Fishing getaways beckon close to home

Every corner of the state boasts fishing holes where you can catch bass, bluegills and channel catfish without distraction by crowds or jet skis.

JEFFERSON CITY-It is Friday afternoon, and you have escaped work early. You are headed for a remote fishing hole whose location a friend let slip in an unguarded moment. As you turn onto the highway, you can feel the week's tensions falling behind.

Fifteen minutes down the road, you turn onto a blacktop ribbon where the landmarks are Holsteins and barns instead of billboards and convenience stores. A few minutes after that, you spy a wooden cantilever sign emblazoned with a blue triangle. It also has an area name, but in your mind it translates into "Fishing bliss, next right." You wonder how many people you will find at the lake.

4:15 p.m.

Your luck holds. A single pickup truck is in the parking lot alongside the middle of the crystal-clear, 30-acre lake. Two men are fishing the opposite shore in a tiny, molded-plastic boat. Their shore party of one sits contentedly at the end of a wide, handicap-accessible fishing jetty a few hundred yards from the boat ramp and rock-throwing distance from the rest room. She is lost in a book, waiting for a fish to jingle the bells dangling from the tips of two fishing poles.

The rest of the lake is unoccupied. Best of all, no one is fishing the line of dead trees that forms a belt across the lake's midsection.

The bookworm reports catching a few bluegills, but no catfish, her main objective. The men have boated a few largemouth bass, including one 15-inch keeper, and a channel catfish just right for the skillet. You smile inwardly. Maybe they don't know the lake harbors redear sunfish big enough to qualify for Missouri's Master Angler Program. You decide to play your cards close to the chest.

4:45 p.m.

You slide the canoe out of the pickup bed and paddle around the lake, casting a floating minnow imitation for bass. The action is steady, with 10- to 12-inch largemouths striking savagely at your lure. You keep a polite distance from the other two boat anglers and avoid the flooded tree line, so as not to draw attention to it.

7 p.m.

You beach your canoe, eat a sandwich, set up your tent and sort out bank-fishing gear for later. The last few minutes of full daylight are spent with binoculars, studying juvenile wood ducks that seem to be testing their wings all around the lake. You try not to stare at fish dimpling the water around the flooded trees.

9:30 p.m.

A lovely breeze stirs in the east. At the northwest edge of the horizon, a thunderhead is billowing up. The other anglers are packing it in. As soon as they pull away, you haul a big, comfy lawn chair and two catfish poles to the end of the fishing jetty. With two worm-baited lines angling into the water, you get out your own book, a little, battery-powered headlamp and a cool drink.

Should you go look for one of the bullfrogs calling from the opposite shore? It seems like too much work. Anyway, your poles need tending, and you are having too much fun watching lightning flicker in the distant thunderhead.

Gazing up at the sky you discover your own five-star constellation and name it Happy Face. If you can remember where it is relative to the North Star, maybe you can show it to your family later.

The wind now has swung around to the south, a good sign. You recall the old angler's axiom, "Wind from the east, fish bite least. Wind from the south blows the bait in their mouth."

The temperature is in the mid-70s. The breeze has the perfume that only a summer lake can impart. Fish are splashing all over the place.

10:45 p.m.

The moon, a little more than half full, is rising. It dims your view of the Milky Way, but in its light you detect a jiggle in one of your rod tips. Pick up the rod, take up the slack and JERK. There is a momentary surge on the line, then nothing. You reel in the broken line, wondering how big the fish was. Tying on another hook seems pointless when you still have one line out, and your book is just getting interesting.

The wind now is out of the west, and you remember the rest of that saying, "Wind from the west, fish bite best." Good news, but that thunderstorm seems to be expanding in your direction. You fetch another drink and a can of Vienna sausages from the truck and turn your chair for a better view of the light show. Something has caused the thousands of cricket frogs around the lake to join in an ear-filling chorus.

11:30 p.m.

A pair of guys in a pickup pull up to the boat ramp and slip a johnboat into the water. They proceed slowly along the dam, sweeping the water's edge with spotlights, searching for bullfrogs.

Midnight

The storm has drawn a velvet curtain between you and the stars. The breeze is getting gusty. The froggers high-tail it for the boat ramp. By the time you get your chair stowed, lightning bolts are marching across the landscape. You jump in your truck just as thimble-sized raindrops strike up a drum solo on the hood. The storm is sure to be short, so you read a little more, then catnap.

