Andy C

And don't be afraid to tie smaller variations. Most of my productive wintertime jigs are 1.25 to 2" long.

Looks pretty good, but $1.50 a head is pretty steep.

I have always wanted to catch a bull trout, hopefully I will make it out there one day. Thanks for the video.

Way to go fellas! Thanks for fighting the good fight.

I hope everyone is OK out there today. Was pretty nasty down here in Southern Illinois, looks like it was much worse around Peoria.

Depends on how heavily it is fished. I like rattles in early spring and muddy water, but after the masses start pounding the water and it gets to clear summer conditions I start using silent cranks.

Like

Maybe it's just me but that fish doesn't look any bigger than mine from 2011 which I doubt was pushing 9lbs. Thumb on the scale?

Nice fish Ron, but you have your arm extended and he is holding that pig against his body. Makes them look a heck of a lot bigger when you extend them away from your boday.

Or learn some paddling strokes to keep you away from them. Learn to eddy out...or ferry paddle to move away from them. To "ferry" paddle, point the nose of the boat toward the strainer (usually on outside bends) and paddle backwards on the upstream side of the boat. This move, along with the current will push you to the inside of the bend away from the strainer. I have done this thousands of times on tiny, fast flowing streams and rivers and have not had an issue since I learned it.

We need an ISA paddling clinic. If you come down to SO IL, I will happily help in instruction.

Andy:

 

Just took the time to look at your blog.................very, very nice..............great photos and fish. I too have been to MO a few times...............their streams are simply breath-taking.

Thanks for the kind words. Missouri smallmouth are actually a closer drive for me than Illinois smallies, and I live in IL. I spend most of my stream trips in Missouri, but I do get 2-3 trips on my secret SO IL stream every year. I grew up in the galesburg area of IL, and unfortunately I didn't get to chase smallies much when I lived up there. I don't make it back there very often, but I plan to make some time to fish up there this summer. I will be sure to take some scroungers with me!

Sure wish I had a creek like that near my house.

I like them with straight tail fluke style lures like berkely gulp minnows and twitchtails. On the heavier sizes I use standard flukes and fluke jrs. I also use 4" swimbaits. I normally use 3/16 and 1/4 oz in the river for smallies with medium or large lips, as they seem to have the most action but the large lips will spin on a fast retrieve. You should tie up some of your swimjigs on the 1/2 oz heads and throw one of those big hammer swimbaits on the back. I am sure you will catch some piggies on it.

I think I might like those.

And they are a heck of a lot easier to land when you snag them in the face, rather than the tail. I have lost too many crankbaits to those carp.

Andy - awesome fish and nice fly. Thanks for sharing.

 

If you're looking for an alternative inexpensive lip, check out the Wiggler (scroll up to see the articulated version).

http://illinoissmallmouthalliance.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=10095

 

Now I have more confidence than ever in the fish catching power of the Stick Minnow (Mega Thunder Creek).

http://illinoissmallmouthalliance.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=10210

Great looking flies!

The stick minnow looks like a perfect fly version of a zoom super fluke.

I use a 4 foot section of 17 pound mono tied to a swivel and then a 2 foot section of 12 pound flouro so line twist isn't much of an issue. The articulated flies don't seem to spin as much as the un-articulated versions. The un-articulated versions wobble pretty good, but spin in heavy current. The articulated version doesn't wobble as noticeably, but has a great tight wobble in current or when stripped. I really like them. The lip really makes the fly dive, so extra weight doesn't seem to be needed. I order greg's fly lips from feathercraft, but I am open to cheaper suggestions. I haven't tried the wobble disks yet, but I will try them out sooner or later.

I have been tying these up lately with sparkle fur and greg's fly lips. First trip to see how they worked and a high 30's muskies charged it and ate it right in front of me. Looks like they work.

Articulated

Non articulated

The results

I think it would only help the smallies in that lake, no more boiling water.

Looks like a good one. Is the zonker strip tied fur down on the tail? I especially like the barred look of the brown one, dead ringer for the sculpins in my area.

I use a pentax optio w90. I love it.

http://www.steves-digicams.com/camera-reviews/pentax/optio-w90/pentax-optio-w90-review.html

btw,

not since I was younger but when the water was up and flowing, I remember that section was quite the shoot right there when canoeing

That creek will test your paddling skills, that is for sure. I haven't attempted it at anything more than 700 CFS at the eddyville bridge, but I know some folks who have paddled it at 3500 and rising!

WOW!!!!!! Any Spotted Bass?

There are some downstream, but mostly sunfish and LMB in this part of the creek.

It is wadeable in the headwaters, and there is some really good fishing in the pools. In some places it is nearly a half mile hike in between them, but there are usually some good size LMB.

One of my favorite places to hike and float in southern IL. I wish there was some water so I could float it, and I wish there were some smallies swimming around in it

I have the Disco 119. Great little boat, that has probably 500 miles of paddling on it on everything from the Mississippi to the boundary waters, but mostly ozark creeks in central Missouri. It is a great introductory solo canoe. Paddles well, never oil cans, weighs 40 pounds, and the price can't be beat. It paddles great with a 270 cm kayak paddle. I can easily carry enough gear for about 3 days on the river, and it handles mild whitewater well. I have run up to class II, and I have even taken it over a couple of low head dams for fun. That being said, I wish it was 2 feet longer, and have a little better tracking ability. I have never had to stand up to fly fish, but it would be difficult for any length of time in this boat. The seat sucks, replace it with a cane seat before you even use it. It is definetly a pain in the rear....I have paddled plenty of kayaks, including the coosa and I have always preferred solo canoes, but I do a lot of extended camping trips and I like to carry too much beer and other creature comforts that would be impossible in a kayak.

My next boat will be a wenonah vagabond or a mohawk solo 14.