tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-39512194251935373862024-03-12T18:08:45.747-07:00One Last CastA journal of my fishing trips, mostly around the western suburbs of Chicago. Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-49833770726860362872014-08-09T23:00:00.000-07:002014-08-29T19:52:45.005-07:00Des Plaines River Kayak Pike Fishing IIReturned to fish the Des Plaines River for pike for the first time this year. I met up with <a href="http://www.chunsum.com/" target="_blank">Chunsum</a> and <a href="http://pondboyfishing.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Dan</a> at the Dam #2 put in and after a 30 minute wait for the CCFP officer to open the gates, we were on the river. Fishing started out slow and with most of the river only a few feet deep in the beginning section, it looked like it wouldn't be a productive trip. I started out throwing a buzzbait, trying to quickly cover water and determine what areas the pike may be relating to in this stretch. After a half hour of nothing, I got a nice strike near a submerged log right near my kayak.. Next cast, another strike from the same fish on the buzzbait, but another miss. I put the buzzbait away and cast into the same area with the relax shad and got hooked up. First fish of the day was a 24" pike.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2ZIsHN4QZzf3hwiybbof8nLoo318kK5G5v6GrSdGE2BL177nIaoW9BZeXVHmEfiXq3JO_HxT5h1tPb6BdrV3gbK9_4MAOppN1flyN9GQh-6y0_Hsa9jZL5STR426LOaPIUcz1eWQmlHs/s1600/DesPlainesPike1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2ZIsHN4QZzf3hwiybbof8nLoo318kK5G5v6GrSdGE2BL177nIaoW9BZeXVHmEfiXq3JO_HxT5h1tPb6BdrV3gbK9_4MAOppN1flyN9GQh-6y0_Hsa9jZL5STR426LOaPIUcz1eWQmlHs/s1600/DesPlainesPike1.jpg" height="276" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Got ya!</i></td></tr>
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A little further downriver, Dan hooked up with one of four pike he would catch on the day. He caught most of his pike on a Storm Thunderstick.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlosecTRSt-rjw4_qoE1YhVYTmEeVGIYzrcK34mKACAtw4sUgjxZIkcB98PqesMz3ft7Zjzw_qkPzaHoSUkqzzPhkog_yqxGhLV4Hd0Zh5w2h9vfDtyp-yE7X-MyWN4OBwGexhmKZWYOU/s1600/PondboyDesPlainesPike.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlosecTRSt-rjw4_qoE1YhVYTmEeVGIYzrcK34mKACAtw4sUgjxZIkcB98PqesMz3ft7Zjzw_qkPzaHoSUkqzzPhkog_yqxGhLV4Hd0Zh5w2h9vfDtyp-yE7X-MyWN4OBwGexhmKZWYOU/s1600/PondboyDesPlainesPike.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Expert tip: Always hold the fish as close to the camera as possible to make it look bigger.</i><br />
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My second(and biggest pike) of the morning measured 25" and again came on the relax shad follow up after a missed strike on a floating jerkbait.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjswe4pn16kDOc4PdmTe-f5DUx0Ba30Nnu7iH1cORyuXrivxtDCvSvydHo_FuBxKuGdWAcnhU7qXm2hpviwVVIvx9ufQo2b1N2OgfTV4VFl6aecxb1hydTvN6R3rPcbA1euu4iJXypio7o/s1600/DesPlainesNorhernPike2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjswe4pn16kDOc4PdmTe-f5DUx0Ba30Nnu7iH1cORyuXrivxtDCvSvydHo_FuBxKuGdWAcnhU7qXm2hpviwVVIvx9ufQo2b1N2OgfTV4VFl6aecxb1hydTvN6R3rPcbA1euu4iJXypio7o/s1600/DesPlainesNorhernPike2.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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A little further downriver, Chunsum landed the biggest fish of the morning, a 29" pike on a spinnerbait.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWJb6Dd0mLVnInhnAdvQHgCgmBY_y6PcCcebp-bo42TtwSRvj1uH96g45M8BlyLPLC94Ra4FdN8_qyyIsATgljRwUqnzq7AvamM5uuWx6wY164xiv4a4AfNA1tdSMXYGf2iS10rHR_Huk/s1600/ChunsumDesPlainesPike.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWJb6Dd0mLVnInhnAdvQHgCgmBY_y6PcCcebp-bo42TtwSRvj1uH96g45M8BlyLPLC94Ra4FdN8_qyyIsATgljRwUqnzq7AvamM5uuWx6wY164xiv4a4AfNA1tdSMXYGf2iS10rHR_Huk/s1600/ChunsumDesPlainesPike.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>This guy looks like he knows what he's doing.</i></td></tr>
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By mid-morning we had floated about as far as we wanted to and were ready to head back. I did catch one last fish at the end of our float, a fat 14" largemouth on a spinnerbait. The paddle back did require some getting out and dragging of the kayaks through the faster sections but it wasn't too difficult.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Chunsum and Dan burning some calories, making their way upriver.</i></td></tr>
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All in all, this was an okay trip for exploring a new section of the river. Between the three of us we landed close to ten fish, with four pike being <a href="http://www.kayakwars.com/" target="_blank">kayakwars</a> worthy. I had strikes on a topwater prop bait, a floating jerkbait, a buzzbait, and a spinnerbait during this outing. The smaller relax shad was the only bait I could get hooked up on with the pike, however.<br />
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<i>Fish Caught: 2 Northern Pike</i></div>
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<i> 1 Largemouth Bass</i></div>
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<i>Successful Baits: Yellow swim shad, 1/4 oz generic chartreuse spinnerbait</i></div>
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<i>Weather: Mostly Sunny, E winds 5-10mph, upper 70's</i></div>
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<i>Water Temp: Low 70's</i></div>
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<i>River conditions: Semi-clear, 130cfs(Des Plaines)</i></div>
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Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-88332253697599079962014-07-26T20:30:00.000-07:002014-07-27T15:28:30.944-07:00Kankakee River Kayak Fishing: Surprise WalleyeRivers have finally fallen to more normal levels in the area so I went and kayaked a new river today, the Kankakee. I floated a little over 3 miles of the river from the eastern end of <a href="http://dnr.state.il.us/lands/landmgt/PARKS/R2/kankakee.htm" target="_blank">Kankakee River State Park</a> to the takeout just downstream of the Warner Bridge. It was good conditions for fishing, cloudy weather and a new moon. The river was full of kayakers, canoeists, and waders.<br />
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I started out throwing a buzzbait and a spinnerbait as I wanted a lure I could keep shallow as most of the river is only a few feet deep at normal flow. I wasn't getting any hits, even the reliable relax shad was drawing a blank so I switched to a shallow running crankbait. The crankbait started producing almost immediately and I caught several small smallmouth bass off the edges of the flooded willow grass. Further downstream I ran into some cool overhanging cliffs.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4a9LbYPWfycOSAOhQDCgL1Th2IcOcFTVdEKvaxF_7DnhcH24lbSttUwe6mUr1b6-YgCMbnI9AMCSpewMPrQldrQohDysZMCa8VY5oT-HOS3ypX0m_mxQa-mq5Z9POXPdWFE0Sj2-bgt0/s1600/KankakeeCliff.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4a9LbYPWfycOSAOhQDCgL1Th2IcOcFTVdEKvaxF_7DnhcH24lbSttUwe6mUr1b6-YgCMbnI9AMCSpewMPrQldrQohDysZMCa8VY5oT-HOS3ypX0m_mxQa-mq5Z9POXPdWFE0Sj2-bgt0/s1600/KankakeeCliff.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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I started throwing my crankbait along the cliff walls and catching fish with a little more size. This 14.5" fish was the biggest smallmouth I would catch on the day.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR9cv91kZHEySPPe7qC5yG6EONXaylKeX4zq_V2iyK_v9Qu7rpFKd62f3dMd-8LYEH9C1AqVLdpkEVUk1W4qMAOMg9yCaYFJPm52ra2RBv0rL5EOmbs_YAf8VfNvfom13CIDh8OCYlJhw/s1600/KankakeeCrank.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR9cv91kZHEySPPe7qC5yG6EONXaylKeX4zq_V2iyK_v9Qu7rpFKd62f3dMd-8LYEH9C1AqVLdpkEVUk1W4qMAOMg9yCaYFJPm52ra2RBv0rL5EOmbs_YAf8VfNvfom13CIDh8OCYlJhw/s1600/KankakeeCrank.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Crankin' the Kank</i></td></tr>
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I lost two nice smallmouth that appeared to be at least 18" during my trip. One threw my crankbait on a jump right by the kayak. And the other fish I lost on a jig due to a knot failure. I thought it was just going to be one of those days where the bigger fish just weren't going to be landed. Even the vultures were eyeing me as if to say "You better just call it quits".<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs3-e2wXpu2rmxDnP7hrqZLo5M5Uocezv0tDbsl4dMcGYHXv3lt0b3l4eKxD5Gq6bRx4YPc2g22yGFZiMkO9JWKs13XhyphenhyphenOPEaCLTEzRTKoEos20yIu_LggZAFQk4b-qwaAfAvBgiexc7M/s1600/KankakeeVultures.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs3-e2wXpu2rmxDnP7hrqZLo5M5Uocezv0tDbsl4dMcGYHXv3lt0b3l4eKxD5Gq6bRx4YPc2g22yGFZiMkO9JWKs13XhyphenhyphenOPEaCLTEzRTKoEos20yIu_LggZAFQk4b-qwaAfAvBgiexc7M/s1600/KankakeeVultures.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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As I neared the takeout I found one last hole beneath a bridge piling that looked like it should hold a few fish. I was tired of throwing the crankbait at this point so I put a 3" hellgrammite on a jig head and just slowly dragged it along the bottom. I felt a good hit on about my third cast and brought in a nice surprise, a 19.5" walleye!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGK53Q7sBmhTycDwnXSdf2wpslUiqBT1XCEM8gN9FDBz621vBrf-KPtldQxtsNVbwIClM3G3BunNa6-fqJhDso5120cM1GbO6NtcGEACxywcrohTCbmf1LD-0PFPFroH2Djr9tlEnxZXo/s1600/KankakeeWalleye.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGK53Q7sBmhTycDwnXSdf2wpslUiqBT1XCEM8gN9FDBz621vBrf-KPtldQxtsNVbwIClM3G3BunNa6-fqJhDso5120cM1GbO6NtcGEACxywcrohTCbmf1LD-0PFPFroH2Djr9tlEnxZXo/s1600/KankakeeWalleye.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>First walleye from the kayak</i></td></tr>
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I kind of wished I had my stringer as I love eating walleye but the Kankakee probably needs as many mature walleye as it can get since catches like this on the river are rare.<br />
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After releasing the walleye, I made a few more casts through the hole before I headed for the ramp to call it quits. The Kankakee is not the easiest river to fish from a kayak. It is fast moving and wide for much of the stretch I fished and it is hard to thoroughly fish some areas without getting out and wading. I think I found at least two good spots that I will definitely remember when I return to fish this river again.</div>
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<i>Fish Caught: 8 Smallmouth Bass</i></div>
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<i> 1 Walleye</i></div>
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<i>Successful Baits: BPS Super Shallow Crank(OJ Brown Crawdad), H2O XPRESS CRS-NR Silent Crankbait(Matte Brown Craw), BPS Hellgrammite(Green Pumpkin) on 1/8oz jighead </i></div>
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<i>Weather: Mostly Cloudy, S winds 5mph, lower 80's</i></div>
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<i>Water Temp: 74.5</i></div>
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<i>River conditions: Semi-clear(~3ft), 2100cfs(Wilmington)</i></div>
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Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-3858761538292447622014-07-19T22:00:00.000-07:002014-07-25T23:09:57.618-07:00Emiquon Preserve Kayak Fishing: Froggin' HeavenFor me to drive any more than an hour to drop the kayak in somewhere is rare, so for the three hours it took me to get to the Emiquon Preserve near Lewistown, IL, well.....I better catch some bass. I wanted to at least get a day and a half of fishing in so I left in the early afternoon on Friday. After setting up camp at the nearby <a href="http://www.fultonco.org/officials/appointed/camping-and-recreation-director/map-fccr/" target="_blank">Fulton County Camping & Recreation Area</a> and getting my lake access permit at the Dickson Mounds Museum, I was ready to finally start fishing Emiquon.<br />
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I had planned to fish some of my favorite soft plastic baits to start out in the late afternoon but those plans were pretty quickly shelved after I noticed the water clarity(not much more than a foot) and not getting a bite for the first half hour on a magnum lizard. Even though it was still only about 6pm and the sun was still shining bright, I decided to try the frog. I made my first cast with a poppin' booyah padcrasher frog along the edge of a drainage ditch where the depth went from about 10 feet to 5 feet and almost immediately had a big blowup that I missed. I let the east wind(not forecasted) blow me along the ditch until I reached a point where the weeds began again near shore at the end of the ditch. There were lots of bluegill feeding on the surface at this choke point, it looked like a perfect place for a bass hangout. On my first cast to this area a nice 17" bass came completely out of the water to smash my frog. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr5lSv_TaeK6JfZmcv9cNysvpx4DjR3s9ktji1e4LtP0t2zJ4MpTDcXQFZFRsMzDARxTjyM5zYKy1VU1bGsGrbMYzLmdzFkL33MTH3sfNbP1UHn75PgeeOvGkcyBT9zQpZeSgnYYAUX0Q/s1600/EmiquonFirstBass.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr5lSv_TaeK6JfZmcv9cNysvpx4DjR3s9ktji1e4LtP0t2zJ4MpTDcXQFZFRsMzDARxTjyM5zYKy1VU1bGsGrbMYzLmdzFkL33MTH3sfNbP1UHn75PgeeOvGkcyBT9zQpZeSgnYYAUX0Q/s1600/EmiquonFirstBass.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>First Emiquon bass</i></td></tr>
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I caught a few more bass in this area on the frog, including an 18" fish that was the only skinny bass I would catch the whole trip.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7ffV7C3PNEFYneIYOdHK5aFAVK1RVIE7hEjyrR4eo0XKLPhfdx8u2mRKqeu4nRpK7Ne17hYrl8gU4ADDoaGFof5q1iCtQr57ltpSlrHikjSxo32nJBjUfq44m1Hk5yl06-J0GDWMlD_8/s1600/EmiquonSkinny.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7ffV7C3PNEFYneIYOdHK5aFAVK1RVIE7hEjyrR4eo0XKLPhfdx8u2mRKqeu4nRpK7Ne17hYrl8gU4ADDoaGFof5q1iCtQr57ltpSlrHikjSxo32nJBjUfq44m1Hk5yl06-J0GDWMlD_8/s1600/EmiquonSkinny.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Like an anorexic in the buffet line, something is not right</i></td></tr>
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I marked a lot of suspended fish in the middle of the ditch on my Lowrance but I couldn't get bit on the spinnerbait or chatterbait so I decided to go back to fishing the frog along the weed edges. The last hour of sunlight was awesome fishing and I landed around ten bass on the frog with six over 16", including this nice fat 18.5" bass.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKl9lfZhdSKkmTS66Q9JJnKRNmkzDf0_v4dvq6oJG3mfeRns1RfrYqbzYco3RCOeb6yKLiEn_h7QjKa1d4CmrAW-wDt-VU9YEwNV1ynMRoJHIQTOrcqeod6dNmcgekKgZIMG6l7foMT6g/s1600/EmiquonBigFishFirstDay.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKl9lfZhdSKkmTS66Q9JJnKRNmkzDf0_v4dvq6oJG3mfeRns1RfrYqbzYco3RCOeb6yKLiEn_h7QjKa1d4CmrAW-wDt-VU9YEwNV1ynMRoJHIQTOrcqeod6dNmcgekKgZIMG6l7foMT6g/s1600/EmiquonBigFishFirstDay.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Great first day</i></td></tr>
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Emiquon closes at sunset so I drove back to camp. The campsite manager was nice enough to recommend a great spot on a point of one of the nine lakes at the camping area. It was a nice night to be outdoors and I even caught a few small bass on a black frog fishing at night right off the point.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOeNccNP-65opiGzmXdQX1VrdAl3Mvj-fU_DD8JI0sro5f_hwkuqwPkyCw5AIS0UyR9b2R_Ll-FLQKxMTxFeot0eSOpYbYYUKvO-ph3nP88stj6p__Ry77mXQUyOIP_s2B2S7ALTCXTxo/s1600/FultonCamp.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOeNccNP-65opiGzmXdQX1VrdAl3Mvj-fU_DD8JI0sro5f_hwkuqwPkyCw5AIS0UyR9b2R_Ll-FLQKxMTxFeot0eSOpYbYYUKvO-ph3nP88stj6p__Ry77mXQUyOIP_s2B2S7ALTCXTxo/s1600/FultonCamp.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Next time I'll have to bring some catfish rods</i></td></tr>
