The HOAFF winter outing at Bennett Spring State Park is one of our most popular events each year. Always the first weekend in December, the weather is usually pleasant but this year Mother Nature out-did herself and smiled on us with 60-degree afternoons. A picnic lunch near the spring on Saturday, followed by more fishing …
Continue reading “Annual Winter Outing: Heart Of America Fly Fishers”
If you’re a trout fisherman who enjoys catching big fish on tiny flies you should treat yourself to a few days on New Mexico’s famous San Juan tailwater below Navajo Lake. And when you go you won’t find a better base camp than Soaring Eagle Lodge. After a hard day of casting tiny flies on …
Thanks to fellow Heart Of America Fly Fishers member Terry Robbins for providing this excellent photo of a Bennett Spring trout in its natural habitat. And with a borrowed camera yet! Actually its real natural habitat is a concrete holding tank, but it’s a nice photo. You can check out Terry’s blog and web site …
You don’t ALWAYS have to use #24 emergers to catch big trout on New Mexico’s San Juan River. Larry Johnson of Soaring Eagle Lodge displays a 23” rainbow caught on a streamer. Sure, he’s holding it out close to the camera, but 23” is 23” no matter how long your arms are. Check out the …
You never know what you’ll catch on a fly rod when you think you’re bass fishing. This catfish hit a purple #2 Conehead Bunnybou at Kill Creek Lake. I haven’t read my “Catfish At A Distance” book so I don’t know what particular species of catfish it was. All I know is that it was …
Whether you’re a bank fisherman or a boater, 28-acre Kill Creek Lake, between De Soto and Olathe, south of KS highway 10 is a beautiful place to fish. The park opened in 2001 and, assuming the lake was impounded and stocked at that time, it should contain some sizeable bass. I fish it often and …
It’s too hot to fish, you’re tired of tying flies and you’ve re-read all your fishing books. Now’s the time to work on your knots. By next summer you may be able to tie an Albright knot without looking at the instructions. NetKnots.com is a good place to start. This site features easy-to-follow visual instructions …
Fishing with friends Gerry Dwiggns and Tom Burckhardt, Phil Lilley, long-time owner of Lilley’s Landing resort and marina on Lake Taneycomo, recently caught and released a 29” rainbow. The huge trout hit a 3/32 oz. brown and orange jig near the old Fall Creek ramp. I’ve stayed at Phil’s place many times and highly recommend …
In an attempt to beat the heat Don Francis and I fished Olathe Cedar Lake from 7:30 AM to 9 AM today. This is an old lake, right off I-35, that winds through the suburban countryside like a miniature Lake of the Ozarks. It’s rumored to have a healthy population of large crappie. We talked …
My first time to this beautiful area. Several small ponds. Two are managed for “trophy bass”, two others for “trophy bluegills” That doesn’t necessarily mean there are any “trophies” in them. It’s all C&R, which makes no sense to me on the bluegills . I’ve always been lead to believe you need to keep removing …
Continue reading “The Hartell Conservation Area northeast of Plattsburg, MO”
