Kevin Dells

Thanks Gary, good to be back. Now about this target i have on my back as the rainmaker!! After talking to paul this past week it seem's in my defense of course that the past two years the Kish has seen some record floods and very unfishable conditions,Um i was 1000 miles south of the Kish and experiencing high drought conditions where i was! Could it be i planned the events and maybe other visitors or guides brought it with them?? Could it possibly have been Paul working against me to make me look bad by bringing rain in droves? Paul does hold my old ISA title as Northwest Coordinator maybe a plan to overthrow my once title? Either way i still catch bigger smallies then he does...hehehehehe! Then again he now has better hair then i do!!! Besides this season i pledge i will bring bigger and better things to the table then silly old rain, im bringing Tornado's, Microbursts galore and a possible typhoon! Batten down the hatches!

Survey's and Polls are all based on opinions, who's the best is often swayed by what city or group offers up the most money's for getting their names highest on the list. Iv'e worked Haunted Attractions now for the past ten years as a secondary hobby/income and it's funny that there are multitudes of lists of Haunted Attraction across america. Every list different every list claiming "Were the best" just for the sole fact that they can print that on websites and advertising and draw bigger crowds next year. All the while people know there can't be 25 "#1 Best Haunts in America" yet they still buy into the one their visiting as the absolute best when they go in, as they come out it's a whole different story, either way that attraction now has their non refundable money!

People keep saying things like how they think it's miserable here but i just don't see it. Maybe because it's where i grew up my whole life, who knows? I just know i hated other places a lot worse and i tried a few places down south, they all seemed the same.

Another month Rich then it's time to bust some lips topside! Good to be back man!

Funny....Very Funny!!!! LMAO

Jude sunday moring with Paul is great, consider me there!

Mike, Yeah Rockford and the Kish were my home for most of my life. Guys around the ISA know my passion for conservation in our area, it's almost more important to me then the fishing. I will say this about the northwest rivers at least, after living in North Carolina for three years i came to the realization that Illinois is a much cleaner place to live and enjoy. Down there the country is beautiful with it's rolling hills and mountains,many different species of tree's, rocky area's it's almost if i was to compare to the Upper Penninsula of Michigan and Wisconsin. BUT the amounts of garbage everywhere just spoils the whole thing,I have never seen a more pigged up state with the trash and roadside dumping it's everywhere. So maybe now iv'e seen how the other half live im really going to be conservation bandwaggoning.To get straight to the point though, these things listed above we pushed for and fought for diligently for years and years it just makes me a bit crazy when i read somebody thinks this is all brand new, their thought to begin with, and their just going to change it no problem. Perhaps we'll bump into each other on the water or at a meeting Mike.I'll be the guy carrying no fish and a full garbage bag!

Terry, As Paul stated the area near Distillery was really an eyesoar when i first saw it and i as well questioned if it was done right in the beggining. You did he right thing by bringing it to attention. As stewards of our home waters always question something. Im back in the area now(had moved to NC for a few years) it would be nice to get some Northwest guys together soon for coffee, it seems there's a lot going on riverwise in our area.Maybe a few of us ould find a conservation meeting in the near future to sit in on and get us all up to speed. Kevin

I have yet to re apply and send my membership money into be an ISA member again (and i will as soon as i find work only been in town a week) and even though i reside in wisconsin the Kish will still be my Home river i would love to vollunteer for anytime you need me. Iv'e worked the booth and done fishing show seminars in the past, just let me know im there.

