Illinois Smallmouth Alliance Web Forums: Norm M - Viewing Profile

Sunday Sept 19 at 9 AM at the mouth of Rock Creek in the Kankakee River State Park

Stream Monitoring Demonstration that is sheduled to be filmed as part of a documentary on the Kankakee River. Right now it looks like Mike Clifford, Zachary and myself. A couple more who have taken the class or are interested in learning about it would be nice.

If if comes down to helping Mike at the Hunting and Fishing event the following weekend or this, please choose the Hunting/Fishing event.

if anyone is interested the NIAA is hosting thier annual Kanlakee River cleanup on Saturday Sept 18. Zachary and I will be there representing the ISA and doing our best to take care of the 3 mile stretch of river the ISA adopted as part of the original Adopt A River program.
We will be at the concession stand between 8 and 830 am with a sign in sheet for ISA members. If you miss us please sign in as ISA members on the NIAA sign in sheet. Our stretch is Warner Bridge downstream for 3 miles which encompasses just about all of the state park from Warner Bridge downstream. However feel free to cover your favorite stretch.

The NIAA should have gloves, bags and patches and usually provides pop/water, chips and hot dogs to volunters.

I will have my standard load of bags/gloves that I carry all the time in my trunk.

If you can't make this see my next post about an opportunity on Sunday

edit to add it's at the Kankakee River State park

Also, once again if it comes down to this or the Hunting/Fishing event the following weekend please choose to help Mike with that one.

I ran into a guy the other day that was flyfishing channel edges. He was using an 8 weight rod with what looked to me to be a very large clouser with at least an 1/8 oz of weight and also using a sinking line. He was having continual problems with snagging up. When I asked if he could use a lighter weighted or non weighted fly and still get down with the sinking line, he just gave me a look of what did I know. Maybe it was just how he handled his gear be cause I thought he had too much slack line as well.

So I pose the question to those that should know, is it necessary to use a weighted fly and a sinking line to fish channel edges that are about 3 feet or so in the Kankakee River? I know it's not a question of deep import but more to satisfy my curiousity. It's not a knock at fly fisherman either because as far as I'm concerned he represented himself and not the rest of you.

BTW, I could fish those same channel edges quite handily with an 1/8 oz jig/pig.

cooler nights, shorter days, changes in flora/fauna. are you paying attention?

I fish rattlebaits a lot in a river and have always had issues with bringing all of them to hand after the initial hookset. I changed out factory hooks to premium hooks, played with different sized hooks, multiple hooksets on every fish, holding the rod away from the direction the fish was going and still about 30 to 35 percent would come unbuttoned during the fight. I never got really too upset about it because I was going to release them anyway. For the last week or so, I have been kirbing the hooks on my rattlebaits and now it's down to a fish or two a trip that come unbuttoned.

Well, that doesn't include airborne fish but I've never begrudged the fish that leap and throw the lure. Even after almost 40 years of chasing river fish, that still gives me a thrill to see fish come out of the water. Especially the ones that tailwalk across the surface.