Trout fishing season returns for some

Sunday, February 26, 2006

Wednesday, March 1, is a date many Missouri trout anglers have marked on their calendars for months. That's the day the four trout parks open for the season, and many fishermen call the day the unofficial opening of the fishing season in the state.

Opening day at the trout parks is not only an opportunity to catch and take home some rainbow trout, it's also a social time for many anglers, including Bill Williams, Kansas City, and Dave Massey, St. Louis.

This March 1 will be the 49th time this pair of trout anglers have met at Bennett Spring. According to Massey, these two unlikely anglers met for the first time back in 1957, when both men were in their 20s. "I had caught a three-pound rainbow and was having a photo taken when this guy came up with a fish that also weighed three pounds. The newspaper photographer took a photo of the two of us with our fish and we visited for a while and found we had a lot in common -- including a wife named Betty and two young children the same age. We went to breakfast and have been meeting at our favorite spot every opening day since," Massy said.

Williams said, "In all those years we still haven't caught a fish larger that those first three-pounders. We usually get our limit early and then catch up on what has been happening during the past year. We have seen our kids grow up and now both of us are grandparents. We have seen all kinds of weather on opening day from snow to temperatures in the 70s. Since next year will be our 50th opening day together, I guess we will have to do something special. It's been a great experience that I hope will continue for many more opening days."

The trout parks will have many other reunions as thousands of fishermen gather at the four trout parks Wednesday, and like Williams and Massey, there will be anglers who only see one another on this opening day of the unofficial fishing season in Missouri.

Of course, trout fishing goes on year-round in some streams in the state, but there's something special about opening day at the trout parks. Jack Dawson, Sedalia, has been catching trout all winter at Lake Taneycomo. "For more than 30 years I have had my best luck for catching big trout in Taneycomo during February. Several years ago I caught three fish that weighed more than five pounds each on February 22. Using a Little Cleo spoon, I caught four of the best trout I have ever taken within 15 minutes. I was fishing in a snowstorm and the fish were hitting on nearly every cast. It was great. I'll be at Roaring River for opening day, but my trout fishing gear never gets put away," he said.

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