Waking with a stiff neck an hour later, you decide it's time to dash to the tent for real sleep.

7:14 a.m.

There wasn't any point in waking up earlier, since rain was still falling. Now, however, it is slackening, and you are eager to find those redears. Peek out through the rain fly*the coast is clear. Not another angler in sight. It's overcast and cooler than yesterday, with a pleasant breeze ruffling the water's surface.

Paddle out into the dead trees and tie up to one in the middle of Redear City. After testing the depth, you suspend a tiny hook baited with worms just above the bottom. Bluegill sunfish ranging from 3 to 7 inches are eager to bite, but you are determined to find redears - shellcrackers, stumpknockers, red-bellied bream, the heavyset Cadillacs of the panfish tribe - so you move to a new location.

After several moves, you finally locate the sweet spot, a grove of treetops where every fourth cast produces a snag but every third one produces a chunky redear. The Master Angler qualifiers remain elusive, but your cooler soon holds half a dozen specimens between 7 and 10 inches long. They are the makings of a feast.

9 a.m.

Another angler parks at the boat ramp and begins casting a top-water lure along the dam and the south side of the lake. He gets steady action from small bass, then a surprise. Rearing back at another strike he bends his light rod into a perfect rainbow shape. Instead of tail-walking like a typical bass, the fish bulldogs toward the bottom. After several powerful runs it tires, and the lucky angler slides a 7-pound catfish into shallow water. You give him a thumbs-up by way of congratulation.

As noon approaches, the redear action slows. The sun has reappeared, and a shower and air conditioning begin to sound pretty good. On the way home, you swing by another Conservation Department lake to check it out for your next trip. You can never have too many fishing spots.

Fishing trips like this one take place every day at the more than 600 conservation area lakes, community lakes and fishing accesses managed by the Missouri Department of Conservation. Most get only light use. Pick one far from the nearest town or highway, and you often can have it all to yourself. Below are some examples. For a complete list, use the Conservation Atlas Database, http://mdc4.mdc.mo.gov/applications/moatlas/AreaList.aspx?txtUserID=guest&txtAreaNm=s or get a copy of the print version, Missouri's Conservation Atlas. To order by mail, call toll-free (877) 521-8632, or write to The Nature Shop, P.O. Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102. You can also order online at www.mdcnatureshop.com/.

--Hartell Conservation Area (CA) east of Plattsburg in Clinton County has six impoundments of 2 to 5 acres with trophy bass and bluegill fishing and additional opportunities to catch redears, crappie and channel cats. This area is strictly for catch-and-release fishing with artificial lures. Foot access is extremely convenient, and a few boats are available for use at no charge.

--Bushwhacker Lake CA, (157 acres) in Vernon and Barton counties has abundant bass and exceptional bluegill and redear sunfish fishing. The daily limit on bluegill and redear is 15, including no more than five over 8 inches long.

--Hazel Hill Lake (72 acres) north of Warrensburg in Johnson County is easily fished from shore. It has very good fishing for crappie, bluegill and redear. Bass are abundant, and catfish commonly exceed 3 pounds.

--William E. Towell Lake (100 acres) on Little Prairie CA east of Rolla in Phelps County has lots of bass, with some up to 20 inches long. Bluegill and redear sunfish provide good action, too. Bass between 12 and 15 inches must be released immediately.

--Robert G. DeLaney Lake (102 acres) near Charleston in Mississippi County is a shallow Bootheel lake with lots of cypress trees. Crappie are abundant, and one out of every five is more than 9 inches long. Bass are not abundant, but more than one-third of them are longer than 15 inches. You might also boat a yellow bass (a cousin of the white bass), a bullhead or a bowfin. The entire shoreline is accessible to anglers on foot.

--Lake Girardeau (162 acres) west of Jackson in Cape Girardeau County has good numbers of bass. A few 8- to 10-pounders come out of this lake each year. Night-fishing for channel catfish is a favorite activity of local anglers. Master Angler-sized black crappie (over 15 inches) and redear sunfish (over 10 inches) are found here, too. This lake is easiest to fish by boat, but anglers on foot can reach about a quarter of the shoreline.

