Give us our choice of anywhere to fish in Illinois right now and we’d pick…

• White bass at Lake Shelbyville.
• Largemouth bass at Kinkaid Lake.
• Northern pike on the Kankakee River.

WALL HANGERS

• Fish
• Luke McCaughey, 7, of Washington is pictured below with a 19-inch bass he caught out of local farm pond on Aug. 29 using a wooden lure made by John Wilkinson.

NORTHERN ILLINOIS North of Interstate 80

Apple Canyon Lake
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Overall action slow but anglers are catching a few crappie and some decent-size bluegills here. Minnows, waxies, crickets all being used. Crappie are in 11-12 inch range and in deeper water. Tiny bass bait stealers have been getting in the way of some bluegill anglers.

Lake Carroll
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337).
Walleye are biting, but it’s taking a lot of fishing to get to them and most are on the small size. Leeches best.

Forest Preserve Lakes
SOURCE: Lee’s Bait and Tackle of Elk Grove Village (847-593-6424); Henry’s (312-225-8538)
• Click here for a Cook County Forest Preserves lake fishing forum.
• Here are links to information on various forest preserve lakes. Cook County, DeKalb County, DuPage County, Kane County, Kendall County, Lake County, McHenry County and Will County.

Fox Chain O’ Lakes
SOURCE: Greg Dickson, Triangle Sports & Marine,  Antioch (1-847-395-0813).
Bluegill are biting well on waxworms according to Triangle Sports. Target the shallows, as fish have been moving up. Catfish are also good on dipbait, particularly in the early evenings. Walleye are slower this week but still best in current.
• Click here to check updates on no-wake status and water levels or call 847-587-8540 .

Lake Michigan
SOURCES: Henry’s (312-225-8538), Vet’s (773-734-6720) and Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times.
• On the Chicago lakefront king salmon are starting to bite near shore along with a few browns and steelhead according to Dale Bowman. He predicts shorefishing for salmon “could bust loose any day.” Perch fishing has slowed. Rock bass are good in harbors.
SOURCE: The Salmon Stop (847-244-2525 or fishing hotline 847-244-9876);  Capt. Nick Ganzer (847-234-7208).
• Near Waukegan the Salmon Stop said a few perch, browns and kings have been biting off the government pier.

Shabbona Lake
SOURCES: Guide Jay Angel (815-739-7030) and Denny Sands, Shabbona Lakeside Bait & Tackle, Shabbona (815-824-2581).
Jay Angel reports that bluegill are biting well over the deep rock piles. Every fifth fish is a keeper of 8 inches or more. Waxies are working best. Crappie are fair and some bigger fish have started taking minnows over the deeper rock piles.
• Park hours November to January 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; February to March 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; April 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; May to October 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
•Click here for a Shabbona Lake fishing forum.

NORTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 80 and North of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36

Anderson Lake
SOURCE: Site manager Ed Oest (309-759-4484)
Trot-line anglers are doing very well for channel catfish right now on cut bait according to Ed Oest, site manager.

Banner Marsh
SOURCE: Adam Jaegle, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
Crappie are starting to bite here as they are at many other strip-mine lakes. Minnows and jigs both working. Bass are also moving shallow and biting better but the weeds are dying and water is getting murky according to Adam Jaegle at Presley’s Outdoors. Jaegle said the Main Lake is best right now for bass, with good numbers of fish from 15-17 inches being caught on spinnerbaits and shallow-diving crankbaits.

Lake Bloomington
SOURCE: Larry Dozard
Bass and bluegill are fair along weedlines according to Larry Dozard, who advises plastics and crankbaits for bass and waxies for the bluegill. Crappie are slow to fair on minnows or some on waxies over brush at coves or off points.
Braidwood Lake
SOURCE: Del Colvin, Bert’s Bait, Essex (815-365-2103); Jon Meder, Jon’s Bait & Tackle, South Wilmington (815-237-2822)
Fishing is still slow here according to Del Colvin. Anglers should be aware that the north ramp is closed for work.

Clinton Lake
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730); Clinton Bait and Tackle, (217-935-3851)
Anglers are finding white bass using blade baits. Crappie moving up a bit and are hitting in 7-8 feet of water on minnows and tube jigs. Catfish being caught drifting shallow in 8-9 feet of water. Anglers catching flatheads in 15-20 pound range, says Clinton Bait and Tackle.

Dawson Lake
SOURCE: Leon and Judy Gibson, Moraine View Concession (309-724-8295)
Fishing still slow overall here. Bass biting fair on lures on the south end by the dam. Catfish bite has been good on chicken livers, shrimp or stinkbaits along the shoreline on the north end.

Emiquon Preserve
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); The Nature Conservancy (309-547-2730)
Very few reports, though fishing should be improving with cooling water. Anglers must obtain a free permit at Dickson Mounds Museum (open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) before fishing here.

Evergreen Lake
SOURCE: Brad Wood, operations supervisor, (309-726-2022) or Larry Dozard
The crappies and saugeyes are really on right now according to Mike Steffa, who has been hearing reports of limits of both species. Crappies are biting on jig and minnow combo near shoreline structure adjacent to deep water, and the saugeye are biting on mostly jig and crawler combo and main lake humps and points. Guide Jay Angel suggests targeting the shoreline opposite of Deer Island. Overall he said 6-14 feet is best with fish schooling in 8-12 feet of water along downed trees in the evenings. Among the crappie caught is a 15.5-incher shown below by Nick Neargarder of Normal. Bluegill are still biting fair, but not like they were. The gills are biting mostly on worms and waxworms best. The catfish have slowed down considerably, with not many reports coming in.
NOTE: The Evergreen Lake Bait Shop and Boat Rental will be open Saturdays and Sundays only (from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.) starting Tuesday, Sept. 7. Last day for boat rental is Sept. 26. The bait shop is open until Oct. 17, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Click here for up-to-date lake reports.

Heidecke Lake
SOURCE: Don Stephens, Greybeards (815-941-1504); Guide Mike Lynch (708-655-7667); Guide Greg Heath (815-258-9136)
Action very slow here says Greybeards. Some yellow and white bass biting on crawlers or jigs. A few catfish also being picked up on stinkbaits. Walleye and crappie slowed way down.

Mazonia Lakes
SOURCE: Del Colvin, Bert’s Bait, Essex (815-365-2103)
The panfish bite is coming on, with crappie minnows best on all lakes. Bass have also been hitting on topwater baits.

Powerton Lake
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
Very few reports from here aside from an occasional blue catfish on live bait or cut Asian carp.

Snakeden Hollow SFWA
SOURCE: Nellie Thorne, Depot Bait and Tackle, Victoria (309-879-2401); Site office (309-879-2607)
Fishing is pretty good for crappie, which have improved quite a bit on minnows and Lil Hustlers. A few bass have been reported. Catfish are good on deworms and dip bait.

Spring Lake
SOURCES: Troy Galvin, Galvin’s Spring Lake Market (309-267-6538) and Larry Karnes, Larry’s Restaurant and Family Bar, Manito (309-968-9500)
Channel catfish are good, mostly during the evenings. Dipbait is top choice along with shrimp. Target the turnoffs. Bass have picked up some, but the weeds and moss are still very thick. Few reports on bluegill, but they should start biting soon.

Lake Storey
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg (309-342-7776)
A few panfish are coming in, primarily in the mornings. And the crappie bite should really pick up with this cold front according to Al Hayden. Bass are mostly are mostly being caught on plastics early and late. No word on muskie.

Strip Mines
(Fulton, Knox, Peoria and Stark counties)
SOURCE: Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); and Larry Dozard; Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793); Jim’s Bait and Tackle, Hanna City (309-565-9960)
Crappie fishing has picked up in many lakes, with fish moving into 6-12 feet of water and taking minnows or tube jigs on a slow retrieve. Several large bass reported last weekend on jigs and bottom-crawling baits. Topwater action has been slower in the morning and just decent in the evening. Bluegill are fair. Catfish seemed slower this past week according to Larry Dozard.

SOUTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36 and North of Interstate 70

Charleston Side Channel Lake
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770)
Catfish bite good here on cheesebaits. Bass bite pretty good on jigs. Try black and blue or green pumpkin with orange in it, says Cuddy. Crappie are biting deeper, mostly on tube jigs.

Lake Decatur
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730)
Buffalo and carp is bite picking up, with anglers using cheese baits for the buffalo and alfalfa for the carp. Catfish doing good drifting close to the banks using cut shad. White bass taking blade baits around the bridge corners. Largemouth bass also biting on mid-running crankbaits. Below the dam, catfish also doing good and a few walleye are biting on jigs. One area angler caught a 25 to 30 pound flathead below the dam using spoons.

Lake Glenn Shoals
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
No new report. Last week, Rebman said a few bass biting here in 6-8 feet of water off points. Most taking jigs. One angler had a good run on crappie, catching 15 with the biggest a 12-incher. Minnows best. Another angler caught a 9-pound channel cats using blood baits.

Lake Hillsboro
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
Catfish were biting here on shrimp or blood baits.

Lake Mattoon
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770); Joel Pittman, Mattoon Parks Department (217-254-6680)
Bass have been pretty good here, with crankbaits and spinners working best. Crappie starting to come around says Pittman. Catfish has also been good. Water clear and temps in high 70s.

Sangchris Lake
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-820-9674)
Some crappie biting here down deep in 10-13 feet of water says Big Red’s.

Lake Sara
SOURCE: Tony Niebrugge, Anthony’s Acres Resort, (217-868-2950)
Bluegill still being caught here under the docks on pieces of nightcrawler or waxworms. Some catfish also being picked up by bluegill anglers. A six-pound bass caught Aug. 27 using crankbaits and shaky tails.

Lake Shelbyville
SOURCE: Guide Ken Wilson (217-774-5756 or 217-454-2672) at Lithia Springs Guide Service; Margie Oliver, Marv and Kathy’s Bait & Tackle, Sullivan (217-728-4044); Guide Steve Welch (217) 762-7257 or (217) 840-1221
White bass biting here on wind lown banks on the main lake flats. Guide Ken Wilson has been using Bue Fox No. 4, in-line spinners and 2-jig rigs. Walleye can also be picked up fishing for white bass as both are feeding on shad. Anywhere the wind is blowing in to the main lake flats is a good area, like Point 3 or Point 6. Crappie also hitting good on jigs. Crappie are shallow early, in 5-8 range, then going deeper to 12-15 feet in the day. Muskie are slow. Largemouth bass fair to good. A local angler caught a 15-pound catfish drifting in the Wolf Creek area on the southeast end of the lake.

Guide Steve Welch said he is chasing white bass on flats where is also finding walleye up to 6 pounds. Look for areas where wind or boat traffic stir up the water to find the fish. South winds make the fishing better. Welch prefers Blue Fox Vibrax No. 3 spinners or Big Dude quarter-ounce blade baits, or his own Candy Stripers if he has to fish ledges on windless days,.
• For a daily report on Lake Shelbyville call (217-774-2020).

Lake Springfield
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-679-1800) and Tater’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-2208)
Catfish fair to good here on just about anything you want to throw at them says Peter’s Bait. A few white bass also biting on Crazy Blades and Blue Foxes. Crappie hitting in 10-12 feet deep on minnows.

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS South of Interstate 70

Carlyle Lake
SOURCE: Josh Adkins; Buddy Langenhorst, Lavish’s Bait Shop , Carlyle (618-594-4413); Henkel’s (618-594-4818)
White bass and catfish best here. Anglers finding good success on white bass using Candy Striper tail spinners. Cats being caught either with stinkbaits or drifting with shrimp. A smattering of largemouth bass and bluegill also being picked up here.
• For the latest water level information call (618-594-4637).

