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Snapped fishing pole starts off paddlefish season, but doesn't deter Springfield angler

With coronavirus swirling about, paddlefish angler Galen Martin of Springfield knows where he wants to be.

"I will self-quarantine myself on the river any day of the week," he said.

On Sunday — opening day of Missouri's paddlefish snagging season — Galen took his Ascend kayak and snagging fishing pole to the James River, below the dam at Lake Springfield.

He said the water was running fast and high, so he tied his kayak off to a tree and began casting a treble hook into the turbid, roiling water.