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The second day I arrived at Emiquon shortly after sunrise, it looked like it would be a good morning to continue frog fishing.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpw3xw4whtMQ_UWZ9OggJznmuWM7lpv9BeEOWFEPbnGnRi3eINZBOEwcgH8syKBRHR_RtVDSReowNIuLvThE00BiDvYJNG5JaRY3SF1uc7LLxjl3oJYA3K7ZZHP53jhLtm65g2fIdUVGQ/s1600/EmiquonSunrise.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpw3xw4whtMQ_UWZ9OggJznmuWM7lpv9BeEOWFEPbnGnRi3eINZBOEwcgH8syKBRHR_RtVDSReowNIuLvThE00BiDvYJNG5JaRY3SF1uc7LLxjl3oJYA3K7ZZHP53jhLtm65g2fIdUVGQ/s1600/EmiquonSunrise.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Hard to decide where to fish</i></td></tr>
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Unfortunately, the bass did not seem to agree. After 30 minutes and only a few missed bites on the frog I finally had a violent strike. I thought I had a huge bass but as I pulled away the weeds to lip the fish I was surprised to see teeth. I had caught my first bowfin! I got the fish in the kayak and reached for my camera. Before I could get a picture though, the bowfin went berserk, became unhooked, and flopped his way to freedom. I didn't even know that bowfin were in the lake, I wish I would of had my fish grips with me. As the morning progressed I managed to catch a few bass on the frog but the bite was nothing like the evening before so I decided to switch to fishing a <a href="http://www.crabbybasslures.com/" target="_blank">Crabby Bass</a> swim jig with a <a href="http://www.swimbait.com/" target="_blank">Big Hammer</a> trailer. It was a good decision. I quickly started catching more fish once I made the change and landed six bass, all over 16", in the next hour and a half.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg03pmcg5Y6qGj8abbfSHV_L1ZSN9hSkzNU63XgFcvwTokdRrEVQi5vuD8kF0JQNBACFwZ-ewHpfHHVxZejodd6RZCnv_bDtcBIHT7ZjF-rSF_HyXTZottTw1sqOZNdNvRhrnn3hi25YS8/s1600/EmiquonSwimJig.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg03pmcg5Y6qGj8abbfSHV_L1ZSN9hSkzNU63XgFcvwTokdRrEVQi5vuD8kF0JQNBACFwZ-ewHpfHHVxZejodd6RZCnv_bDtcBIHT7ZjF-rSF_HyXTZottTw1sqOZNdNvRhrnn3hi25YS8/s1600/EmiquonSwimJig.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>This 18" bass came off of a flooded tree</i></td></tr>
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With nowhere on the lake to find shelter from the sun, I was ready for a break by mid morning. I headed up to the Dickson Mounds Museum and checked out all the exhibits. I definitely recommend it if you are in the area, they do a good job of relating the surrounding geography with the history of the American Indians that lived in the area.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuvui6PkNzDHm3dVFTtp9RHSYiIP78HZSodxYg5aTzUb9ghWI-YseDU1mOiAjiM5-PDoNDne3mE2QPA2OJYE3g5jrjpGjdHX_yv0NsFtCyu99TmuxC9leM6spNpoBa-G9LZoJYNNPb2sM/s1600/MuseumView.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuvui6PkNzDHm3dVFTtp9RHSYiIP78HZSodxYg5aTzUb9ghWI-YseDU1mOiAjiM5-PDoNDne3mE2QPA2OJYE3g5jrjpGjdHX_yv0NsFtCyu99TmuxC9leM6spNpoBa-G9LZoJYNNPb2sM/s1600/MuseumView.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>View from the top of the museum, Emiquon on the horizon</i></td></tr>
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I returned to the lake late afternoon for my final outing for this trip. Things did not start out well as I probably missed my first ten hits on the frog. I was getting frustrated by fishing poorly and making too long of casts over thick weeds so that even when I hooked a fish they managed to get off when they got into the slop. I moved to more open water on the outside of the weeds and started getting better hookups. I shot some video while fishing the frog with my hatcam both evenings and got some good blowups on video. The cool thing about the Emiquon bass were the violent strikes, in more heavily fished local ponds a lot of times bass will just suck the frog under, not here. </div>
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<object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://i1.ytimg.com/vi/_EqcWGG1AKY/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://www.youtube.com/v/_EqcWGG1AKY?version=3&f=user_uploads&c=google-webdrive-0&app=youtube_gdata" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/v/_EqcWGG1AKY?version=3&f=user_uploads&c=google-webdrive-0&app=youtube_gdata" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div>
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The late evening bite was good again with another dozen bass or so landed and seven fish over 16". In all I would guess I caught somewhere around 35 bass in 11 hours of time on the water over one and a half days. 21 of those bass were over 16" and logged for the <a href="http://dupageangler.com/">DuPageAngler.com</a> team on the <a href="http://www.kayakwars.com/" target="_blank">Kayak Wars</a> website. </div>
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A couple things I noticed were that the bass seemed to relate to patches of American pondweed more than the clumps of floating moss.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikkw5YPigl8nA384v7VIl_ApmYyziYJAdXKlzLEXcXfmHi7zVDev7MyQAooSi6YzBh3WI2QHt3MMlBGbRYyhlvXhBYBuY_brRSTkYO7nc_ehJw5fShbyEKhsE3QSzAGrWBiqZ_tRSmvI4/s1600/pondweed.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikkw5YPigl8nA384v7VIl_ApmYyziYJAdXKlzLEXcXfmHi7zVDev7MyQAooSi6YzBh3WI2QHt3MMlBGbRYyhlvXhBYBuY_brRSTkYO7nc_ehJw5fShbyEKhsE3QSzAGrWBiqZ_tRSmvI4/s1600/pondweed.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Finding the weeds with leaves was key</i></td></tr>
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Also, both evenings winds were out of the east and a few of my most productive spots were where there were irregularities or "cuts" in the weeds that allowed the wind to blow a little further back towards shore. Bait was usually more concentrated in these areas, and so were the bass. As for lures, I found the poppin' frog to be most productive when fishing in the wind as I could create more of a disturbance for the fish to locate. When fishing calmer areas, the regular hollow body frog seemed to draw more strikes.<br />
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Emiquon is a cool place, it is amazing how what was mostly farmland only 10 years ago transformed into a phenomenal fishery so quickly. The <a href="http://www.experienceemiquon.com/" target="_blank">Experience Emiquon</a> website has a lot of great information on this preserve if you are wanting to learn more. Keep in mind there are some unique rules to the lake if you plan on fishing it. These include restricted access to only the west half of the lake, no gas motors(not even on your boat), no shore fishing, and no live bait other than worms. Also, you must pickup a free lake access permit at the museum before you can fish the lake.</div>
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One final thing I should mention is there has been some controversy surrounding the preserve in recent years after <a href="http://www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/regions/northamerica/unitedstates/illinois/explore/emiquon-water-management.xml" target="_blank">The Nature Conservancy</a> revealed their plans for a "water management" structure to be constructed to allow Emiquon to become part of the natural floodplain of the Illinois River. While I understand the desire to give more floodplains back to the river by modifying levees, I fear what this may mean for the bass and other fish species that currently live in Emiquon. The Illinois River is very different from what it was 100 years ago, most notably with the presence of Asian carp, which now account for an estimated two-thirds of the biomass in the river. By connecting Emiquon to the Illinois River, Asian carp will have the opportunity to enter Emiquon, which they surely will do. Experience has shown us that once Asian carp become established in a new area, they can quickly overwhelm that waterway, endangering native fish and plant species.</div>
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An online petition has been started to try and prevent this project, it can be found <a href="http://www.change.org/petitions/stop-the-proposed-project-endangering-emiquon-preserve" target="_blank">here</a>.</div>
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<i>Fish caught: Largemouth Bass - ~35</i></div>
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<i> Bowfin - 1</i></div>
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<i>Successful Baits: Booyah Poppin' Pad Crasher(shad frog, swamp frog), Booyah Pad Crasher(bullfrog), 5/16 oz Crabby Bass Swim Jig(white/blue) with Big Hammer trailer.</i></div>
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<i>Weather: Mostly Sunny, calm winds in the morning shifting to ESE 10mph, upper 70's.</i></div>
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<i>Water Temps: unknown</i></div>
Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-35871393788007063142014-03-28T18:36:00.000-07:002014-04-09T18:43:07.336-07:00LaSalle Slow EveningTried the south bank of LaSalle this evening. Winds were not as strong as forecast, no signs of shad in the area, and a rising barometer, a bad combo. Barely avoided the skunk with a small channel cat on a nightcrawler.<br />
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<i>Weather: Mostly Cloudy, N winds 0-10mph, low 40's.</i><br />
<i>Water Temp: 58</i><br />
<i><br /></i>Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-1608993134887946532014-03-21T21:30:00.000-07:002014-03-28T07:37:59.588-07:00LaSalle Lake Big Blue CatAfter a long and brutal winter we finally had a nice day so I went out to LaSalle Lake to try for some striped bass hybrids and blue catfish. I brought my bike for this trip since I planned on fishing the center dike with the weather forecast calling for southwest winds. I like to fish the windblown shore at LaSalle Lake whenever possible as the fish will often follow the bait which are feeding on the plankton that gets stirred up on the windy banks. When I arrived at the lake late morning the winds hadn't shifted yet and it was pretty much a due east wind. The lake was pretty busy and a few of the bank fisherman who had probably been there since the gates opened in the morning had a few nice hybrids on their stringers. I decided to fish a few spots along the south shore as I made my way out to the center dike and waited for the winds to shift. Fishing was tough for the first few hours. The sun was out and fishing seemed slow for everyone other than the occasional small hybrid I saw being pulled in from a few guys fishing with chicken livers. Eventually I got the skunk off with a little smallmouth bass while using a cicada blade bait.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXhi73lPOvLl3lqbDEI_QgxPX3CE7KOEEcLef7exqwry2KlpLqZd9VxhncvmodiaaF2iwZD5uCi8T1SkbJ6Sbb1V07fF0evzz8kwOt_y9z2LjtxOhPa8ed0oEBEOnM8eemm8Qk7_jVVU4/s1600/LaSalleSmallie3212014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXhi73lPOvLl3lqbDEI_QgxPX3CE7KOEEcLef7exqwry2KlpLqZd9VxhncvmodiaaF2iwZD5uCi8T1SkbJ6Sbb1V07fF0evzz8kwOt_y9z2LjtxOhPa8ed0oEBEOnM8eemm8Qk7_jVVU4/s1600/LaSalleSmallie3212014.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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I made it out to the center dike by mid-afternoon and the winds were finally starting to come around to the south. I tried my go-to hybrid bait, the relax shad, but wasn't getting any hits so I got my catfish rods rigged up. I hadn't had any luck netting shad with my cast net so I started out fishing with nightcrawlers. I quickly caught a small channel catfish and filleted off a few pieces of it in hopes a blue catfish would go for some fresh cut bait. About half an hour later I got my first bite and it was obvious this fish wasn't messing around as my line was tearing off my reel at a very fast pace. I picked up my rod and kept tightening my drag in hopes of slowing down the fish. Eventually the fish slowed down and I could see I had something big as I saw a big splash at the surface about 100 yards out. Normally catfish stay towards the bottom while being reeled in but this one made several runs to the surface as I fought it in, it was a very strong fish. The closer it got I realized it was even bigger than I first had thought. After I landed it I measured it at 36" and a weight of 23lbs on my digital scale, my biggest Illinois catfish that I have caught to date. After getting a few pictures, the fish was released. Hopefully in a few more years someone can hook into this fish when it's even bigger!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVHnpWPmnbhGwJa2paq-EFhKmpKmfq38N5AgE1qpd_QfLrndIdTDuwLLjHOqyazr0tsf1XCO5-refbTn2rloLe2Cpq7a_9ULGVcn3QluhGB7mmvrRbbD5niI00hpCXj3mrxJ5JpPWDoTc/s1600/lasallebigblue03212014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVHnpWPmnbhGwJa2paq-EFhKmpKmfq38N5AgE1qpd_QfLrndIdTDuwLLjHOqyazr0tsf1XCO5-refbTn2rloLe2Cpq7a_9ULGVcn3QluhGB7mmvrRbbD5niI00hpCXj3mrxJ5JpPWDoTc/s1600/lasallebigblue03212014.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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Re-energized by fighting and landing the blue catfish, I went back to trying for hybrids while I kept one catfish pole out. The wind had picked up out of the southwest and clouds had moved in, conditions seemed perfect for hybrids to be near shore where I was at. I decided to switch to a pearl fluke on a jighead and on my second cast I got a hit right near shore and landed my first hybrid of the day. A nice and fat 20" fish.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6XZvcyk1K261_k-qd9pTfXQvOFrsTsopBSkDJfWRZf19gGtrDsvN1keaUwQamptUy_zzS7IEIvTiDs56ku1OGjITaYER181UHfhnu_oLUAuWfX5Ir6w_CDbHii4DTte8XMb5l7yHn7TI/s1600/LaSalleHybrid03212014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6XZvcyk1K261_k-qd9pTfXQvOFrsTsopBSkDJfWRZf19gGtrDsvN1keaUwQamptUy_zzS7IEIvTiDs56ku1OGjITaYER181UHfhnu_oLUAuWfX5Ir6w_CDbHii4DTte8XMb5l7yHn7TI/s1600/LaSalleHybrid03212014.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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The next hour was great fishing and I ended up catching four more hybrids and a couple more smaller blue catfish. </div>
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I shot a little video showing that it can be a little difficult to be fishing for both hybrids and blue catfish at the same time while the bite is hot, it is best to stay a little closer to your catfish rod than I was.</div>
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<i>Fish caught: Hybrid Striper - 5</i></div>
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<i> Blue Catfish - 3</i></div>
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<i> Channel Catfish - 2</i></div>
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<i> Smallmouth Bass - 1</i></div>
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<i>Successful Baits: Pearl flukes and superflukes on 1/4 oz. jighead.</i></div>
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<i> Cut channel catfish(santee rig).</i></div>
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<i>Weather: Increasing clouds, E winds shifting to SW 10-20mph, mid 50's.</i></div>
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<i>Water Temps: 58(south shore), 63(south side center dike), 76(north side center dike)</i></div>
Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-18327003248990030772014-03-01T21:00:00.000-08:002014-05-11T21:05:24.413-07:00Florida Family Fun Fishing <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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To celebrate my parents 40th wedding anniversary I met up with the rest of my family for a vacation on Sanibel Island, Florida. Of course, I had to bring along some fishing gear and I was able to get some fishing in just about every day I was down there. The weather was great for the most part and plenty of fish were caught between myself, my brother-in-law Russell, my brother Tim, and my Dad <a href="http://brainposts.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Bill</a>.<br />
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<b>Day 1: Beach Fishing 2/23/2014</b><br />
After stopping by <a href="http://www.baitboxsanibel.com/" target="_blank">The Bait Box</a> in Sanibel to purchase licenses and some bait we went back to the condo and decided to walk down to the beach and see if we could catch anything out in the Gulf. The employees at the the bait shop recommended that we walk out to the second sand bar and fish from there. The depth between the sand bars was about chest deep so it wasn't too hard to get off the beach a ways. We started off trying frozen shrimp and fiddler crabs but weren't getting much more than a few nibbles. Russell was the first one to try some cut bait(greenbacks) and eventually he hooked up with something. As he got it in closer we realized it was a small hammerhead shark! <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJKv9SYOd5lAhwLekUBnm4wohsSo5sjw1FhYED3jH7TyLzJO1_Zf2Rlk_jvzmCLbxWwOkfkvSNhBaIPAQH5y4HY7bC7nUKC4nx8ixfvrYaJObnaQy-0iRAd-hilM32s-fv28eSI4ak18E/s1600/russellhammerhead.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJKv9SYOd5lAhwLekUBnm4wohsSo5sjw1FhYED3jH7TyLzJO1_Zf2Rlk_jvzmCLbxWwOkfkvSNhBaIPAQH5y4HY7bC7nUKC4nx8ixfvrYaJObnaQy-0iRAd-hilM32s-fv28eSI4ak18E/s1600/russellhammerhead.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Russell aka "Macho Man" </span></i></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjicwg3SBF2skChyphenhyphenacEitvrvU2dRVYNWbaJOBVC2wp5IbfjhtOBDRvnuKkkplZuuD7izCae_urlH8PTGyyjJ6xsKpSOO7i7LafFm7uz0S4rLyHgaHReM1nMr9v0x745VkbqzermUgL5qqE/s1600/firsthammerhead.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjicwg3SBF2skChyphenhyphenacEitvrvU2dRVYNWbaJOBVC2wp5IbfjhtOBDRvnuKkkplZuuD7izCae_urlH8PTGyyjJ6xsKpSOO7i7LafFm7uz0S4rLyHgaHReM1nMr9v0x745VkbqzermUgL5qqE/s1600/firsthammerhead.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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The joy of catching our first fish was short lived however as in my excitement I had forgotten I still had the cut bait in my shirt pocket. Upon release, the maneater went straight for me in a vicious attack. My brother thought it was hilarious of course.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghuqob-CJ1YBenrciJ-jYq0gvJQ9O4kdtFcNWpW1dvIDWT8N_RpNLL3AN7J4iWqBvbxPt0aLjqi1gmvmSqcYXLHhdVrt1FE22ftCsFka4Eqi9VaFRa-hw59KMlHH1V7kb0SM72mRPzxBM/s1600/hammerheadattack1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghuqob-CJ1YBenrciJ-jYq0gvJQ9O4kdtFcNWpW1dvIDWT8N_RpNLL3AN7J4iWqBvbxPt0aLjqi1gmvmSqcYXLHhdVrt1FE22ftCsFka4Eqi9VaFRa-hw59KMlHH1V7kb0SM72mRPzxBM/s1600/hammerheadattack1.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxbQM0b1FFeTCtRVlacm6H_ocL5dg4jTqKhstkGT-Zpt0iVg3e9baNC4gu6n2Tfa9sN2JYrgkFHGBkbg8FjDshwUluxKeHW3dce_Af1dfmjEcfURPWkcVd9zW-nn0AlS1zSZc3MGXKf5g/s1600/hammerheadattack.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxbQM0b1FFeTCtRVlacm6H_ocL5dg4jTqKhstkGT-Zpt0iVg3e9baNC4gu6n2Tfa9sN2JYrgkFHGBkbg8FjDshwUluxKeHW3dce_Af1dfmjEcfURPWkcVd9zW-nn0AlS1zSZc3MGXKf5g/s1600/hammerheadattack.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx4puG2gC8lKKMuhfcFIBPCQ6v9nj8myRDVJDJbzO3frjGNikhUzOkBqELvkzEoLfrr_28iT5f8ZB0liTqyuWV_lcLB-22TolR_JiAFqGwUTnUZfRqQMErJPmcXqm34vKYb3EfX7uRziU/s1600/hammerheadattack3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx4puG2gC8lKKMuhfcFIBPCQ6v9nj8myRDVJDJbzO3frjGNikhUzOkBqELvkzEoLfrr_28iT5f8ZB0liTqyuWV_lcLB-22TolR_JiAFqGwUTnUZfRqQMErJPmcXqm34vKYb3EfX7uRziU/s1600/hammerheadattack3.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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We all switched to cut bait after Russell's catch and eventually I hooked up. It ended up being a small gafftopsail catfish. We later learned the venom in the spines of this catfish can cause extreme pain if you happen to get stung and you should avoid handling them. Oops.</div>
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These would be the only two fish we caught this afternoon but it was good to know that fish could be caught right in front of the condo we were staying at. Tim also hooked up with something larger right before we headed in but unfortunately it broke the line.<br />
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<b>Day 2: Under The Bridge 2/24/2014</b><br />
We headed out for some evening fishing under the Sanibel Causeway. We brought some frozen shrimp, crabs, and cut greenbacks for bait. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHRr39UqAlyHiz-IQ43Xeax7wkbe8S3jju2y_U02pEQg2g7Ovjb8XOBOq6lHfN0b1GsN9UrLOwWl6_LXBJYAY8AcfrrnJPrJSwGns69ZPtYZJeB-dGjsPQGGjrjKfVuvKll_-fT9Yl46g/s1600/CausewayDadTed.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHRr39UqAlyHiz-IQ43Xeax7wkbe8S3jju2y_U02pEQg2g7Ovjb8XOBOq6lHfN0b1GsN9UrLOwWl6_LXBJYAY8AcfrrnJPrJSwGns69ZPtYZJeB-dGjsPQGGjrjKfVuvKll_-fT9Yl46g/s1600/CausewayDadTed.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Dad and I doing some birding while waiting for a bite</span></i></td></tr>
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It wasn't long before Dad had a bite and his drag started peeling. After a good fight we finally got a look at the fish and I was able to grab the hammerhead shark by the tail. This would be one of two decent sized hammerheads that Dad caught that evening.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzLaUcDvm1UtHkBy4iMlfl1Tg4JWYoPun_Y8d-jY86rWUrtcRjYadaHCWumhFIOxMMi-XxI3rBSQwfK3hKHZ9DtjVra8kizsex8Ei6a96Gz1Kn5g_SHgXxw6EJSIlBYbA-h0xPp5fZnpQ/s1600/CausewayDadHookedUp.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzLaUcDvm1UtHkBy4iMlfl1Tg4JWYoPun_Y8d-jY86rWUrtcRjYadaHCWumhFIOxMMi-XxI3rBSQwfK3hKHZ9DtjVra8kizsex8Ei6a96Gz1Kn5g_SHgXxw6EJSIlBYbA-h0xPp5fZnpQ/s1600/CausewayDadHookedUp.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Surely a shark wouldn't attack me twice</span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2HD4ntHOfNiqF0w6b1mO8pUpESO4UF9IZxcaI91dpBG8asvw4bmRI9q6a4OXYHckd1ZLawoCy4veTl_sWJ_2DxXr6i_ThAT09gPOlslDSWk3jD4ucf-XglJS2XS_Twe7xMz7PFhzMJHE/s1600/CausewayDadTedHammerhead.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2HD4ntHOfNiqF0w6b1mO8pUpESO4UF9IZxcaI91dpBG8asvw4bmRI9q6a4OXYHckd1ZLawoCy4veTl_sWJ_2DxXr6i_ThAT09gPOlslDSWk3jD4ucf-XglJS2XS_Twe7xMz7PFhzMJHE/s1600/CausewayDadTedHammerhead.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Dad didn't want to lip it for some reason</span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8NDvXxz21QKHFKN4UcuJ0eUe0cEI0ZNB9PrJTCFKa2an_G7YO84B3Eg0Rk4qu1k2AN_uxG-ZgmBEYNkbeDG1rKmWcGkYiuvVz3qxDcINWL_qOe3g9VjWpc207QIHlqntntBb7sSaw09c/s1600/CausewayTimRussCat.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: left;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8NDvXxz21QKHFKN4UcuJ0eUe0cEI0ZNB9PrJTCFKa2an_G7YO84B3Eg0Rk4qu1k2AN_uxG-ZgmBEYNkbeDG1rKmWcGkYiuvVz3qxDcINWL_qOe3g9VjWpc207QIHlqntntBb7sSaw09c/s1600/CausewayTimRussCat.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Tim and Russell with a gafftopsail catfish</span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7m9dS_hezxFT-OR5xQ19S4NgWP1vDRTUaE9QTZK4nly2xDAcaryH0UkgnN8kaUFv0nBwqS0UndArhY0EUEReqOaocHyA8jZoBt6COsxXSzVk23DWBNYe7aUUiKsd_kDnqZZ_W_AchRZA/s1600/RussBlacktip.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7m9dS_hezxFT-OR5xQ19S4NgWP1vDRTUaE9QTZK4nly2xDAcaryH0UkgnN8kaUFv0nBwqS0UndArhY0EUEReqOaocHyA8jZoBt6COsxXSzVk23DWBNYe7aUUiKsd_kDnqZZ_W_AchRZA/s1600/RussBlacktip.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Russell with a blacktip shark</span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPH85S_QUZon34Pj-ON2K1XmBE8Gz7cjPUg92ovygG22PoX_K3nmHdsLkF0W7EPWvpbugwjZdIALIiPQ4011hEA8YkhEEUfdTEtNMvxq2Kq4s1MhGgnHgu-8CWZ1Le6FiH2kjzmV5_F30/s1600/TimBlacktip.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPH85S_QUZon34Pj-ON2K1XmBE8Gz7cjPUg92ovygG22PoX_K3nmHdsLkF0W7EPWvpbugwjZdIALIiPQ4011hEA8YkhEEUfdTEtNMvxq2Kq4s1MhGgnHgu-8CWZ1Le6FiH2kjzmV5_F30/s1600/TimBlacktip.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Tim with a blacktip shark</span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5aJOZJb0WKFNl2CuNmuSggHeFFTttaU2RRCSB4uFMEeSbCv-zYxG3poVilEQxwh3lGgGGKiOFgwSMbQEyJMRFyjfe13O6ybuRS8Esj4cRflk9w4PAwvuXWPbsL2MFxQ3HDyFtv7wAlYk/s1600/CausewayTedSmallFish.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5aJOZJb0WKFNl2CuNmuSggHeFFTttaU2RRCSB4uFMEeSbCv-zYxG3poVilEQxwh3lGgGGKiOFgwSMbQEyJMRFyjfe13O6ybuRS8Esj4cRflk9w4PAwvuXWPbsL2MFxQ3HDyFtv7wAlYk/s1600/CausewayTedSmallFish.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i>This guy would of looked good in an aquarium</i></span></td></tr>
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In addition to the two hammerheads Dad caught, Tim and Russell also landed a couple small sharks and catfish. I barely avoided the skunk with a small lane snapper right before we left. It was a beautiful evening to be out fishing.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioIeOyuFgDI8FHPParDl6SAPambi6FLY9a3N-OKYY6JmTOQ_Y8XDPyT28HZOQR2p6rYfKam-H4XWEJOE1U9BoJk6SMplMRmJjVs-oZLSM7DYsCf5jZdAm9y8bTS1lQgRqV7PHGW6nT0yg/s1600/CausewayFishermanSunset.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioIeOyuFgDI8FHPParDl6SAPambi6FLY9a3N-OKYY6JmTOQ_Y8XDPyT28HZOQR2p6rYfKam-H4XWEJOE1U9BoJk6SMplMRmJjVs-oZLSM7DYsCf5jZdAm9y8bTS1lQgRqV7PHGW6nT0yg/s1600/CausewayFishermanSunset.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">A couple fisherman admiring the sunset under the Sanibel Causeway</span></i></td></tr>
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<b>Day 3: Pontoon Fishing 2/25/2014</b><br />
My Dad scheduled a pontoon rental for a half day out of <a href="http://www.tarponbayexplorers.com/" target="_blank">Tarpon Bay</a> on Sanibel Island for the morning. The whole family headed out on this trip and the women quickly figured out they had been hoodwinked into more than a simple cruise around the bay. Although everything we caught was small we had a nice variety of species bite our live shrimp including spotted seatrout, jack crevalle, spanish mackeral, pinfish, ladyfish, and even a stingray.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">The captain</span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibI5rGDY5pHyJ4T1eK9FTISGuDL7hVNZazpMkzOyWtGC1MDVtWIDTgvyBwyRjJrxXaGa5eK_PVWbTs4YnZ9mIHDTlUS_arSVwTFeAS_OzsuRsq_VhgbIlObT4C7lA24FN0BdGuelwurNc/s1600/ClairePointFish.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibI5rGDY5pHyJ4T1eK9FTISGuDL7hVNZazpMkzOyWtGC1MDVtWIDTgvyBwyRjJrxXaGa5eK_PVWbTs4YnZ9mIHDTlUS_arSVwTFeAS_OzsuRsq_VhgbIlObT4C7lA24FN0BdGuelwurNc/s1600/ClairePointFish.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Some nice pointing by my niece Claire here with Grandpa and Grandma</span></i><br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRY5ILf8G36i4AcktdCS4HLicsTL7cNw02pjwyu8EPdINQWz865vdDb0RYuzrLahqyWmHjeWejEeQ-SvBRBbooQgIVug8x-t-MJTsnhoJu6rrcRXWAew0jDkcBoUS5UihMMISePCt1du0/s1600/DadStingray.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRY5ILf8G36i4AcktdCS4HLicsTL7cNw02pjwyu8EPdINQWz865vdDb0RYuzrLahqyWmHjeWejEeQ-SvBRBbooQgIVug8x-t-MJTsnhoJu6rrcRXWAew0jDkcBoUS5UihMMISePCt1du0/s1600/DadStingray.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i>We got the net out for the stingray</i></span></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAROIA1FG2XdbRe5MEYXA_gc7-ENjEaV4Kj60gM93t_vrzThNsla584Rdt1nL3xHgVQ8hgGkeWowa1NPfhuk6Ag-7eoZvVEdHTr9d6kQESzYZrUUnZCeJe5glpeeWD8YV8AQmDT16UCEs/s1600/Dadtrout.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAROIA1FG2XdbRe5MEYXA_gc7-ENjEaV4Kj60gM93t_vrzThNsla584Rdt1nL3xHgVQ8hgGkeWowa1NPfhuk6Ag-7eoZvVEdHTr9d6kQESzYZrUUnZCeJe5glpeeWD8YV8AQmDT16UCEs/s1600/Dadtrout.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">My Dad had the hot hand early in the morning</span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHqXAxLYNI0TzMM42VhjnHm4jvDyMOB6iXyPuVv48fD3mwfTp29nnFxxTXe413kVV8Ks55Dz2-ealeKhyhcDaePRbxtXFLiaDyZ7dzeLwgqZVD1NATKlHydTFPWYI3x2qsyttRO3YyUbw/s1600/ClaireJack.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="font-size: medium; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHqXAxLYNI0TzMM42VhjnHm4jvDyMOB6iXyPuVv48fD3mwfTp29nnFxxTXe413kVV8Ks55Dz2-ealeKhyhcDaePRbxtXFLiaDyZ7dzeLwgqZVD1NATKlHydTFPWYI3x2qsyttRO3YyUbw/s1600/ClaireJack.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Claire helps calm the fish so her Dad can get the hook out</span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib79CXTsndHGsWG8UwgHcrhF02BhyGTfIaPUhLfv0WRy4PscY6IlaCfk6sphP6vDDzewlFSx2OfX2sI9SJfdMOSeUOFhGza46fdFzvPp49w3WZOnz9nikPKKn3IMIqwLrn0tgml_GfADg/s1600/DoubleJack.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib79CXTsndHGsWG8UwgHcrhF02BhyGTfIaPUhLfv0WRy4PscY6IlaCfk6sphP6vDDzewlFSx2OfX2sI9SJfdMOSeUOFhGza46fdFzvPp49w3WZOnz9nikPKKn3IMIqwLrn0tgml_GfADg/s1600/DoubleJack.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Double shot of Jack? Yes please!</span></i><i><br /></i><br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoYgAYqMVf-ud0HPKOMzlwW5J7AYeUze6RUrWnDmlBGWtnk-NqbwSJ2KSWc5AH4QY0RZqJCWOFbiI3sZEkNUjSuBnQ9qEkkXpvXhVq2Ngoe7JgvVBpUU1iSqd6iwQZOEz7-MjefAJLVrM/s1600/TimMackeral.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoYgAYqMVf-ud0HPKOMzlwW5J7AYeUze6RUrWnDmlBGWtnk-NqbwSJ2KSWc5AH4QY0RZqJCWOFbiI3sZEkNUjSuBnQ9qEkkXpvXhVq2Ngoe7JgvVBpUU1iSqd6iwQZOEz7-MjefAJLVrM/s1600/TimMackeral.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption"><i><span style="font-size: small;">I believe this was the only Spanish Mackerel caught</span></i><br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTRzK_rXh1p70idE2F9LM25NJASKMinOGdDJWJY8wGi8Bj00PIHRiDbIz4soJcC4rgMtLqitTMPRpF2OTgOO_DLzRf1d6rFtf83EHgbayxhclUslCQCAWeHGiW0TTVvqGMxZ7ZWjk9MUs/s1600/RussellLady.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTRzK_rXh1p70idE2F9LM25NJASKMinOGdDJWJY8wGi8Bj00PIHRiDbIz4soJcC4rgMtLqitTMPRpF2OTgOO_DLzRf1d6rFtf83EHgbayxhclUslCQCAWeHGiW0TTVvqGMxZ7ZWjk9MUs/s1600/RussellLady.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption"><i><span style="font-size: small;">A lady(my sister Sarah) and a ladyfish</span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnN1olgmnmyUHSBHBslatlHWGOXGp1WevuzqU0J7wt34DdWzDf2EdGv-Vvzzol-aRjMqa607DBbLGErtDlLxIut0V4cMJUdp8uFP-7oVtm8NCvgCJzD3AO4byKoDlFQ8hg47TWZGa3zb0/s1600/TimLadyfish.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnN1olgmnmyUHSBHBslatlHWGOXGp1WevuzqU0J7wt34DdWzDf2EdGv-Vvzzol-aRjMqa607DBbLGErtDlLxIut0V4cMJUdp8uFP-7oVtm8NCvgCJzD3AO4byKoDlFQ8hg47TWZGa3zb0/s1600/TimLadyfish.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption"><i><span style="font-size: small;">My brother with a ladyfish</span></i><br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivex1bxEvbZ6O29hmJHmdXz2GSZRYPqzwM6IcH5P2T0J1Kv13-e1nLt-4riR6pjwepopKP2pTjE9vY_eXFYHCuyB3MwI6_6VnJihfnisMt6KkgTCYx0nxteBQiOcOra-sL9HIbjX6xF0M/s1600/ClairePinfish.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivex1bxEvbZ6O29hmJHmdXz2GSZRYPqzwM6IcH5P2T0J1Kv13-e1nLt-4riR6pjwepopKP2pTjE9vY_eXFYHCuyB3MwI6_6VnJihfnisMt6KkgTCYx0nxteBQiOcOra-sL9HIbjX6xF0M/s1600/ClairePinfish.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption"><i><span style="font-size: small;">No love for the pinfish</span></i></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="font-size: 13px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXMLC5dCUhS0c1iAjCYFYNmRl5ly8SVf2v3bbIdwChipPyV9uWScBgrBFFy_O8ljgD3WVI8jJk22aELjlxUa_Rc4nqNRrjRLq9-1z3astTBHo1_6ucjLmwgwjxpFlUu-B34eJy2Bqlxww/s1600/BoysFishing.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXMLC5dCUhS0c1iAjCYFYNmRl5ly8SVf2v3bbIdwChipPyV9uWScBgrBFFy_O8ljgD3WVI8jJk22aELjlxUa_Rc4nqNRrjRLq9-1z3astTBHo1_6ucjLmwgwjxpFlUu-B34eJy2Bqlxww/s1600/BoysFishing.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption"><i><span style="font-size: small;">A great day</span></i></td></tr>
