The Bass Pro Shops Big Cat Quest Tournament scheduled for Saturday in Memphis has been postponed due to dangerous water conditions on the Mississippi River.

I just spoke with tournament director Ken Freeman, and he said the large chunks of floating debris on the river were the main reason he elected to call off the event.

“We’ve heard reports of trees floating on the river that are half as big as a car,” Freeman said. “Those are dangerous conditions, especially when you have anglers coming from out of town who may not know the river very well.”

The Mississippi River was at minus-1.3 feet on the Memphis gauge earlier this week, but the river is expected to jump to 10.9 feet by Saturday due to recent heavy rains in Illinois.

Such an influx of water almost always brings heavy debris donstream, making the river unsafe for boaters.

It’s often the stuff you can’t see - the debris floating just beneath the surface - that causes the most trouble.

“A lot of people called us and said they really wanted to fish,” Freeman said. “But some of them were coming in smaller boats, and they just didn’t feel comfortable about the situation.

“The Mississippi River can be a scary place even when everything’s normal. Under these conditions, it’s really not safe for anyone.”

Though a new date has not been firmly set, Freeman said Oct. 11 is a possibility.

Visit the Big Cat Quest web site for scheduling updates.