Cedar Lake
SOURCE: Ron Reed, Cooksey’s Bait, Marion (618-993-3366); Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354); Kyle Garner, Crappie Pro Shop, Carterville (618-985-8277)
Crappie bite has been fair on points or brush piles in 12-18 feet of water, mostly on jigs. Blue and white, red and white or black and white colors working. Bass good in the same areas on the points or bluff banks using deep-diving crankbaits with shad patterns. Ten to 12-inch worms in black or red shad colors good after dark. Shaky heads also working.

Crab Orchard Lake
SOURCE: Ron Reed, Cooksey’s Bait, Marion (618-993-3366); Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354); Kyle Garner, Crappie Pro Shop, Carterville (618-985-8277)
A few crappie biting on jigs and minnows in variable depths says Reed. Bluegill can be found up and down the banks, mostly in the rocks. A few bass hitting on topwaters, spinners, buzzbaits and frogs. Catfish taking stinkbaits, minnows and cutbaits. Jason Johns said crappie are starting to move shallow and bass are on a decent bite.

Lake of Egypt
SOURCE: Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354)
The bass are eating everything according to Guide Jason Johns. If you want to cast crankbaits you can catch them. If you want to catch them on flukes in the weeds you can do that. They are just tearing up the water down there.

Forbes Lake
SOURCE: Site manager Glenn Wegener (618-547-3381); Mike Polcyn, Mike’s Bait & Tackle Shop, Louisville (618-665-3209)
Channel catfish are good on chicken liver along weedlines and off points, particularly at night said Glenn Wegener. Most other species are fair. Water is running 80-85 degrees and is clear on the south end and murky on the north end. The thermocline is at 10-12 feet.

Kinkaid Lake
SOURCE: Janet Graeff, Top of the Hill Bait Shop, Muphysboro (618-684-2923); Guide Al Nutty (618-694-4897)
Largemouth bass are on a good bite, with topwaters working in the early morning back in the weeds. A few are also biting on plastic worms and Carolina rigs. Angers have caught 6- and 7-pound bass here on topwaters. Crappie are fair to good. Some 11-12 inch fish being caught, and even a few bigger. Look deep and around heavy brushpiles. Catfish always good here. Nightcrawlers, cut shad and chicken liver working. Cats are shallow at night, but in 8-12 foot range during the day. White bass are spotty. Bluegill fair to good on crickets, waxworms or mealworms. A few walleye biting on deep diving crankbaits. Water temps are still too high for muskie

Rend Lake
SOURCE: Todd Gessner (618-513-0520); Jason Johns (618-927-3432); Bill Hudnall, Rend Lake Sporting Goods, Mount Vernon (618-242-2191)
Crappie are starting to turn on at Rend Lake. Shallow is the best bet, with 0-8 feet best, though you can still catch fish deep. Word and brush works better and laydowns. Jig and cork is working well on shallow stumps. Minnows are working good too. Bass are decent and are chasing shad big time. Shallow spinnerbaits, beaver baits and shallow-running crankbaits are doing well.

RIVERS

• Click here for water level information.

Des Plaines River
SOURCE: Andrew Ragas
Water levels are very low, surface temperatures are high, there is more than usual weedgrowth all along the river, and unless you are fishing a dam or set of riffles, don’t come to the river with high expectations.

Right now, most fish are concentrating themselves in and around areas with current. With the warm water temperatures of 79-81 degrees, flowing water can be cooler by as much as 3 to 5 degrees as compared to elsewhere on the river. Concentrate on these types of areas for all species of fish.

No Pike reports, but both Largemouth and Smallmouth Bass are surprisingly active with the heat, as are the usual Channel Catfish.

Friend, Dan Sims, found the time over the weekend to get out on the river and this is what he had to say: “With all these colder nights lately I figured the DPR would have some fish starting to move around again. Wasn’t the case, kind of. I don’t know if it’s bad timing on my part or maybe I just plain lost it?!”

He notes that Pike fishing has been difficult this summer due to the warmer than usual water temperatures.

“Every time I hit the my favorite spot on the DPR, I always have at least one Pike on the line. I must have tied 5 different lures just trying to get something going. I’m going to let the water cool down, or wait for a good rain before getting back out there again.”

Dan and his friend could not find the Pike, but Largemouth and Smallmouth Bass up to 14” were found from mid-river channel areas, as well as downed wood adjacent to flowing water. Crankbaits, spinnerbaits, and X-Raps did it for them.

Meanwhile, Channel Cats up to 5-pounds have been active on most nights. Find deeper areas with current, and pools, and you will find the fish. Slip bobber rigs during the daytime, and bottom rigs during the nighttime fished with nightcrawlers and chicken livers are offering the best results.

USGS in Riverside at 242, gauge height at 3, and water is safe for wading. If fishing the river, keep an open mind, and maybe it can be worthwhile.
• Click here for a Des Plaines River fishing forum.

Illinois River
SOURCE: Carol Culjan at Cajun Sporting Goods in Utica (815-667-4222)
• Near Utica the river is clean and low and sauger fishing has been improving for anglers trolling crankbaits. White bass are good early at the dam on blade baits. Channel catfish are also good along channel edges on dipbait and cut shad.
SOURCE: Jordan Hubinsky, Time on the Water Marina, Spring Valley (815-663-1000)
• Near Spring Valley, white bass are biting well at the Peru rip-rap and on gravel bars. Channel catfish are good.
SOURCE: Celeste Pollack, Wolf Hollow Archery Bait & Tackle, Chillicothe (309-274-9653)
• Near Chillicothe catfish are excellent on dipbait, cut mooneye and cut skipjack herring. Drifting baits is working well.
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Tim Presley, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193)
• Near Peoria catfish are fair, but the best action has been above Peoria Lock and Dam. Cut mooneye, skipjack herring and Asian carp is working well drifted along the channel edge. Dipbait also good.
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094)
• Near Havana the best channel catfish bite has been in and around the Bath Chute. Dipbait is best according to Paul Dinkheller. Fish are just pan-sized.

Kankakee River
SOURCE: Ed Mullady, Sportsman’s Letter (815-932-7285)
• Mike Lee of Frank’s Bait Shop in Momence reported northern pike of 36 and 32 inches caught recently. Ed Mullady said pike are biting better all along the river. Smallmouth bass are also biting well, with one angler reporting five fish of 36 pounds. Diana at Kankakee River Trading Post said action has been good between the Lookout and Rock Creek mouth. Crankbaits are working well. Guide Matt Mullady had an 11-fish outing recently with Lee Roski and Maria Chavez. Catfish are better in holes that still have decent amounts of water.

Mackinaw River
SOURCE: Guide Jonn Graham (309-399-7055)
White bass and sauger are biting very well in the lower river according to Merle Keefer of Pekin Bass and Bow. Gay blades and small crankbaits are working best. Channel catfish have also been good on dipbait.

Mississippi River
SOURCE: Iowa DNR

Al Hayden said channel catfish have been good on the river, off wing dams and in stump fields. Dipbait is best.

Here’s the in-depth Iowa DNR report:

Mississippi River Pool 11
Water level at Guttenberg is 7.9 feet.  It is expected to remain stable but fall slowly over the next week.  Water temperature is near 77 degrees.  Channel Catfish - Fair: Try fishing along the shoreline or edges of flooded vegetation for best results.  You do not need to cast far out to catch nice catfish.  Stink baits or crawlers are the baits of choice.  Bluegill - Excellent: Larger bluegills and other sunfish are being caught right now along the bank with bobber and worms. The DNR fishing walkway in Guttenberg has been a popular location.  Edge of weed lines throughout the pool especially in areas of brush piles has also been popular.  Smallmouth Bass - Fair: Some smallmouth are being caught fishing near rock in good current.  Try drifting night crawlers or using artificial lures such as in-line spinner.  Largemouth Bass - Good: Largemouth can be caught along shorelines with woody debris. Small spinners or jigs will work best.  Some places to try bass fishing in Pool 11 are Mud Lake by Dubuque, Bertrum Lake by Cassville and Swift Slough by Guttenberg.  Many anglers are using plastic frogs and worms to eliminate problems with floating weeds.  Crappie - Fair: Some Crappie are being caught on minnows in Mud Lake and Sunfish Lake in Lower Pool 11.  Yellow Perch - Fair: There have been some reports of good catches of yellow perch in the sloughs around Guttenberg.  Some very large yellow perch can be found in the Mississippi River.  Sauger - Slow: There have been some reports of sauger being caught in the tail waters and out on the wing dams.  Walleye - Slow: The walleye fishing should start to pick up.  Wing dams are a little too deep with the high water.  Hopefully anglers can start to concentrate on fall wing dam walleye fishing.  Freshwater Drum - Fair: Some drum are still being reported in the upper part of Pool 11.  During high water fish will often be found near shore in eddy area but away from the strong current. One-eyed jigs or night crawlers have been working well.

Water temperature at Guttenberg is right around 77 degrees. River levels are expected to remain stable but fall slightly over the next week.  Water levels are: Lansing 9.3, Lynxville 16.2 and Guttenberg 7.9. Floating vegetation may be a problem in some areas.

Mississippi River Pool 13
The river stage at Bellevue is 8.6 feet and steady due to recent rains.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are being taken using stink bait and crawlers.  Don’t be afraid to move around, if fishing slows in one area move and find active fish.  Areas to try are side sloughs, main channel border and the upstream side of wing dams.  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report: With water still high for summer levels fish are still scattered making it difficult for anglers to find good catches.  Fishing should improve as water levels drop.  Walleye - Fair: A few fish are being caught on the wing dams using crawlers.  Sand flats have also been producing a few fish, trolling crankbaits in 10 to 12 feet of water.  Freshwater Drum - Good: Drum are being caught in a variety of places including the tail waters, inside edge of wing dams and side sloughs.  When fishing drum if you haven’t caught a fish in 10 to 15 minutes move to find active fish.

Mississippi River Pool 14
The river stage at Clinton is 8 feet and stable.  Channel Catfish - Good: Stink bait and crawlers are producing decent catches of fish.  Try fishing side sloughs, wing dams and main channel borders.  Move to find fish, if you haven’t had a bite in 10 minutes move.  Walleye - Fair: Walleye fishing has been slow but, with dropping water a few fish are being caught of the wing dams and an occasional fish caught in the backwaters.  Freshwater Drum - Good: Numbers of drum are being taken in a variety of places.  Try fishing the wing dams. Move until you find the right spot, current plays a big part as to where the fish are on the dam.

The Mississippi River this year has been if nothing but challenging for the angler, the water levels are starting to go down, but are still high for summer levels.  The river temperature is around 76 degrees with slightly rising to stable water levels due to recent rains.

Mississippi River Pool 16
River stage at Lock and Dam 15 is 8.38 feet.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are being caught on dip baits and crawlers fished around brush piles and logjams along the main channel and side sloughs.  White Bass - Slow:  Bluegill - Slow:  Crappie - Slow:  Walleye - Slow: Walleye fishing on the wing dams has been slow due to high and muddy water.

Mississippi River Pool 17
River stage at Lock and Dam 16 is 7.06 feet.  Channel Catfish - Good: Some channel catfish are being caught on dip baits, green worms, crawlers, and shad fished around brush piles and logjams along the main channel and sloughs. Channel catfish are also being caught at GPC.  White Bass - Slow:  Bluegill - Slow:  Crappie - Fair: Some crappies are being caught on minnows in Big Timber fishing shallow along brush piles.  Walleye - Slow: Walleye fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water.

Mississippi River Pool 18
River stage at Lock and Dam 17 is 8.98 feet.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are being caught on dip baits, crawlers, and shad fished around brush piles and logjams along the main channel and side sloughs.  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pool 19
River stage at Lock and Dam 18 is 5.86 feet.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are being caught on stink baits, crawlers, and shad fished around brush piles and logjams along the main channel and side sloughs.  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pools 16-20: River stages are still above normal throughout Pools 16-20. Water clarity is still fairly poor. Fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water conditions. Main channel water temperature is around 77 degrees. For more fishing information on pools 16-20 of the Mississippi River contact the Fairport Fish Hatchery at 563-263-5062.

Pecatonica River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Anglers are catching northerns and catfish here, with cats in 2-3 pound range.

