Photo by Ron Sinfelt

The popper settled quietly under the overhanging cypress tree next to the bank. I twitched it once; then, again. It disappeared in a small hole; I tightened the line. The little largemouth bass tail-walked on the surface to express its displeasure. We communicated, exchanging sweet nothings with one another via the fly line -- albeit briefly, as an even larger hole interrupted our conversation.

A big bass -- I guess it would have weighed more than 5 pounds -- grabbed the small bass, jumped once, and then headed for the base of a cypress tree in the little lake. The fight ended quickly when the big bass spit out the small bass, which was still attached to my fly. I landed the little bass, minus a few scales, and quickly released it.

Largemouth bass offer me my escape from the realities of work. When I need a break, I grab a fly rod and a box of poppers, throw my float-tube in the truck and head for the nearest community lake or a local farm pond. I know I'll have some action, and, within a couple of hours, my perspective returns.

MISSOURI'S LARGEMOUTH BASS FISHING WATERS
To fish for bass in Missouri, you don't need a large bass boat and a lot of expensive fishing equipment. A float-tube or small kick-boat opens up a world of Missouri bass-fishing opportunities. Add a casting rod or medium-action spinning rod, throw in some soft-plastic lures and a couple of crankbaits and you're in business. Or do as I do and grab your favorite fly rod and a handful of bass bugs.

C'mon! Let's go bass fishing!

Mark Twain Lake
Mark Twain Lake is an unusual beast. Its 18,000-plus surface-acres a little more than 100 miles northwest of St. Louis, the reservoir lies in east-central Missouri between the limestone hills of the Mississippi River Valley and the rich prairielands of northern Missouri. Because of the lake's location, its water benefits from rich inflows from the agricultural regions of north Missouri, which contribute to characteristically dingy, or muddy, conditions that persist for long periods in the spring. Mark Twain's geography also displays geo-physical contrasts from one lake arm to another, so fishing strategies likewise differ from one location to another.

Those conditions can be good and bad for bass fishing at Mark Twain. During the spring spawning period, dingy water isolates spawning largemouth bass and protects individual fish from angler harvest. Also, when the lake level is high, the water spreads into the buckbrush and other shrubs along the banks, improving spawning success. As a result, strong year-classes of largemouth bass drive the lake's bass population and, thus, angler success, especially for intermediate-sized and large bass.

MDC angler surveys find the lake's current bass population to be thriving thanks to a peak in spawning success five to six years ago. As a result, about three of every 10 bass in the Mark Twain Lake measure longer than 15 inches, and there are plenty of truly large bass to satisfy any basser.

Anglers can access Mark Twain Lake from numerous public parks and boat ramps maintained by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Other access points, generally unimproved, are workable for bank-fishing, or for launching small personal watercraft. Get your maps of Mark Twain Lake by writing to the Mark Twain Lake Project Office, R.R. 2, Box 20-A, Monroe City, MO 63456-9359. For additional information and a map of Mark Twain Lake, call the MDC at (573) 248-2430.