MIDWESTERN MAINSTEM RIVERS When fishing a mainstem river, you'll
always catch something, but you're never sure what it will be.
Because of the tremendous importance of river transportation in
the 1800s, most large midwestern cities developed along the
banks of major waterways. Today, millions of anglers live within
easy driving distance of these rivers. A mainstem river could be
defined as the major river into which all other rivers and
streams in a given drainage system flow. As a rule, these rivers
share the following characteristics: - large size, usually
10,000 cubic feet per second or more. - murky water, especially
if located in farm country. - pattern of severe flooding and
dramatic changes in water level. - dams along their course, to
control floods and maintain water levels for navigation. - a
diverse fish population; fish can move into the river from a
large tributary network. Many of these rivers are still
important navigation routes, accommodating barges carrying
commodities such as grain, coal an