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<b>Day 3: Guided Captiva Fishing 2/26/2014</b><br />
<div>
We had a guided trip scheduled for the morning out of Captiva Island with <a href="http://www.sanibelcaptivafishing.com/" target="_blank">Captain Jim Burnsed Sr.</a> We arrived at the dock bright and early and we were off to go fishing right away. </div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfas8pn1AadLaegAWwt-8EZY3eBxtgeAVFm16-IOg3hRvbE933U_8xIq5BKWKugURX_-_FrZE3CieKschRUW-VPtgT4uwaF74IxDoRWWlqeXuJwfDCv6cds3Df3kDn8-lM8Hky6OX09H0/s1600/GroupGuidedPreFish.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfas8pn1AadLaegAWwt-8EZY3eBxtgeAVFm16-IOg3hRvbE933U_8xIq5BKWKugURX_-_FrZE3CieKschRUW-VPtgT4uwaF74IxDoRWWlqeXuJwfDCv6cds3Df3kDn8-lM8Hky6OX09H0/s1600/GroupGuidedPreFish.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Ready to Fish!</span></i></td></tr>
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<div>
We first stopped at Redfish Pass as the tide was coming into the bay to try for some sheepshead. We had pretty simple setups for this type of fishing, a splitshot pinched right above a swivel with a few feet of leader and a J hook. For bait we used fiddler crabs and shrimp. Fishing was slow starting out while we missed a few bites but Tim was able to get the skunk off with a small sheepshead.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvyt4tfQXwifMUHr2wrEI7FBSRBpSF-BKdKrJaRRK7oKFSNHK6u4yTK1_jr9cHYmfa6vPl0At_Hk7rtBJzy8omZk1SX_A3oUQz6tuugtx6jEJKPy4zGTi_PHhsPLE8XCPe49GQk_4tES4/s1600/TimFirstSheepshead.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvyt4tfQXwifMUHr2wrEI7FBSRBpSF-BKdKrJaRRK7oKFSNHK6u4yTK1_jr9cHYmfa6vPl0At_Hk7rtBJzy8omZk1SX_A3oUQz6tuugtx6jEJKPy4zGTi_PHhsPLE8XCPe49GQk_4tES4/s1600/TimFirstSheepshead.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Good way to start the day</span></i></td></tr>
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Russell and Dad soon followed suit.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUVZYic6Cb57rPWddL6PnDXwmpObABPxLe0VaYcdqQmuI_dqfk-lt0wYMKXGZnEfFxZvydfJs_bBEa1ueyJuHWqI5mTvpdIlmPR_3o02dBQyZkt-gatFmvnkwLRXMN5rbzzSKFkAumzeA/s1600/RussellFirstSheepshead.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUVZYic6Cb57rPWddL6PnDXwmpObABPxLe0VaYcdqQmuI_dqfk-lt0wYMKXGZnEfFxZvydfJs_bBEa1ueyJuHWqI5mTvpdIlmPR_3o02dBQyZkt-gatFmvnkwLRXMN5rbzzSKFkAumzeA/s1600/RussellFirstSheepshead.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Captain Jim admires Russell's nice sheepshead</span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX-OSBrhD79w2zI-p2wuSewW4SmBAYXEnnRHdBj0WjszRnixDJV5EIUIFypys7M-PpWQNbv99Mm8CQNoXdguJDgtV40dQcGG6jL3hGlPclbiKrqer_MgzP2g84tLE4SpW397KjlRmMBCA/s1600/DadFirstSheepshead.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX-OSBrhD79w2zI-p2wuSewW4SmBAYXEnnRHdBj0WjszRnixDJV5EIUIFypys7M-PpWQNbv99Mm8CQNoXdguJDgtV40dQcGG6jL3hGlPclbiKrqer_MgzP2g84tLE4SpW397KjlRmMBCA/s1600/DadFirstSheepshead.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Dad lands his first of many fish on the day</span></i></td></tr>
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Tim then hooked up with what might have been the biggest fish of the morning.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZZnRy16YOuoXfMWdr4QHSHrxP4MpAuoO6mqMbdMLovwS3_vVqPact8ifkJTl2p0bTcQSpJg-7az67H8HnqnaWXfqJRACveS-tQvUct_jnYkzFAcqiBs0DD2tb8QOJifDp3UdCzNhPPno/s1600/TimSheepshead.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZZnRy16YOuoXfMWdr4QHSHrxP4MpAuoO6mqMbdMLovwS3_vVqPact8ifkJTl2p0bTcQSpJg-7az67H8HnqnaWXfqJRACveS-tQvUct_jnYkzFAcqiBs0DD2tb8QOJifDp3UdCzNhPPno/s1600/TimSheepshead.JPG" height="400" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Nice one!</span></i></td></tr>
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We moved to another spot on the pass where the incoming tide was swirling around a small rock jetty. This was definitely an area where experience was needed as the current was strong. Captain Jim did a great job of putting us in the spot we needed to be and it didn't take long before I was hooked up!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUnuxREOvgE8Pa3tKYFICycPQ0JssXl-kN4oNnN6xRUqaDr8yMxR_7go8amm74itY5HE39sggf3pXTBM6hOpvxHcf3ZVN60rcFTjkzyKa4xfVK_7lkVSja12hOWpXZA14MTzQbuFzg4zQ/s1600/TedHookupSheepshead.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUnuxREOvgE8Pa3tKYFICycPQ0JssXl-kN4oNnN6xRUqaDr8yMxR_7go8amm74itY5HE39sggf3pXTBM6hOpvxHcf3ZVN60rcFTjkzyKa4xfVK_7lkVSja12hOWpXZA14MTzQbuFzg4zQ/s1600/TedHookupSheepshead.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">The sheepshead were a good fight, especially against the current</span></i></td></tr>
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This was a hot spot and if you cast your bait in the right area and let it drift with the current it was almost a guaranteed bite.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBUuhlt5jgMZ6ZahiVScKPuv_CRsS7ZMdlukY0iRot43fqrQdPe5IVdgI9jEEHuvdwSn8YlKCwCW84_WklG4inkwANZ3hrVFSmSf_u1YE7a3rAUYEjY6KCdks3hRayKxEj4q1QzRketaw/s1600/TedBigSheepshead.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBUuhlt5jgMZ6ZahiVScKPuv_CRsS7ZMdlukY0iRot43fqrQdPe5IVdgI9jEEHuvdwSn8YlKCwCW84_WklG4inkwANZ3hrVFSmSf_u1YE7a3rAUYEjY6KCdks3hRayKxEj4q1QzRketaw/s1600/TedBigSheepshead.JPG" height="400" width="265" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">My biggest sheepshead of the day</span></i></td></tr>
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It didn't take long before we had a decent number of sheepshead in the box.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJkqsz8mFXl5udRE0oUWP5oMhruNztgSqTIEvB95bQGBz581-bgvBtHkFd1gthkI4ibEq7WeujHi3y2SBUQiTW7-d1r_b2w4isj9pvxHXGthuMs38gJvHecs26hFynaTwxf6Jq-yy5rSE/s1600/SheepsheadBox.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJkqsz8mFXl5udRE0oUWP5oMhruNztgSqTIEvB95bQGBz581-bgvBtHkFd1gthkI4ibEq7WeujHi3y2SBUQiTW7-d1r_b2w4isj9pvxHXGthuMs38gJvHecs26hFynaTwxf6Jq-yy5rSE/s1600/SheepsheadBox.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">They made for a delicious dinner later</span></i></td></tr>
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With a lot of missed bites, we had gone through a lot of bait in a short amount of time. Captain Jim asked if we wanted to cast lures and we said that we did so we moved to the other side of the island. Fishing was great at this location as well as we drifted with the wind across a shallow flat while throwing rootbeer colored gotcha grubs on jigheads. We caught a mix of jack crevalle, ladyfish, and spotted seatrout. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ0GVB1xY7iqBfQf4lkDvb7M6Ec-9EO_nr9mSPUDAKPD3u4n4e7aqZZo5K6AlCGTwKIre6sKIuCGRvvK0yzejqScICKgTccKuXWNRXAd57NnVqyaeU8ILzmtHsp32crYoW0iC4mWFEV-8/s1600/DoubleJack2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ0GVB1xY7iqBfQf4lkDvb7M6Ec-9EO_nr9mSPUDAKPD3u4n4e7aqZZo5K6AlCGTwKIre6sKIuCGRvvK0yzejqScICKgTccKuXWNRXAd57NnVqyaeU8ILzmtHsp32crYoW0iC4mWFEV-8/s1600/DoubleJack2.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Jack crevalle put up a great fight, even if not very big</span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcnWBhygp7-RU3gb_8jsC_ho4X333wBzMYBpf0Z41li-N8kWmGKcRp071DducEvHFHjibXSnzDVKmiokS8Tv8PlTU5j-szkiVCZRJf4qqEj65l3CGeJklTPpq3sJ-hI7xrEV8q8uilXFw/s1600/RussellSpeckledTrout2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcnWBhygp7-RU3gb_8jsC_ho4X333wBzMYBpf0Z41li-N8kWmGKcRp071DducEvHFHjibXSnzDVKmiokS8Tv8PlTU5j-szkiVCZRJf4qqEj65l3CGeJklTPpq3sJ-hI7xrEV8q8uilXFw/s1600/RussellSpeckledTrout2.JPG" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">A nice spotted seatrout for Russell</span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFgr39iZwEADNXXsLwqrhRKhVGffWy_3eNjnIiKZp_ej3pWpqfQuKUZwwiRWFbNgipfvKprFG0uyfLYUAsdeb5zIANTkUVkJ1ri6LUrWOUHJ0N7EG7qXhJSexeiEdxSl_wsOuaUCtifsU/s1600/TimLadyFish2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFgr39iZwEADNXXsLwqrhRKhVGffWy_3eNjnIiKZp_ej3pWpqfQuKUZwwiRWFbNgipfvKprFG0uyfLYUAsdeb5zIANTkUVkJ1ri6LUrWOUHJ0N7EG7qXhJSexeiEdxSl_wsOuaUCtifsU/s1600/TimLadyFish2.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">The ladyfish provides some nice aerial acrobatics when hooked</span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjczRiqedDD0JIqHkx0xnafy5dLt5KAyvJg3zOhBwkHH-skSEtwyejV6VrZCGZ7Ekh4hR9s_a_B9QiQvOq2WEGtat3rLCYT_He_JSwrORIJysHpTHcizYE_Bi2TbMtXeakShdrLExD3hd8/s1600/TimSpeckledTrout2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjczRiqedDD0JIqHkx0xnafy5dLt5KAyvJg3zOhBwkHH-skSEtwyejV6VrZCGZ7Ekh4hR9s_a_B9QiQvOq2WEGtat3rLCYT_He_JSwrORIJysHpTHcizYE_Bi2TbMtXeakShdrLExD3hd8/s1600/TimSpeckledTrout2.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Tim with a nice spotted seatrout</span></i></td></tr>
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Time flew by as we continued to have fast action through the rest of morning during our drifts. I'm not sure of the total number of fish we caught but I would guess it was somewhere close to 100 between the four of us by the end of our morning trip. We returned to the dock and Captain Jim and his son Captain Jimmy cleaned the fish we had kept during our trip. Captain Jim was a great guide who had us on fish all day and I would highly recommend him if you are looking for a guide in the Sanibel/Captiva Island area.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis3TllTh1Ee5sPbQAdO5hqVb5IFO0Fqr4AJkJesdjnJBALbA_Ou2pZ7W5TE3-Z7K9bSSgh8LfjAPVffqT84b6nktN3dAcpPpgpS08rhenfeMtgcCXF7IIy_2RiWgog0etzqC4E5nLaRdI/s1600/PelicansFishCleaning.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis3TllTh1Ee5sPbQAdO5hqVb5IFO0Fqr4AJkJesdjnJBALbA_Ou2pZ7W5TE3-Z7K9bSSgh8LfjAPVffqT84b6nktN3dAcpPpgpS08rhenfeMtgcCXF7IIy_2RiWgog0etzqC4E5nLaRdI/s1600/PelicansFishCleaning.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">The pelicans know where to hang out for an easy meal of fish scraps</span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhES2QrUOUPMWkHsvgNm2Rczp-tJ7L3KIBAumnlTqFiP8cxjchB3tCqAFEJzuzo8x3_c5VNr1YON57Zl4jCZIGHrNuMf4uzK8R36OwI6DbHKX75Ey2rpwW14ceCNKm5elth2BMp39ZEP1Y/s1600/GroupGuidedFish.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhES2QrUOUPMWkHsvgNm2Rczp-tJ7L3KIBAumnlTqFiP8cxjchB3tCqAFEJzuzo8x3_c5VNr1YON57Zl4jCZIGHrNuMf4uzK8R36OwI6DbHKX75Ey2rpwW14ceCNKm5elth2BMp39ZEP1Y/s1600/GroupGuidedFish.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Some of the bigger keepers. Thanks for the trip Dad!</span></i></td></tr>
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<b>Day 4: Tarpon Bay Kayak Fishing 2/28/2014</b></div>
<div>
While the rest of family went out to visit the Naples Zoo, I decided to rent a kayak from <a href="http://www.tarponbayexplorers.com/" target="_blank">Tarpon Bay</a> and do some more fishing. I paddled out to an inlet where some current was coming into the bay, anchored on the edge of some mangroves, and tried some frozen shrimp beneath a splitshot weight. While I didn't catch anything near the size of the fish we caught on our guided trip, I still managed to bring several small sheepshead into the kayak.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS5D9ieWxIE-oCnvrbEPmuuMvsaW-pcLRYf1ed8AIdJwo9426Ig_-FiYMlFN12c2JTijxo8Q-FL4ODlGTEOhaCbZZ0yH_hoVdIvuD6cRtxKt74UtCs_cslDsV1cEz5kwO17cS0E2Orvmc/s1600/TedKayakSheepshead2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS5D9ieWxIE-oCnvrbEPmuuMvsaW-pcLRYf1ed8AIdJwo9426Ig_-FiYMlFN12c2JTijxo8Q-FL4ODlGTEOhaCbZZ0yH_hoVdIvuD6cRtxKt74UtCs_cslDsV1cEz5kwO17cS0E2Orvmc/s1600/TedKayakSheepshead2.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">The sun can be brutal even during the winter in Florida</span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL3ZCWXEXEWXnsZ9Dkgskh0TvcPZHOZVIburmkcIKGUOCQyd5AEMRWE7EV9Ew3PE9aUQKcXcBEK_E4DsCnwwjXvfiRHOXGVuC0u9yTUlEFB1KMl1wPZFdu90X5cVMv2vbrS8Suuml5CeQ/s1600/TedKayakSheepshead.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL3ZCWXEXEWXnsZ9Dkgskh0TvcPZHOZVIburmkcIKGUOCQyd5AEMRWE7EV9Ew3PE9aUQKcXcBEK_E4DsCnwwjXvfiRHOXGVuC0u9yTUlEFB1KMl1wPZFdu90X5cVMv2vbrS8Suuml5CeQ/s1600/TedKayakSheepshead.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Sheepshead have to be 12" to keep, this one didn't quite make it</span></i></td></tr>
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I also caught a spotted seatrout, a few ladyfish, and a puffer fish that made some cool grunting noises.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvJ9tGRqExAzHFsImZvjQv6fG5Km9PH5XSdIkNqGqdKhArDzyOJPwUo2OivqlF1AOMjhH0AHc0LMu-Q6SURGK7MBIel8yPT3xVHn0cwqf9Pvlzb_c1gOiYWSZxoIHHZG0DhTQRozxN1Yk/s1600/PufferFish.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvJ9tGRqExAzHFsImZvjQv6fG5Km9PH5XSdIkNqGqdKhArDzyOJPwUo2OivqlF1AOMjhH0AHc0LMu-Q6SURGK7MBIel8yPT3xVHn0cwqf9Pvlzb_c1gOiYWSZxoIHHZG0DhTQRozxN1Yk/s1600/PufferFish.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">I didn't dare touch it and was happy I could shake the hook out</span></i></td></tr>
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<b>Day 5: Sanibel Fishing Pier 3/1/2014</b><br />
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For the final day of fishing Tim and I headed down to the Sanibel Fishing Pier for a little more than an hour in the morning. It is a popular spot on Sanibel Island and fishermen were shoulder to shoulder at the end of the pier. Eventually a good spot opened up. I let my piece of shrimp fall down along one of the support pillars and I was able to land a mangrove snapper and a sheepshead right before we were about to leave. We brought them back to the condo, filleted them, and grilled them up before we had to leave for a spring training game between the Red Sox and the Twins. A nice end to a very memorable week of fishing and time with the family.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4SRkHzLiAjunhsmSv8ccoaIi4YISx5GkyXLXJcufS-XBfR0h_RCv1aHAEIlIGpu2qA-zQp9cWV9mitROKhJvJa6s1xdY1G3hu1Gig0qxE1SMBxlqwKUjU-BVQrJPnhWHiHa0p0PID8R0/s1600/TedSnapperSheepshead.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4SRkHzLiAjunhsmSv8ccoaIi4YISx5GkyXLXJcufS-XBfR0h_RCv1aHAEIlIGpu2qA-zQp9cWV9mitROKhJvJa6s1xdY1G3hu1Gig0qxE1SMBxlqwKUjU-BVQrJPnhWHiHa0p0PID8R0/s1600/TedSnapperSheepshead.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">The mangrove snapper was the envy of at least a couple fishermen on the pier</span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNMS5d0jiq6KvRfcMcLcRgJJoCoiXrRankEzqww39rpfylcuJKLVq0uwTY0VY05JHQlVgthyphenhypheno86SoX2B6dJ3ZZ8Xe05U6CMGOQ7ANxJ_PGgbfNpVLtyVdc6eSQQbbLiP_lZWcOn4LZWIo/s1600/FilletingSnapperSheepshead.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNMS5d0jiq6KvRfcMcLcRgJJoCoiXrRankEzqww39rpfylcuJKLVq0uwTY0VY05JHQlVgthyphenhypheno86SoX2B6dJ3ZZ8Xe05U6CMGOQ7ANxJ_PGgbfNpVLtyVdc6eSQQbbLiP_lZWcOn4LZWIo/s1600/FilletingSnapperSheepshead.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Filleting with a nice cutco knife Sarah and Russell got me for my birthday last year</span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh-fkNkithv8tI6q5wEABNCsvCZmqFyylbAPtjsosHXF0TnNPIB3T6_OXWBtVrwkmfe-Iu4GZ-1gSFsuyc9TrkilI9LY6XEue5w3yuwlHEbbB41SRbV9tdy1O1d0hX_9yK-89Gxtujgys/s1600/wholefamily.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh-fkNkithv8tI6q5wEABNCsvCZmqFyylbAPtjsosHXF0TnNPIB3T6_OXWBtVrwkmfe-Iu4GZ-1gSFsuyc9TrkilI9LY6XEue5w3yuwlHEbbB41SRbV9tdy1O1d0hX_9yK-89Gxtujgys/s1600/wholefamily.JPG" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">The whole family</span></i></td></tr>
