Eric

Nice job all. Did anyone fish / catch afterward?

Stripping ladder.

What missing fishing reports? Ain't nobody not fishin!

And to think, just a few years ago was such a severe drought with crop damage, aquifer depletion, etc. Remember when there was talk about not fishing for bass because it would stress them out too much in the heat and low oxygen? It sure has come full circle! My lawn has never looked better in July! But the mosquitos are enough to keep you indoors.

Tragic. Sorry to hear it.

Great fish Rob. Congrats!

Was nice to meet up. After breakfast, Brent and I went north to try for smallies from shore. I caught a foot-long smallie on a pearl jig 'n twister at our first spot. Second spot we didn't even get started yet when Brent tripped and skinned both knees and one arm. We headed home and it was nurse mom to the rescue. After a few hours recovery we headed to the forest preserve lake to check on the ISA armada. I could not believe the amount of watercraft out on the lake! Have never seen it so busy. We tossed a popper and a buzzbait from shore for about 15 minutes in the blazing sun. Caught one small largemouth on the buzzbait along a weed edge and then headed to Geneva for the Swedish Days carnival. Stopped at the Fox once more on the way home and tried two good urban spots. Struck out at the first trying the buzzbait and swim jig. Second spot was just the ending I needed. Dunked the pearl jig 'n twister and got bit immediately. Big smallie just waiting in a swirling eddy behind a piling. Taped a hair under 19". Called it a day. USGS 12.37' / 3,050 CFS Was gonna kayak and try for pike on Sunday but the Saturday evening deluge sure screwed up that plan!

I'll be there for eats with Brent.

I have a feeling with all the rain, the river won't be in great shape for paddling. Just the same, I plan on drowning in the flow of some syrupy pancakes... Plus, there's always room for the Mimic Minnow.

I'm in for 7 AM breakfast + fishin' of some sort. It's a good excuse to get out of the house and let the wife sleep in on a Saturday. Will bring one or both of my sons.

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Signed it.

Beautiful.

FYI, the city of Batavia has added large concrete barriers over the launch near the skate park / Clark Island, presumably to help divert high water away from flooding the nearby baseball field. You can still launch near there if you carry your craft across the footbridge and launch off the south end of Clark Island. IMHO the chutes in that stretch are conducive to wade-fishing but a bit too swift for successful float-fishing. Think a better plan is to launch above the NA dam and paddle upstream and pick apart the wide pool all the way up to where it bends mid-way through Les Arends Forest Preserve. Smallmouth hangouts will become evident 10-15 minutes north of your launch and you can simply float back downstream when done and takeout at the same spot. A much more manageable paddle with no car drop-off required. Many "Point A to Point B" downstream floats become more about sight-seeing and exploring than actually fishing, whereas an upstream paddle slows you down and let's you concentrate. You've also got an added bonus of being near Harner's for some breakfast or coffee and donuts beforehand.

Paul wasn't your latest Wisconsin trip with Scott tops-optional as well? Sorry, could not resist!

Go to the following link for a downloadable PDF of our February-March 2014 issue to get a feel for what Bronzeback Magazine is like: http://illinoissmallmouthalliance.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=11485

It's fun to see an issue in full color. Thanks to all who contributed and who support us!

Yep, Norm is spot-on. It was me and two other cars in the lot. Was my first time there and was waiting for Mark K. to show up. I think the guy was just pissed because I was a young kid in a brand new sports car. I was minding my own business, not bothering anyone. The guy was just a tool. I've been to a few ranges myself and know a bit about gun safety. Don't think this guy knew much.

Those were from the Jake Wolf Memorial Fish Hatchery in Topeka, IL.

My first time fishing the K3 near I-55, someone from the shooting range "politely" walked over and asked me to move my car to another area -- with his loaded gun in hand. Ran into a guy walking the banks with his rifle, hunting out of season on the Kish. Ran into a group of drunks firing off their guns along the Kish. Ran into a guy in full camo bow hunting within a forest preserve along the Kish. All on the south branch. "Sportsmen." He, he.

I think as long as you access publicly / park legally and float the river you should be OK. I have friends that live on the Mazon and they've let me access via their property. We've floated and fished several miles in either direction and it was fine. People just gave us a friendly wave as we passed through. I did have my wife and kids with me, maybe that made a difference versus me and a buddy looking like "serious fishermen." But all worked out OK. People along the river are generally friendly if you appear respectful. On any body of water there's always the chance of running across that one jerk homeowner (or group of drunk locals) that think they own the place and give it a bad name. Don't engage and just keep moving. This advice is only based on experience, not law. Your mileage may vary.

Fish low-light conditions, i.e., morning and evening, overcast, or any in combination with wind/waves. Be stealth. Make long casts. Be patient. As this year's fry mature, the adults will move in and herd them out over open water. Keep an eye out for mid-lake feeding frenzies. Take advantage of them. You'll often find only medium-sized bass, but the action can be great. My best quarry fishing has been on cloudy days with a Senko deep along the quarry wall. Patience. They are often deeper than you think.

The pic reminds me of "The Oslo" lure for rainbows / salmon on Lake Mich, but that has a treble hook.

Nice planning Terry! Good fishing all!

With the late start to the season due to the long winter, don't forget to get a new watercraft sticker. The 2013 sticker expired. Your boat has to show a 2014 sticker. I got caught off guard Memorial Day weekend. It was the first time I took the kayak out this year and I thought "oh crap, my sticker expired!" I thought it was good for a few years but nope, I was wrong. Luckily Gander Mountain was open and I renewed it on the way to the river.