Ancient Ozarks Natural History Museum

Link: https://bigcedar.com/activity/ancient-ozarks-history-museum/

A couple of weeks ago I wrote a post about Wendy and I visiting Branson, Missouri, for our anniversary.  We took a golf cart tour at Top of the Rock Lost Canyon Cave.  When I was buying our tickets online, I was offered the opportunity to get free tickets to the Ancient Ozarks Natural History Museum that is also located at the Top of the Rock complex.  I'm not one to ever turn down free stuff so I gladly accepted.  Truth be told, I had the pleasure to visit the museum a few years ago but I was excited about the opportunity to go back.  I also know that Wendy digs museums (she's pretty awesome) and I had a feeling that she would appreciate everything the museum has to offer.

In my opinion, this museum is an absolute treasure and we are fortunate to have it in Missouri.  It dates back from prehistoric times and into the mid 1900's.  It is well organized, contains a lot of amazing artifacts, and to me, almost has its own aura.  Yes, I said aura and I mean it.  I don't think that this museum gets the recognition and appreciation that it deserves but I have a feeling the longer it is around, the more word will spread about it and it's popularity will grow.  If you love the Ozarks and history, it is the perfect blend of the two.  I've included some pictures and links to the museum's website because my words don't do justice to this amazing place!

Link: https://bigcedar.com/activity/ancient-ozarks-history-museum/

 

Sometimes It Doesn’t Hurt to Pick Up a Spinning Rod

A little over a week ago, I had a day off from work but my boys still had to go to school.  With these circumstances aligning, it produced a window for me to head up to our family farm and do a little fishing.  The forecast called for enough wind that I chose to leave my fly rod at home.  My goal was to cover a lot of water with a spinnerbait and hit a lot of ponds.  Some ponds contained fish that were hungry and active.  Other ponds contained fish that for, whatever reason, contained fish that were more tight-lipped and lethargic.  And one pond in particular, appeared to have lost it's entire population of largemouth bass.  

This was particularly sad to be because of the history that I had with this pond.  On one particular day, my dad and I caught approximately six bass out of the pond that were 4-5 pounds.  To see this pond "die" was sad, but it was a reminder that nothing ever stays the same.  One of the only constants in life is change.  And while this pond was a goner, there are other ponds that are experiencing changes for the better.

One pond in particular has produced some especially special fish this year and was also productive on this outing.  The bass were eager to take down a spinnerbait and were right where I thought they would be most of the time.  They were located along structure, but not so much cover.  I fished around vegetation without many takes but once I started focusing on trees that were near the bank and tree laydowns in the water, I started catching a lot more fish.  

No, chucking the spinnerbait wasn't as fun as casting a fly.  No, the takes and hooksets didn't require much skill or thought.  Yes, I missed those things but I found pleasure in the simplicity of using a spinning rod.  I didn't have to fight the wind.  Bad casts were fixed easily.  And if I'm being honest, I enjoyed not having to think about my techniques and all of the little details that one must focus on when using a fly rod.  I always prefer to have a fly rod in my hand over any other sort of fishing method, but every once in a while, it's nice to get back to basics and enjoy some simplicity especially when fishing conditions call for it.

Hurricane Relief Donation Opportunity

Link: https://justinnunley.com/

Society moves pretty fast these days.  If you miss some information one day, it is old news tomorrow.  For example, the folks out east that experienced Hurricane Helene were all of the news a few weeks ago.  Nowadays though, not many people are talking about the recovery efforts that those folks are still facing.  It seems like we, as a society, have moved on to other stories that are more current and quickly forgot about people that will be recovering for a long time.  I purposely waited for this post because I wanted to try to bring hurricane victims back to the forefront of your mind.  They still need help and we can still help them.

After seeing the devastation that some people experienced, I knew I wanted to donate but I wasn't sure where...until I saw a video on TikTok.  I've seen a lot of videos from a guy named Justin "Danger" Nunley, but this one in particular caught my attention.  Typically, Justin can be seen pushing some of his shirt designs but on this particular video he was promoting something else.  On this occasion, he was promoting some shirts that showed support for folks in North Carolina and Tennessee that had been effected by Hurricane Helene.  When I saw that 100% of the proceeds were going to be donated, I knew that I had found the donation that I wanted to contribute to.  A few days later, my "Come Hell or High Water" shirt in Carolina Blue arrived at my doorstep.