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Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-14434745164436011342013-10-13T21:00:00.000-07:002013-10-16T22:27:13.890-07:00LaSalle Lake Closing Day Catfishing<a href="http://www.chunsum.com/" target="_blank">Chunsum</a>, Dan(<a href="http://pondboyfishing.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Pondboy's Angling Adventures</a>), and I met up for the final day of fishing at LaSalle Lake this year: Sunday, October 13th. Dan had caught a couple of shad the night before at his neighborhood ponds(and by a couple I mean literally two) so I was hopeful we could net some more at LaSalle before we started fishing. We threw our cast nets at the launch cove for a bit when we first arrived but only managed a handful more in about 15 minutes of throwing. We wanted to get fishing so we headed out down to marker 45 and set up our rods. Things started out slow, Dan was catching a few small channel cats but that was about it for the first hour. I reeled in to check my shad head, it was still there, and I cast back out. As I reeled in the slack and got set to put my rod back in the holder I felt a strong hit. After a short fight Dan netted the first blue of the morning, which would also end up being the biggest of the day.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCqhttQnDgpG3g9ljdh-3fVmtNuosnunQsgrI9yzSKi62EDj8YsoBhytGezhshS2x4Q-HTKb7OGkfkgXov7faAh_18VQtlGiiuNYMqLbtLlfu5uP3wulrK8JaBqLRLYLxWbZQh-tiTMP8/s1600/tedLaSalleBlueCatfish.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCqhttQnDgpG3g9ljdh-3fVmtNuosnunQsgrI9yzSKi62EDj8YsoBhytGezhshS2x4Q-HTKb7OGkfkgXov7faAh_18VQtlGiiuNYMqLbtLlfu5uP3wulrK8JaBqLRLYLxWbZQh-tiTMP8/s320/tedLaSalleBlueCatfish.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>4-5lb blue catfish at LaSalle Lake.</i></td></tr>
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Over the next few hours I landed several more smaller blue cats while missing a couple bites as well.<br />
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Chunsum also got in on the act with a blue catfish.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Not sure if Jimmy Houston would even try this!</i></td></tr>
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By late morning we were running low on shad and had been relegated to using shad tails and a cut up green sunfish Chunsum had caught when we noticed some schools of small shad close to shore. In a couple throws I netted about a dozen of these guys.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Fish candy: The threadfin shad.</i><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">Unfortunately by the time I netted these shad the bite had pretty much died and after a few more hours with nothing much to show on our fresh shad baits we decided to call it a day.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">The key for catching the blue catfish for me today was long casts. I only caught one blue catfish on my baitcaster setup even though I had the same bottom rig as my spinning rod. The only difference was that I could cast my spinning rod about 30ft further out than my baitcasting rod. I'm not sure if there was a big depth change between the two distances that made a difference for where the blue catfish were holding but my spinning rod was certainly getting a lot more action than my baitcaster rod on this day. The catfishing rig I used today was a bottom float rig commonly called the Santee Rig. A great explanation of this rig and why it is so effective on blue catfish can be found on the <a href="http://www.learntocatchcatfish.com/santee-cooper-rig/" target="_blank">learntocatchcatfish website</a>. For my setup today I used a 1oz disc sinker, 2" slip float, and 3/0 team catfish double action circle hook.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">LaSalle Lake will get a break from fishermen for the next 5 months but you can bet I'll be back in March for Hybrid and Blue Cat action!</span><br />
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<i>Fish Caught: Blue catfish - 6 </i><br />
<i> Drum - 1</i><br />
<i>Successful Baits: Cut shad and cut green sunfish(Santee Rig).</i><br />
<i>Weather: Sunny, NW winds 10mph, low 40's warming to low 60's.</i><br />
<i>Water Temp: 78.5</i></div>
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Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-8364778016575414532013-10-11T21:30:00.000-07:002013-10-12T12:40:10.229-07:00Des Plaines River Kayak Northern Pike FishingI decided to try for a species I'd never caught from the kayak on Friday, the northern pike. I had read online that the Des Plaines River has a healthy population but I had never fished it so I didn't really know what to expect. Some recent reports from other kayak fisherman with 10-20 fish days gave me some confidence I at least wouldn't be skunked. <br />
It was strange heading east from Naperville towards the city with my kayak. The spots I regularly fish from my kayak are always south and west of where I live and I am used to seeing less developed land as I near my fishing spots, not more. I was already beginning to second guess my decision to fish the Des Plaines as traffic slowed to a crawl on the Eisenhower when I heard on the radio that a <a href="http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2013/10/12/man-charged-with-murdering-girlfriend-dumping-body-in-woods/" target="_blank">body had been discovered</a> the previous night in Thatcher Woods, which happened to be the forest preserve I was headed to. Perfect.<br />
I was half expecting to find the parking lot blocked off with police tape when I arrived at my put-in location off Chicago Ave. Fortunately, the only sign anything had been amiss was a CBS Chicago van wrapping up a news piece.<br />
The haul down to the river from the parking lot was a little more difficult than I was expecting, the treks always seem to look easier on satellite imagery. The river was a pleasant surprise though, visibility was probably about three feet and my first few casts with the spinnerbait sent some small baitfish scattering airborne. I paddled upstream a bit, the river really looked great, you'd never know you were surrounded by urbanized areas at this spot.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0wqrTyolcPOAt0jGjkGbMhp5D-7puS_moIqD-lZuo4a8GhnHdLKcTogXn73J3quBeS5C06mggRSifsqcYRheUE3djee-z5tWz97CqNs0IAI8XvYqUzD2z3hwr_wl-hsmPs5h_xjWr0lA/s1600/DesPlainesRiver.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0wqrTyolcPOAt0jGjkGbMhp5D-7puS_moIqD-lZuo4a8GhnHdLKcTogXn73J3quBeS5C06mggRSifsqcYRheUE3djee-z5tWz97CqNs0IAI8XvYqUzD2z3hwr_wl-hsmPs5h_xjWr0lA/s400/DesPlainesRiver.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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I started getting a few bites almost immediately on the spinnerbait fishing around tree laydowns but I was having trouble getting hooked up. Eventually, I landed a small northern pike, unfortunately the fish slipped from my grasps before a could snap a picture. A few casts later, I had a strong hit and then nothing, my line had been cut cleanly, a sure sign of another missed pike. I paddled over to where I got the bite and could see my bright spinner bait on the bottom about 3 feet down. I rationalized that I've waded in worse and the river wasn't too cold with the warm October we've had thus far so I got in and grabbed it.</div>
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I started working my way down stream and started catching some more small pike, still missing about three bites for every hookup.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifJHTTG78cJ_-RG1MK8LatDAtN1roL6JTYJQniV4yqlNxKn0T0tL1vbV_Y2-OKO-JmBVYblgvOAJ6jAsCGXrpn_IgW1zW6pvw6N_sgXCv9ltmz-SxHSOkHx3Z7kjBCnT53_NObFRPYeOg/s1600/DesPlainesRiverPike1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifJHTTG78cJ_-RG1MK8LatDAtN1roL6JTYJQniV4yqlNxKn0T0tL1vbV_Y2-OKO-JmBVYblgvOAJ6jAsCGXrpn_IgW1zW6pvw6N_sgXCv9ltmz-SxHSOkHx3Z7kjBCnT53_NObFRPYeOg/s400/DesPlainesRiverPike1.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Typical sized "hammerhandle" Des Plaines River pike.</i></td></tr>
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I tried out a new baitcaster for the first time today as well. The <a href="http://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/h2o-xpress-8482-mettle-low-profile-baitcast-reel-right-handed/pid-133325?N=46883185+101" target="_blank">H2O Xpress Mettle</a> is on clearance right now through Academy for $30 and it worked great. It was very smooth, no backlashes, and I was able to put my spinnerbait right where I wanted near the laydowns all evening. Hopefully I'll have the chance to see how it handles some bigger fish later this year.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Putting the "pettle to the mettle" on a Des Plaines River pike.</i></td></tr>
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I eventually worked my way down to the Washington Blvd bridge. I downsized my spinnerbait from a 3/8 oz model to a 1/8 oz for a while and it seemed to improve my hookup ratio with the smaller pike. The pattern was to fish tree laydowns and log jams that had some decent current working through them. My final pike was probably the biggest of the day.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb0Dzz0TFtatP3rzWqdj5nNxok8ve86iQVPc1EacJYE_BHiUqEctx-B6hdT_aSrBBt_Q-sabMh_ggbR1Z3Rsoc4iV1L4DlB4tGi-7Mvs28083Fk1BzlrWxfrDRLo1eFMJiuGWdpfdR1Io/s1600/DesPlainesRiverPike2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb0Dzz0TFtatP3rzWqdj5nNxok8ve86iQVPc1EacJYE_BHiUqEctx-B6hdT_aSrBBt_Q-sabMh_ggbR1Z3Rsoc4iV1L4DlB4tGi-7Mvs28083Fk1BzlrWxfrDRLo1eFMJiuGWdpfdR1Io/s400/DesPlainesRiverPike2.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>This 18" northern came off a man-made stone wall.</i></td></tr>
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I did have one nice pike that looked to be in the upper 20's follow my spinnerbait and take a swipe right at the kayak, so I'm sure there are some nicer pike than what I caught to be had in this area. The river itself is perfect for fishing from a kayak as the current is not so strong that you can't cover some distance paddling upstream if you want and there is plenty of structure to hold fish. I'll definitely fish the Des Plaines River again. I think next time I'll try farther north.</div>
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<i>Fish Caught: 7 Northern Pike</i></div>
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<i>Successful Baits: 1/8 to 3/8 oz spinnerbaits(chartreuse and white)</i></div>
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<i>Weather: Mostly Sunny, SE winds 10-15mph, lower 70's</i></div>
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<i>Water Temp: Unknown</i></div>
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<i>River conditions: Semi-clear(~3ft), 160cfs(Riverside)</i></div>
Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-58776431699943176212013-07-31T22:00:00.000-07:002013-10-16T21:50:08.006-07:00DuPage River Kayak Smallmouth FishingThis year has been tough fishing for me on the DuPage River. The heavy spring rains brought several weeks of high water and even <a href="http://onecast.blogspot.com/2013/04/flooding-on-dupage.html">record flooding</a> to parts of the river which limited the number of times I was able to get out and fish the spots I like. The few times I did get out to try the East Branch brought the dreaded skunk or maybe one smallmouth if I was lucky. The normal spots and baits I had success with the past two years on the river just haven't been productive for me this year.<br />
I wanted to change my luck today as I really do like fishing the DuPage River, there are many stretches that have a pastoral feeling to them and I like the clear water conditions that are typical during low/normal flow levels. I decided to fish a stretch of river to the south of me so I drove down to Plainfield, IL. After dropping off my bike downstream at Electric Park, I drove back up to my put in at 135th St where there is a nice ramp and parking area on the east side of the river. I have even seen fishermen launch drift boats there. <br />
I had floated this stretch twice previously last summer with friends. Both times we caught plenty of smallmouth but they were all on the small side. I know some big smallies live along this stretch as I lost a nice one each of those trips and spooked many more while floating down the river. That is part of exploring a new stretch of river, the first few times you go through it you often don't recognize a good spot until you are so close to it that you have spooked the fish that were holding there. <br />
One spot I remembered where I had seen some big fish on a previous trip was a bank that had an undercut ledge near some faster current. This time I made sure to avoid floating near that bank until I was in a position where I could cast upstream and let my bait come naturally down river. On my first cast along the ledge with a <a href="http://www.crabbybasslures.com/" target="_blank">Crabby Bass</a> Crawdaddy the bait didn't even get to the bottom before I saw my line tighten up and begin heading sideways. I set the hook and after several hard runs I landed a beautifully striped 18" smallmouth, the biggest bass I have caught out of the DuPage River to date.<br />
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About half an hour later I had switched to a small tube when something big grabbed my bait while I was trying to re-position my kayak in an eddy. Unfortunately, I had my rod in the rear holder of my kayak when the fish struck and it was hard enough just to get the rod out of the holder(let alone get a good hookset) and the fish came off after a short but strong fight. I always hate losing big fish, especially before I even get a chance to see them. Luckily, a few minutes later this nice 17" smallmouth inhaled the tube in the same eddy and helped me forget the one that got away.</div>
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I wanted to see if I could get anything on a topwater bait so I switched over to a small storm chug bug. There were a lot of weeds floating in the river as is typical during the summer and it made fishing the bait difficult as the treble hooks kept catching floating eel grass during the retrieve. Just before I was about to give up on my topwater attempts I noticed a swirl downstream along the bank so I cast my chug bug at the spot and didn't even get to pop it once before this 15" smallie nailed it.</div>
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The area near the end of my float was mostly shallower water and while I caught several more small smallmouth bass, the bigger fish seemed to be absent from this area. Today it seemed the bigger smallmouth were near the deeper holes. Not in the deepest and slowest moving water of the holes but at the beginning and end of the holes, where the depth is changing and the current is moving at a decent clip. Also, current breaks and eddies that were deeper than a couple feet near fast water were holding some of the nicer smallmouth. Fishing under the bridges, which is a typical summer pattern, produced very few fish today. I think the recent cloudy and cool weather has something to do with that as the smallmouth haven't had to seek refuge from the sun and the heat lately.</div>
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All in all it was a great day to be out and I was very happy to finally get on a few nice smallmouth in the DuPage River. This river will be on my short list for places to kayak for the rest of the year.</div>
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<i>Fish caught: 10-15 smallmouth bass</i></div>
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<i>Successful Baits: 2.75" Mizmo Teaser Tubes(1/16oz internal weight) texas rigged (Crawdad brown)</i></div>
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<i> Crabby Bass Crawdaddy trimmed to 3" (1/8oz weight pegged) (Green Pumpkin) </i></div>
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<i> 2.5" Storm Chug Bug (ghost shad)</i></div>
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<i>Weather: Clearing, N Winds 0-5mph, lower 70's</i></div>