Rock River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
• Near Rockford River turning back on, with nice size catfish biting on dipbaits and cutbaits.
SOURCE: Jan Prose at TJ’s Bait/Tackle & Canoe Rental in Oregon (815-732-4516)
• Near Oregon Jan Prose reports fishing improved as the river dropped to a normal level and cleared up pretty fair. Catfish are biting on liver, dipbaits and shrimp. Walleye seem to be more active, John Brown from Chicago caught a 26-inch walleye on a night crawler, and I heard of a few others being caught on worms and minnows.  The picture is of Tony Giambelluce from Rockford with a 35-inch northern brought in on 4-pound test line with a minnow.
SOURCE: Ray and Irene Hays, Bunny’s Bait Shop, Dixon (815-288-3812)
• Near Dixon channel cats doing well on dipbaits, crushed minnows or chicken livers. Little cats being found by the shoreline. Three flahead reports, ranging from just under 40 pounds to 11 pounds. Bluegill and goldfish being used. Some white bass, striper and crappie biting below the dam using bigger minows. Smallmouth action near Lowal Park and by the railroad bridge. Minnows working for them also. Carp best, with some saying mulberry flavor best bait. Walleye running deep and very spotty on minnows.

Spoon River
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg and Paul Dinkheller at Dink’s in Lewistown (309-547-1094)
Channel catfish are good on dipbait and white bass have been red hot at the Bernadotte dam on 3-inch twister tails according to Dinkheller. Most catfish reports in the upper river have been turned in by bankpolers, who are using minnows.

Give us our choice of anywhere to fish in Illinois right now and we’d pick…

• Fishing with dipbait for channel catfish on the Illinois, Spoon, Wabash or Mississippi rivers.
• White bass fishing at Carlyle Lake or Lake Shelbyville.
• Largemouth bass at Crab Orchard Lake.
• Smallmouth bass on the Kankakee River and on most other large rivers that still have good flow.

WALL HANGERS

• Braidwood resident Matt Leimbech caught a 21.5-inch largemouth bass last Thursday at Mazonia’s Monster Lake.
• Jason Fiddes caught a 39-inch, 15-pound tiger muskie last Saturday while fishing a strip mine near Hanna City.
• Susan Page caught a 2.84-pound crappie Wednesday while fishing with a minnow and jig at Little Swan Lake near Avon.
• A tournament angler caught a 54-pound blue catfish last weekend at Lake Springfield.
• Guide Matt Jones is pictured below hoisting a 31-pound flathead catfish caught and release last week on live bait in a deep hole on the Rock River.

NORTHERN ILLINOIS North of Interstate 80

Apple Canyon Lake
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Overall action slow but anglers are catching a few crappie and some decent size bluegills here. Minnows, waxies, crickets and leaf worms all being used.

Lake Carroll
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337).
Some panfish activity here. Walleye are biting, but it’s taking a lot of fishing to get to them and most are on the small size. One angler caught nine but only one keeper. Leeches best.

Forest Preserve Lakes
SOURCE: Lee’s Bait and Tackle of Elk Grove Village (847-593-6424); Henry’s (312-225-8538)
• Click here for a Cook County Forest Preserves lake fishing forum.
• Here are links to information on various forest preserve lakes. Cook County, DeKalb County, DuPage County, Kane County, Kendall County, Lake County, McHenry County and Will County.

Fox Chain O’ Lakes
SOURCE: Greg Dickson, Triangle Sports & Marine,  Antioch (1-847-395-0813).
Walleye are good in areas with current and near bridges says Triangle Sports. Bluegill are better in the shallows and catfish have been fair.
• Click here to check updates on no-wake status and water levels or call 847-587-8540 .

Lake Michigan
SOURCES: Henry’s (312-225-8538), Vet’s (773-734-6720) and Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times.
• On the Chicago lakefront salmon should be moving shallow soon according to Dale Bowman. Boaters have been doing best from the Wilson crib to R4. Perch are slow.
SOURCE: The Salmon Stop (847-244-2525 or fishing hotline 847-244-9876);  Capt. Nick Ganzer (847-234-7208).
• Near Waukegan Capt. Nick Ganzer reports that salmon/trout fishing continues to be good to excellent. Lake conditions remain perfect for our late summer/fall fishery. Surface water temps are in the high 60’s to low 70’s, with cooler water down in the 30- to 40-foot range. Large 4-year-olds are preparing to spawn and are being taken early/late in the day in 40-60 feet of water (fow). Once action slows boats move out to 150-260 fow for more great action. Fish are being caught from the surface down to 80 feet. Steelhead are hitting spoons especially if they have some orange to them.This year’s hot set-up is a West Coast lure called “Brad’s Super Bait” that is shaped like a cut-plug bait that opens up so canned tuna can be put in it. It has holes in the body that leach the tuna scent, as it is pulled through the water. Salmon/Trout have been going wild over them.
SOURCE: Mik-Lurch (219-989-0575)
• Near Indiana steelhead are fair at Burns Ditch. Perch are slow.

Shabbona Lake
SOURCES: Guide Jay Angel (815-739-7030) and Denny Sands, Shabbona Lakeside Bait & Tackle, Shabbona (815-824-2581).
Catfish are fair to good on dipbait and chicken liver. Dale Bowman reports that the top stringer last weekend was 24.75 pounds for six fish. Crappie are in the cribs and bluegill are still on weed edges.
• Park hours November to January 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; February to March 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; April 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; May to October 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
•Click here for a Shabbona Lake fishing forum

NORTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 80 and North of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36

Banner Marsh
SOURCE: Adam Jaegle, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
Bass are decent on top-waters early and then move out later with crankbaits and jigs. Fishing is not where it should be. Few reports on bluegill, crappie or catfish here.

Lake Bloomington
SOURCE: Larry Dozard
Bluegill are fair on waxworms and crickets along weed edges and seawalls says Larry Dozard, though most are running small. Water is in the low 80s in the creeks and mid-80s on the lake. Bass are fair to slow on crankbaits and plastics off points. Catfish are fair. Guide Paul Center reports that crappie are fair to slow and have been coming shallow to the seawalls in the evening, when they are taking tubes and crappie nibbles. A slow retrieve has worked better than vertical jigging.
Braidwood Lake
SOURCE: Del Colvin, Bert’s Bait, Essex (815-365-2103); Jon Meder, Jon’s Bait & Tackle, South Wilmington (815-237-2822)
Some nice blue cats were being caught in the 10-30 pound range, but have been hit and miss lately. Not many good bass reports here.

Clinton Lake
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730); Clinton Bait and Tackle, (217-935-3851)
Catfish decent here on dipbaits and cut shad. Some small walleye and striper biting and a few bass, but catfish is the main draw. Minnows and stinkbaits also good for cats says Clinton Bait and Tackle. A lot of worms also being purchased.

Dawson Lake
SOURCE: Leon and Judy Gibson, Moraine View Concession (309-724-8295)
Fishing not that great here with water down and hot. A few bass biting on the south end by the dam. Some anglers finding catfish along the edges using chicken liver and shrimp.

Emiquon Preserve
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); The Nature Conservancy (309-547-2730)
Fishing remains slow to very slow with fewer anglers out in the past week. One decent report on crappie in 6-8 feet of water and moving shallower later in the day. Anglers must obtain a free permit at Dickson Mounds Museum (open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) before fishing here.

Evergreen Lake
SOURCE: Brad Wood, operations supervisor, (309-726-2022) or Larry Dozard
Fishing reports have been good for the past week according to Brad Wood. Says Wood, “Some Ccappie are starting to be caught in the shallows, with most still being caught in deeper waters 10-15 feet on minnows. A few smaller saugeye reported from over the weekend in the 10- to 15-inch range caught on crawlers off of points. Catfish have been hitting on crawlers, livers, and stinkbaits. Bluegill have been doing well on small pieces of crawlers and wax worms along deep weed lines. Bass action has started to pick up a bit on crankbaits, spinners, and plastic worms.” Water clarity is 1-2 feet and temperatures are in the low 80s.
• Click here for up-to-date lake reports.

Heidecke Lake
SOURCE: Don Stephens, Greybeards (815-941-1504); Guide Mike Lynch (708-655-7667); Guide Greg Heath (815-258-9136)
Action very slow here says Greybeards. Some yellow and white bass biting on crawlers or jigs. A few catfish also being picked up on stinkbaits. Walleye and crappie slowed way down.

Mazonia Lakes
SOURCE: Del Colvin, Bert’s Bait, Essex (815-365-2103)
Braidwood resident Matt Leimbech caught a 21.5-inch largemouth bass last Thursday at Monster Lake. Small bass are active, but the bigger ones seem to be hiding. Bass are biting on top water baits or spinner baits, says Meder. Catfish also biting on liver, shrimp or golden roaches. Overall fishing slow, however.

Snakeden Hollow SFWA
SOURCE: Nellie Thorne, Depot Bait and Tackle, Victoria (309-879-2401); Site office (309-879-2607)
Crappie are biting well but are still deep. Tube jigs are working well. Catfish have been good on dipbait. Oak Run crappie continue to be good, with docks a key.

Spring Lake
SOURCES: Troy Galvin, Galvin’s Spring Lake Market (309-267-6538) and Larry Karnes, Larry’s Restaurant and Family Bar, Manito (309-968-9500)
Bass fishing has picked up some in the past week, as tournament anglers have done better. Top-waters and soft plastics still good. Bluegill are also improving, with smaller fish finally biting. Channel catfish are still good. Dipbait and shrimp are top choices.

Lake Storey
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg (309-342-7776)
Fishing has been a bit quiet with some bluegill and crappie action picking up. Worms and small pieces of worm are working for bluegill on weed edges. Crappie have been mostly deep but are starting to move shallow in the mornings.

Strip Mines
(Fulton, Knox, Peoria and Stark counties)
SOURCE: Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); and Larry Dozard; Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793); Jim’s Bait and Tackle, Hanna City (309-565-9960)
Reports have picked up for crappie according to Merle Keefer, particularly in the mornings. Minnows and tube jigs working and fish seem to like it moving. Larry Dozard said catfish are fair in the evenings and keep biting after sunset. Bass still surprisingly slow, with a few decent catches on jigs. Smaller fish taking crankbaits, Senkos and soft plastics.

SOUTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36 and North of Interstate 70

Charleston Side Channel Lake
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770)
Catfish bite good here on cheesebaits. Stripers also hitting on chicken livers. Largemouth bass have been good on plastics or crankbaits.

Lake Decatur
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730)
Large flathead cats hitting below the dame, with one angler catching a 30 to 35-pounder and another in the 25-30 pound range. Shrimp and dipbaits best for cats. Hybrid striper and white bass also biting below the dam. Spoons and jigs working, with white bass also taking minnow-type crankbaits.

Lake Glenn Shoals
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
A few bass biting here in 6-8 feet of water off points. Most taking jigs. One angler had a good run on crappie, catching 15 with the biggest a 12-incher. Minnows best. Another angler caught a 9-pound channel cats using blood baits.

Lake Hillsboro
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
A few catfish biting here on shrimp or blood baits. Not many other reports coming in.

Lake Mattoon
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770); Joel Pittman, Mattoon Parks Department (217-254-6680)
Bass have been pretty good here, with jigs best. Try black and blue or green pumpkin with orange. Rumors spreading the crappie bit is picking up, but Cuddy believes water needs to cool down a little more for good action. A few catfish also biting says Pittman.

Sangchris Lake
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-820-9674)
A lot of crappie biting here down deep in 10-13 feet of water says Big Red’s. Some bass also biting.

Lake Sara
SOURCE: Tony Niebrugge, Anthony’s Acres Resort, (217-868-2950)
Bluegill best here. Decent size fish being caught on pieces of nightcrawler or waxworms in shallow under the docks in the shade. Bass biting up close. Crappie anglers are going out but water temps are still a bit warm.

