Mike Clifford

Awesome job, everyone! Another example of ISA volunteers stepping up to the plate. Priceless!

Many thanks to all that showed up to help at the Sgt. Tommy's Kids Fishing Day! We were faced with the most kids we've seen yet, and decided to create our very first "in the round" casting field. What we did to meet the challenge of so many kids (300+) was to move stations around the entire field. John did an excellent job giving fly-casting instruction as well. Of course, Rich's felt fish were a big hit with the little ones. A spectacular day, thanks to the incredible efforts of ISA volunteers.

ANY amount of help is greatly appreciated. The weather is going to be absolutely perfect. Sunny and 80. A great lunch for everybody, sno-cones, fresh popcorn and of course the infamous hot and buttery corn-on-the-cob. Anybody that wants to just come on by and help for as long as they can and just enjoy the day with fellow members is of course welcome.

YES! Please bring a banner.

Looks like about 5 or 6 of us so far. Could use a few more! Please consider coming out for a very rewarding day. The experience is truly remarkable.

Had my jonboat out at the mouth of the Iroquois in Aroma one early morning several years ago and drifted into a set of decoys. I heard a click, turned around and saw a gun pointed at me. I politely asked which direction they were shooting and was told "right at you". Alrighty then. Before I could get my little 3 hp fired up, they sent a duck barge out to circle me and damn near swamp my boat. Consider some of the good things about concealed carry in IL, finally. I was in the wrong completely to be there during hunting season. I should have checked the season and calendar before venturing out. That doesn't give anybody the right to point a gun at me and attempt to drown me in my boat. /rant

This is an interesting subject to me, specifically at this time. I was looking to help them stock Herrick Lake after their "total winter kill" and was told by their Executive Natural Resources Director in very strong terms that it is "not our job" to concern ourselves with it, and he was quite adamant on the phone about that. The unprofessionalism I received from the FPD left a very sour taste in my mouth. The river is one thing, the lakes....I would need to speak to somebody that puts the resource above himself in order to do any business with them in that regard. I think you know how I feel about the situation, Dan. I reached out in a very professional and courteous manner and was embarrassed beyond words. That is all I have to say publicly about the matter. There was more. Much more.

Most inline spinners I've seen (and owned) have a Colorado blade, and I'm wondering why that is. Are they intended to run at a certain depth under most circumstances? Just thinking out loud.

Only 2 more weeks! Saturday, June 14 at 8:00am for Set-Up Herrick Lake County Forest Preserve in Wheaton, Illinois The BIGGEST Kids Fishing Day yet, as we are expecting around 300 participants this year. PLEASE let me know with a reply or message if you can help us with the Casting Field once again. WE NEED YOU MORE THAN EVER THIS YEAR! Email if you need to: mikeclifford2@gmail.com Cell phone: 773-771-9042

Hopefully in a good way! Welcome aboard.

Our deepest sympathies and prayers go out to you, Steve. Stay strong and lean on the Lord to guide you.

Awesome!!! This is really exciting stuff!!

I took a trip up the IN portion of the Kankakee River while we were filming Everglades of the North with a bunch of "good 'ol boys" on a huge duck barge. Along the way, we stopped to check several of their trotlines. Every one of them had catfish on them, mostly flatheads.....which ironically has only just begun to happen for them in the channel in recent years. They released all of the fish for the purpose of our documentary. A few of these guys are also trappers, from a long history of them in their families. Everything they do is to the letter of the law and ethical. We had an incredible lunch of grilled frog legs that were harvested from the river the night before. Even shared some with DNR officers we ran into that are friends of theirs. It changed my entire perspective on people who live on and among our local rivers. If you were to take the time to get to know them, they are no more "Wilburs" than you or I. This particular river has a history that includes the genealogy of these families that goes back generations. Their ancestors stood on the bridge at the state line, bearing arms to prevent channelization into IL at the turn of the century. Most of these people were conservationists before it was popular.

From the article: What this means is that the county board can vote yay or nay and it doesn't make a difference whatsoever. So long as the IDOA puts a rubber stamp on this (which they will), the process will go forward. The Apple River Gang screwed up by polluting the local stream before they even thought about building anything. They pissed off the EPA and realized they weren't going to get the permits needed to go forward. An agreement was made, and they packed it all up and left. IL laws were actually changed as a result of this case. When they get started with site activities (...and they will), get a helicopter to fly overhead and take photos of every process. I'm not kidding......it's the only way to access a property legally to gather evidence of poor (illegal) environmental behavior. Or wait for somebody else to get on the property and wade through the red tape and corruption.....live photography doesn't lie.

I know that tree where you had lunch. LOL. Awesome report and great fish!!

Sounds like an awesome trip. Yet another perk of being an ISA member....impromptu hook-ups on blue-ribbon smallmouth streams.

AWESOME article!!!

Friends of the Kankakee annual luncheon. With Jim Sweeney and Robert C. Barr, Research Scientist. Very informative presentation on the sediment deposited into the Kankakee River. Great to see people I had lost touch with over the years!

There is no simple solution. My hope is for this to come about in my lifetime: http://www.fws.gov/midwest/planning/GrandKankakee/ Next weekend I'll be attending the annual luncheon for Friends of the Kankakee. Folks that originated out of Indiana that I've been in touch with for 14 years. A consistent force for the river and wetlands preservation. I've been asked to speak some as well. http://friendsofthekankakee.org/ There is renewed support by some for dredging the sand out of the river. The most likely scenario is that restoring marsh and wetlands, filtering the sand naturally over a very long period is going to save the river.....and probably not in our lifetime.

I'm not real worried about this occurrence in the grand scheme of things. It appears that it is being handled pretty well. What isn't being handled well is all the sand smothering this river and smallmouth spawning grounds. THAT is what people need to get excited about and putting up defenses around.

Had to watch this several times to get all of the points. AWESOME!

I'm putting together a video for the conservation table to highlight 20 years of conservation and would appreciate a few photos that we may not have seen in the past. If you have 2 or 3 that you can share, please email them to me. Sign postings, willow plantings, clean-ups, rock placement.....etc. THANKS!! mikeclifford2@gmail.com

Awesome show! I sent a Constant Contact to help in your efforts. Step up, gang....we only need a few hours of your time!

Hey, guys..... The ISA Facebook page has grown by 1,850% this week. It is no longer a desolate place. I know most of you are signed up on FB. The only thing missing now is YOU!! Click Like, post those fly photos and share the page with your fellow fly-tiers! https://www.facebook.com/illinoissmallmouthalliance