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3. Ozarks (not trout)

Just thought I'd post some pictures from a trip out to a warmwater stream I frequent. Fished this evening from about 5-7 PM and caught a good number of black bass (smallie, largemouth, and spots) along with longear sunfish. It's a gentle, and very lightly fished river that flows quietly through the Ozark foothills. Normally, it's a bit on the muddy side, but this time of the year, it's clear, low, and rather photogenic. Thought I'd share a few photos.

Hi Motrout-

Beautiful; thanks for sharing.

Looks like a nice trip there, MO. Dang it, I thought you would have posted some pics of those longears! They rival coral reef fish for beauty in my opinion. I had a day on the Lampasas River in Texas, after finishing a field job (and what better way to cool off than to wet-wade?), when I found those guys on their beds and must have brought 50 or so to hand on the fly rod. They don't make fish much prettier than those!

Also, more stats on the bass, size, flies used? I once lived in your country as you may remember and you're bringing back memories of some fine fishing. The Ozarks sure are pretty, I always loved the forests there too, very rich in flora (and fauna). That's a place I wouldn't mind returning to for a fly fishing trip, hiking/camping/kayaking too!

Jonathon

Sorry for the lack of a longear pic. I just never thought of it out there. I always have the best of intentions in terms of photography, but when I get out there I get absorbed in the fishing and it tends to fall by the wayside.

Yesterday, I did best just fishing a brown woolly bugger. Honestly, that's my go-to for bass on Ozark streams, either that or olive. It's not the best crayfish imitation, but it's easy to tie and the bass don't care.

This stretch of the Bourbeuse is a bit unique in that it has almost equal numbers of smallies, largemouth, and spotted bass. Any halfway decent trip will be a "grand slam" so to speak.

Yesterday, the fishing was a bit slow and I got a half dozen in the couple hours. Unseasonably cool weather (highs have been in the 70s and low 80s over the past few weeks, lows in the low 60s, high 50s) have the bite generally worse than usual (though it's comfortable!) Anyway, I got three smallies, 2 spotted bass, and the largemouth pictured above. Didn't count the longears, but as always, there were a lot.

If you ever do head out here, let me know and I can point you in the right direction. Lots of good water, even wild trout streams around here, that don't get fished as much as you'd think.

Great looking streams. Are they wadeable or does one need a boat more often than not?