Seems im not even back a week and already my bloods boiling over conservation issue's. Here's why...numerically of course 1. Iv'e been reading the threads about the mega cow farm being built on the Apple, iv'e read through everything everyone's written and i agree with all of you!Sounds like any fight we might have against such farmer has been laughed at by the courts and governments! 2. Why is it such a simple man as myself can see that in the county and county's surrounding the Apple River (via any mapping website!) there are thousands of acres of flat land nowhere near that river system that could be bought for a cow plant. Hence no poop floating where i fish! 3. For years guys like myself, Paul Trybul, Rich McElgott, Brian O'Kelley, Jude and many others who fish the kish,kyte and rivers nearby attend so many meetings to try and keep building of homes along the Kishwaukee Banks knowing it would spoil the quailty and asthetic values of the Kishwaukee. 4. Jeez i remember countless nights at my computer and on the phone with the EPA about how a builder right down the road from my old house had ton's of garbage blowing into the river all the time!A Green Friendly Builder as the article read in the Rockford register star! RIGHT! So today i stop and pick up the Rock River Times a small free newspaper they give out at gas stations and low and behold i read this article just tonight. (article below) PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO THE FIFTH DISCUSSION TO BE DISCUSSED!! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Editorial: A vision, a challenge, a proposal…The Rock River Trail: hike it, bike it, kayak it, canoe it! Counties and some cities of the Rock River (counties in white, cities in red and Rock River watershed in blue). By Frank Schier Editor and Publisher Ready for a hike, a little bike riding? How about some boating the old-fashion style with a paddle and even some camping gear?! You can hike the Appalachian or Pacific Coast trails. Rock River native Tom Bauschke did and wrote about each journey in this paper. Lets blaze a new trail on land and water! The Rock River Trail: Hike it, bike it, kayak it, canoe it! Imagine traveling down from just under Lake Winnebago to the Mississippi River on or along the 287 miles of the Rock River, through 10 counties and 33 cities and villages. You could visit what was once the largest man-made sea in the country, the Horicon Marsh, camp in six state parks, float around three lakes and see two pyramidsnot counting the one thats supposed to be at the bottom of Lake Mills! By the way, theres at least 48 creeks to explore off the river, too. Along the Rock River in Winnebago and Ogle County alone, you could enjoy three state parks, 11 forest preserves, 14 prairies and 15 creeks. Just think of the huge inventory of natural areas and municipal and county parks in the 10 counties graced by the Rock River in Wisconsin and Illinois! Each county has a forest preserve district, and the major municipalities all have park districts. Talk about tourism! Every chamber of commerce, convention and visitors bureau, hotel-motel and restaurant association should be thrilled with a Rock River Trail for hiking, biking and boating. The states of Wisconsin and Illinois both have their state park systems and department of natural resources to help with such a project. Of course, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers would have to be included because the Rock River is an international waterway, being a tributary to the Mississippi River, which feeds into the Gulf of Mexico. Just so happens that this writer is a board member of Illinois Renewable Energy Association (IREA). I pitched this idea to our leaders there, Drs. Bob and Sonia Vogl, and they liked it. We had been wanting to have a Winter/Spring Meeting of the IREA for some time to complement the Renewable Energy Fair, Aug. 7 and 8, 2010, at the Ogle County Fairgrounds in Oregon, Ill. See you on April 26 → You are invited to the Winter/Spring Meeting of the IREA, April 16-17, 2010, at Clock Tower Resort and Conference Center, right here in Rockford. The Friday, April 16, Morning Session, 9 a.m.-noon, will be Creating The Rock River Trail: hike it, bike it, canoe it, kayak it, in a similar style to that of the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail and the Appalachian National Scenic Trail. Yes, the 287 miles of the main stream of the Rock River runs through 10 beautiful counties in Wisconsin and Illinois. Heartlanders, come to help create our own scenic water and land trail to preserve, protect and promote our sometimes wild, always pastoral and historic river, with its many significant environmental and cultural treasures. In this struggling economy, lets bring some eco-tourism to our economies. Points of discussion will include: → Existing inventory of campsites and assessment of county greenways plans for expansion of the campsite network. → Local, county and state promotional resources for existing and future assets. → The Rock River Sweep clean-up of the entire Rock River July 31, 2010. → How we can support the Clean Water Act and set up a system of pollution monitors on the Rock River, rated the most polluted major river in Illinois. → The preservation of farmland and wetlands, as well as the prevention of flooding through the sale of agricultural land credits or purchase of agricultural easements to contain urban sprawl, as well as a