Lake Shelbyville
SOURCE: Guide Ken Wilson (217-774-5756 or 217-454-2672) at Lithia Springs Guide Service; Margie Oliver, Marv and Kathy’s Bait & Tackle, Sullivan (217-728-4044); Guide Steve Welch (217) 762-7257 or (217) 840-1221
Fishing mostly the same here as last week says Wilson. Crappie bite starting to pick up, with plenty of little ones biting in deep brush on jigs. Brown and chartreuse or black and chartreuse working. Check main lake areas as crappie starting to stage up. Water temps at 85 degrees and level is at normal pool. Catfish anglers drift fishing with cut bait on the north end. Nothing to report on muskie. Walleye slow. No action below the spillway with the water being shut off. Steve Welch reports if you find schools of shad you will find white bass. The river still has plenty of food and whites. Welch has been using half- and 5/8th-ounce Candy Striper blade baits. Coves with gravel banks should be good soon for whites.
• For a daily report on Lake Shelbyville call (217-774-2020).

Lake Springfield
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-679-1800) and Tater’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-2208)
Catfish best here on just about anything you want to throw at them says Peter’s Bait. A few white bass also biting on crazy blades and blue Foxes. Weekend tournament winner hauled in a 54-pound blue cat.

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS South of Interstate 70

Carlyle Lake
SOURCE: Josh Adkins; Buddy Langenhorst, Lavish’s Bait Shop , Carlyle (618-594-4413); Henkel’s (618-594-4818)
Fishing good here on white bass and catfish. White bass can be found on the humps and around silos. They are also by the sand banks chasing shad. Try rooster tails, road runners or shallow diving crankbaits. Catfish anglers good drifting with shrimp and cutbait. Pole and line anglers using cheesebaits.
• For the latest water level information call (618-594-4637).

Cedar Lake
SOURCE: Ron Reed, Cooksey’s Bait, Marion (618-993-3366); Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354); Kyle Garner, Crappie Pro Shop, Carterville (618-985-8277)
Crappie bite has been fair on points or brush piles in 12-18 feet of water, mostly on jigs. Blue and white, red and white or black and white colors working. Bass good in the same areas on the points or bluff banks using deep diving crank baits with shad patterns. Ten to 12-inch worms in black or red shad colors good after dark. Shaky heads also working.

Crab Orchard Lake
SOURCE: Ron Reed, Cooksey’s Bait, Marion (618-993-3366); Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354); Kyle Garner, Crappie Pro Shop, Carterville (618-985-8277)
Fish biting better says Reed. Crappie picking up on jigs mostly but also on minnows or jigs and cork over brush piles in 6-12 feet of water. Catfish biting everywhere on cheesebaits, cutbaits or leeches. Bass taking top waters, artificials and buzzbaits. Top waters best in morning, with soft plastic worms and tubes working around laydowns in the day. Along Route 13 good for bass and crappie. Bass are good shallow on wood says Jason Johns. “We pounded them the other day on soft plastics shallow, dark colors,” he said.

Lake of Egypt
SOURCE: Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354)
The bass are starting to bite well says Jason Johns. Big schools of fish are out there chasing and you can catch them on top-waters or Rat-L-Traps. Or try points with Carolina rigs. The fall feeding pattern is on.

Kinkaid Lake
SOURCE: Janet Graeff, Top of the Hill Bait Shop, Muphysboro (618-684-2923); Guide Al Nutty (618-694-4897)
Bass are taking top water frogs, both early and late says Kyle Garner. Soft plastics, deep diving crankbaits working off the points during the day. After dark, anglers finding success with 10-12 inch black and red-shad-colored worms

Rend Lake
SOURCE: Todd Gessner (618-513-0520); Jason Johns (618-927-3432); Bill Hudnall, Rend Lake Sporting Goods, Mount Vernon (618-242-2191)
Crappie are biting from 1-8 feet of water, but you need to be on wood. Stakebeds are also producing and jigs and minnows are working. Bass are decent. It’s taking 15-18 pounds to win now and the fish are shallow on wood or schooling and taking Rat-L-Traps, square-billed crankbaits and plastics.Catfish are good.

RIVERS

• Click here for water level information.

Illinois River
SOURCE: Carol Culjan at Cajun Sporting Goods in Utica (815-667-4222)
• Near Utica water warmed up a degree and levels are very low. White bass are biting well from about 6-10 a.m. and then the bite goes “kaput” according to Darrell “Buster” Culjan. There are stripers up and down the river and some days they are doing good on sauger and some days they aren’t. Trolling is the key. The Vermilion is extremely low and the only way to fish it is to hike and fish the holes. Catfish and smallies are biting in the holes.
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Tim Presley, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193)
• Near Peoria channel catfish are good on dipbait. Best action is on channel ledges according to Larry Dozard. Largemouth bass have been good, but anglers report mostly smaller fish are biting. Best has been spinnerbaits. Crappie have been biting at Duck Island according to Ed from Ed’s Chum Bucket Bait & Tackle in Peoria.
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094)
• Near Havana channel catfish are excellent on dipbait according to Paul Dinkheller. “If you want to have a fish fry, channel cat on stinkbait is your best bet,” he said.

Kankakee River
SOURCE: Ed Mullady, Sportsman’s Letter (815-932-7285)
• From Indiana to Momence Dave Zack of the Momence Conservancy District said smallmouth and largemouth bass are good from the state line to Momence. Target Lake Alexander RV Camp, Glorydale and the 4th Ave. Boat Launch. Pike are good at mouths of ditches and bayous on spinners, spoons and minnows. Catfish are good on minnows, crayfish, crawlers and cheesebaits.
• Near Kankakee smallies are biting at River Road Park and Cobb Park according to Ed Mullady. Good baits are Mr. Twister weighted keeper hooks, jigs and minnows, imitation crayfish and jointed plugs. Catfish are good on cheesebaits, chicken liver, hamburger and catalpa worms.
• Near the Kankakee River State Park smallmouth bass are good at the Altorf Area and at Rex, Carly and Mickey islands. Catfish are good throughout. Fish weedbeds with redworms, minnows and spinners for crappie and rock bass.
• Near Wilmington smallies are good on minnow-shaped plugs, spinners, fly-rod nymphs, streamers, poppers and imitation helgramites. Walley are fair on jig and minnow.
• NOTE: You can buy the latest, larger Sportsman’s Letter at bait shops, sport stores that are Kankakee River oriented! To subscribe, mail check or money order for $6.50 for next 4 issues to: Sportsman’s Letter, 726 S. Elm, Kankakee, IL 60901. Each issue covers much river information.

Mackinaw River
SOURCE: Guide Jonn Graham (309-399-7055)
White bass are biting well up into the lower portion of the river according to Merle Keefer of Pekin Bass and Bow. Smallmouth bass action has been fair, with mostly smaller fish reported this week.

Mississippi River
SOURCE: Iowa DNR
Mississippi River Pool 11
Water level at Guttenberg is 10.6 feet.  It is expected to remain high but begin to fall by early next week.  Water temperature is near 82 degrees.  With changing water levels anglers will have to deal with a lot of floating vegetation.  Northern Pike - Fair: A few nice pike being caught.  Look again at cold water inputs such as spring areas or tributary streams.  Channel Catfish - Fair: Try fishing along the shoreline or edges of flooded vegetation for best results.  You do not need to cast far out to catch nice catfish.  Stink baits or crawlers are the baits of choice.  Flathead Catfish - Fair: Some nice flathead catfish have been caught below the dam jigging heavy spoons or one-eyed jigs.  Bluegill - Excellent: Larger bluegills and other sunfish are being caught right now along the bank with bobber and worms. The DNR fishing walkway in Guttenberg has been a popular location.  Edge of weed lines throughout the pool especially in areas of brush piles has also been popular.  Smallmouth Bass - Fair: Some smallmouth are being caught fishing near rock in good current.  Try drifting night crawlers or using artificial lures such as in-line spinner.  Largemouth Bass - Good: Largemouth can be caught along shorelines with woody debris. Small spinners or jigs will work best.  Some places to try bass fishing in Pool 11 are Mud Lake by Dubuque, Bertrum Lake by Cassville and Swift Slough by Guttenberg.  Many anglers are using plastic frogs and worms to eliminate problems with floating weeds.  Crappie - Fair: Some Crappie are being caught on minnows in Mud Lake and Sunfish Lake in Lower Pool 11.  Yellow Perch - Fair: There have been some reports of good catches of yellow perch in the sloughs around Guttenberg.  Some very large yellow perch can be found in the Mississippi River.  Sauger - Slow: There have been some reports of sauger being caught in the tail waters and out on the wing dams.  Walleye - Slow: The walleye fishing should start to pick up.  Wing dams are a little too deep with the high water.  Hopefully anglers can start to concentrate on fall wing dam walleye fishing.  Freshwater Drum - Fair: Some drum are still being reported in the upper part of pool 11.  During high water fish will often be found near shore in eddy area but away from the strong current. One-eyed jigs or night crawlers have been working well.

Water temperature at Guttenberg is right around 71 degrees. River levels are expected to continue to fall over the next week.  Water levels are: Lansing 10.1, Lynxville 17.8 and Guttenberg 9.3. Floating vegetation should be becoming less of a problem now.

Mississippi River Pool 16
River stage at Lock and Dam 15 is 10.80 feet.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are being caught on dip baits and crawlers fished around brush piles and logjams along the main channel and side sloughs.  White Bass - Slow:  Bluegill - Slow: Some bluegills are being caught at dark in Sunset Marina casting tube jigs.  Crappie - Slow:  Walleye - Slow: Walleye fishing on the wing dams has been slow due to high and muddy water.

Mississippi River Pool 17
River stage at Lock and Dam 16 is 9.99 feet.  Channel Catfish - Good: Some channel catfish are being caught on dip baits, green worms, crawlers, and shad fished around brush piles and logjams along the main channel and sloughs. Channel catfish are also being caught at GPC.  White Bass - Slow:  Bluegill - Slow:  Crappie - Slow:  Walleye - Slow: Walleye fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water. There is some debris in the water that makes trolling difficult.

Mississippi River Pool 18
River stage at Lock and Dam 17 is 11.87 feet.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are being caught on dip baits, crawlers, and shad fished around brush piles and logjams along the main channel and side sloughs.  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pool 19
River stage at Lock and Dam 18 is 8.40 feet.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are being caught on stink baits, crawlers, and shad fished around brush piles along the main channel and side sloughs.  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pools 16-20: River stages are still above normal throughout Pools 16-20. Water clarity is poor. Fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water conditions. Main channel water temperature is around 77 degrees. For more fishing information on pools 16-20 of the Mississippi River contact the Fairport Fish Hatchery at 563-263-5062.

Rock River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
• Near Rockford some catfish are biting on dipbaits, but overall fishing is very quiet.
SOURCE: Jan Prose at TJ’s Bait/Tackle & Canoe Rental in Oregon (815-732-4516)
• Near Oregon, the water has dropped to eight feet and catfish are best on liver, dipbait or nightcrawlers.
SOURCE: Ray and Irene Hays, Bunny’s Bait Shop, Dixon (815-288-3812)
• Near Dixon, channel cats are good on dipbaits or crushed minnows. Some small ones are being picked up around the shoreline on nightcrawlers. Chicken liver bite slowing up. Walleye can be found below the dam on minnows, but not very many and they are spotty. Whit bass and crappie both fair on bigger minnows. A lot of small drum biting, but carp still the best bet on your favorite bait. River clearing but still dirty.
SOURCE: Guide Matt Jones (815-537-5506 or 815-590-1469 cell) and Doc at Kodiak Outdoor Sports in Dixon (815-284-3075)
• In the Sterling/Rock Falls area, guide Matt Jones reports good-sized flatheads being caught on live bait in deep water. Channel cats are also good on cheesebaits. Pictured below is Tom Walker with an 11-pounder he caught and released this week and Bruce Sanders with a 9-pounder. Both were caught on live bait in deep holes.

