Just before the 2025 Labor Day weekend, I, Al Harper, joined Denny Garner and Ryan Young in his comfortable inflatable drift boat for a 7.2-mile excursion down a beautiful stretch of the Meramec River.  To his credit, Ryan diligently floated and fished various rivers throughout sultry, and at times, almost insufferable summer weather. But now, late in August we finally enjoyed milder and less humid temps and glorious mild sunshine. 

However, because of a lack recent rain, we also had to contend with low flow and clear water.  Which meant bass got a more advantageous view of our flys and of our watercraft as we approached their territory.  This translated to the need to make longer casts and add some creative animation to streamers we used. 

Getting successful hooksets after quick and sometimes tentative strikes was a challenge throughout the day. I was reminded of a fishing guide out west who dealt with novice anglers all summer.  He finally hit upon an effective technique to help his clients understand the principle of setting the hook. After rigging up a rod the guide would have the prospective fisherman place the fly in the palm of his hand and lightly close his fingers around it. “Now,” the guide would say as he held the tippet, “Are you hooked?” Of course, the client would say “No, but the fly is sitting in my hand.”  Then the guide would ask “What if I suddenly jerked on this line?” The client would usually instinctively open his hand very quickly providing a great demonstration of the benefits of a tight line and a vigorous hook set. 

During our float, bass struck lightning fast out of nowhere, their perfect camouflage working to their advantage.  Slack in a line or a moment’s hesitation and the bass released the fly as quickly as the guide’s client who wasn’t keen to have a hook embedded in their hand.  

Denny and I secured hooksets on some bass, and a few fearless goggle-eye and panfish too.  Steamers that were light in color seemed to get the best results when worked correctly. 

Ryan maneuvered us through a river often clogged with a summer’s worth of obstructions and shallow shoals while reading spots with color changes or a rocky bottom that might harbor bass. 

At one point a deer born only months ago kept pace with us along the riverbank for about a quarter mile nonchalantly munching on tree buds or aquatic grasses along the way.  

The float was a nice culmination to our summer and a hopeful entree to more fall fishing as well.