program to promote adoption of strong Conservation Design Ordinances on the local and county levels along the entire Rock River. → Returning smaller tributaries and the larger streams to their original state, with the possibility of restoring and expanding wetlands. → High school science class/professional design competition for most powerful micro-hydro, shore-station generators and storage systems to be awarded at the Winnebago County Green Business Awards this fall. → The Friday, April 16, Afternoon Session, 1-5 p.m., Show Me The Green: Green practices for small businesses. Rick Brooks, Outreach Program Manager for Professional Development & Applied Studies at UW-Madison, will present an operative workshop on how small enterprises can build on the local advantage by creating community networks of sustainable, independent businesses. Limited seating. More on this part of the program will be appearing in upcoming articles. → Saturday, April 17, weather and water permitting, well canoe the Rock River from Oregon to Lowell Park from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Starting below Oregons dam, paddle to scenic Castle Rock State Park (1.5 hours, $35), or to Grand Detour, the home of John Deere (3 to 4 hours, $50) kayaks, canoes, paddles and life preservers provided, or bring your own kayak or canoe for free! May be canceled because of extreme weather or river conditions. Rain site CoCo Key Water Resort. For reservations and inquiries on both days events, click on Contact Us at www.illinoisrenew.org. Deadline April 10. The April 16 meeting is sponsored by: The Rock River Times, Friends of the Rock River, Rockford River District Association, Native American Awareness Committee, Winnebago County Green Business Awards, Rock River Sweep and The Best Western Clock Tower Resort & CoCo Key Water Resort, 7801 E. State St., Rockford, IL 61108, (815) 398-6000 Toll Free: 1-800-358-7666, e-mail: dwight.hopfauf@clocktowerresort.com. You may purchase meals at resort or local restaurants. Single or double rooms available for $89 each at the Clock Tower Resort & CoCo Key Water Resort. Yes, we can build the Rock River Trail, and many will be surprised how much of it already exists! We just have to market what we have. E-mail frank.schier@rockrivertimes.com if you would like to volunteer to help with the April 16 meeting at the Clock Tower Resort. Counties the Rock River runs through: Fond du Lac, Dodge, Jefferson, Rock, Winnebago, Ogle, Lee, Whitside, Henry and Rock Falls Cities and villages along or near the Rock River, Wisconsin: Waupun, Mayville, Horicon, Hustisford, Watertown, Jefferson, Fort Atkinson, Edgerton, Indianford, Janesville, Afton, and Beloit. Illinois: South Beloit, Rockton, Roscoe, Machesney Park, Loves Park, Rockford, Byron, Oregon, Grand Detour, Dixon, Rock Falls, Sterling, Lyndon, Prophetstown, Erie, Hillsdale, Joslin, Moline, Coal Valley, Milan, and Rock Island. Major tributaries of the Rock River Crawfish River, Bark River, Yahara River (Four lakes of Madison), Sugar River, Pecatonica River, Kishwaukee River, Leaf River, Kyte River, Green River, Hennepin Canal and 48 creeks. Parks and natural areas on or near the river, a partial listing, with a focus on Winnebago and Ogle counties: Horican Marsh, Sinnissippi Lake, Aztalan State Park, Lake Mills, Lake Koshkonong, J. Norman Jensen Preserve, Nygren Wetland Preserve, Millrace Isle Preserve, MackTown Forest Preserve, Hononegah Forest Preserve, Atwood Forest Preserve, Sportscore I, Forest Preserve Headquarters, Rock River Bike Path, Beattie Park and Indian Mounds, Davis Park, Blackhawk Park, Klehm Arboretum, Bell Bowl Prairie, Hinchliff Preserve, Indian Hill Forest Preserve, Fuller Preserve, Severson Dells, Jarrett Prairie Nature Preserve, Babson Hollow, Bryon Dragway Prairie, Stronghold Hill Prairie, Lowden State Park, White Pines State Park, Castle Rock State Park, Lowden Miller Forest, Rock River Yellow Birch Stand, Nachusa Grasslands, Sinnissippi Farms, Prophetstown State Park, Big Bend State Fish and Wildlife Area, and Mississippi River. From the Feb. 24-Mar. 2, 2010 issue --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- So why is it that Officials think the the dirtiest most polluted river and it's tributarys in Illinois deserves this renovation yet the same officials will let a mega cow farm be built right next to one of Illinois's smallest Class "A" streams in Illinois? This is great news and im all happy that they are proposing this for the Rock but it's kinda late isn't it? 1.Theres already factory's all along the rock that have for years been dumping pollution in it. 2.Why didn't they think about the Kish and Rock BEFORE they approved all the housing to be put up. 3.Why are they contridicting themselves constantly by their actions and allowing Factory's, housing, and Mega Farms to be built along rivers to begin with?? This article claims they want to make the Rock a "Wild and Schenic River" there are guidelines for such status and any of the above knocks it out of qualification. Perhaps this meeting would be good to attend and perhaps maybe when the happy guy announcing his brainchild dreams of turning the "Most Polluted" into a pristine with HUGE amounts of work and funding somebody could ask brainchild why not stop the "Best" in Illinois from being destroyed with very little effort...A no from the courts to grant permits to build mega poop farms. In my mind that would be a great start!