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<i>Water Temp: 70</i></div>
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<i>River conditions: Clear, 182 cfs (Shorewood)</i></div>
Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-1487455360822252352013-06-26T22:30:00.000-07:002013-10-16T21:50:53.967-07:00Midweek Kayak Bass FishingDan(<a href="http://pondboyfishing.blogspot.com/">Pondboy's Angling Experience</a>) called me Wednesday evening to see if I wanted to meet up and do some kayak fishing. He must of read my mind because I was already in my garage looking at my rods trying to decide where to go when he called. We decided to fish a small suburban lake I had fished once before and had some good luck. When we arrived Dan wasn't too excited about the carry in distance to the lake but I told him it would be worth it. I started off drifting towards a deeper hole where I had caught bass on my first trip but other than a couple small missed bites on my topwater frog things started out pretty slow. Then Dan started fishing a shady bank with a 4" power worm and small hula popper and the bites came one after the other for him. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMiD2MDBnfsj9JLI0PemyaD0zRUfE3p6XDXYiRJTQMOcrnNhDupLxHYKl62kSXWNMVhdKTdAOh7fVCIEfOwMHHXdyYGYwNywP0U1Q4yIi9Fx4wGvvGvNd8nMH8eF7Ehhrgb6GN7gVsjD0/s800/pbyakbass1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMiD2MDBnfsj9JLI0PemyaD0zRUfE3p6XDXYiRJTQMOcrnNhDupLxHYKl62kSXWNMVhdKTdAOh7fVCIEfOwMHHXdyYGYwNywP0U1Q4yIi9Fx4wGvvGvNd8nMH8eF7Ehhrgb6GN7gVsjD0/s200/pbyakbass1.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZpGoqIMWsg7pKkPVtI0UoWCRlWMemucX8FprmGV8N7zm48BDm9AzEUU0vHcSeupYMjsviA_L1xenVzP0ymc-ney0M4KpgBaJ7PF9EsyEjapm5SwSOLw-Wgqz6N1cMikvOXZDXTkil-0Q/s800/pbyakbass2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZpGoqIMWsg7pKkPVtI0UoWCRlWMemucX8FprmGV8N7zm48BDm9AzEUU0vHcSeupYMjsviA_L1xenVzP0ymc-ney0M4KpgBaJ7PF9EsyEjapm5SwSOLw-Wgqz6N1cMikvOXZDXTkil-0Q/s200/pbyakbass2.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6I736joZ9QvzhkTCGZjIG3xHa_vaIbAplFbRmg92XTJ2QArcjjhwLZH3yYHDqyXpqSnl86LP2vKUwhQw7wyRi4PN4nZiryDkxNDrM69r3qlOqBcKhhyiMX8kcPXIH6JoSl7pcrQno0gU/s800/pbhulapopperbass.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6I736joZ9QvzhkTCGZjIG3xHa_vaIbAplFbRmg92XTJ2QArcjjhwLZH3yYHDqyXpqSnl86LP2vKUwhQw7wyRi4PN4nZiryDkxNDrM69r3qlOqBcKhhyiMX8kcPXIH6JoSl7pcrQno0gU/s200/pbhulapopperbass.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicg2i_Ufzqo5F3FDe1JVeG_KOTiuCuM5H9OYzew1MqIgl6e4RP6YrFK3RrIZd3C4eiUwXwwEdYfGpH5KZK6vXDvlvSVekHzC3CeyWNGa4d6Uxgc29Pmw8Bcirg0LVTp5Oe30E3KOwWONs/s800/pbyakbass3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="142" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicg2i_Ufzqo5F3FDe1JVeG_KOTiuCuM5H9OYzew1MqIgl6e4RP6YrFK3RrIZd3C4eiUwXwwEdYfGpH5KZK6vXDvlvSVekHzC3CeyWNGa4d6Uxgc29Pmw8Bcirg0LVTp5Oe30E3KOwWONs/s200/pbyakbass3.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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The area Dan was catching his bass out of was probably only 1-2 feet deep but it was against a tree lined bank on the western shore so it provided the shade the bass were seeking. After watching Dan catch four or five bass in about 10 minutes, I gave up on the deeper holes and turned my kayak around and started fishing the shady bank as well. Even I'm not that stubborn :).</div>
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After landing a few small bass on the frog I missed a good bite and remarked to Dan how he would probably end up catching the bass when he fished that spot. While I was telling him that I noticed my frog get sucked under, I thought this was just another small bass or perhaps even a bluegill because of the light bite but when I set the hook it turned out to be a nice 18" largemouth.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNmLSduabVUwr26Or-k-0RKr-gL2F2NSOOYBFudxGeeGC0jn5AGLy4eH9yGfNkyFVMMQca12XVfjU-KCD2KTDEPwIw2a851x3isTTqMUfv2Nx3qwOckEmCEWJb-R2Y2JHGlT2NbFpjeL8/s800/yakbassfrog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNmLSduabVUwr26Or-k-0RKr-gL2F2NSOOYBFudxGeeGC0jn5AGLy4eH9yGfNkyFVMMQca12XVfjU-KCD2KTDEPwIw2a851x3isTTqMUfv2Nx3qwOckEmCEWJb-R2Y2JHGlT2NbFpjeL8/s320/yakbassfrog.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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As the sun lowered we continued to catch bass but the best bite would turn out to be the western shoreline where we began. Dan was probably outfishing me 4 to 1 but I stuck with the frog in hopes of getting another chance at the big bass I missed on my first trip at this lake. That never happened for me but eventually I heard Dan sounding excited a little further up the lake about a bigger fish. A nice 19" largemouth had fell to his 4" powerworm.</div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguPhOloOOhPBMEk8OLc4qmaPjscmAU7FvGmc-ZY4WHDZoDaqDsYD5yMletSHv91mFk5ELC7xss1hOiA5ToiscslE5qjIimWwEZXRy9M-FgfE-L2tRyQ7cEvIi90Pc5ITJFojiRhncSGtg/s800/pbbigyakbass2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguPhOloOOhPBMEk8OLc4qmaPjscmAU7FvGmc-ZY4WHDZoDaqDsYD5yMletSHv91mFk5ELC7xss1hOiA5ToiscslE5qjIimWwEZXRy9M-FgfE-L2tRyQ7cEvIi90Pc5ITJFojiRhncSGtg/s200/pbbigyakbass2.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="200" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNreP1QRN8kBBo-cLPo5BmLh7W1LHU0T97Z6AHI1oaKZvu1miHotEHC1fRE39-7U5XxXr0BHlMZyCtNc_TCDK6gEsMci3XE8_XTU1_Q2mZEcGEswP-AItN49qY-_OGJpSZqLoTW_shkPY/s800/pbbigyakbass.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNreP1QRN8kBBo-cLPo5BmLh7W1LHU0T97Z6AHI1oaKZvu1miHotEHC1fRE39-7U5XxXr0BHlMZyCtNc_TCDK6gEsMci3XE8_XTU1_Q2mZEcGEswP-AItN49qY-_OGJpSZqLoTW_shkPY/s320/pbbigyakbass.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
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A short while later the powerworm produced again with a huge 9.5" bluegill, sweet!<br />
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As the sun began to set we fished our way back to the take out and I noticed something large moving through some lily pads towards my frog. I thought it was a muskrat but when I moved in closer I saw it was the biggest bullfrog I have ever seen. It would take a huge bass to choke down this guy!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiW3F97yQw4XEnQl5l5uAgGcH7szEKA77ZriAKDM8swVO3iT8laeeF7oDqptM_4qzNSP48HCReKqtWZHEscm0oaI0GqGxBEXhLrZ6YtaKo3nV0qYsYMNKM-hLo1CjDdFagV2chaQqXZvU/s800/bigbullfrog.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiW3F97yQw4XEnQl5l5uAgGcH7szEKA77ZriAKDM8swVO3iT8laeeF7oDqptM_4qzNSP48HCReKqtWZHEscm0oaI0GqGxBEXhLrZ6YtaKo3nV0qYsYMNKM-hLo1CjDdFagV2chaQqXZvU/s320/bigbullfrog.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Dan ended the evening with another nice bass. It was a great night to be out fishing with a friend and kayak fishing is a great way to clear the mind, especially during a busy work week.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEFU-lOdDC1k4U81aVAD66QaSYunXAfUZ1ud0YthQdUx8bLgSiZBDAnDPHzID4fsPSm_evxHpp3RH-o8vJNDEVUpby7-rgcvhe2ssC0V6r6oAP2Er2iv6fq8MZMQOJGWGmesKmVLoEynI/s800/pbyakbasssunset.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEFU-lOdDC1k4U81aVAD66QaSYunXAfUZ1ud0YthQdUx8bLgSiZBDAnDPHzID4fsPSm_evxHpp3RH-o8vJNDEVUpby7-rgcvhe2ssC0V6r6oAP2Er2iv6fq8MZMQOJGWGmesKmVLoEynI/s200/pbyakbasssunset.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9pUfH3uaQY3n0D9cKodtauezPQQM4-qpBakhGSrTNR76zS80VYzgp2W0OamHG4Tgmmdcx8Qqpb_eXbG5hJmUgoNd4YB51W7EUkaJZMhHQAzCSfxEOIYhHxPUubK0vTY3Q8oQSAFz5MIc/s800/sunsetleave.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9pUfH3uaQY3n0D9cKodtauezPQQM4-qpBakhGSrTNR76zS80VYzgp2W0OamHG4Tgmmdcx8Qqpb_eXbG5hJmUgoNd4YB51W7EUkaJZMhHQAzCSfxEOIYhHxPUubK0vTY3Q8oQSAFz5MIc/s200/sunsetleave.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<i>Fish caught: 7 Largemouth Bass (Dan: 20+ largemouth, 1 bluegill)</i></div>
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<i>Successful baits: Booyah Pad Crasher(bullfrog)</i></div>
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<i>Weather: Partly cloudy, NW winds 5-10mph, upper 70's</i></div>
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<i>Water Temp: Unknown</i></div>
Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-14196270216488435702013-06-08T23:09:00.000-07:002013-10-16T21:51:52.121-07:00Mazonia South Unit First TripI drove down to Mazonia this morning to do some bass fishing from my kayak and I ended up trying three different areas in the south unit today. My first stop was two lakes that were that were connected by a narrow passageway. I started off trying to see if I could get a few topwater bites before the sun got too high but the fish weren't having it. The frustrating thing was some large fish that I assume were bass were occasionally coming to the surface eating small minnows and insects around the lake. I did pick up a few small bass drifting a Crabby Bass Helgie behind my kayak while casting topwater baits around so I eventually just switched over to fishing the helgie most the time. I found some narrow coves on the back lake that had some tree lined steep banks and the fish seemed to be a little larger here compared to what I was catching along the reeds. My biggest bass of the day was caught near the point of one of these coves, a very fun fight on the ultralite.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWC8U3NqjmvR4FHH8Ls-LLWxzIjd6FcqTeqw3fEvHxysWY7m1lLOIV-7tq39ql6seapDvqhn2Y7Iey6MejvEUczuObnOwOIAnLcSOd0r6N002LpZex0DgUkWUCFE-NXgrTHunuSZbTPbA/s1600/MazoniaBass1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWC8U3NqjmvR4FHH8Ls-LLWxzIjd6FcqTeqw3fEvHxysWY7m1lLOIV-7tq39ql6seapDvqhn2Y7Iey6MejvEUczuObnOwOIAnLcSOd0r6N002LpZex0DgUkWUCFE-NXgrTHunuSZbTPbA/s320/MazoniaBass1.JPG" width="319" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>16" Largemouth Bass caught on green pumpkin helgie.</i></td></tr>
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After catching ten or so more bass(mostly dinks) in this area I noticed a submerged tree in some deeper water and let the helgie fall into the middle of it. The line tightened up and I pulled out a decent bluegill. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUj_fvf3Eo_kq8h2bEHXuydwuo_8tRCays95TM8UfaHLt8bXuEJhritWaA9sz0Z9Rsa26gskwDsnRaIMTZvSswoiWa7imrHUDIaPyVW6K8O39SJtL62F4FK-HYRtNUGi6B5rVHudCN_uA/s1600/MazoniaCloseGill.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUj_fvf3Eo_kq8h2bEHXuydwuo_8tRCays95TM8UfaHLt8bXuEJhritWaA9sz0Z9Rsa26gskwDsnRaIMTZvSswoiWa7imrHUDIaPyVW6K8O39SJtL62F4FK-HYRtNUGi6B5rVHudCN_uA/s320/MazoniaCloseGill.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>The Mazonia bluegills had some great coloration.</i></td></tr>
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After catching a few more bluegills out of the tree I decided to get out of the sun, go grab some lunch, and take a break. While driving through the small town of Godley, IL I noticed a small pond packed with fisherman. They were having a fishing derby and it looked like a good turnout.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeFLGysqVG2SPMOhDdhCnTdSLhj8xrDbRKQN41Vld6Mgkxb5ksZafZ7yx94R1iB2I1wImrQnWztNN7_AAQlKGwC0M6FUvmoSJKExVgVDLj6tt2erN-Ig8y4ZjJ4jkReSgGGm4kjsqyJXY/s1600/KMineParkGodleyFishingDerby.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeFLGysqVG2SPMOhDdhCnTdSLhj8xrDbRKQN41Vld6Mgkxb5ksZafZ7yx94R1iB2I1wImrQnWztNN7_AAQlKGwC0M6FUvmoSJKExVgVDLj6tt2erN-Ig8y4ZjJ4jkReSgGGm4kjsqyJXY/s320/KMineParkGodleyFishingDerby.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Children's fishing derby at K Mine Park, Godley, IL.</i></td></tr>
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After lunch I returned to Mazonia to fish a long narrow lake I had noticed on satellite imagery earlier in the week. I'm glad I remembered the area where you could enter the lake, otherwise I would have had a difficult time finding the entry point for this lake as the vegetation has been doing very well with the wet spring we had.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Ujj6hsLI6CB6y2wOM_qLqZEmf7Q8jWL-kw8R3PsisnzSfEgoMoLq5_JTGMsM9My1WAjJdTvDLD0s5TIyE0nJPLB24AuWduyOiNefWQ2JgXzLOjffPF_w33Uuwc4DqqLQlsiXTyRj4LQ/s1600/MazoniaTightEntry.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Ujj6hsLI6CB6y2wOM_qLqZEmf7Q8jWL-kw8R3PsisnzSfEgoMoLq5_JTGMsM9My1WAjJdTvDLD0s5TIyE0nJPLB24AuWduyOiNefWQ2JgXzLOjffPF_w33Uuwc4DqqLQlsiXTyRj4LQ/s320/MazoniaTightEntry.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>A tight squeeze!</i></td></tr>
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After navigating through the reeds, the lake was actually pretty easy to navigate around.</div>
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I had high hopes for this spot after my first two casts with a walking topwater bait produced bass but the fish must of spread the word quickly to their friends that the imitation bluegill was not the easy meal it appeared. I switched back to the helgie and action was pretty steady here for small bass. I tried a bigger bait as well with a houdini colored super fluke to try and coax some larger bass but my catches didn't increase in size unfortunately. I fished one more lake before dark that was very clear, probably close to 10 foot visibility and landed a few more small bass fishing the edges of the reeds with the helgie.</div>
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While I didn't land any big bass on this trip it was nice to get away from the traffic noise and crowds that are typical of most suburban fishing spots. The occasional shrill of red-winged blackbirds and the distant knocking of woodpeckers were the only sounds for much of the day and it was a nice respite after a long week of work.</div>
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<i>Fish Caught: 20-25 Largemouth Bass</i></div>
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<i> 5 Bluegill</i></div>
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<i>Successful Baits: Crabby bass helgies with small split shot(black/green pumpkin)</i></div>
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<i> H2O Xpress Model TWS Topwater Bait(bluegill)</i></div>
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<i> Zoom Super Fluke weightless(houdini)</i></div>
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<i>Weather: Increasing clouds, light and variable winds, low 70's.</i></div>
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<i>Water Temp: 73</i></div>
Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-33201431244638661942013-06-02T20:33:00.000-07:002013-06-03T20:47:01.716-07:00LaSalle Lake.....Target: Blue CatsMet up with Dan, Jason, Marty, and Chunsum from <a href="http://dupageangler.com/">DuPage Angler</a> to try for some blue cats on LaSalle Lake. Everybody caught one or two blue cats during our trip, with it being the first blue catfish for a few of the guys which was cool. The blue catfish we caught today probably averaged 2-3lbs. Dan saved the day by catching some shad at a local pond with his fishing net the evening before the trip. Fresh cut shad are a hard bait to beat when fishing for blues. Dan did a nice write-up of our trip on his blog here: <a href="http://pondboyfishing.blogspot.com/2013/06/illinois-blue-catfish-new-angling.html">Pondboy's Angling Adventures</a><br />
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<i>Fish Caught: Blue catfish - 2</i></div>
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<i> Channel catfish - 2</i></div>
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<i>Successful Baits: Cut shad on three-way swivel rig with 3/0 circle hooks.</i></div>
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<i>Weather: Cloudy, NW winds 10-15mph. low 60's.</i></div>
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<i>Water Temp: 78</i></div>
