Paul Trybul

West of Monroe center would be Kilbuck or Stillman Creek. Both are pretty small water in the summer when water levels are normal. Anything that's in the Rock River can swim up the creeks.

I did help my father get a treble hook out after a small thrashing northern pike got it lodged in his hand. It stuck in the fleshy part between the thumb and index finger. It wasn't really in a spot where it made sense to push it all the way through and cut it off. I was surprised how hard I had to pull and how far the skin stretched before it pulled free. It sure makes you think about going barbless.

I did check out the point 65 site. Leaking shouldn't be a problem since they are self bailing sit on tops. Each section is its own air filled chamber that snaps together. Now my only concern is bouncing into a mid-stream boulder and my kayak splitting in 1/2. I still don't think I could fit one in the trunk of my Honda Civic. If I could, it would be awesome for lunch break fishing or short trips after work without the need to stop at home and get geared up.

Interesting concept. I would worry about leaking.

If you are staying on Crooked, I wouldn't even worry about a water purification system. You don't have to portage to the campsite, so I would just bring several gallons of water. You can cook and clean with lake water as long as you boil it first. The water is pretty clean and clear up there although Crooked is the most fertile of the lakes. Loon lake is unbelievably clear. We usually end up going into town or taking showers 1/2 way through the trip and refill our water gallons then. Depending on how long you are staying, your son may appreciate a small break back to some form of civilization 1/2 way through the trip. Its not like Quetico or the Boundary waters where you could be days away from any roads or civilization.

It looks like a pretty nice solo watercraft to me. For a watercraft designed specifically for the fisherman I don't think you can do much better for the price. I would think the ability to stand up and fish would be a huge advantage for the flyfisherman. 63 pounds is pretty heavy if you have to portage it any kind of distance. I'd rather have a Old Town pack at 33 pounds if I had to portage a solo craft.

I'm not really a big fan of tournament fishing but I do respect KVD and what he has been able to acomplish. It doesn't matter if its catching smallmouth in the 3 rivers area of Pennsylvania or the Lousiana delta, he finds a way to come out on top. I'm definately not a Mike Iaconelli fan. I have my reasons but mainly because of the way he disrepectfully handles his fish.

The hearing impaired deserve to know the mystique behind the dancin eel too.

I was doing some online shopping and I came across this. I thought you might be interested since you used to sign the praises of its power. Look out of 60+ reviews it got 4 stars out of 5

We a drew a duck hunting blind out of Blandings landing one year. We went up during late summer to work on the blind and did some fishing afterwords. That area was mostly backwaters with largemouth bass, panfish and the ever present drum. Its been years but what I remember most about the Mississippi in northern IL is the IL side is mostly backwater largemouth/panfish fishing. Most of the good current, riprap, wingdam, smallmouth type habitat was on the Iowa side of the river. Tons of water with a lot of potential but other species seemed to be more prevalent than smallmouth bass. I hear the upper Mississippi is outstanding smallmouth water but I've never fished it up in Minnesota.

I'm pretty sure the Galena river runs through Galena not the Apple river. I would say no to a bass boat on either river. There are large sections of both rivers that are barely or not navigable by canoe or kayak during low summer flows. There is a Lake Galena that would accomodate a bass boat but it is private so you would have to know someone. Pretty much the same deal with 90% of the Apple or Galena rivers too.

There is a good chance I can help you out either Saturday or Sunday. Where is the show located this year?

From a smallmouth perspective that is a like a boulder field of dreams. If you build it, they will come. Terry that is very nice the way you have documented this with vidoes and before and after photos.

It looks like the perfect watercraft for a stream smallmouth chaser.

For all of you bird watchers and photographers, I have a closer to to Chicagoland lead. I've been traveling between Rockford & Dixon lately along Rt 2 which runs parallel to the Rock River. Most of the River is frozen but in the open areas I have spotted many bald eagles and other large birds of prey. The other ones are proabably immature bald eagles. The main locations have been the hot water discharge between Byron and Oregon, below the Oregon dam and below the Dixon dam or the trees just downstream of the Dixon High School. There is no way to get close to the ones by the discharge. Your best photo opportunites would be off of the sidewalk on the Rt64 bridge in Oregon, IL. 90% of the time I drive by I see one perched in the trees on the islands near the the rt64 bridge. Don't sue me for gas money if you drive out and don't see any but you definately have a good chance right now.

That's one of the great things about smallmouth bass fishing. They are such an opportunistic predator that can be caught on a wide variety of baits. My all time favorites are: chug bug, lucky craft pointer, senko style stick baits, yum crawbugs, chompers hula grubs, and berkley powerleeches. At one time or another all 6 of these lures have produces special days when other lures couldn't come close.

