smallmouth

[lowe175]

I might be in St . Charles in may are there some good guides for smallmouth close by.i have never caught smallmouth and would like to give it a try but don't want to pull the boat that far. Any help would be great.

[goggle-eye]

Might try the Meramec River near Steelville. There is a regulated trophy smallmouth area nearby. It will be about 80 miles southwest of St. Charles. Several Canoe liveries in the area, one of them might be able to turn you on to a guide.

[Manny]

I would think if you venture that far, head to Table Rock lake.
A buddy of mine was catching them last week on bridge pillars about 60' deep.
And I'm sure there are plenty of guides there.

[south point]

closest to st. Charles the best shot at a nice smallie would be either the Meramec or gasconade river, and a really nice fish will be 2.5-3 lbs. but I have never heard of any professional guides.
there are also many Ozark streams with nice sized fish and canoe rentals are everywhere. the current river around Van Buren comes to mind here, the scenery will be great around may and wont be many partiers.
table rock is a sure bet for larger sized fish but 4+ hour drive for ya. maybe some of the Illinois lakes are good for smallmouth?

[peculiarmike]

If you are going that far south I'd say try Stockton Lake. It has great smallmouth fishing up toward the dam and there are several good guides available, try Stockton Lake Guide Service, Bob Bennett. He has a website.

And the Meramec River will not disappoint either.

[lowe175]

Thanks guys I'm not sure if I'll have to go just wanted to fish if I do make it up there.

[Wood]

Sad to think we here in Stl have to travel so far to catch smallies.

[jigflip]

Wow about Big River ? plenty​ smallie there

[Wood]

Not quite the same as door county but I guess it's better than. Nothing.