Spoon River
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg and Paul Dinkheller at Dink’s in Lewistown (309-547-1094)
Catfish are good on the Illinois River, with stinkbait producing fish all day long. “If you want to have a fish fry, channel cat on stinkbait is your best bet,” Dinkheller said. “They are catching 30-40 at a time on any kind of stinkbait.” That’s the Illinois and the Spoon rivers.

When the U.S. economy went sour, sales of new boats declined. Loans dried up. Marinas closed.

So how do you explain AAD Custom Boats and Welding in Bartonville, where orders for new boats have actually increased?

“Everybody that comes here says they can’t get what they want in a factory boat so they’re just having us do what they want,” David Hamm said. “We’ve got more boats to build than we have in six or seven years.”

That’s welcome news for this small family business, run by David Hamm and his father, Allen Hamm. Actually, David, 42, and his 44-year-old brother Allen Jr. (who helps build trailers) were also the impetus for AAD’s start in 1989.

While spending time on the Illinois River hunting ducks, netting fish and diving for clams, the brothers wrecked their share of boats.

“They were always tearing up our factory boats,” Allen Hamm said. “The boats we bought just wouldn’t hold up to the levee-jumping and the pressure they put on them.”

So instead of buying boats, the Hamms began building their own. Nothing new there. Generations of Hamms have built boats for duck hunting and commercial fishing along the Illinois River, dating back to Dallas Hamm’s Midwest Boat Co.

Like those wooden watercrafts, most of AAD’s early boats were flat-bottomed jon boats designed for duck hunters and commercial fishermen. The major difference is that AAD boats are all aluminum. And all welded.

Welding provides greater strength than do the rivets used in many factory-built aluminum boats. That’s one appeal for customers. So is the opportunity to get a truly custom-built boat and trailer.

Most boats take two to three weeks to complete and, well before they are done, customers are back in the boat yard.

“Once the hull is up they get in the boat and lay out where they want their livewells, rod boxes and gun boxes and tell us if they want a diamond-plate floor or non-skid rubber,” David Hamm said. “Before I weld the steering console in I want the guy sitting there to make sure it feels comfortable to him. There’s no two boats exactly the same.”

That variety keeps the job interesting, David Hamm said. He also enjoys being able to work close to home and to keep an eye on his 9-year-old daughter, Abigail.

“We won’t ever get rich doing this, but I’ve been able to take Abigail to school every day,” David Hamm said. “And when she’s not at school she’s always around here or in the workshop.”

Word of mouth has helped the AAD name spread beyond the Illinois River. And well beyond flat-bottom jon boats.

In recent years AAD has built more boats with semi-v and even deep-v hulls.  “The v-hull is just great for 2- to 3-foot (waves),” David Hamm said. “It will ride just like a Cadillac.”

The Hamms have also built close to 20 boats for the state of South Dakota thanks to a former Illinois Department of Natural Resources worker who transferred. “He liked our boats when he was working here at Jake Wolf (Fish Hatchery) and we kept in touch,” David Hamm said.

This month’s worklist includes a 20-foot boat for the Illinois Natural History Survey that will be used for electro-shocking Asian carp. Another 25-footer was shipped to Missouri for use in carp fishing by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Calls from Missouri are almost sure to come in soon.

“Every time a boat goes somewhere, somebody sees it and says, ‘I want one,’” David Hamm said. “We’ve got them all over. We’ve even got guys duck hunting out of them in Chesapeake Bay.”

Last Tuesday while fishing with Guide Matt Jones on the Rock River, Scott Dean of East Peoria (pictured above) caught a 40-inch, 32-pound flathead catfish. The fish had been tagged by the Department of Natural Resources in 2001 when it was 36 inches long and weighed 22 pounds.

In other words, the fish added just 10 pounds in nine years. Now imagine how long it takes a flathead to reach 50, 60 and 70 pounds.

As for Dean, he was happy to release that fish and a 53.15-pounder also caught that same day. And he was sure to thank his wife, Ann Dean, who bought him the trip as a 14th anniversary present.

Jones is pictured below holding that 53-pounder.

Give us our choice of anywhere to fish in Illinois right now and we’d pick…

• Strip mine bass fishing.
• Smallmouth bass on the Kankakee River and other Illinois streams.
• Bluegill at Shabbona Lake.
• Channel catfish on the Illinois or Mississippi rivers and at Lake Lou Yaeger, Lake Jacksonville, Lake Springfield, Rend Lake and Carlyle Lake.
• Largemouth bass at Crab Orchard Lake.

WALL HANGERS

• Dustin Logan of Oregon caught a 25-inch walleye west of the Oregon dam on the Rock River.

• Guide Thad Hinshaw of Hudson caught a 20-inch smallmouth bass on the Mackinaw River.

• Scott Dean of East Peoria caught and released flathead catfish of 32 and 54 pounds Tuesday on the Rock River.

• Youngster Caleb Empson of Altona caught a 5-4 bass this week fishing a top-water lure in a strip-mine lake.

• Taya Jones caught this nice blue catfish pictured below at LaSalle Lake with her father, Guide Matt Jones.

NORTHERN ILLINOIS North of Interstate 80

Apple Canyon Lake
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Tom Calam said bluegill and crappie are fair. Bluegill are decent in size, but crappie are small.

Lake Carroll
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337).
Tom Calam said walleye are good, but small in size. Panfish are slow. On Lena Lake, cafish and panfish are fair, but panfish are small.

Forest Preserve Lakes
SOURCE: Lee’s Bait and Tackle of Elk Grove Village (847-593-6424); Henry’s (312-225-8538)
• Click here for a Cook County Forest Preserves lake fishing forum.
• Here are links to information on various forest preserve lakes. Cook County, DeKalb County, DuPage County, Kane County, Kendall County, Lake County, McHenry County and Will County.

Fox Chain O’ Lakes
SOURCE: Greg Dickson, Triangle Sports & Marine,  Antioch (1-847-395-0813).
Greg Dickson said catfish are good, while white bass, bluegill, bass and walleye are fair. White bass are near the currents and bridges. Bluegill and bass can be found in the weedlines or suspended in the deeper water off of the dropoffs during the day. Walleye are near the bridges. Fish are biting on live baits, crankbaits and plastic baits.
• Click here to check updates on no-wake status and water levels or call 847-587-8540 .

Lake Michigan
SOURCES: Henry’s (312-225-8538), Vet’s (773-734-6720) and Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times.
• On the Chicago lakefront, perch are fair, biting near the breakwall and Navy Pier on baby roaches. Dale Bowman said best action is at Montrose, though anglers are catching plenty of small fish. Shoreline salmon should start soon, otherwise boaters arein 90-100 feet for a mixed bag with mostly rainbows according to Bowman and Capt. Bill Kelly.
SOURCE: The Salmon Stop (847-244-2525 or fishing hotline 847-244-9876);  Capt. Nick Ganzer (847-234-7208).
• Near Waukegan perch and steelheads have been good off the government pier and other piers according to The Salmon Stop. Some boat action for perch and salmon are running 65-110 feet deep.
SOURCE: Mik-Lurch (219-989-0575)
• Near Indiana, perch, salmon and steelhead trout are fair. Salmon are in around 65-70 feet of water biting on meat rigs and spoons. Steelheads are also biting on spoons.

Pierce Lake
SOURCES: Pam Minihan, Dora’s Bait & Tackle, Rockford (815-963-1795).
Pam Minihan said crappie are fair and biting on minnows

Shabbona Lake
SOURCES: Guide Jay Angel (815-739-7030) and Denny Sands, Shabbona Lakeside Bait & Tackle, Shabbona (815-824-2581).
Denny Sands said bluegill, catfish and bass are good, muskies, crappie and walleye are fair. Bluegill are biting on leafworms and waxworms. Catfish are taking chicken liver. Bass are biting on nightcrawlers and leeches due to the colder water. Muskies biting on big bucktails. Crappie taking waxworms and minnows. Walleye biting on nightcrawlers and leeches. Jay Angel said water is in the mid 80s and rates bluegill as excellent over rockpiles, brushpiles and deeper weedlines. He advises the best walleye action is in the evening.
• Park hours November to January 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; February to March 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; April 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; May to October 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
•Click here for a Shabbona Lake fishing forum

Wolf Lake
SOURCE: Mik-Lurch (219-989-0575)
Catfish and walleye are fair. Catfish are biting on minnows and nightcrawlers. Walleye are being caught trolling.

NORTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 80 and North of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36

Banner Marsh
SOURCE: Adam Jaegle, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
Bass were better last weekend, with some keepers reported on Sunday. Action has slowed some this week back to more of the early and late pattern. Shallow-running crankbaits, spinnerbaits and plastic worms good options says Larry Dozard. Catfish are good.

Lake Bloomington
SOURCE: Larry Dozard
Bass were fair to good over the weekend according to Larry Dozard, who advises anglers use plastics, swimbaits or crankbaits along weed lines and Carolina-rigged plastics off points. Top weight last Saturday was 22.97 pounds for five fish including a 6.45-pounder. Crappie are slow to fair and suspended in 10-16 feet of water. Lots of shad in the lake right now.

Braidwood Lake
SOURCE: Del Colvin, Bert’s Bait, Essex (815-365-2103); Jon Meder, Jon’s Bait & Tackle, South Wilmington (815-237-2822)
Starting Sunday the site closes at 7:30 p.m. Dale Bowman reports catfish are good. Both reactors have been down so current was greatly reduced.

Dawson Lake
SOURCE: Leon and Judy Gibson, Moraine View Concession (309-724-8295)
Leon Gibson said fishing is slow. Catfish and bass are slow to fair, biting on chicken liver, shrimp and stinkbait.

Emiquon Preserve
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); The Nature Conservancy (309-547-2730)
Bass action remains slow compared to last year, with one report of only 10 fish in four hours on plastics. Crankbaits are also a good option. Water levels are very low and some anglers report difficulty launching. Anglers must obtain a free permit at Dickson Mounds Museum (open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) before fishing here.

Evergreen Lake
SOURCE: Brad Wood, operations supervisor, (309-726-2022) or Larry Dozard
Crappie, bluegill, and catfish are doing the best on Evergreen this week according to Brad Wood. Water is down about 2 feet below pool and in the 80s. Crappie are being caught mostly on minnows with some being caught on tube jigs. Most are being caught in 10-20 feet of water mostly suspended midway. Bluegill are hitting wax worms and crawler bits along weedlines. Several nice-sized catfish have been caught in the last week mostly late evenings and into the night on livers and stinkbaits. Bass have been hit and miss on the lake with most of them being caught early mornings or late evenings. Saugeye reports have been slim, with mostly smaller fish being caught.
• Click here for up-to-date lake reports.

Heidecke Lake
SOURCE: Don Stephens, Greybeards (815-941-1504); Guide Mike Lynch (708-655-7667); Guide Greg Heath (815-258-9136)
Don Stephens said fishing is slow.

LaSalle Lake
SOURCE: Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times; Guide Mike Lynch (708-655-7667)
There was a minor fish kill of shad here last week.
• Click here for a LaSalle Lake fishing forum.

Powerton Lake
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
A few decent smallmouth have been reported to Jason Grider, but otherwise fishing is slow even though water has cooled from last week’s extreme temperatures. Very few anglers out here.

Snakeden Hollow SFWA
SOURCE: Nellie Thorne, Depot Bait and Tackle, Victoria (309-879-2401); Site office (309-879-2607)
Crappie have been good here at McMaster Lake and in other strip pits and lakes in the area, including Oak Run where the fish are holding tight under docks. Blue-and-white jigs are good bets. Catfish are also good on dipbaits.

Spring Lake
SOURCES: Troy Galvin, Galvin’s Spring Lake Market (309-267-6538) and Larry Karnes, Larry’s Restaurant and Family Bar, Manito (309-968-9500)
Catfish are biting well and doing best in the early evening from about 4 p.m. and on. Bass have been biting but most are smaller 2 pounds and under. Both ends are producing bass. A few small bluegill are also biting. Weeds have also been sprayed and are dying back.

