Dick G

There was truly some "lively" discussion about fishing at the pizza party. As Scott said, you should have been there. It made me really look forward to the Blowout.

First snowflakes of season spotted at 11:40 in Downers Grove. Time to put away garden hoses and put out the heated bird bath. Bummer!

Nothing epitomizes the north woods like a waterfall. This week my wife and I explored several scenic spots in Wisconsin and Michigan. Some were readily accessible, while some required more effort to get to. We were just a little too early to catch the fall colors, but the falls were still spectacular.

Just spent a few days up north in the UP. Here are some pictures of Lake Superior. While it was 90 degrees in Illinois, it was a little chilly up north.

Faster wading works both ways. On familiar water it allows you to get to the "good spots" quicker, but one often bypasses water where the fish may be holding that particular day. Some guys power wade at an extreme pace throwing aggressive baits and cover a lot of water and catch a lot of fish. If you are pitching plastics, it often requires a much slower cadence to really search out the spot on the spot in most areas. Now the fly guys are a completely different matter. They often seem to be just as interested in their gear and technique as they are in catching fish. This is not to say that the fly fishermen and women do not catch a good number of excellent fish. I guess I fish at a moderately fast pace, for a plastics guy, but I always am eager to see what's around the bend. I always believe that there is a magic spot just beyond the next riffle, the next downed tree or the next eddy with a nice bubble line.

The Tribune noted today that in much of the Midwest Since July 1st it is the driest it has been in 69 years. The rivers are going down fast.

John, It really is amazing how each fishing season blows by so fast. I also had hoped to get out more on new water and fish with more members. Often with river fishing the perfect time and place never seem to coincide with any frequency. The best intentions often go unfulfilled. This year I bought an Indiana license for the first time in 40 years, and have used it only one day. Even in retirement it is hard to get frequent fishing time when other family affairs, social activities and travel (all with non-fishing folks) pop up on the calendar. It takes a real effort for most of us to load up the fishing gear, a kayak or a canoe, gas up the car and head out on a road trip. But once out on the water with a smallmouth on the line, it all seems worth the effort.

Sorry Dana, I forgot to mention your tube in my list of baits used. That one tube was so chewed on that it looked like the butt of a cigar after being smoked down to end.

Dana not only hosted the Vermillion outing, but he also caught the most and the largest fish of the day. While many of the fish were running a little short, there were enough larger fish to keep things exciting. The fish were not in a topwater mood and most fish were caught on plastics with the white spinner bait coming on strong later in the afternoon. Stick worms rigged on a jig, wacky style and weightless all brought in fish. The Fluke and the Case Salty Shad were other plastics that produced. Fish were caught on seams right next to water willows, in weed pockets or in deeper water in close proximity to the water willows. Water temperature was in the low to mid 80's.

I am looking forward to the outing. I hope the Friday evening rain does not affect the river too much, but I will welcome a little cooler air.

The problem with giving out too much information about locations seems to be more of an issue in the northern part of the state. The Fox, Kankakee and the D----- are the main rivers in this area that many of us fish. I think pictures add a lot to a report. There are many spots on these rivers that are identifiable from photographs. Often the bank height and vegetation or the water color can give clues about the river just as much as rock formations, bridges and power lines. South of I-80 it is still uncertain if cell phones and cameras have been introduced to the area yet, so it is not as much a problem there. (Just kidding) Sometimes I accidentally post photos that I have not scrubbed of details and some clues are there for all to see. Sometimes I leave some information on the picture, or don't crop out some landmark because I feel that the location is so remote that most will not attempt to go there even if they recognize the river. It is through ISA events that I have met fellow fishermen that will gladly exchange information one on one. You still have to get out and explore the water to have success. If someone reports that they caught some nice fish at the state park on the Kank, it doesn't mean squat if you don't factor in water temp, air temp, USGS flow, forage, sunlight, rocks, weeds, time of day and lures used when you go the next day. So, follow the ISA information online and in the Bronzeback Bulletin, talk to other members, get a map and start finding some new water.

After fishing up in Wisconsin last week with my brother, we drove down to Lake Sara and stayed a few days. On a boat tour of the lake we were lucky enough to see a family of eagles. I was only able to get a good picture of one of the adult birds. He was giving us the old eagle eye, while protecting their nesting area.

