On Friday, Nov 3, 2018, Martin Jones and I (Jim Craig) headed for the Meramec River outside Maramec Spring Park. The day was perfect. The park was closed to fishing, so NO ONE was in the parking lot as we drove past the spring. We were excited to have the river to ourselves. Then, as we approached our usual spot at the back of the park, we saw that another guy was already there gearing up. That meant we weren’t going to be first on the river, and we weren’t going to have it to ourselves. (Yes, I know that is a little selfish, but isn’t that what we all wish each time we go?) As we approached this interloper’s car, he began to look a little familiar. Hey, it wasn’t an interloper; it was FATC member Bill Byington. He was waiting for us! While Martin and I started the day as the dynamic duo, we were now the three amigos. (Later that day it would evolve into the three stooges.) It was a great surprise to meet up with Bill for the day.
Now, we all know to check the gages for height and flow before we head to the river. Martin and I had been doing that all Thursday and then again early Friday morning before we hit the road. While the area had had some rain, the height was only 1.80’ and the flow was 271 CFS. Both were on the rise. Nevertheless, those numbers indicated that it was easily fishable and how fast could those numbers rise anyway? (We were about to find out. See the graphs in the pictures below.)
We crossed the river above the bend planning to wade from there down to Dry Creek. The first thing we noticed was that the Meramec was very murky. We could barely see the bottom at 2’. And, with the water a little higher, you had to know the exact path to cross the river, or you would end up in water too deep. We made the crossing just fine, and began fishing at the bend. We started nymphing with reliable flies–stoneflies, cerise worms, blue copper Johns, chocolate covered cherries, and egg patterns. This was going to be great. We even told ourselves that the higher flow and murky water could work in our favor because the fish would be aggressively feeding on dislodged prey, we could use heavier tippet, and the fish would be less spooky.
Jim got a brown in the first 30 minutes. We thought we were on to them. Then for approximately the next 90 minutes at the bend, the three of us got nothing. As we tried to wade down to the first riffles, we found it was too deep and the flow was uncomfortably strong. Not to be deterred, we set out to cross back above the bend, and take the bridge and path down to the first riffles. Following the same path across the river we had taken 2 hours earlier, the water had definitely risen. This crossing was distinctly more challenging.
We marched down to the first riffles and eagerly began our presentations. We fished the riffles thoroughly. But, the fish were not interested and it was getting really hard to hold our positions against the current. Jim tried to wade through the slow, wide section below the first riffles to get to the next bend. It was now too deep to wade, so he had to take the path until the river was shallow enough to reenter.
By 2 PM the river was flowing high and fast. It was impossible to control our presentations. Although we tried all the tricks and strategies we knew, we only netted two more browns. Knowing it was time to cut our losses, we hiked back to the cars. We all agreed, getting pizza really sounded like a much better idea than fishing the rest of the afternoon.
And it was. Missouri Pizza did not disappoint. Since we arrived late afternoon, between the lunch and dinner rush, the Owner, Bubba, took time to sit and visit. He is never at a loss for telling a good story. It was a fine ending to a challenging day.
So, how fast can the river height and flow rise? Let me tell you. We started the day with 1.8’ and 271 CFS; very reasonable. We then checked the charts while we waited for our pizza. The height had nearly doubled and the flow was up to 781 CFS. Yeah, wasn’t just our imagination. The river had become nearly unfishable and I am sure the trout were hunkered down tight to stay out of the increasing torrent.
Lessons learned:
- Beware of rising numbers,
- Know when to cut your losses, and
- Always fish with people who make you laugh, even when the fish aren’t biting.
We will be back…..
Looks like you did everything right by checking water levels and current speeds before you went fishing. But, this is a lesson about the Meramec river – it can change FAST. With the slow rain that we had two days prior to this trip all the “feeder streams” that connect into the Meramec river can raise the levels quickly without notice. If fishing the Meramec river be aware of surrounding conditions. These guys did the right thing – if things are changing rapidly – get off the water!! And yes, a pizza sounds better than fighting against Mother Nature.