Monday, October 28, 2013

Road Tripping with Joe.....Blue Lining the Ozarks

After getting the wife on her way towards the airport Friday morning ,Joe and I turned the truck in the opposite direction and headed South to one of our favorite creeks for a couple days of R&R.
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It'd been way too long since my best fishing partner and I had gotten out for a weekend, and with the gatekeeper away in Chicago until Sunday this seemed like the perfect opportunity to fix that.
We pulled into the campground right around lunchtime and quickly got the basics laid out for a one night stay.
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We then proceeded to throw together something for lunch. French baguette ,roast beef ,sharp colby ,purple onion and some spicy brown mustard...my kind of sammich (and Joe's too!).
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Made to taste even better when washed down with my favorite seasonal beer...Pumpkin Blue Ribbon or PBR for short.
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With camp set up and our stomachs full ,there was nothing left to do but string up the two- weight and head down to the stream for a few hours.
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This place is one of my favorite little Blue Ribbon trout streams , especially this time of year when the summer crowds have all but disappeared.
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The water is all small , as are the majority of the fish that live here , but even when the fishing is sub-par it's still a great little place to relax and unwind. Unlike those larger rivers where the constant search for that "bigger" fish can sometimes leave you frustrated , the lack of those expectations when I fish here is always a welcome change. It was a beautiful Fall afternoon and Joe and I enjoyed hiking the streamside trails and stopping to go a round or two with the locals when the opportunity presented itself.
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We definitely didn't light the world on fire with our fishing success that afternoon. I probably landed a dozen or so wild rainbows , all about the same size. I'd venture to say that I didn't break the 12" mark all day , but in all honesty I was OK with that.
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There was still an hour or so of daylight left when we decided to pack it in and head back to camp. I wanted to get a fire started and give Joe a chance to dry off some before the sun disappeared and the temp started dropping.
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Once the fire was blazing away and a couple more adult beverages were imbibed it was time to start thinking about
the evenings meal. One of my all-time favorite camp meals has to be what I call "Camp Succotash". Any recipe that starts off by frying bacon and then proceeding to add ingredients to the skillet is a winner in my book.
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A few simple fresh ingredients thrown together and you've got a hearty one pan meal.
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The rest of the night was spent with a few of my favorite things...a cold beer , a fine cigar , a big fire and some unbeatable company to share it with. It doesn't get any better.
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After watching the flames die down on the last of our ten dollar bundle of wood we retired to a warm tent and got down to some serious relaxing.
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Saturday we woke to another fantastic fall day. It's been a long summer and it was a nice change of pace to need the warming qualities of a fleece jacket and a hot cup of coffee to start the day.
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One nice thing about this stream is that there are several other small wild trout creeks within an hours drive ,and after the mediocre fishing of the previous afternoon I saw no reason not to check out the conditions on a couple of them that just happened to be on the path back home anyway. With that decision we packed up camp and hit the road , digging through the food box on the way I managed to find a Clif bar to go with the coffee and called it breakfast.
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Our first stop was a short fourty minute drive away , a little spring creek deep in an Ozark hollow.
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After a quick search through the nymph box I was rigged and ready to hit the trail again.
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We had this particular stretch of water all to ourselves on this morning and just took our time enjoying the surroundings and catching a few small wild rainbows again.
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We fished until our internal clocks told us it was getting close to lunchtime. We'd covered the water I wanted to see so we started back to the truck for a little "tailgating" before heading out to check out one more stream on the way home.
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Another fourty-five minute drive down a classic Ozark backroad and we were at our third stream of the two day trip.
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Same type of water , small spring creek with little wild rainbows calling it home. We checked out a few of my favorite holes and managed a few more small fish along the way. Another beautiful little creek that I could spend all day on and never even care if I caught a fish.
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By the time we finished the hike back to the truck it was nearing 3:30 and we still had a four hour drive ahead of us , time to call it a day.
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Two days , three streams , a handful of pretty little wild trout and some time well spent wandering the Ozark hills with my best friend....
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38 comments:

  1. Great trip. with all the company you would need..

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  2. Great trip. with all the company you would need..

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    1. Thanks Andy...you got the company part right for sure , can't beat a fishing buddy like Joe!

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  3. What a great trip! Love all of the pictures. I am always envious of the trips you and Joe take....and the food you prepare always looks delicious! Thanks for sharing!

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    1. Thanks Justin...Some of my best trips are definitely with Joe , even if the fishing doesn't pan out the company never disappoints.

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  4. I was wondering if they opened up that campground. Fine report. Long nights, now. Looks like Joe had no problem sleeping through the long night.

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    1. Thanks man...I was prepared to sleep in the back of the truck if I had too! Yeah , those long summer days are a thing of the past for now. I'm not too far behind Joe though , I can sleep a long night away pretty easily when I'm camping.

