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Joe R

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Posts posted by Joe R

  1. I waded fox Thursday around dundee where water is always fast lots of biting dinks in fast shallow rocky water.  Canoe time between Belvidere and cherry valley this morning everything fine there. But on way home I waded near .Marengo it's a bad situation there. Previous couple years good fishing now it's terrible brown water and all the small rain events just add more silt over sand and gravel. Never seen so much silt. Need high water events to flush. I seen 2 dead suckers and 2 swimming sideways neither will last.  There's a lot of seasonal fish movement on rivers that are not dammed and since I like to get upriver and skinny I definitely see much more fish upriver all year if springs bring flood events

  2. Haven't been fishing Fox but it's pretty sad on what I'm seeing way farther upriver on the kish. North branch fo example. Not a clear flow I would normally expect in low rain periods but as you mention more stagnant brownish water and in eddies yes foamy cottonwood swirls. Besides that more silt over areas that in past was cleaner gravel. Rains and higher water will help flush lousy water and silt. Normally I'd expect more fish farther upriver towards Marengo as fish move up from winter areas with high water rains. No dams but low water downed trees fish could not do a typical spring and early summer move on rain heightened river.  Colder water species like pike and walleye will be primary risk for fish kill. At the southern limit of natural range hot rivers they are stressed as is but once caught need immediate release.

  3. I hike and carry too much gear as it is front pack and backpack. But if i have a stupid river crossing or sketchy section i just look for a stout branch. Test if first make sure it doesnt break. Something caveman cool about using a big ass stick as a staff. When done toss it down and reuse on the way back. If you want you can use a heavy beast and it really plants good in the water.

  4. When i retire in a few years and leave Illinois it will have nothing to do with the corrupt politics,  super high taxes, dismal financial state massive debt, etc it will be because of the archaic stupid non navigable river laws, over channelized waters, and less protective fishing laws. Lack of public acess on the more rural waters is one thing that is understandable but the trespass law is archaeic and i doubt that will change in my lifetime.

  5. Any of you fine folks been by the kish recently and know if its mostly open please share :)

    As in no major ice bergs....thinking about a paddle sunday or monday.  Typically ice upriver skinny but farther downstream maybe okay

  6. 6 hours ago, mannym said:

    The main reason I got my scuba certificate this year was to be able to swim in LM looking at these big fish the lake has. Oh and ship wrecks too. 

    Now I just need my "needs work"  vintage wood yacht with twin 5.7 L  mercruisers to refurbish and go!  

    Go up to door county they have close in wrecks with clearer water there have done a fair amount of swimming up there when water is warmer say from mid July through early September have seen countless smallies that is when you understand the concept of schooling hooligan bass who roam. They cover a lot of water.

  7. I will be family camping at sugar river county park with in laws for a few nights  starting  Saturday  , location influenced  by my selfish desire to fish sugar and rock. Couldn't imagine fishing there though  will be a serious river blowout anything originating way north Illinois  or Wisconsin. Crazy I recently fished turtle creek in Wisconsin at about 130 cfs and now it's like 3000 cfs

  8. Rivers and lakes for pike and largemouth I always carry a few bladed chatter jigs with large grub or swimbait trailers. Especially if water is stained or there is weeds present.

    Smallies fishing I never throw bladed jigs, there are better options.

    Something about that blade thumping can really trigger reaction  strikes though....

  9. I bought a Sportrack SR 1002 roof rack to toss on my older Corolla. Its not Aero but its all metal and its solid and most importantly grabs the car so well there is no way it can come off.

    For SOTs they are flat top for the most part all I do is flip the yak over so hull is up and I lay it on top of cross bars. I have rubber wrapped around the cross bars. I use good yakima straps and a good method of strapping the yak down I could drive 80mph into a 20mph wind no worries. Rock solid.

    No way I would pay $450 dollars for a yakima or thule roof rack plus 100-200 for a kayak holder, its not necessary. The SportracK crossbars I bought was $120 at the time.

     

    https://www.walmart.com/ip/SportRack-SR1002-Square-Crossbar-Bare-Roof-Rack-System-50-5-Inches-Black/23578463

     

  10. Rather odd rivers that I fish mainly like Kish and Des plaines, and tribs, can go to summer time levels in winter. They can get very low which in skinnier parts can be a challenge to fish in harshest winters. Looking at long term graphs for V this doesn't seem to be the case. Just odd.  Like you said looking at this more you have to be careful with refercing median for V it's such a seasonal river certainly not the norm for northern Illinois rivers. It's not like there are gates holding water back like on the fox where they may drain down the chain of lakes seasonally.

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