These posts are awesome,Glad you guys kept me in rememberance! The big question i have is who would i now hire as a guide in that area (Kish or Apple) if i needed a guide which i will this spring.... Yeah were moving back home see y'all soon!! P.S. Their kicking me out of North Carolina due to flooding problems...Yeah their blaming ME!LMAO

Yeah but one of them is moving back, his time might be limited more but there's a possibility i could help a bit::Talking as if im a third person: Yeah were headed home the south has been brutal on us...Can't wait until i get a smallie on my line. Should be back in the area by ice out.

By the way i know i mentioned in my first posting that im not that thrilled by the big ugly green fish of the south. I have a little short story that happened to me just last night, thought i would share. I got home from work last night about 4:30 and it had finally rained down here all day torrential all day downpours! Cooled off to about 85 after dinner and the lake looked higher. So i hopped in the yak and headed out until sundown thinking of targeting bluegills or as they call them down here "Bream"! The monster Crappie have been turning up one at a time too. The bluegills i would have to guess at 9-10 inches, big big bluegills! And the Crappie are an easy 12"s plus. Every night before sundown for a half an hour im midlake and i have boils all around me. I took the flyrod out last night but as the rainclouds were blowing away so was my kayak. I paddled to the non windy shoreline to fish instead. I was fishing the huge lilypad beds we have everywhere and kept getting very subtle small blurps from bluegills trying to suck in my foam bug i was casting the the lilpad edge. They were there but not in attack mode, just kept small slurping. There was one that had followed the bug about 3 feet out from the lilypads missing it over and over, i stopped twitching to give him a better attempt at catching it. I reached down to grab a drink of water and i swear i had a explosion hit both the bluegill and foam popper that had to be a good four foot around. Almost like a small musky or pike explosion it was that big! Truth is there are NO musky or pike in my lakes! I missed it because i was (drinking water!) but i did set the hook just enough to feel the weight for a second. It had to be one very big bass! Neighbors swear they have caught and released 8 pound plus bass in our lakes. So even though it's just a ugly green fish i know now that im on a quest for a Monster bass, i know where he lives and im going to catch him sooner or later! Game on!