Now don't get me wrong.  I know that my donation didn't impact anyone's life in a way that was massive.  But if we all work together, we can make a difference in the lives of folks that suffered horrible loses at the hands of a natural disaster.  If you don't want to donate through Justin's efforts, I would encourage you to look at other organizations that you would prefer to work with.  The bottom line is that there are folks that are going to need a lot of help for a long time.  They have already experienced a lot of tragedies, and it would be another tragedy for them to be forgotten.

Link: https://justinnunley.com/

Link: https://justinnunley.com/collections/winter-apparel/products/100-donation-support-for-nc-outerwear

Link: https://justinnunley.com/collections/mens/products/100-donation-support-for-nc-tee

Link: https://justinnunley.com/collections/winter-apparel/products/100-donation-support-for-tn-outerwear

Link: https://justinnunley.com/collections/mens/products/100-donation-support-for-tn-tee

Wendy and I Fished Lake Taneycomo: The Professionally-Guided Trip, The Conclusion

Link: https://mozarkfishscapes.com/

Darren rigged Wendy and I up with tandem rigs.  The front/lead fly was a scud that was heavier than the back/trailer fly.  The scud helped get the flies down in the water column and the second fly would get a little closer to the bottom.  The back/trailer fly was a size 24 emerger.  That's right, a size 24!  The fly was so small that it felt like an impossibility that it could land a fish.  I knew that trout would eat a fly that small, but I had doubts that a fish would stay hooked long enough to actually end up in the net.  It seemed to me that one violent head shake or one solid run would simply rip the fly right out of the flesh in a fish's mouth.

It is also important to note that we didn't get started fishing until a little after 10 AM that morning.  Wendy and I had opted to sleep late because we don't get that opportunity very often, and since we were on a little vacation, we took advantage of the chance to recharge our batteries a little.  We knew that this would probably result in some slower fishing activity.  We also knew that the low water and blue skies weren't going to do us any favors either.  On the other hand, we had Darren who knows how to fish any conditions that Lake Taneycomo can throw at him!

We started getting hits right off the bat.  We fished some slower, deeper water and the takes were subtle.  The fish had plenty of time to look our flies over and hooksets had to be lightning quick.  I'm not great at being lightning quick and neither is Wendy so we missed quite a few bites.  I ended up hooking and landing one fish before we went to some faster water in the tailout of the pool.  The fishing improved dramatically when we started fishing the end of the run.  The takes were more aggressive and more fish were landed as a result.

Every fish that I landed was a marvel to me!  Most of the fish were caught on the size #24 emerger and every single fish that made it to the net seemed like a miracle.  Not only had I hooked the fish with such a small hook but I played it and landed it without it coming loose.  The biggest takeaway for me on this outing was the small hooks really can put trout in the net which caused me to slightly change the way I look at fly fishing.  

I never want to stop learning.  The day I stop learning will be the day that my heart stops beating.  There are so many things in this world that fascinate me because I don't understand them.  While I will never be able to tell you how black holes work or the meaning of life, I can tell you that I will always try to learn more about fly fishing.  There is beauty to be found in knowing that you will never master a craft but can pursue it your entire life without the fear of running out of things to learn.  Thank you Darren for being an outstanding teacher and for having patience with my learning curve.  If you too would like to acquire some fly fishing skills, please click on the link below and consider booking a trip with Captain Darren Sadler of Mozark Fishscapes.  Aside from being a great teacher, his upbeat attitude and positive outlook on life will make for a memorable experience on the water that you just might cherish for a lifetime.

Link: https://mozarkfishscapes.com/

Wendy and I Fished Lake Taneycomo: The Professionally-Guided Trip, Part 1

Link: https://mozarkfishscapes.com/

I love fishing with guides!  There are multiple reasons that I love to fish with guides.  They know the water better than I do.  They understand the past and current fishing conditions.  They know how the seasons impact fish behavior and and insect life cycles.  Most importantly, I love fishing with guides because there is so much that I can learn from them.  In particular, Darren Sadler of Mozark Fishscapes, has taught me a lot about fishing with midges over the last year.  When I contacted him and told him that Wendy and I were going to be in Branson and would love to spend a couple of hours with him, thankfully he had a small window to accommodate us.  During that time, I learned ever more about fly fishing.

