Gavin

Glacier Gloves with the fold over mitten are the best that I've found for winter canoe trips....Have at least one extra set in the with you and stuff a handwarmer pack in the back of the glove if its really cold.

A 21" is a heck of a nice fish...Anywhere.

Lube your knots with some spit before you tighten them...and make sure the knot is seated well. If it doesnt look good in your hand after you've tied..try again. Good Luck.

I have two canoes...a 17' Wenonah Tandem, and a 14.5' Mad River Solo Canoe...I dont lake fish very often...but they suit my need for a fishing platform that has enough gear capacity for several nights of camping on the river. Pretty easy to stand & fly cast out of the 17'...not so in the 14.5'.

Thinkin Lucky Craft Bevy Shad...its a great little bait.

Jerkbaits & hair jigs...fish slow...

This spring..river levels were up....About 50/50 1/2oz spinnerbait or a swim jig, both with a curlytail grub trailer May-September. Drought conditions, hot, low gin clear rivers..I probably caught 90% of my fish on a walk the dog plug. Couldnt fish the bottom because it was covered in snot moss. Last month..Rivers still low and clear. Suspending Jerkbaits were the ticket From now till spring...Suspending Jerkbaits & Jigs, and hair jigs usually see the most action. Cranks if the water rises. Good Luck.

Target the slack water eddies.

Have a bunch of old wooden river runts, bass oreno's, and baby lucky 13's . Still fish them occassionally.

Never. There are too many thieving meth-heads in the Ozarks.

Kastmaster spoons are a good way to cover lots of water quickly...Little Cleo's are good too..Inline Spinners, and jigs under floats work well too. If you have some big rainbows or brown trout...bring some suspending jerkbaits. Good luck.

Longnose gar in the 4' range..towed the canoe around for awhile.

I'll drive about 2 hours one way for a day trip. Anything longer than that...I'm staying for two or three days.

My best from ealier this year...21" long 14" girth..I dont carry a scale....Pretty good for a river fish.

The Ride and the Coosa are heavy beasts, but great fishing platforms. Save up extra for a good rack system if your gonna car top it.

If you are fishing a 200 yard stretch and not catching fish...You need to start covering some ground and find yourself some fish...On some rivers it might be miles between honey holes. Good luck.

A solo canoe will be alot easier to car top due to its symetrical design and lighter weight...and you will sit a bit higher...add a web or a cane seat and a sitbacker for back support..A kayak paddle works really well with a solo canoe...I'd avoid the itty bitty 12' models like the Old Town Pack...had one years ago and I'm glad its gone..not much initial stability, but the secondary is pretty good. Sold that one...and got a 14'6" Wenonah Vagabond..good flat water boat...but not great in mild whitewater. My present solo canoe is a classic 14'7" Mad River from the mid-1980's..Floats great, but Its fiberglass, and I'm grinding the gel coat off on the river..Think I'll order a 15'4" Wenonah Wilderness this winter. The longer models track a heck of alot better, offer more stability, and they dont weigh that much more. Good luck with your boat search.

Spinnerbaits & Buzzbaits can work really well at times, so do Zoom Flukes, and Swim Jigs...Walk the dog plugs are awesome at times...but you need to be able to work them fast in current...You rarely lose a lure if you have have some type of watercraft. Just paddle or motor over and get it. Have fun.

Good for you! If you would have caught that before the spawn...it probably woulda been bigger than 5lbs.... Weight is dependant on when you caught it to some extent so I tend tend prefer length over weight as a measure of a trophy smallmouth. What did it measure?

The Jackson Coosa is the top seller for river fishing kayaks, but I'd lean towards the Wilderness Systems Ride for lake use. If price is an issue...check out the Perception Pescador 12.

Stockton Lake...or hit the rivers...Elk, Big Sugar, Niangua, Gasconade, James. Good Luck.

The Jackson Coosa is a great river boat...my buddy stands on his and fishes all day long, but youd probably want something with a more pronounced keel for still water. The Wilderness Ride or Jackson Cuda would be good choices for flat water. Paddle them first if you can. Good luck.

Spend the money on a quality rack towers and bars from Thule or Yakima. Get some load stops and some decent ratchet straps if its in the budget. You wont regret it. Works great for other things too.

There are lots of smallmouth streams in Mid-Mo.Hit the upper ends if your want to wade, float the middle reaches...or boat the lower ends. We caught em on top all day long when we were out floating last Thursday. 3.5-4" walk the dog plugs, Buzzers, Flukes, spinnerbaits, and soft plastics are all good choices. If your coming from Columbia...I'd probably look to the Gasconade and Big Piney near Ft. Leonard Wood or head east and fish the Meramec. Wade fishing can be fun...but the more productive sections of river usually have some long slow holes that make wading unproductive. You really do need to float and cover some ground to be productive on the best water. Monday-Thursday Fishing is the time to go to avoid the crowds. Rent a canoe and have fun.

Texas Rig with a 4/0 EWG...or add a nail weight and nose hook it with an octopus hook.