Guys you know me and how i used to so anal retendant about everything that wen't on with the kish, may i suggest becoming very anal retendant and put pressure on anyone and everybody that might be able to help you get the answers you need. I would personally start with a letter to the Rockford Register Star asking and stating how dissappointed you are with the whole situation. If Doug Goodmans still there write him personally maybe he would run the add in the sports/fishing section. Book the Gander Mountain room and hold a Fish Kill meeting thats open to the public, do a power point presentation and show people what you saw with the pictures and footage. I Hate to say it but get people fired up about what happened. Send him links to pictures or video of the fish kills. Rich you know Dan Sallee pretty well can't you really lean on him for answers in whats going to be done? Maybe prod him as to wether the state will help restock once the waters been o.k'ed to restock. Seriously start photographing everything thats even remotely connected and send the pictures and hopefully if printed articles. I would assume one of you is writing a in depth report for the Bronzeback Bulletin and even maybe send the article as well to the Outdoor notebook as well. Get word out and the people to back you and bring it to the needed people attention. Hate to say it but nows the time to be writing your congressmen bitching! Show up to the Forest Preserve meetings and make sure the subjects well brought up! That train company is very liable for what happened especially if they knew the tracks were washed out before the accident occurred and nobody passed the message, deaths occured both human and auquarian. Let me ask this question, is the water safe to be in? swimmers,canoeist, fishermen,so on? Or have they shut down the stretches effected? Is it still being contained and looked after? And Lastly and Paul you probably would know this best, did it effect the Kish or was it on the Rock River only? It would kill me to know the waters i learned to fish on were gone for years to come, so many memory's!! Before the Kish i don't even think i knew what a smallmouth was! By the time i moved down south I had become a very accomplished fisherman, learned miles and miles of river bottom and had caught thousands of smallies and even quite a few incredibly sized fish at that! Yeah reading all this tears my heart out keep it an important issue guys and ride some butts until it's fixed!

Just want to start out my reply by Hello All !! Been awhile but thought i would stop in and say hey to all the old freinds in the northland. Now i have been reading this and it seems you guys are facing some huge problems with the flooding and spills, im very sorry to hear this. It's funny but it was my daydreaming this morning of days gone by fishing the Kish and other spots in Illinois that lead me back here to see what was going on with you guys. I have to admit that my fishing down south is nowhere near the good times i had in Illinois. I remember thinking when i lived there that fishing wasn't that great but thats not the case trust me. The rivers down here, very dangerous with the reptiles so im lake locked instead. And OHHHHHH how i miss the feeling of a smallie on my line! The big green ugly fish is just that, a big ugly green boring lump on the end of your line! I am living in a place where we have 4 small lakes out my back door, but the fishing is not that good. The bass are at best 12 inches with a two to three pounder every once in a great moon, the bluegill and crappie are huge but you only get a couple a day at best on artificial lures. live bait is a 40 minute drive away. Bucket fisherman that do sneak in seem to be cleaning our lakes out, so now a days im playing cop more then fishing OR im trying to fix the major problems that we have on our lake my house backs up too...BEAVERS! Big ,Big , destructive beavers that are just literally thrashing the lake. We also have major drought going on so our lake levels are down 2 feet, so send some of that rain my way! PLEASE!! Anyhow guys wanted to say Hi, and please from a guy that used to fight all the time for the Kish's betterment please keep fighting hard to get things back to normal, show the concern where needed, attend the meetings, voice your opinions, and ride the butts of the people that need ridden to keep cleaning up the problems and get things back to normal and laws changed to fix them! You don't realize just how great a resource you have there until it's gone! As i may not drop in to often if you feel like staying in touch you can also e-mail me as well. kdells123456@yahoo.com

Kids+rivers= Great Times! Make sure as a Dad you never forget that equation!

Ed B. I talked to a CPO on the way out myself, he said the army practices manuvers all the time in the canyon for a few reasons,one is flying below the radar and a canyon serves just that purpose, as well as hiding the sound inside the canyon. He was taking off and just about landing right on the surface practing for rappelling manuvers of the troops. Made sense to me but they should post a sign letting you know this!