Darren is sometimes referred to as the "Midge Guru" or "Midge Whisperer".  He knows how to throw them and catch fish on them in high, fast water.  I experienced this first hand last February when we fished in the snow on Lake Taneycomo while water was being released by Table Rock Dam.  On this trip however, it was fall, it was warm, and the water was low.  It could not have been more of a contrast.  It didn't seem to phase Darren though as he had a method for slinging midges and scuds in swift, fast water.  

This is not a style that I feel comfortable with.  I'm more of a "dredge the long, slow pools" kind of guy.  Fast, shallow water makes my brain hurt.  While I know fish will hold there, it just seems, to me, like they shouldn't.  It seems like it is counterintuitive for them to work their tails off (see what I did there) in fast current when they could find slower current and save energy.  I've rarely fish faster water, shallow water and have have a very small amount of success when I have.  With Darren's knowledge that he shared with me, I feel more confident that I ever have.

Part 2, coming soon!

Link: https://mozarkfishscapes.com/

Wendy and I Fished Lake Taneycomo: The Self-Guided Trip

Last weekend, my wife Wendy and I headed down to Lake Taneycomo in Branson, Missouri, to fly fishing for rainbow and brown trout.  This was our third fall trip down to Taneycomo.  We went once for a small honeymoon and again last year for our anniversary.  On the first trip, I caught a really nice 23 inch, 6-7 pound brown.  On the second trip, Wendy caught a really nice 22 inch, 4 pound brown.  We were hoping to replicate these results.  We caught both fish without a guide and were hoping that our do-it-yourself method would continue to produce nice fish for us.

To make a long post short, we did not replicate our prior results.  Don't get me wrong, we caught some fish but the numbers were small, as well as most of the fish.  We caught exclusively rainbows as opposed to almost exclusively browns last year.  Through conversations with other folks (some being guides that know the lake extremely well) we found out that the water was low and hand been low for quite some time.  We also found out that the brown trout spawn happened earlier than usual this year.  When those two conditions combine, it can be a recipe for some tough fishing but not impossible.

We caught most of our fish on small jigs under strike indicators.  We caught them on white thread jigs, standards (black bodies and tails with a chartreuse head) and mega worms.  We caught them in deeper parts of runs as well as near the bank around boulders.  I wish that I would have swung some soft hackles through some faster water, but I came up with that idea on the way home, unfortunately.

Regardless, it was still a fun time on the water with my wife.  The weather was perfect, we didn't get skunked, and responsibilities of the world faded away for awhile.  It has been said that trout live in pretty places.  To me, Lake Taneycomo is a beautiful place with beautiful fish as well.  While we didn't bring home any stories or pictures of trophy fish, we brought home some good memories and minds that were more relaxed than when we left Kansas City.

Never Hand a Guide a Fly Rod

If you want to find out why a fly fishing guide is a fly fishing guide, go ahead and hand them a rod on a fishing trip. You will be reminded really quickly why he/she is a guide!  This is Darren Sadler showing off his street cred!

Link: https://mozarkfishscapes.com/

Excited to Hit the Water with Captain Darren Sadler

Link: https://mozarkfishscapes.com/

Thanks to my wife and my buddy Darren Sadler, my fishing drought is about to come to an end!  Let me first say thank you to my wife.  Our anniversary was on Wednesday and we had planned a little trip to Branson, Missouri, to celebrate.  There are a few attractions that we want to visit and a couple restaurants we want to patronize.  Being the wife of a fisherman, she also understands that this trip coincides with the annual migration of brown trout moving toward the dam on Lake Taneycomo.  While we aren't going to fish the entire time, she knows that we are going to hit the water some.  I am eternally grateful for her thoughtfulness and generosity.

My buddy Darren also deserves a healthy amount of thanks.  On short notice, he has agreed to meet up with us on Sunday morning to guide us a little bit.  Darren is a great guide.  He has the perfect balance of a positive attitude, a good sense of humor, and knowledge about the lake.  I've gotten to fish with him on more than one occasion and can't wait to share the water with him again.  If you ever find yourself in need of a fly fishing guide on Lake Taneycomo, I highly recommend Captain Darren's services.  I have posted a link to his website below and will post a follow up post next week to let you know how things go! 

Link: https://mozarkfishscapes.com/

These are pictures from the last time Darren and I hit the water.  These were taken in February of 2024!