Bart Durham

Terry get hold of Frank Macikas, he is selling his with price in your ballpark.

Great to add John to the 20 for 20 list. Congrats John with added congrats for doing it on a small creek. Keep em coming fellas! Terry, great ideal for blowout. Do you know how to preserve or copy pics from the forum?

Signed. SOS must be working. Read that the State has postponed its decision requesting more information on the effects the hog operation will have on the Sandy. Keep up the good fight Mark.

Thank you Eugene for organizing this event. Had a great time with the group at the lake after a delicious breakfast. Using a black popper on the fly rod caught a number of smaller bass and hybrid bluegill out of the kayak. The bluegill seemed to fight as much as the smaller bass.

Sounds like a plan Eugene Ill still bring the yak.

Looks like I spoke too quickly as the river is on the rise like all the others. more pond and lake fishing on the horizon.

At the present cfs I don't think the Fox is fishable right now, unless your a high water expert like Eric. I can't believe the Vermillion is still at relatively low cfs given all the rain, so I may head to Pontiac for the central Illinois outing.

The Vermillion may be the only navigable smallmouth stream in the State at this moment. Is anyone bringing their yak?

I like Eric's suggestion. Save me a seat at Harners.

Thank you Scott.

At least my garden is thriving. Lake action is hot now.

In honor of ISA's 20th Anniversary a goal for our members to catch a 20" Illinois smallmouth this year. Based on recent reports I believe Norm, Eric and Tom are already members. Good luck to all.

Another outstanding publication. Really enjoyed the articles. Thanks to all who contributed.

if on the 21st of June I'm in

Following last minute change of plans was able to make the trip to Cherry Valley for the NW float. Following a delicious breakfast including biscuits and gravy we set up the shuttle and got on the river by mid morning. The weather was hot (90s) and the river conditions were great. I followed Jude's lead and fished only top water lures, throwing a sara spook and sexy dawg the entire day. It was fairly productive and made for great excitement when the smallmouth pounded the lure. A few took it softly and patience was a key that I seldom executed. Ended up with 13 smallmouth and a pike that exploded on the top water. It was great meeting some new club members and I owe Allen and Samantha an apology as I still have the awesome nippers they loaned me. Allen, please pm me and give me your address and I will mail the nippers to you. Thank you Terry and Jude for putting on this great trip. I look forward to the next outing on the Kish, a great smallmouth river. Here are a few pics from the day.

Terry, had change of plans and can now make it. I'll see you guys for breakfast. Bringing some top water.

Received mine in the mail yesterday. Cant wait to give them a try.

We had great weather and great time today at our fishing outing at Three Oaks Recreation Area in Crystal Lake. The city has done a magnificent job with the lake and the accommodations were great. The water is crystal clear and we saw several large bass cruising the bottoms. We had four members show up and overall had a multi species day. Frank Biggs caught a personal best 19" smallmouth that weighed 5 lbs and was the fish of the day: A great smallmouth anywhere. Frank's son, Jay caught a 29" catfish that made his day: I caught a small pike on the fly rod that made my day. Thanks Kip, for helping navigate our boat. Afterwards we enjoyed some grilled brats and shared our day's fishing stories. I'm sorry that more members didn't show up but those that did enjoyed the beautiful weather and the wonderful amenities at Three Oaks.

Tomorrow is the day! Weather should be great. All you have to bring is your fishing gear. Hope to see you at Three Oaks Recreation Center in Crystal Lake between 9-5!

Thanks for sharing Ryan, I might actually be able to tie this one.

Two more days! Event to be from 9-5. I'll be at pavilion by 8:30. Look for pavilion or Nicole of Three Oaks when you get there. The weather should be great, sunny and low 70s. Hopefully the fish will active with the recent warming trend. Hope to see you there!

With the warmer temps expected this week we could be hitting it at a good time!

Looks like the weather is going to cooperate. Should be a great time. Since we'll have a grill to use, I'm planning to bring along a cooler full of beverages (water and pop), charcoal, as well as some hot dogs and buns if anyone would care to bring some food and drink accessories. Fishing seems to always a create a big appetite. Also please keep in mind the boat rental fee changes from my original post.

I'll be there.

There is a correction on the fees for the outing. While the City has agreed to waive the Pavilion rental fee they will be charging ISA members the resident boat rental fee, which is a savings from the non resident rates. The minimum 2 hour resident boat rental rates are as follows: 12' Combo (boat & motor) $22.00 14' Trio (boat, motor & fish finder) $27.00 14' Combo (boat & motor) $24.00 14' Trio (boat, motor & fish finder) $29.00 Terry of Three Oaks mentioned he will charge ISA members a reduced hourly charge for boat rental charges beyond the 2 hour minimum. There is also a $5 per vehicle parking fee. Considering the costs of going to a major league baseball game its still a pretty good deal. PFDs will be required to be worn while in the boats at all times. Canoes, single and tandem kayaks will be available for rent if water temperatures permit. Also, while shore fishing is allowed wading is not permitted. A rental agreement will have to be signed by all fisherman and staff will be available to go over the boat rental and operations. Hopefully the weatherman will be kind to us on May 10th. If not, we do have the pavilion so either way plan to come on out to Three Oaks Recreation Area in Crystal Lake on Saturday, May 10th between 9 am and 5 pm and enjoy the great fishing this lake has to offer.