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  5. If you've ever had a bad fishing trip I'd sure like to hear about it. You've got the good ones dialed in.

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    1. Thanks Howard...It's all about perspective I guess. I have those same fishless ,bad weather , nothing goes right days just like everyone else. I do my best to remember where I'm at and what I'm doing before letting things get to me though. There really is no such thing as a bad day fishing!!

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  6. You guys should be fully recharged after that trip.
    Joe has to be a great buddy to take along.

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    1. The best Alan...There's something to be said about wandering the stream beds with with your best friend for a couple days.

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  7. The good life. You two know how to live it. I enjoyed this immensely. And great hero shot of Joe up on the bank above you. What a dog.

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    1. Thanks Jim...I liked that particular shot as well , not sure what he was looking at but he was standing at attention for sure!

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  8. Hey Buddy looks like a good time to me. I'm back on line give me call

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    1. Missed ya down there , we need to get out somewhere soon.

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  9. Excellent post. I like Pabst but will pass on the Shock Top. You had a top quality outing there, my friend. Beautiful outing.

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    1. Appreciate it man. Shock Top isn't my favorite either but this was one of those clean out the beer fridge type of trips if you know what I mean!

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  10. It's a dog's life ain't it? I'm going to call the SPCA if you keep mistreating that poor animal, I've never seen a dog suffer so much. Nice fishing too!

    Dave

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    1. Thanks Dave!! He's living large isn't he....when we're on a fishing trip he's just one of the guys and gets treated as such. Now if I could just get him to pay for his half of the gas!!

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  11. Awesome as always sir. Glad to see you were able to get out and enjoy some time on some beautiful water.

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    1. Thanks Man....I always enjoy spending a couple days on those waters , maybe sometime this fall/winter we can sneak away and hit em up.

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  12. Love Joe! Always looking for the next fish! Nice pics and sounds like a great outing. Looks like you had amazing company, amazing weather, and didn't have to spend too much time with people! Great post!

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    1. Thanks , appreciate it. Our little Blue Ribbon trout creeks don't see too much pressure as a general rule , folks just don't want to take time out for those small , wild fish. Suits me fine...I'll take the solitude!!

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  13. looks like another enjoyable time spent. Excellent pics to capture the moments 'out there'!

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    1. Appreciate it man...It's hard not to enjoy a couple days on a small creek with a buddy like Joe.

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  14. Camp Soccotash looks great, can you post your recipe?

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    1. I can do that for you Rick. Give me a day or two and I'll get that out to you or posted up for your culinary pleasure!

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    2. Here ya go Rick , hope you enjoy it :
      Camp Succotash Ingredients...
      (3) PIECES BACON
      (1) PKG SMOKED SAUSAGE
      FRESH CORN - GREEN PEPPER - ONION - ZUCCHINI - SQUASH - NEW POTATOES
      (1) CAN OF RO-TEL OR DICED TOMATOES
      The recipe itself is simple in nature , cook the bacon in a large skillet and then remove, leaving grease for flavor. Add in the veggies , sausage and can of tomatoes (usually leave zucchini and squash out for a little bit of cook time so they don't get too soft) and season with salt-pepper and garlic powder.
      When dish looks done crumble up bacon pieces and mix in with skillet and then eat! A simple one skillet meal that I've never heard any complaints about.

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  15. Nice looking little waters. You remind me of Gary Lafontaine and his dog. Spring fed cold water streams, what is native that you catch there if anything else?

    Gregg

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    1. Thanks Gregg...These little spring creeks have a decent population of native smallmouth that start showing up once you get a few miles away from the colder spring fed areas of water. Pretty much just wild trout and several species of small suckers in the areas I was fishing though.
      You know how it is Gregg , the fish are just a bonus anyway!

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  16. i'm kinda late to the party, here, but i just love your PUP! what a sweet boy! and a fabulous companion. now, the pan succotash, as you called it - YUM! sort of reminds me of a dish my Wis family made - we called it boiled dinner as it was all boiled together almost like a soup, but it had kielbasa, cabbage, onions, carrots, potatoes, and any other veggie you wanted to throw in. dang... now i'm hungry.

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  17. and your PBR always reminds me of my Wis family, too. :)

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    1. Thanks so much! Joe kind of reminds me of your Thelma in the looks department , they could almost be siblings.
      Same ingredients ...different cooking method , but I'm sure the result was the same , a great tasting meal!!

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  18. If you ever need another friend to fish the Ozark rivers and streams with, I'll bring the PBR and cigars as long as you bring the food, haha. I swear, I spend more time looking at the pictures of your meals than I do just about anything else on here! Good stuff!

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    1. Appreciate the comments man. I got no problem playing camp bitch for free beer and cigars...I'm easy!!

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