Lake Storey
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg (309-342-7776)
The main thing here is bluegill and some crappie says Al Hayden. Crappie are deeper in 8-12 feet of water. Try fishing slip bobbers or slow troll a jig for them.

Strip Mines
(Fulton, Knox, Peoria and Stark counties)
SOURCE: Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); and Larry Dozard; Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793); Jim’s Bait and Tackle, Hanna City (309-565-9960)
Bass were much better in most strip mines last weekend, with excellent results on Belly Dancer spinners and wacky worms in 5-8 feet of water according to Larry Dozard. Good numbers of 12-inchers and some fish up to 5 pounds. Roger Woodcock reports that bluegill were good on slip-bobber rigs set at 5-6 feet deep. Pictured below is Orion Woodcock of Farmington with one of those nice 8-inch bluegill. Catfish are fair after sunset.

SOUTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36 and North of Interstate 70

Beaver Dam Lake
SOURCE: Gwen Gilmore, Gilmore Bait & Marine, Carlinville (217-854-8136); Kim Eggers, Beaver Dam Bait Shop, (217-854-6688)
Catfish and bluegill are good, while crappie are fair. Fish are biting on nightcrawlers.

Carlinville Lake
SOURCE: Gwen Gilmore, Gilmore Bait & Marine, Carlinville (217-854-8136)
Bass and catfish are fair.

Charleston Side Channel Lake
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770)
Rick Cuddy said catfish and bass are fair. Cats are biting on cheesebait and shrimp. Bass are biting on soft plastics and jigs. In the river, catfish and bass are also fair, biting on the same bait as the lake.

Lake Decatur
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730)
White bass and catfish are doing well. White bass are best in the early and late hours, bitting on Gay Blades and Big Dudes. Catfish are biting on cut shad and nightcrawlers drift fishing 10-12 feet off of the banks.

Lake Glenn Shoals
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
Jack Rebman said catfish are good and bass are fair. Catfish are biting on Sonny’s bait, cutbait and shrimp. Bass are in the 2-3 pound range, bittng on spinnerbaits and plastics off of the points. Water is a little murky.

Lake Jacksonville
SOURCE: Tom Holmes, Military Surplus Outlet, Jacksonville (217-243-6161) and Lake Jacksonville Campground (217-479-4646)
Catfish are excellent, biting on shrimp and chicken liver.

Lake Lou Yaeger
SOURCE: Denny’s Bait Shop, Litchfield (217-324-2628)
Catfish are excellent, bitting on cutbait.

Lake Mattoon
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770); Joel Pittman, Mattoon Parks Department (217-254-6680)
Rick Cuddy said bass are good and catfish are fair. Bass are bittng on crankbaits off the rocks and creature baits.

Mill Creek Lake
SOURCE: Dennis Shiley, Mill Creek Lake Park (217-889-3901)
Small bass are biting.

Lake Shelbyville
SOURCE: Guide Ken Wilson (217-774-5756 or 217-454-2672) at Lithia Springs Guide Service; Margie Oliver, Marv and Kathy’s Bait & Tackle, Sullivan (217-728-4044); Guide Steve Welch (217) 762-7257 or (217) 840-1221
Guide Ken Wilson said white bass are good, crappie and catfish are fair and walleye are slow. Some muskies are bittng below the dam, but are slow. White bass are biting on crankbaits, such as Bandit 300’s, in a shad color. Catfish can be found at the north end of the lake driftfishing.
• For a daily report on Lake Shelbyville call (217-774-2020).

Lake Springfield
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-820-9674) and Tater’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-2208)
Jack Raymond said catfish are excellent while white bass are fair to good. Catfish are biting on stinkbait, shad, bluegill, leeches, chicken liver and nightcrawlers.

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS South of Interstate 70

Baldwin Lake
SOURCE: Site office (618-785-2555)
Fishing is slow. Water temperature is over 100.

Carlyle Lake
SOURCE: Josh Adkins; Buddy Langenhorst, Lavish’s Bait Shop , Carlyle (618-594-4413); Henkel’s (618-594-4818)
Buddy Langenhorst said catfish and white bass are good, crappie and bluegill are fair and sauger are slow. Catfish are biting on cutbait, shrimp and nightcrawlers. White bass are taking inline spinners, rooster tails, curly tails and minnows. Crappie biting on minnows and tube jigs. Bluegill biting on waxworms and mealworms. On the river, catfish and bass are good, crappie, bluegill and sauger are fair. Catfish are bitting on stinkbait, dipbait, shad and nightcrawlers. White bass are taking curly tails, tube jigs and minnows. Crappie biting on minnows and tube jigs. Bluegill bitting on waxworms and mealworms. Sauger being caught jigging and trolling.
• For the latest water level information call (618-594-4637).

Crab Orchard Lake
SOURCE: Ron Reed, Cooksey’s Bait, Marion (618-993-3366); Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354); Kyle Garner, Crappie Pro Shop, Carterville (618-985-8277)
Ron Reed said catfish and stripers are good, bluegill and bass are fair and crappie are slow. Bass are very good shallow in the grass or tight to wood said Guide Jason Johns

Lake of Egypt
SOURCE: Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354)
Guide Matt Strobel said bass are good. Bass are biting on deep-diving crankbaits, flutter spoons, LTB jigs and LTB ledgeheads with plastic worms. Fish are schooling in open water and can be found around the points and weedlines. Jason Johns suggests fishing shaky heads and Carolina rigs off points. Crappie can also be caught by anglers trolling crankbaits over brush in 12-14 feet of water.

Forbes Lake
SOURCE: Site manager Glenn Wegener (618-547-3381); Mike Polcyn, Mike’s Bait & Tackle Shop, Louisville (618-665-3209)
Channel catfish are good on chicken liver and dipbait off points and weedlines in the evening and at night. Stripers are busting shad early in the morning and are rated as fair. Most other species are also fair according to Glenn Wegener and water is running 86-90 degrees. Clarity is better than last week. For crappie target brushpiles 6-10 feet deep.

Horseshoe Lake, Alexander County
SOURCE: Jim Melton, Melton’s Fish Camp (618-776-5504)
Catfish are fair, with crappie being spotty. Catfish are being caught in the middle driftfishing with nightcrawlers and chicken liver. Crappie are in the deeper water, near the bottom.

Kinkaid Lake
SOURCE: Janet Graeff, Top of the Hill Bait Shop, Muphysboro (618-684-2923); Guide Al Nutty (618-694-4897)
Catfish are good, with bass fair to good. Walleye and bluegill are fair. Crappie are spotty. Catfish are best in the late afternoon and evening hours, biting on nightcrawlers, chicken liver and shrimp. Bass are best in the early and late hours. Walleye are deep, in the 25-30 foot range. Bluegill are biting on waxworms, mealworms and red wigglers. Crappie are deep biting on minnows.

Little Grassy Lake
SOURCE: Shirley Lowery, Little Grassy Boat Dock (618-457-6655)
Bass are good, with crappie fair. Bluegill and catfish fishing has slowed down. Bass are biting on chartreuse lizards and frogs. Crappie are good.

Rend Lake
SOURCE: Todd Gessner (618-513-0520); Jason Johns (618-927-3432); Bill Hudnall, Rend Lake Sporting Goods, Mount Vernon (618-242-2191)
Crappie are starting to bite over shallow brushpiles says Jason Johns. Target 4-8 feet of water with jigs or minnows. But the transition is just starting, as big fish are still deeper. For bass fish shallow around wood with small spinners, flukes, beaver baits or pocket craws. Dark colors are best. Catfish are very good. But they are almost always good here.

RIVERS

• Click here for water level information.

Des Plaines River
SOURCE: Andrew Ragas
Warm water temperatures have led to less anglers fishing, but don’t let that discourage you. As it has been for much of this summer, the reports are few and far between from everyone.

River is running at a normal flow 3.4 on gauge, and safe for wading, while the creeks still have some high water for some reason. Water clarity remains dark and stained throughout as surface temperatures are still pushing at 80-degrees. If night fishing, this could be a good thing.

Right now, the fishing is poor for most species. For the best chance at catching fish, go during the low-light hours whether it be morning or night. Northern Pike and Channel Catfish from deep water with wood and current are good bets, while Largemouth Bass from the backwaters and deep weedbeds are another viable option.

Although small in size (go figure), Pike are responding to bright colors: topwaters, spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, shallow crankbaits. Same applies for Bass as well.

The fishing isn’t all that great right now and the fall season couldn’t come any sooner. Besides that, the only noteworthy thing to provide is the possible removal of the Hofmann Dam in Riverside. As anglers, are we for, or against this proposed plan? http://www.rblandmark.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&ArticleID=6172&TM=83416.2” title=“Click here”>Click here to learn more.
• Click here for a Des Plaines River fishing forum.

DuPage River
SOURCE: Click here for a DuPage River fishing forum.

Fox River
SOURCE: Jim Hardy, Big Jim’s Bait & Tackle, Ottawa (815-434-3921)
Catfish are doing excellent, stripers and sauger are fair says Jim Hardy. A few large flatheads have been caught on cutbait and shad.
• Click here for a Fox River fishing forum.

Illinois River
SOURCE: Jim Hardy of Big Jim’s Bait & Tackle in Ottawa (815-434-3921)
• Above the Starved Rock dam catfish are doing excellent, stripers and sauger are fair. A few large flatheads have been caught on cutbait and shad.
SOURCE: Carol Culjan at Cajun Sporting Goods in Utica (815-667-4222)
• Near Utica saugers are biting, with the best bet trolling crankbaits in 10-12 feet of water. Stripers have really started good on blade baits early. Water is at 80 degrees and has cooled off about 5 degrees from last week. That has helped fishing. But the river is very low right now at Starved Rock. Catfish are biting well on dipbait and cut shad, especially on cut shad. A few are even taking blade baits at the lock and dam.
SOURCE: Jordan Hubinsky, Time on the Water Marina, Spring Valley (815-663-1000)
• Near Spring Valley trolling the flats is good for sauger with lots of small fish reported. Catfish are also very good and white bass are spotty, with spinnerbaits near rip-rap and logjams a good option.
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Tim Presley, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193)
• Near Peoria catfish are good to very good on dipbait and cut shad. The wicket dam is up at Peoria and white bass and carp should start massing below the dam next week. The mouth of the Mackinaw and the hot-water discharges have also been good for catfish. Largemouth bass are good in main-river habitats on spinnerbaits and ringworms.
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094)
• Near Havana channel catfish are very good on dipbait and cut shad, with some of the best action in and around Bath.

Kankakee River
SOURCE: Ed Mullady, Sportsman’s Letter (815-932-7285)
The river is good and Ed Mullady reports there are fair to good catches of smallmouth bass from Momence to the state line. Other good smally spots are River Road Park and Cobb Park near Kankakee and at Kankakee River State Park at the Altorf Area, at Carly Islands and Mickey Island. Smallies are also good near Wilmington. Guide Matt Mullady and his sons Mickey and Zach caught and released 17 smalles on Monday. Catfish are good throughout the river.

Mississippi River
SOURCE: Iowa DNR
Catfish are the main bite here with most action on backwaters due to the strong current.

Mississippi River Pool 12
River stage at Dubuque is 12.21 feet and is forecast to remain stable this weekend before beginning to slowly fall next week.  Water clarity is poor and temperature is in the high 70s to low 80s. Anglers should be on the lookout for radio tagged white crappie in Pool 12. Tags are attached externally to the dorsal fin and we ask that these fish be released or the tags returned from harvested fish.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel cats have been biting on stink bait and crawlers around snags in the side channels and sloughs.  Cats are also being caught around Steamboat.  Bluegill - Fair: A few reports of bluegills being caught on crawlers around vegetation, snags, and docks in backwaters and marinas.  Walleye - Slow: Walleye fishing has slowed with the increased river stage and turbidity, but a few are being caught on crawlers around Steamboat.  Freshwater Drum - Good: Drum are biting on crawlers fished on the bottom in areas of moderate current.