I was thinking of that exact post Scott from a few years ago when this happened today, and yes it was very cool to see and witness something with such force so close! Tell you what i would NEVER want to go to battle with the US and some of it's warships! The way the sound bounced off the shoreline and canyon walls was just deafening, the whole time the pilots just smiling and waving! I was waiting for fish to get sucked out of the water!

So with all the distractions out on the water i wonder if it makes you a better fisherman or not,just to name a few... Wife talking to you IF you even take her Cell Phones Snakes Bad fishing line always coiling up Bright sun Huge Helicopters landing mid stream Wind Children Dogs barking Property owners Innertubers Shore fishermen with ghetto Blasters Huge Helicopters landing mid stream...... What you"ve never had a guy in a helicpoter sneak up and try to find your favorite fishing hot spot! Well i did today, what a sight! The least he could have done is shared what lure he was usning before he scared them all away! This is on the Cape Fear River about 30 miles from Fort Bragg Military base, seems they practice flying below the radar in the canyon, freaked me out as this thing came up the canyon at me at about 300 decibals,wind blowing everywhere from the chopper blades. Thought i was making a special appearance in the next Rambo movie!

Actually Don found out there are smallies in that river,CPO stopped me to ask for the liscense and we got talking. He said there are in fact a population but nobody fishes for them,he was SHOCKED to see i had my flyrod with me. He says is that a flyrod in that case, i said yeah it is. Told me thats the first flyrod he has ever seen on the Cape Fear river,come to find out he has fly fished the smokeys for years for rainbows and brookies. I started asking him about the state park and then we got into the conversation of the smallmouth alliance and lack of groups like this one down here. Talked a lot about conservation projects the ISA does and i asked if they ever need vollunteers for projects. He said they would love to have vollunteer help but nobody has really ever offered,so this fall im helping build a permanant bridge over the Cape Fear river, then in the spring im going to help with new campsites. I have one reply to this.... HELL YEAH!

Not in Illinois but my new home North Carolina. Raven Rock State Park in the Cape Fear River. NO smallies just the ugly green fish and LOTS of gar. Saw a jet Black Gar surface mid river looked like it was 20 lbs +. The whole album with about 30 pictures is on my myspace you can acsess it by typing in myspace.com/babyman13. Albums titled Carolina Wilderness click pics under my default picture to get there.

Don't cut our rivers short Paul, the kish has a few your just yet to find one. My advice is keep hiking and fishing spots most people don't fish. And that other river you and i have fished latley i know will hold some 20's easily you just need to find them,again hike in and fish the spots people are to lazy to walk to. Take that path i mentioned in another post,hike it and pass up the spots you and I fished and start way up river,you"ll find some big ones up there! Guarenteed! Theres miles of that river you haven't even tried, if i wasn't moving that would be my new go to river the rest of the summer and fall.

Hah, Yep Jamie one point against you! Can we get points back for chewing out local smallie fisermen that aren't aware(or are aware but don't care!) of their creel limits. I went to the river Sunday and as i was getting in another fellow was getting out,he had a basket tied to his kayak,guess what was in it? Four smalleys and three walleye,Kish limit is one smalley per day over 14"s. I did chew him a new Arse and pointed at the regulation sign on the bank, the one right next to his truck! I told him i was turning him in and headed back to my truck for paper and a pen,he peeled out of there so fast hit almost hit a jogger! His middle finger out the window! I love it! But yes he kept the fish! I will also add we tubed this last sunday and i was quite surprised again at how much garbage people can't take out with them BUT the many floatilla's stopping on islands to clean up everybody elses mess, i helped out and thanked them all,good folks!

Dekalb just got hit hard again today,read the Kish post on the Northwest boards for a full overveiw.

Heavy rains hit Dekalb area just eat of the Rock this afternoon,watch the water guages over the next few days. They were reporting flash flood but if it dosen't happen again you guys may be all right by the weekend. Im not attending this event so therefore i am not even merley responsible for this microburst,typhoon,im just reporting. Don't shot the messenger!LOL