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<br />Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-63851597906912714332013-05-27T20:21:00.000-07:002013-10-16T21:52:29.052-07:00Chaminwood: Don't forget the helgies!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It was supposed to be a rainy day today but when I checked the radar late this morning it looked like there was a several hour window between storms so I hurriedly packed up the kayak and headed down to <a href="http://www.reconnectwithnature.org/preserves-trails/Lake-Chaminwood">Lake Chaminwood preserve in Minooka</a>. Lake Chaminwood just recently opened to the public in the fall of 2012 and this was my first time to fish this lake. When I arrived the parking lot was almost full and there were probably 15-20 shore anglers. There is no boat launch but you are allowed to carry in small boats, canoes, and kayaks. The put in was muddy but it was a short distance from the parking lot so it wasn't too bad. I decided to skip the portion of the lake with most the shore anglers and paddle under the pedestrian bridge to the larger part of the lake.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Lookin' Bassy!</i></td></tr>
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Water clarity was probably 3'-4' and the shallow areas had large hydrilla like weeds growing up close to the surface. Most of the shoreline is steep and brushy though and shore fishing on this portion of the lake is very limited. Perfect for kayak fishing, however. I started out out fishing some wacky rigged 5" senkos and super flukes but I couldn't even get a bite. Out of desperation to get the skunk off I decided to get the ultralite out try some <a href="http://www.crabbybasslures.com/page2.php?view=productPage&product=16&category=3">Crabby Bass helgies</a>. Unfortunately I quickly realized the heligies had been left in the car. I scrounged around the few bags of plastics I had brought and managed to find one rigged up helgie and a small split shot. It turned out the helgie was the ticket to getting the bass to bite.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Small Chaminwood bass on black with blue flake helgie</i></td></tr>
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After landing 7 or 8 small bass and a nice bluegill on the helgie I had a good-sized bass break my line. I had a choice to either make the long paddle back to my car to retrieve the helgies or keep fishing with other lures. I didn't feel like losing any fishing time since it was starting to sprinkle so I decided to go with the next smallest plastic I had brought with me, some 4" senkos. I didn't get nearly as many bites as I got on the helgie but I still managed several more bass.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>First KayakWars worthy bass(16"+) for 2013</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Healthy 15.5" Chaminwood bass</i></td></tr>
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The pattern for today was to fish reed edges and under overhanging branches on steep banks. It was a nice day to be out as I only got rained on for 10 minutes and the east winds never got too bad. I talked to a couple shore anglers and it seemed they all had big fish stories from the lake. Hook straightening, giant mouthed tales are part of the allure of the deep quarry lakes we have in this area. One of these days I hope to land one of these "monsters of the deep".</div>
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<i>Fish Caught: Largemouth Bass - 12+</i></div>
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<i> Bluegill - 1</i></div>
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<i> Black Crappie - 1</i></div>
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<i>Successful Baits: Crabby Bass helgie w/small split shot</i></div>
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<i> 4" Gary Yamamoto red shad laminate senko weightless</i></div>
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<i>Weather: Cloudy, isolated showers, E winds 5-10 mph, mid-60's.</i></div>
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<i>Water Temp: Unknown</i></div>
Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-42135891598609664602013-05-17T21:00:00.000-07:002013-05-19T21:17:23.861-07:00Multi-species day at HeideckeI stopped by Heidecke on my drive home from Nebraska this evening. Primarily fished the south side of the center dike, fish were mostly hooked about as far as I could cast from shore. Nothing big but it was nice getting my first Heidecke walleye and hybrid under my belt. Biggest walleye was 15", just short of the 16" minimum at Heidecke. Crappie were still in spawning mode, the 13" male I caught was black. Although small, catching my first yellow bass ever was the highlight of the trip for me.<br />
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<i>Fish caught: Yellow Bass -1</i></div>
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<i> Walleye - 2 (13-15")</i></div>
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<i> Crappie - 2 (10-13")</i></div>
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<i>Successful baits: Yellow swim shad</i></div>
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<i>Weather: Cloudy, E wind 5-10mph, mid 60's</i></div>
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<i>Water Temp: 67</i></div>
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<br />Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-28531623787696536302013-05-13T21:26:00.000-07:002013-05-19T21:34:20.866-07:00Some nice crappies at HeideckeI hit Heidecke lake for a few hours after work this evening and fished the eastern shore near the walk-in entrance. I was trying for hybrids using a large <a href="http://www.fishhouselures.com/">fishhouse lures</a> swimbait that has been coined "bass bacon" but to my surprise all I ended up catching were two female white crappie that were full of eggs. Can't complain about that I guess!<br />
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<i>Fish Caught: White crappie - 2 (13"-14")</i></div>
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<i>Successful baits: 4" shad colored Fishhouse Lures Bass Bacon on 1/8 oz swimjig head</i></div>
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<i>Weather: Partly cloudy, S wind 5-10mph, 60</i></div>
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<i>Water Temp: 64</i></div>
<br />Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-84262133439506132652013-05-05T17:00:00.000-07:002013-05-21T19:40:47.737-07:00Fox River Musky!<br />
I met up with <a href="http://pondboyfishing.blogspot.com/">pondboy</a> (Dan) early this morning to try for some white bass on the Fox River at the Geneva dam. The water was still high from the flooding rains a few weeks ago so wading was unsafe at this location and we were confined to shore. <a href="http://dupageangler.com/">DuPageAngler</a> <a href="http://f3fishing.blogspot.com/">FlawlessFishing</a> recently had a good day catching white bass in this area and we wanted to see if we could duplicate his success. First cast of the day I caught a decent smallmouth bass on a 3" yellow swim shad.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhufY7jgpePlTkuaWrOJXCd-kBlLIDVN4NE_CCaniUy0mhSYy9acR6Q6IFwQxjbGhixP25VKHojsMboYk64m5_ghJbZhMaDmsyMAnmQS4gkJLR_1ojm-34W9hJoM-R0LK0rYH3wdBSs1nA/s1600/genevafoxsmallie.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhufY7jgpePlTkuaWrOJXCd-kBlLIDVN4NE_CCaniUy0mhSYy9acR6Q6IFwQxjbGhixP25VKHojsMboYk64m5_ghJbZhMaDmsyMAnmQS4gkJLR_1ojm-34W9hJoM-R0LK0rYH3wdBSs1nA/s320/genevafoxsmallie.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Still a little groggy, it's early!</i></td></tr>
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I switched over to an 1/8oz chartreuse rooster tail and caught a few small white bass and one decent white about 12". Dan had success with his drift rigs using crawlers and minnows and caught several white bass along with a couple yellow bass and smallmouth bass.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHJE2l05tItzZI4rrii-7cbthAOfYLmfQwaE2AkhUNT5qoqrzADVz-HHjk55uKSL-YZ57_Pm9UDth7uBjHYzCZRDDWAlCcM3LuEbXINl9TfpW3m4iTUaNqYDUSTpI6VLDU-OnzwqXOuXQ/s1600/pbwhitefox.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHJE2l05tItzZI4rrii-7cbthAOfYLmfQwaE2AkhUNT5qoqrzADVz-HHjk55uKSL-YZ57_Pm9UDth7uBjHYzCZRDDWAlCcM3LuEbXINl9TfpW3m4iTUaNqYDUSTpI6VLDU-OnzwqXOuXQ/s320/pbwhitefox.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>This size was typical of the white bass we were catching.</i></td></tr>
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Then the bite slowed so I decided to give the yellow swim shad one more try. After 30 minutes to an hour with not so much as a bite in the hole where we had previously had slow but steady action, I was getting ready to move to a new spot. Then I finally felt a thump and my line went slack. I reeled up and felt some weight on my line. I set the hook but didn't feel the telltale quick head shake of the white bass and smallmouth I had caught earlier in the morning. This was something much bigger. I figured it was probably a big carp but when the fish rose to the surface and gave a good thrash I couldn't believe what I saw. A long striped fish......a musky! I yelled out "Dan!" who was fishing downriver and motioned for him to come up. I had never caught a musky let alone hooked one. I immediately thought this fish was going to be tough to land. Light action spinning tackle is not a good setup for a fish this big, obviously. Plus, we didn't bring a net. Luckily, I was using the reel that had the strongest line of the combos I had brought with me, 10lb power pro braid. Also, I could see I had the fish hooked in the side of the mouth where my line was out of the way of the muskies teeth. I was able to keep the fish from getting out into the heavy current and fortunately the musky never really made a long run. However, it seemed every time I got the musky close to shore where Dan could almost have a chance to grab him the fish would peel drag and make a run back out a little ways into the river. After a few runs and a couple close calls with a flooded bush near shore I was finally able to maneuver the fish up a flooded walkway to where Dan could grab it. Dan handed me the fish and after we took a few quick pictures and got a measurement of 33.25" I got the fish back in the river and with one big thrash the fish was gone.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicM0YjuHq_iEjEhNeKzPD6rTydU41HCxkGZZEaqxKSTrmQx7wY-ZvZsmzmcE1Bjbi5lWW-YZ9__7oJnQ87Jmgk8mneeUVrUtg9FwoVZnOJlFHBNd_gKcbtmCNi8aXhl35GwOSVUte19_4/s1600/foxmusky.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicM0YjuHq_iEjEhNeKzPD6rTydU41HCxkGZZEaqxKSTrmQx7wY-ZvZsmzmcE1Bjbi5lWW-YZ9__7oJnQ87Jmgk8mneeUVrUtg9FwoVZnOJlFHBNd_gKcbtmCNi8aXhl35GwOSVUte19_4/s320/foxmusky.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Yes!</i></td></tr>
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<img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGDlG0YykQ6Zs4bl-cRpTKdg0XTLUqSlpkB_0jaG8GStJRmLl85SKGuKyApc_zmr57Am-egKfkEKf0C5rKsSrXYqNifLXcw_EZHJ-xcieASVmA3TUxSYlP8K0UXcdmCw6gSAIAlC3j98Y/s320/foxmusky2.JPG" style="text-align: right;" width="240" /></div>
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One of my goals for this year was to catch a musky, but I didn't really think I had a chance today in the Fox. I was thankful to have Dan with me to help land the fish and give me advice on bringing it in. He also caught most the fight on his <a href="http://pivothead.com/">pivothead</a> sunglasses.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/Rnq4YxpZFjA?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<span style="text-align: center;">Dan and I wrapped up the day fishing further downstream on a small tributary of the Fox River and I caught a few more smallmouth and largemouth bass.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyCkhjWyv-af7cMVnyiq0fT7WaQQuWKMMbz9XDLxWyAQEZAKCuNxLxCjdFz-XpDRy__6J3XpTU05aiapjjP2UMipU5N7ThHuCkHzFbBotT5wODDGgZ0pr4bBMhTUlAz0FoSL97LnewtE0/s1600/foxsmallie.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyCkhjWyv-af7cMVnyiq0fT7WaQQuWKMMbz9XDLxWyAQEZAKCuNxLxCjdFz-XpDRy__6J3XpTU05aiapjjP2UMipU5N7ThHuCkHzFbBotT5wODDGgZ0pr4bBMhTUlAz0FoSL97LnewtE0/s320/foxsmallie.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Great way to end an unforgettable day!</i></td></tr>
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<i>Fish Caught: Muskellunge - 1</i><br />
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<i> Smallmouth Bass - 5</i></div>
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<i> White Bass - 4</i></div>
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<i> Largemouth Bass - 2</i></div>
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<i> Crappie - 1</i></div>
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<i>Successful Baits: Yellow swim shad, 1/8oz chartreuse roostertail, Chart./White Lake Fork Baby Shad, small chart./green sassy shad.</i></div>
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<i>Weather: Partly Cloudy, N wind 5-10mph, warming to low 70's.</i></div>
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<i>River conditions: High, visibility < 1ft.</i></div>
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Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-17001574487859241472013-04-18T14:14:00.000-07:002013-04-23T18:57:09.979-07:00Flooding on the DuPage<br />
I had the day off and had planned on getting some river fishing in today. Unfortunately, Naperville received 7"+ of rain over the past two days and all of the area rivers are currently experiencing major flooding. I drove around and took a few photos of the East and West Branches of the DuPage river just north of the confluence. Royce Rd and Weber Rd were both closed to traffic at their bridges on the East Branch. Some high school kids decided it was a good day for some canoeing on the West Branch at Knoch Knolls Park and I later ran into some soaking wet guys emerging from the East Branch behind Whalon Lake with boogie boards. They said the water was cold....ha, I bet!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWbxKbvIxleG7_FowbqYSTEHnTAncBZIbWX3YfGj4PWLvhmwUUoYrGDbOcBW0WX_9h5rKD-8gcS02sTKEJbsNgRG49DBUnGupYh0hE9yo_CBgQ2GgAu5jNhWfbT8AsgP1MRD3fbd6hpyk/s1600/EastBranchRecord418.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="305" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWbxKbvIxleG7_FowbqYSTEHnTAncBZIbWX3YfGj4PWLvhmwUUoYrGDbOcBW0WX_9h5rKD-8gcS02sTKEJbsNgRG49DBUnGupYh0hE9yo_CBgQ2GgAu5jNhWfbT8AsgP1MRD3fbd6hpyk/s400/EastBranchRecord418.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>USGS East Branch Gage at Bolingbrook recording 25.67 ft.</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfgIfNHUWOMiY9nSXKY3o6hUqsJuCUnavywlJuUBaNAWFRYtcMUfkCExa0MZX214lqubzX4ZkERdj5z1z0XZg7tJHbMLShcxxsWWFTpzXHkELNOanXZNr2dwOi-klgDq7MY4DIpX14V0k/s1600/EastBranchRoyceRd418.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfgIfNHUWOMiY9nSXKY3o6hUqsJuCUnavywlJuUBaNAWFRYtcMUfkCExa0MZX214lqubzX4ZkERdj5z1z0XZg7tJHbMLShcxxsWWFTpzXHkELNOanXZNr2dwOi-klgDq7MY4DIpX14V0k/s400/EastBranchRoyceRd418.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i> East Branch DuPage River flooding Royce Rd.</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ3BTBm9UduecQkVp0BfWLon5QnvYNHy4b_I-thSELjZIY-1lL6anwxCpyI4swCjJqibLUBwXE55-mIRrTIWVUgRwPw7tswVhhwLd0RNADgj2InGh9jQWPeBoe7V8de1vCMqQbGLP5-eU/s1600/EastBranchWeber418.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ3BTBm9UduecQkVp0BfWLon5QnvYNHy4b_I-thSELjZIY-1lL6anwxCpyI4swCjJqibLUBwXE55-mIRrTIWVUgRwPw7tswVhhwLd0RNADgj2InGh9jQWPeBoe7V8de1vCMqQbGLP5-eU/s400/EastBranchWeber418.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>East Branch DuPage River flooding Weber Rd.</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7GsF9rrwzDUuQtxNSCK5ODCK7bETlNuCh1X0uWvsrsYH2CPcj-GRP70CjCHxYzSvTxCQvlOx2zsXXsiJyLdP0l9BMImRRn_g1fHD3Z2mDc_8JEXcUo96TvwwzlQJDCJF0nSIGlnZHlH0/s1600/EastBranchWeberRd418.