Mississippi River Pool 13
River stage at Bellevue is 11.12 feet and is forecast to stabilize around 11.4 feet this weekend before beginning to slowly fall next week. Water clarity is poor and temperature is in the high 70s to low 80s.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel cats have been biting on stink bait and crawlers in the side channels and sloughs around snags.  Freshwater Drum - Good: Drum have been biting on crawlers fished on the bottom in areas of moderate current.

Mississippi River Pool 14
River stage at Camanche is 12.77 feet and is forecast to rise to 13.7 feet this weekend before beginning to slowly fall next week. Water clarity is poor and there is a lot of debris in the water.  Temperature is in the high 70s to low 80s.  The high muddy water has made fishing difficult over much of the pool.  A mixed bag of fish (walleye, white bass, northern pike, and crappie) are being caught in the sand pits where water clarity is better.  Fish are biting on crankbaits, spoons, jigs, and live bait.  Channel Catfish - Fair: Catfish are biting on stink bait fished around structure or snags in the side channels and sloughs.  Freshwater Drum - Fair: Drum are biting on crawlers fished on the bottom in areas of moderate current.

For fishing information in Pool 12-15 of the Mississippi River contact the Bellevue Fish Management and Research Station at 563-872-4976

Mississippi River Pool 16
River stage at Lock and Dam 15 is 10.38 feet.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are being caught on dip baits and crawlers fished around brush piles and logjams along the main channel and side sloughs.  White Bass - Slow:  Bluegill - Slow:  Crappie - Slow:  Walleye - Slow: Walleye fishing on the wing dams has been slow due to high and muddy water. There is debris in the water that makes trolling tough.

Mississippi River Pool 17
River stage at Lock and Dam 16 is 9.78 feet.  Channel Catfish - Good: Some channel catfish are being caught on dip baits, green worms, crawlers, and shad fished around brush piles and logjams along the main channel and sloughs. Channel catfish are also being caught at GPC.  White Bass - Slow:  Bluegill - Slow:  Crappie - Slow:  Walleye - Slow: Walleye fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water. There is some debris in the water that makes trolling difficult.

Mississippi River Pool 18
River stage at Lock and Dam 17 is 12.09 feet. The Toolesboro landing is still closed due to water over the road.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are being caught on dip baits, crawlers, and shad fished around brush piles and logjams along the main channel and side sloughs.  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pool 19
River stage at Lock and Dam 18 is 9.12 feet. Flood stage is 10 feet. Fishing has been slow due to the high water conditions.  Channel Catfish - No Report:  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pools 16-20: River stages are still above normal throughout Pools 16-20. Water clarity is poor. Fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water conditions. Main channel water temperature is around 77 degrees. For more fishing information on Pools 16-20 of the Mississippi River contact the Fairport Fish Hatchery at 563-263-5062.

Ohio River
SOURCE: Bill Parrish, Fort Masac Fish Market, Metropolis (618-524-3152); Golconda Marina Bait Shop (618-683-5875)

Pecatonica River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Tom Calam said catfish are doing well on dipbait.

Rock River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
• Near Rockford Tom Calam said catfish are doing well on dipbait.
SOURCE: Jan Prose at TJ’s Bait/Tackle & Canoe Rental in Oregon (815-732-4516)
• Near Oregon, Jan Prose said catfish are doing excellent and are bitting on chicken liver and dipbait. A 25-inch walleye was caught west of the dam by Dustin Logan from Oregon.
SOURCE: Ray and Irene Hays, Bunny’s Bait Shop, Dixon (815-288-3812)
• Near Dixon Ray Hays said channel catfish and carp are good, crappie and white bass are fair and drum are slow. Catfish are bitting on cheese and dead minnows. Crappie and white bass are taking large minnows. Walleye are by the dam. Water is a little muddy.
SOURCE: Guide Matt Jones (815-537-5506 or 815-590-1469 cell) and Doc at Kodiak Outdoor Sports in Dixon (815-284-3075)
• Matt Jones reports a good bite for flathead catfish on cut shad. Read Friday’s Big Fish Fridays story for more details and pictures.

Spoon River
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg and Paul Dinkheller at Dink’s in Lewistown (309-547-1094)
Fishing has slowed at the Bernadotte dam, where high waters washed out a part of the areas anglers regularly fished.

Officials say most of the dead fish are gizzard shad. They say the water temperature was 98 degrees when Exelon workers found the dead fish. Exelon officials say the Illinois
Department of Natural Resources is to conduct a separate independent lake survey.

Both workers at the LaSalle station and state natural resources workers will clean the lake. Experts with Exelon say extreme weather conditions historically have led to fish kills.

Give us our choice of anywhere to fish in Illinois right now and we’d pick…

• White bass at Lake Shelbyville, Fox Chain of Lakes, Lake Springfield or Lake Decatur.
• Shabbona Lake. Lots of big fish this week.

WALL HANGERS

• Chris Appel caught an 8.5-pound bass on a chicken liver this week while fishing at Oak Run near Dahinda.

• There are reports out of JoDaviess County of a very large catfish caught on Tuesday. Stay tuned.

• Shabbona Lake has a new record channel catfish—a 35-inch, 22.75-pound chunk pictured below and caught by Dave Todd of Shabbona. He was fishing chicken liver in the northeast bay when he hooked into the lunker. Todd was fishing out of a rented pontoon boat from Lakeside. The former record was 35.5 inches and 21.1 pounds caught in 2005.

• Another unnamed Shabbona Lake caught a 49.5-inch, 30.65-pound muskie near the entrance to the no-motor zone.

NORTHERN ILLINOIS North of Interstate 80

Apple Canyon Lake
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Average fishing overall. Anglers are catching a few decent crappie; most are in deeper water, 6-8 per outing. Bluegill are good to very good along the weed edges. Fish are suspended in 10-12 feet of water. Any live baits are producing. A few catfish are biting at Lena Lake. Action had been very good last Friday and Saturday prior to last Sunday’s storm.

Lake Carroll
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337).
Smallmouth bass have been fair with a few anglers catching walleye. Walleye are best later in the evening. Stripers have turned back on also. A few channel catfish reported.

Forest Preserve Lakes
SOURCE: Lee’s Bait and Tackle of Elk Grove Village (847-593-6424); Henry’s (312-225-8538)
• Click here for a Cook County Forest Preserves lake fishing forum.
• Here are links to information on various forest preserve lakes. Cook County, DeKalb County, DuPage County, Kane County, Kendall County, Lake County, McHenry County and Will County.

Fox Chain O’ Lakes
SOURCE: Greg Dickson, Triangle Sports & Marine,  Antioch (1-847-395-0813).
White bass are very good according to Triangle. Fishing was very good when the no-wake restrictions were in place but those have been lifted except for a no-wake downstream of the Stratton Dam. Channel catfish are good on nightcrawlers and dipbait. Bluegill are fair along weed edges and in shady areas. Walleye are best in current and near bridges. A few are off larger points.
• Click here to check updates on no-wake status and water levels or call 847-587-8540 .

Lake Michigan
SOURCES: Henry’s (312-225-8538), Vet’s (773-734-6720) and Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times.
• On the Chicago lakefront Dale Bomwan reports that shore anglers are catching perch at Montrose, Diversey and Northerly Island. Lots of small fish. Boaters are faring well off Navy Pier with lots of sorting there, also. Salmon are a mixed bag.
SOURCE: The Salmon Stop (847-244-2525 or fishing hotline 847-244-9876);  Capt. Nick Ganzer (847-234-7208).
• Near Waukegan, perch are fair off the government pier according to Salmon Stop. Salmon and trout fishing continues to be good says Capt. Nick Ganzer. August continues to be a very comfortable time to fish Lake Michigan. Westerly winds have kept our water temps cool and fishing continues to be within 100 feet of water. Most fish are being taken in the top 60 feet of water early/late on downriggers, dipsies, leadcore. Saturday, my fishing group came to the boat later than planned. Most boats had been fishing since 5 a.m. and were working 40-60 feet. Knowing that we missed the early bite,  I decided to go deep. At 190 feet I noticed fish marks on my graph in the top 40 feet, so we began fishing. I kicked up the speed (3-3.5 mph.) and the rods started to pop. We had found a school of rainbows. We had great action the entire trip, boating 13 out of 21 fish. Pictured above is a 10-pound rainbow and below is the Frank Kranik party with their fish.

SOURCE: Mik-Lurch (219-989-0575)
• Near Indiana fishing is slow and most perch anglers have moved into Illinois says Mik-Lurch.

Shabbona Lake
SOURCES: Guide Jay Angel (815-739-7030) and Denny Sands, Shabbona Lakeside Bait & Tackle, Shabbona (815-824-2581).
Shabbona has produced plenty of big fish in the past week according to Denny Sands. In addition to a new lake record channel catfish of 22.75 pounds, the lake yielded a 49.5-inch, 30.65-pound muskie and several 20-inch bass. Perch have also been good in the weeds, outperforming bluegill for many. Bass and channel cats are in the weeds.
• Park hours November to January 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; February to March 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; April 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; May to October 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
•Click here for a Shabbona Lake fishing forum

NORTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 80 and North of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36

Banner Marsh
SOURCE: Adam Jaegle, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
Bass fishing has been tough says Adam Jaegle, with weeds dying off and bass scattered and hard to target right now. A much better bet are channel catfish on shrimp. Bill Hurst caught six nice fish Thursday morning. Muskie are also active.

Lake Bloomington
SOURCE: Larry Dozard
Bass were fair to slow along deeper weedlines on plastics or crankbaits said Larry Dozard. Bluegill are fair but running mostly small. Use crickets around weeds and docks. Crappie are slow.

Clinton Lake
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730); Clinton Bait and Tackle, (217-935-3851)
Very few reports of fish here says Mike Lowe, though a few anglers have done well on white bass on the main lake.

Dawson Lake
SOURCE: Leon and Judy Gibson, Moraine View Concession (309-724-8295)
Fishing pressure has been very light. Anglers are doing best early and late for channel catfish. Shrimp, chicken livers and dipbait are working says Leon Gibson. Bass are strictly late and early.

Emiquon Preserve
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); The Nature Conservancy (309-547-2730)
Before fishing here anglers must obtain a free permit at Dickson Mounds Museum (open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.).

Evergreen Lake
SOURCE: Brad Wood, operations supervisor, (309-726-2022) or Larry Dozard
Crappie are also biting in 15 feet of water and have been suspending at 3-4 feet deep. Saugeye are fair.
• Click here for up-to-date lake reports.

LaSalle Lake
SOURCE: Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times; Guide Mike Lynch (708-655-7667)
• Click here for a LaSalle Lake fishing forum.

Mazonia Lakes
SOURCE: Del Colvin, Bert’s Bait, Essex (815-365-2103)
Mazonia water temperatures are running in the mid 80s and few anglers have been out lately. Bass are best toward evening.

Powerton Lake
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
Very few reports says Merle Keefer, other than unconfirmed word that water temperatures were nearing 100 degrees early this week.

Snakeden Hollow SFWA
SOURCE: Nellie Thorne, Depot Bait and Tackle, Victoria (309-879-2401); Site office (309-879-2607)
Channel catfish are fair to good on minnows and dipbait. Fish are ranging from 3-6 pounds. Crappie are still biting in 9-15 feet of water. At Oak Run, fish deep under docks. Bluegill are fair in 7-10 feet of water on waxworms. Walleye have picked up in the evenings.

Spring Lake
SOURCES: Troy Galvin, Galvin’s Spring Lake Market (309-267-6538) and Larry Karnes, Larry’s Restaurant and Family Bar, Manito (309-968-9500)
Very few anglers out this past week. Channel catfish decent in the evenings on the west side of the south lake. Shrimp always a good bet. Bass fishing has been slow. A few on lizards and weedless top-waters. Not many, though.