--Lake Showme (225 acres) in Scotland County has a strong population of bass over 15 niches (nearly 25 percent), lots of bluegills over 7 inches and redears over 8 inches. Crappie in the 9- to 11-inch range are commonly caught here. One unique feature at this lake is the presence of walleye, which are stocked by the city of Memphis. There is a daily limit of four and a minimum length limit of 18 inches on walleye, but nearly one-quarter of walleyes counted in a recent survey were 20 inches or longer. There are two boat ramps, a handicap-accessible fishing dock with a fish cleaning station, picnic areas and a shelter house. Camp sites with electric and water are available for $10 a night.

--LaBelle Lake (112 acres) in Lewis County has one of northeast Missouri's best bass populations. One in 20 of the lake's largemouths are 18 inches or longer. The lake has good bluegill, redear and black crappie numbers. Foot access is best on the lake's south side.

--Henry Sever Lake (162 acres) in Knox County has crappie ranging from 9 to 14 inches and quite a few redears over 9 inches. There are plenty of bass, but the real draw for adrenalin addicts is muskellunge, some of which top 40 inches. Small numbers of walleye measuring 2 to 5 pounds inhabit the lake, too. This lake has rental boats and gravel camping pads.

--Spanish Lake (33 acres) in St. Louis County has bass, bluegill, redears and white crappie. All are good-sized, with the bass ranging up to 16 inches, crappie in the 8- to 12-inch range and redears running 6 to 9 inches. Ninety percent of the shoreline is accessible on foot, and there are two handicap-accessible fishing docks.

--Fellows Lake (820 acres) north of Springfield in Green County has fair to good bass fishing, with one in five largemouth seen in recent samples at least 15 inches long. The lake also has muskellunge with one in four measuring at least 36 inches long. Channel catfish are abundant, while walleyes and crappie are present in fair numbers.

--Shawnee Trail CA south of Liberal in Barton County has 11 fishable ponds and lakes totaling 40 acres. Pin Oak Lake has the best bass fishing with some fish over 20 inches long. Channel catfish numbers are excellent in Pin Oak Lake, and bluegill and redear sunfish are fair. The ponds and strip mine pits around the area also have excellent fishing. Try pits 1 and 29 and ponds 36 and 37 for catfish, pits 4 and 7 and ponds 37 and 38 for bass, and pits 4 and 7 and ponds 32 and 38 for sunfish.

--Miller Lake (28 acres) east of Van Buren in Carter County is a pretty place to catch largemouth bass, channel catfish, bluegills and redears. Fish habitat has been enhanced with numerous humps in the bottom of the lake and by cutting trees around the lake's perimeter so they extend into the water. A trail provides foot access along the dam and much of the eastern and western shores.

--Proctor Park Lake (7 acres) in the Moniteau County town of California is loaded with 7- to 9-inch redears and great largemouth bass. It has a short trail and picnic facilities. Boating is not allowed here.

--Winegar Lake (8 acres) on Scirvner Road CA southeast of Russellville in Cole County has Master Angler-sized redear and good numbers of catfish, plus hybrid sunfish. One bonus here is grass carp. The best strategy for these hefty, hard-fighting fish is to bait them with feed corn for several days before fishing and then cast hooks baited with canned corn or cherry tomatoes into the baited area.

--Ben Branch Lake (44 acres) CA north of Linn in Osage County has good catfish numbers. A prime spot to catch them is the dam at the southeast end of the lake. There are some brush pile fish habitat structures where crappie hang out. The shallow upper end of the lake is a great place to catch bluegill on a flyrod. Shady spots around the parking lot near the center of the lake are perfect for bankfishing or picnicking.

--Rinquelin Trail Lake (29 acres) CA south of Vienna in Maries County has good numbers of catfish and bass, plus bluegill, redears and crappie. The north and east sides of the lake are easily accessible on foot, thanks to mowing around the dam and three large rock fishing jetties, one of which is handicap-accessible. You need a boat to fish the lake's south side effectively.

Only electric motors are allowed on most lakes managed by the Conservation Department. Camping is permitted at some but not all, and fishing regulations vary. Trotlines are not permitted at most small Conservation Department lakes. Be sure to stop at a parking lot bulletin board to read area rules.

When you leave, take worms, minnows, crayfish or other live bait with you. These often come from other states, and include invasive species that can hurt fish populations. They should be placed in double trash bags and sent to the landfill for disposal with other refuse.

-Jim Low-