I will be there. I'll even buy some pizza for you guys.

That is a pretty good price considering the accessories. If it was a SOT I'd be all over it plus I already have an underutilized floatilla in my crowded garages.

Thank you for the tips. I'll pick up a sammy 100 and join the party. I did find last year at times a smaller topwater outproduced bigger topwaters. It probably had more to do with the forage size/profile on the lake I was fishing. Since I am going back to that lake in 2011, I wouldn't mind having a sammy 65 or 2 in my arsinal. Jonn, If you bring 2 used sammy 65's to the blowout, I'll buy them from you.

This is the time of year I go through my fishing tackle, inventory what I have, and think about restocking for next year. I was thumbing through Bass Pro's 2011 Master catalog and checking out the Lucky Craft line of hardbaits. I will sing praises for the Lucky Craft Pointer as the best suspending jerkbait I've ever used. At the prices they charge, they better be good. I can see the value in spending more money on a premium suspending lure because good ones are finely tuned suspending perfectly horizontal right out of the box. Cheap suspending jerkbaits tend to float or sink slightly or don't run true at higher speeds. I'm sure the Lucky craft rattletraps and crankbaits are good but how much better can they be than cheaper alternatives? The lure I have my eye on is the Sammy. I tried some walk the dog action with a Heddon super spook Jr. I found it to be a leaf magnet and had trouble getting it to run true. If I invest in a Lucky Craft Sammy, would it help a beginning walk the dog angler get the hang of it? If it is anything like the pointer it should run true right out of the box. Any tips on sizes and colors? The 2.5" size or 3.25" size should be perfect for smallmouth. No other manufacturer seemed to make a walk the dog style topwater less then 3.5".

I didn't think there was anything wrong with the original wood launch that was there for years.

I have to give the ISA and more specifically Jonn Graham credit for my introduction to the suspending jerkbait. I want to say Jonn spoke glowingly about the power of jerkabaits at an ISA blowout along with f&f and other cold water smallie techniques. Jonn even helped me pick out my favorite color and size which is the chartruse shad for the Lucky craft pointer 65. For x-raps I like olive green. It's not just for smallies. I've put a spanking on the lazy green bass in the spring on suspending jerkbaits, along with crappie, white bass, and pike. Pike waters and lucky craft pointers are not a good mix. Things can get expensive fast. Other jerkbaits work but the lucky craft is finely tuned with near perfect horizontal balance during the pause. For $15 a pop they better be good. If you think about it though, how many dozens of minnow or packs of plastic would I have had to buy to catch all of the fish I caught on one lucky craft before it fell victim to a toothy critter. Probably well over $15. All that said it would not be my choice for "if you had only one lure what would you choose" but it definately has a place in my arsenal. The thing I learned or at least stood out to me more this year is: If you want to catch more fish, you have to fish where the fish are. It seems simple but this year out of around 120 days of some fishing, more than 1/2 of my fish caught came during 9 of those 120 days.

I've kept a fishing log for 10 years now. I find it to be very helpful. It is also enjoyable to go back during the winter and look back through it. It brings back a lot of good memories. Yes good memories of consistent 20-30 smallmouth days on the Kish. Unfortunately distant memories. I could go back and look but I think there was only 2 of those in 2010 on the Kish for me. It has helped me develope patterns and techniques based on time of year, water levels, and temperatures. Most importantly it helped me accumulate trial and error information that helps put me in the right place at the right time with the right pattern. It's still fishing so all this information does not guarantee success. I'm just trying to put some odds in my favor. Rivers change, silt scours from one area and deposits in a new one. A good tree gets washed away while a new one falls in a different prime area. Sometimes its just as simple reminder of I haven't fished that spot or that river in a while. I did pretty good there a few years back around this time of the year. There is a downside. My significant other uses it as exhibit A on how I'm a fishaholic and I need more balance in my life. I don't ice fish so I figure it all balances out after winter.

Could we have hijacked a thread off topic as much as this one? I'm glad you guys are having fun with it. I actually find mushroom hunting to be a very enjoyable outdoor experience. It's a little bit like being a blue liner in the joy of discovery and what lies behind that next tree. I should leave a disclaimer though. My opinion on mushroom identification based on your photos are not 100% and should be consumed at your own risk. Eating wild mushroom does come with risk of poisoning and you should do your homework and use sober judgement. We don't want anyone taking the long dirt nap like the late Jim J.