Can someone put up a link to the article?

Another new wrinkle to boat registration in Illinois. As of April 2013 The IDNR is no longer sending a notice by mail to renew your registration for a motor powered watercraft. It is up to you to renew when the registration expires. I thought my renewal form was just late.The DNR was out checking boats this weekend on central Illinois lakes. A lot of people had expired tags that ended on June 30th ( including mine). If you go online you can renew immediately and print out a temporary permit that makes you legal. Allow up to 10 weeks to get your new sticker. While checking your boat's registration, there will be an inspection for proper life jackets, horn, paddle, lights and fire extinguisher, as well as impaired drivers.

Even though we sprayed up, it is hard to believe the number of ticks Bill and I encountered in Wisconsin and Michigan last week. We did some bush whacking and paid the price. We tried to do a careful inspection after our last wade. We still had ticks in the vehicle, in our fishing tackle, on our clothing, on our legs, and in our pants. Normally, I wouldn't have mentioned it, but we were still finding more ticks since we got home Thursday night. I found one on my leg on Saturday and Bill just took the last one out of his truck today. So be careful where you set down duffle bags/equipment and where you sit and walk when outdoors up north. In several previous trips, I have encountered only one tick. This time we hit the jackpot.

I have a canoe and 2 kayaks that all have up to date Illinois registration stickers that have a year left. Do I have to buy new $6 Water Usage Stamps that are now available to stay legal, or can I wait until my current stickers expire next year?

You might be in for a bad day of fishing if the first thing you see when you approach the stream is these guys. Or you might be in for a bad day of fishing if you see this as you get near your river. Finally, you know you are in for a bad day fishing when the view above turns into this. The results of a weekend of reconnoitering, looking for smallmouth water. Reconnoiter is a French word that means "I'm lost," or "I reckon I oiter not go there."

I have two homemade anchors for my pontoon boat. I filled a one gallon and a two gallon plastic bucket with concrete mix. Before the concrete set, I sunk a big eye screw into the concrete, leaving the closed circle end on top of the concrete. When the mix hardened it was easy to pop out the bucket shaped anchors. and attach a rope through the eye screw. With these two smaller anchors I can hold the boat in one spot, even with a strong breeze.

Very nice issue. I still prefer a magazine or a newspaper to reading articles on the computer screen. It's like the old days with music lps. Nothing better than opening an album cover and reading all the liner notes and looking at all the photographs. The Bronzeback Bulletin brings about the same good vibes.

There is a very interesting article in today's Sun Times about the removal of the Hoffman Dam and the subsequent placing of broodstock smallmouth in the Des Plaines River. Put in last October, months after the dam was removed, tagged smallmouth have been caught 15 miles north of the old dam and as far south as Willow Springs. The article has a nice picture of ISA friends Steve Pescitelli and Bob Rung with one of the tagged fish being released into the river at Lyons. Channel catfish have also made similar moves.

The camera is a discontinued camera that my wife bought online a few years ago. It is a Kodak EasyShare Z915. It has a lot of neat features, most of which I will never master. I do like the 10X zoom, panoramic setting, video feature, fast action capabilities, and manual settings for aperture and shutter speed. As for the snake, it was a little guy. You can judge his size by the animal tracks in the mud. I hope the zoom lens will make my fish look larger this year.

That was my spinning gear I placed there for showing the size of the tree. I should have mentioned that in the original post.

Here are a few "nature" pictures from some recent fishing trips. I am playing with a camera I haven't used before since I destroyed my old one.

Getting back to an area that I fished last year, I was shocked to see how the spring flooding had rearranged the furniture so to speak. Big trees plopped down in now what is a foot of water, bridges almost blocked with log jams, and steep bluffs washed down stream. Waded in a few spots that were rocky last year and are now covered with two feet of sand. Old holes are filled in and new ones have appeared. Watch your step out there when you make your first visit to your local streams this year. Almost got stuck in the muddy sand. The one picture shows how calm the water is now. Hard to believe those big trees were cruising down the river a few weeks ago.

This should really flush out the algae. Hopefully the levels will get back to normal in time for a good spawn.