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7GsF9rrwzDUuQtxNSCK5ODCK7bETlNuCh1X0uWvsrsYH2CPcj-GRP70CjCHxYzSvTxCQvlOx2zsXXsiJyLdP0l9BMImRRn_g1fHD3Z2mDc_8JEXcUo96TvwwzlQJDCJF0nSIGlnZHlH0/s400/EastBranchWeberRd418.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>East Branch DuPage River crossing over Weber Rd with an abandoned vehicle.</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf2xCuocSjZZ2r6pQKvtxWlhC-baeMPcAopvuSYRUPnzX2_X-T-uvVN33gWh2qyWb7aHfQHeGOGF0B2u0Mg5QAw-AlDOd2HrRYDsAoEPIn6s1ZbcKnFubb5HATvj8QmKrg31GCqDkGgu0/s1600/RiverSportsComplex418.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf2xCuocSjZZ2r6pQKvtxWlhC-baeMPcAopvuSYRUPnzX2_X-T-uvVN33gWh2qyWb7aHfQHeGOGF0B2u0Mg5QAw-AlDOd2HrRYDsAoEPIn6s1ZbcKnFubb5HATvj8QmKrg31GCqDkGgu0/s400/RiverSportsComplex418.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>DuPage River Sports Complex, just follow the gully to first kids!</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht41ziUvK9t9YKYSjVnqFcJ4DdwYcIZyvmBWe-cNoEc-4xdk_153RvuVwCeB4Nmq0XlOLoqqfOdgY3TpA_a8EpMDPksFS6KqAqhhfelOYnWRDW1LMPXYJbHvBKwu46W6nDp2hUTiYBDXA/s1600/FloodedWhalon418.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht41ziUvK9t9YKYSjVnqFcJ4DdwYcIZyvmBWe-cNoEc-4xdk_153RvuVwCeB4Nmq0XlOLoqqfOdgY3TpA_a8EpMDPksFS6KqAqhhfelOYnWRDW1LMPXYJbHvBKwu46W6nDp2hUTiYBDXA/s400/FloodedWhalon418.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Whalon Lake flooding fishermans dock.</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWN4sqvUqEuSET093xoxZswNZ6MrACh2GNuFoKbi5Yskx-3I3ALmdroXgh0XVaPni-hlm-ca6bRgL4Xcl-oEw5FNVrSj6nMcz3nzgfs27kBgukRYH1hDQ_6glUkThlFMQfS1Uyu7bPPgg/s1600/KnochKnolls418.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWN4sqvUqEuSET093xoxZswNZ6MrACh2GNuFoKbi5Yskx-3I3ALmdroXgh0XVaPni-hlm-ca6bRgL4Xcl-oEw5FNVrSj6nMcz3nzgfs27kBgukRYH1hDQ_6glUkThlFMQfS1Uyu7bPPgg/s400/KnochKnolls418.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>West Branch DuPage River flooding Knoch Knolls Park.</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNZrzkNqyiMg8XmTmKrziETlchsitYKhLZxo3zcoZxY6E3TGpcJqnbK3dYn1V25YCL9B3UwX-ECCs2ewZt1EtBppKPLvyW1Zr3OAZ0uKdc7MUpKJg6-LgasENFQN4Sg3GJglfGPbaDFWw/s1600/KnochKnollsCanoe418.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNZrzkNqyiMg8XmTmKrziETlchsitYKhLZxo3zcoZxY6E3TGpcJqnbK3dYn1V25YCL9B3UwX-ECCs2ewZt1EtBppKPLvyW1Zr3OAZ0uKdc7MUpKJg6-LgasENFQN4Sg3GJglfGPbaDFWw/s400/KnochKnollsCanoe418.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Canoeing flooded areas of Knoch Knolls Park.</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG14VhQuzWEATT8E20Gvb_vzFiFlhMWD8mLLOaqjTFgep2Du-e4VbwKoihCE1cbGpBAqR-p_gF3-A_EjbaC1pYWNtYGD3PFaB6Lk-dFLRlp5uoiWAEE94wWCIWywIVlZg4IdVl10H3EQo/s1600/WeigandPark418.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG14VhQuzWEATT8E20Gvb_vzFiFlhMWD8mLLOaqjTFgep2Du-e4VbwKoihCE1cbGpBAqR-p_gF3-A_EjbaC1pYWNtYGD3PFaB6Lk-dFLRlp5uoiWAEE94wWCIWywIVlZg4IdVl10H3EQo/s400/WeigandPark418.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>West Branch DuPage River flooding the parking lot at Weigand Riverfront Park.</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSYWEIVtG-s44rv0yquCoV2wMycAVLYZ7uYaqUU1zTQ_JbkmWADu97kNk7jh42eKpIDIaE5tI7fWf-8iCLkjQ6OrJc_UYIR34KFpiQqV8b5YBmm5Pke7AU4pySSz4mPjnethzRCd9Xc08/s1600/WhalonLakeInFlow418.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSYWEIVtG-s44rv0yquCoV2wMycAVLYZ7uYaqUU1zTQ_JbkmWADu97kNk7jh42eKpIDIaE5tI7fWf-8iCLkjQ6OrJc_UYIR34KFpiQqV8b5YBmm5Pke7AU4pySSz4mPjnethzRCd9Xc08/s400/WhalonLakeInFlow418.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Water rushing over the trail and into Whalon Lake.</i></td></tr>
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<br />Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-53651288545265958092013-04-05T21:18:00.000-07:002013-04-05T21:18:13.490-07:00Zeroed at LaSalleGot a bad feeling when I felt a warm wind blowing off the lake when I arrived at LaSalle about 5pm earlier this evening. My suspicions were correct when I measured water temps at 70! I'm not sure why water temps rose 13 degrees in a week, it hasn't been that warm out lately. They must have been generating and pushing a lot of water through the plant this week. I gave it a go for two hours anyways but came up empty as I expected. I probably need to invest in a big cat rod and have a catfishing back up plan for future trips. This may be my last trip to LaSalle this year unless I see some reports of cooler water temps. At least Heidecke should start turning on soon.<br />
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<i>Weather: Partly cloudy, ENE wind 15-20mph, upper 40's.</i><br />
<i>Water Temp: 70</i><br />
Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-50980213846586861122013-03-27T21:21:00.000-07:002013-03-27T21:33:15.948-07:00Slow day at LaSalleI had high hopes with the full moon and northerly winds that the hybrids would be biting on the south shore at LaSalle Lake this evening. Unfortunately I only managed two hybrids while fishing from 4pm-7pm. Didn't see many shad either. I did shoot some video while fishing and managed to get one on while recording. Just have to remember to check my camera settings for widescreen next time!<br />
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<i>Fish caught: Hybrid Striper - 2</i></div>
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<i>Successful baits: Yellow swim shad</i></div>
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<i>Weather: Mostly cloudy, NW wind 10mph, mid 40's, full moon</i></div>
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<i>Water Temp: 57</i></div>
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Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-73541149952124801092013-03-15T22:08:00.001-07:002013-03-15T23:37:29.135-07:00LaSalle Opener - Hybrid Stripers I had some work I had saved out near Ottawa, IL for today with the plan to hit up LaSalle Lake on my way home. March 15th is known by many fisherman in this area as the day LaSalle Lake usually opens up to fishing. Most of the lakes and ponds in the area have just recently thawed out in the past week with water temperatures still in the 30's and slow fishing. This is not a worry at LaSalle however, as it was built as a cooling lake for a power plant so the water is artificially warmed year round.<br />
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Work along with some scouting for kayak put-ins along the nearby Illinois river and its tributaries took longer than expected so I didn't get to the lake until 5pm. I would only have an hour and a half or so of fishing as the lake promptly closes at sunset. I was expecting a parking lot full of vehicles and boat trailers when I arrived but it was mostly empty, I suspect most of the fisherman who had lined up in the pre-dawn hours to have first crack at the lake had called it a day.<br />
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This was my first time fishing LaSalle but I have fished for hybrids many times along shorelines similar to the riprap that surrounds LaSalle Lake back when I lived in Oklahoma. I had brought along a few of my go to lures for hybrid stripers, mostly jerkbaits and white and yellow shad swimbaits. I was happy to see winds blowing from the ENE and some shad flicking around on the surface while I walked along the shore to find a spot. Wind can be vital to finding hybrids and the south shoreline at LaSalle had a nice steady wind blowing along it. I brought along a small digital aquarium thermometer just to see what the water temperature would read. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">55.5, perfect!<br />
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Some of my best days fishing for hybrid stripers and white bass were with water temperatures in the 50's. The fish are often very active and in shallow water at this temperature.<br />
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I started off throwing an x-rap and 2.5" yellow shad swimbait but didn't have much luck for the first 20 minutes. Then, with my swimbait about 5 feet from shore I almost had the rod jerked out of my hands and my drag quickly started peeling. When a hybrid hits that close to you there is usually no time to set the hook, you just hold on! After a few good runs I got the fish in, my first Illinois hybrid!</div>
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For the rest of the evening I stuck with the swimbait and as the evening wore on the fishing just got better. The last 30 minutes before sunset it was a fish every second to third cast it seemed. It is common for the hour or so around sunrise and sunset to be the best fishing for hybrids as the fish take advantage of the low-light conditions to move closer to shore and ambush baitfish. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoxG47CwTbQoKnwZH8s5xRaUgU85ScI8-RIcG_KvWWpU6uWtMWBwufKn_pi9PbldNQjzSvFKI6En8_I1Li1HXOvlxQmwd-zeFJWSx1m1Kxvgos-j_BnwGe6LiKaX8thdBMDeQKVGGUgMM/s1600/LaSalleHybrid2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoxG47CwTbQoKnwZH8s5xRaUgU85ScI8-RIcG_KvWWpU6uWtMWBwufKn_pi9PbldNQjzSvFKI6En8_I1Li1HXOvlxQmwd-zeFJWSx1m1Kxvgos-j_BnwGe6LiKaX8thdBMDeQKVGGUgMM/s200/LaSalleHybrid2.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFo8SvTs3e3UpPYaJQhQch-wC0I-Fi9pACSmN_uQz0tQJpwKkGq2melrFFoL5Gyg_0Ydb2QrCH525SD7KAq0XnGO4CGlZwqCSzMCcTDxRK0psIZj4UIRKrKU0VnBdXkYE2QJwh3t0Q14U/s1600/LaSalleHybrid3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFo8SvTs3e3UpPYaJQhQch-wC0I-Fi9pACSmN_uQz0tQJpwKkGq2melrFFoL5Gyg_0Ydb2QrCH525SD7KAq0XnGO4CGlZwqCSzMCcTDxRK0psIZj4UIRKrKU0VnBdXkYE2QJwh3t0Q14U/s200/LaSalleHybrid3.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoxG47CwTbQoKnwZH8s5xRaUgU85ScI8-RIcG_KvWWpU6uWtMWBwufKn_pi9PbldNQjzSvFKI6En8_I1Li1HXOvlxQmwd-zeFJWSx1m1Kxvgos-j_BnwGe6LiKaX8thdBMDeQKVGGUgMM/s1600/LaSalleHybrid2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXrA5kByaUPs0odP2xiV-02zvo_qHE5n2oT9LJBYgT3JHd6N_EOMy_eoum75VIhmrqBf36fueirMkWI_FXAOzbeu5YkjoA0YxSTqx8vTcP3Jim0ah1xjaUt_fa9viA57rvXE5HX6MoyD4/s1600/LaSalleHybrid6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="142" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXrA5kByaUPs0odP2xiV-02zvo_qHE5n2oT9LJBYgT3JHd6N_EOMy_eoum75VIhmrqBf36fueirMkWI_FXAOzbeu5YkjoA0YxSTqx8vTcP3Jim0ah1xjaUt_fa9viA57rvXE5HX6MoyD4/s200/LaSalleHybrid6.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXrA5kByaUPs0odP2xiV-02zvo_qHE5n2oT9LJBYgT3JHd6N_EOMy_eoum75VIhmrqBf36fueirMkWI_FXAOzbeu5YkjoA0YxSTqx8vTcP3Jim0ah1xjaUt_fa9viA57rvXE5HX6MoyD4/s1600/LaSalleHybrid6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijdP9XYPTwcwfg1u1fcsGmh5OxTzdCqV9jxB93qqvKBMFW2VMu6JZ3kC7fS29BQASIiJSktiLIx-6_SMFPQvs5JZQTW1dfktA2IoBlr4a8X-l2zRVUk71ZeFf0bn3A4AvlH_u7uFnAbvM/s1600/LaSalleHybrid4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijdP9XYPTwcwfg1u1fcsGmh5OxTzdCqV9jxB93qqvKBMFW2VMu6JZ3kC7fS29BQASIiJSktiLIx-6_SMFPQvs5JZQTW1dfktA2IoBlr4a8X-l2zRVUk71ZeFf0bn3A4AvlH_u7uFnAbvM/s200/LaSalleHybrid4.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcpB-9wnyWlcj5VC7QFJvfUz7PclXamM1Es93PbZEDSz8fATN_Hj7m-NhjLAQ5TY_IaR7IwO_lfqDYIbIg6rgjap18oAB_wZElPKOuBy3ZCDyOxv60v5dssmxy0NDLgE_3s7ysFkhNZ_E/s1600/LaSalleHybrid5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcpB-9wnyWlcj5VC7QFJvfUz7PclXamM1Es93PbZEDSz8fATN_Hj7m-NhjLAQ5TY_IaR7IwO_lfqDYIbIg6rgjap18oAB_wZElPKOuBy3ZCDyOxv60v5dssmxy0NDLgE_3s7ysFkhNZ_E/s200/LaSalleHybrid5.JPG" width="150" /></a></div>
I ended up with 8 hybrid on the night, all fat and healthy and in the 17-20" range. I had heard rumors of large fish kills at some of the Illinois power plant lakes during our hot summer last year but if today was any indication I'd say plenty of fish survived.<br />
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I chatted with a few fisherman as they were leaving, most were live bait fisherman who had caught mostly small channel catfish and bluegills along with a hybrid or two. They seemed surprised I was catching them with lures.<br />
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The conservation officers were out in full force tonight, which was nice to see. Everyone got checked for licenses and that they were keeping to their limit for fish. At LaSalle, the limit for hybrids is 10, with a maximum of 3 measuring over 17". If I was keeping fish this evening I would probably have only been able to keep 3 as all the fish I checked were at least 17".<br />
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As the sun began to set I checked the time and saw it was 6:40....time to head back. The officer had made it very clear I had to be off the property by 6:58pm. I had seen the sunset listed as 7:02 on a weather site earlier but I wasn't about to argue details with the guy. I decided for one last cast with the swimbait and felt a light tap. After a few nice jumps I pulled in a smallmouth bass, a nice way to end the evening.<br />
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This was my first trip to LaSalle Lake but it won't be my last. It's always fun on the rare occasion that you can cheat mother nature, whether it be the 80's we had this time last year or the warm water courtesy of the Exelon Corporation that I got to fish today.<br />
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<i>Fish caught: Hybrid Striper - 8 </i><br />
<i> Smallmouth Bass - 1</i><br />
<i>Successful baits: Yellow and Chartreuse/White swim shads</i><br />
<i>Weather: Mostly cloudy, ENE wind 10mph, mid 40's</i><br />
<i>Water Temp: 55</i><br />
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Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3951219425193537386.post-56177284015599872722013-01-09T17:00:00.000-08:002013-03-15T22:48:10.238-07:00First cast of 2013....Fish!Sunny weather and temperatures in the 40's got me motivated for a quick lunchtime fishing trip near my house today. I decided to hit a stretch of the DuPage River that I had only fished a few times previously with limited success. It's an area that's not easy to access but has plenty of fishy looking spots so I wanted to try it again. My very first cast of the new year was really just to check out how the finesse jig I had tied on looked in the water. However, as I slowly reeled in I noticed a bass following the jig. I let the jig stop on the bottom and to my surprise the fish sucked it up only three feet from shore. A short fight later and I had a decent smallmouth.<br />
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Unfortunately the old saying that it is bad luck to catch a fish on your first cast of the day held true and this was my only fish of the day. Nevertheless, anytime I can catch a bass from the river in winter I am happy.</div>
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The highlight of the day came a short time later as I waded around a bend and came upon three juvenile bucks getting a drink from the river. They looked up at me like "What the hell are you doing down here?" I was so surprised to have three deer so close I didn't even think to try and take a picture and after a few seconds they decided to run back into the woods.</div>
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Unusually warm winter days like today can trick you into thinking spring is just around corner, the reality is official winter just began a few weeks ago.</div>
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<i>Fish caught: Smallmouth Bass - 1</i></div>
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<i>Successful baits: Finesse jig/super chunk jr. trailer - Craw color</i></div>
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<i>Weather: Mostly sunny, gusty west winds, mid 40's.</i></div>
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<i>River conditions: low, clarity two feet.</i></div>
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<br />Tedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08890435283119167012noreply@blogger.com0