dip bait. I think the big problem with this rig was that it was smothered in algae every time I brought it back to shore to re-cast. 

South Farm R-1 Lake might have some decent fish in it, but the excessive amounts of algae (already!) were enough to make me not want to head back any time soon.

Weather

55°F

12 mph NW wind

Clear

Time Fishing: 6:45pm-8:10pm (Sunset 8:15pm)