Lake Storey
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg (309-342-7776)
Some reports of bluegill on waxies and redworms and a few crickets. Oak Run has also been producing bluegills. Weed edges are best. Few bass reports. This has been one of the slower weeks I’ve had out here. Last weekend anglers were catching some walleye on outside weed edges on a jig with a minnow slow trolling or a spinner rig. Some catfish reports.

Strip Mines
(Fulton, Knox, Peoria and Stark counties)
SOURCE: Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); and Larry Dozard; Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793); Jim’s Bait and Tackle, Hanna City (309-565-9960)
Bluegill are fair but most are smaller fish says Adam Jaegle. Bass have been slow for bigger fish. Most being caught are 12-14 inches long. Catfish are fair to good on dipbaits says Larry Dozard. Many smaller fish this week and on deeper spots. Crappie have slowed, with a few caught by anglers trolling.

SOUTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36 and North of Interstate 70

Charleston Side Channel Lake
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770)
Best reports have come from the river where bass are biting. Not very big fish, but decent numbers on smaller plastics (Wooly Hawg Tails and other creature baits) or small jigs. Evenings for catfish are good with cheesebaits. Day-time sees few anglers.

Lake Decatur
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730)
White bass are good on the humps and around bridge corners says Mike Low. Gay blades have been the No. 1 lure. Best results are from 6:30-11 a.m. and then again after 6 p.m. Anglers are catching 20-25 whites in the range of 14-16 inches along with 30-40 smaller fish. Catfish are fair. Water is shut off at the dam for repairs so action below has been slow. No crappie reports.

Lake Glenn Shoals
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
Bass are fair on crankbaits, with the best bite later in the evenings. Catfish are fair on dipbaits, mostly in the evenings. A few anglers are fishing early but most are out toward dusk.

Lake Hillsboro
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
Catfish are fair, mostly on dipbait in the evening.

Lake Mattoon
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770); Joel Pittman, Mattoon Parks Department (217-254-6680)
Bass are fair on jigs and plastics. Evenings are best.

Sangchris Lake
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-820-9674)
Bass fishing is fair, with good numbers but not much size. Scott Montgomery and Dave Snider of Manito won a Peoria Bass 25 tournament Sunday with six fish of 11.5 pounds and one kicker fish of 4.35 pounds. Spinnerbaits produced plenty of 1-2 pounders. Water is running up to 94 degrees. Jack Raymond says a few anglers are catching crappie along the dam in 14-18 feet of water.

Lake Sara
SOURCE: Tony Niebrugge, Anthony’s Acres Resort, (217-868-2950)
Bluegill are biting well and channel cats are fair on dipbait and crawlers. Fish up to 10 pounds have been reported. Bass are slow.

Lake Shelbyville
SOURCE: Guide Ken Wilson (217-774-5756 or 217-454-2672) at Lithia Springs Guide Service; Margie Oliver, Marv and Kathy’s Bait & Tackle, Sullivan (217-728-4044); Guide Steve Welch (217) 762-7257 or (217) 840-1221
White bass here are good says Mike Lowe, who spoke with an angler who had 80 this week (in addition to several small fish). Sand blasters are the top lure here, with anglers working them in 12-14 feet of water and along ridges in deeper water. Let it go down then jerk it up and be ready for a hit. Guide Ken Wilson said the top-water bite is also good early and he also has been trolling for whites and crappies. Catfish are good on the north end. Drift cut bait or dipbait.
• For a daily report on Lake Shelbyville call (217-774-2020).

Lake Springfield
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-820-9674) and Tater’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-2208)
White bass are running well here says Jack Raymond, who advises anglers use blade baits and fish early or late. Crazy blades are a top choice and anglers are following the shad-eating birds to find schools of fish. Most are 10-12 inches. Catfish here are fair, but are biting much better on the Sangamon River where leeches are producing well.

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS South of Interstate 70

Carlyle Lake
SOURCE: Josh Adkins; Buddy Langenhorst, Lavish’s Bait Shop , Carlyle (618-594-4413); Henkel’s (618-594-4818)

• For the latest water level information call (618-594-4637).

Crab Orchard Lake
SOURCE: Ron Reed, Cooksey’s Bait, Marion (618-993-3366); Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354); Kyle Garner, Crappie Pro Shop, Carterville (618-985-8277)
Crappie are still biting says Ron Reed. Target 10 feet of water and fish 5-6 feet deep over brush with small minnows and jigs. Catfish are biting well, in toward the bank and deeper. Dipbait and dough bait and leeches or cut bait all producing. Bass are very good and are in the super shallow water in the weeds says Jason Johns.

Lake of Egypt
SOURCE: Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354)
Bass fishing has been real good early and late and bass are in schools. So keep a top-water handy because when they come out and start busting you can catch them well says Jason Johns. Otherwise 11-inch worms, shaky head worms and finesse baits are good. Crappie are decent and have been taken by anglers trolling crankbaits in 17 feet of water or less

Kinkaid Lake
SOURCE: Janet Graeff, Top of the Hill Bait Shop, Muphysboro (618-684-2923); Guide Al Nutty (618-694-4897)
Catfish are on a decent bite right now, better at night once it cools off some and they come shallow to feed on nightcrawlers, cut shad, stinkbait and large minnows. Largemouth bass are also pretty fair early and late on top-water in the weeds, some, but most are on Carolina rigs and deep-diving crankbaits; a few on Texas-rigged worms. Bluegill are decent around docks and fallen trees. Bluegill are 8-10 feet deep. I heard a report of walleye at 26-28 feet deep. Surface temperatures were ranging from 90-92 degrees this week. Crappie have picked up some on jigs and minnows, smaller minnows are producing best. Try in 14-20 feet of water. A few white bass reported. Otherwise this has been a pretty poor season.

Rend Lake
SOURCE: Todd Gessner (618-513-0520); Jason Johns (618-927-3432); Bill Hudnall, Rend Lake Sporting Goods, Mount Vernon (618-242-2191)
Crappie are starting to bite again says Jason Johns. They’re not tearing up the water yet but you can go out and catch a good mess. Fish are best in 4-8 feet of water in brush—more brush than stakebeds. Bass are very tough, with a few being caught on spinnerbaits and crankbaits in the shallows where you find shad. Catfish are good. White bass are actually biting real well and are busting on main-lake flats and near bridges. Try rooster tails and white jigs.

RIVERS

• Click here for water level information.

Des Plaines River
SOURCE: Andrew Ragas
The flood waters from two weeks ago have finally subsided and the river is finally back in shape for some wading and boating. However, the fishing remains poor and we are having trouble catching a break as far as good fishing conditions are concerned. Few reports are out there, and those who may be fishing right now remain quiet. Hopefully heat stroke has nothing to do with it.

Despite that, best bets are for Pike (small), Channel Catfish, and Largemouth Bass. All three species are being found from the same areas right now. Deeper pools with current, weedbeds, downed wood, bridge areas, and places that are in direct shade from the hot sun. Pike and Bass are responding to spinnerbaits, in-lines, buzzbaits, and crankbaits with a fast retrieve. For Cats, you can probably catch them on anything right now because they seem to be everywhere.

Early mornings before it gets hot, and evenings, and middle of the night offer, by far, the best angling opportunities and feeding windows. If daytime fishing, look for shaded areas near shore. A degree or two difference could make all the difference in the world right now.

USGS gauge showing a 3.75. In other words, the river is saturated and soggy, but good, with poor water clarity. Water temperatures also registering at 80 degrees.

Lastly, few reports of Smallmouth Bass on the DPR creeks such as Hickory Creek. Small, but fun action size. At other places like Salt Creek, few reports other than an abundance of Carp.
• Click here for a Des Plaines River fishing forum.

DuPage River
SOURCE: Click here for a DuPage River fishing forum.

Fox River
• Click here for a Fox River fishing forum.

Illinois River
SOURCE: Carol Culjan at Cajun Sporting Goods in Utica (815-667-4222)
• Near Utica white bass have started biting well at the dam on blade baits from 6-9 a.m. Water has cleared up and dropped to normal says Darrell “Buster” Culjan. Channel catfish are also good at the dam on dipbait, leeches and cut shad if you can find cut shad. Sheephead are good on crawdads.
SOURCE: Jordan Hubinsky, Time on the Water Marina, Spring Valley (815-663-1000)
• Near Spring Valley 129 pounds for six carp won last Saturday’s first tournament but the Big 30 event that followed went to a 189-pound sack after a cold front rolled through the area. Sauger are starting to turn on according to Jordan Hubinsky, with anglers doing best by trolling crankbaits. Some fish on the St. Bede flats. Catfish are good on cut bait with fish up to 12 pounds. White bass have started hitting well on blade baits and anglers are also catching decent numbers of largemouth bass on dark-colored worms.
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Tim Presley, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193)
• Near Peoria white bass are decent at Duck Island according to Merle Keefer, with catches of 20-25, slower than last week’s 50-60 but still good. River anglers caught plenty of largemouth bass out of the Peoria pool last weekend, including Gary Stevenson’s six-fish sack of 10.17 pounds. Catfish are also good with dipbait and shrimp both producing says Adam Jaegle. Crappie had been good at Duck Island but slowed some.
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094)
• Near Havana white bass fishing has been very good in most backwater spots with water flowing into them. Sanganois was also good recently says Paul Dinkheller. Largemouth bass are also moving into main-river spots with water levels dropping.
SOURCE: Tom’s Bait Shop in Beardstown (217-323-BAIT)
• From Beardstown and south Asian carp are jumping very well according to Les Davenport, who guided the group pictured below. Kent Kropp and his sons Kyle and Kody shot several fish.

Kankakee River
SOURCE: Ed Mullady, Sportsman’s Letter (815-932-7285)
The river is in good shape and smallmouth bass and channel cats are biting well. Ed Mullady said bass are good in the Momence area on live minnows, plastic worms, jigs and twister tails and spinnerbaits. Catfish head the bill around Kankakee, particularly at River Road and Cobb parks. Minnows, liver or cheesebaits are good bets. At Kankakee River State Park, smallies are biting in the mouth of Rock Creek and at Bryan, Gary and Amy islands. Catfish are good near Wilmington. and so are smallies on crawfish imitators and spinners.

Mississippi River
SOURCE: Iowa DNR
The river has been dropping and dipbait has produced some channel catfish. But fishing is just decent says Al Hayden.

Mississippi River Pool 16
River stage at Lock and Dam 15 is 9.38 feet.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are being caught on dip baits and crawlers fished around brush piles and logjams along the main channel and side sloughs.  White Bass - Slow:  Bluegill - Slow:  Crappie - Slow:  Walleye - Slow: Walleye fishing on the wing dams has been slow due to high and muddy water. There is debris in the water that makes trolling tough. A few walleyes are being picked up in Sylvan Slough and Sunset Marina.

Mississippi River Pool 17
River stage at Lock and Dam 16 is 9.21 feet.  Channel Catfish - Good: Some channel catfish are being caught on dip baits, crawlers, and shad fished around brush piles and logjams along the main channel and sloughs. Channel catfish are also being caught at GPC.  White Bass - Slow:  Bluegill - Slow:  Crappie - Slow:  Walleye - Slow: Walleye fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water. There is debris floating in the water that makes trolling wing dams difficult.

Mississippi River Pool 18
River stage at Lock and Dam 17 is 12.00 feet.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are being caught on dip baits, crawlers, and shad fished around brush piles and logjams along the main channel and side sloughs.  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pool 19
River stage at Lock and Dam 18 is 8.61 feet. Flood stage is 10 feet.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are being caught on dip baits, crawlers and shad. Try fishing along brush piles and snags along the main channel and sloughs. Fishing along flooded islands can be good as well.  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pools 16 to 20: River stages are still above normal throughout Pools 16 to 20. Water clarity is poor. Fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water conditions. For more fishing information on Pools 16 to 20 of the Mississippi River contact the Fairport Fish Hatchery at 563-263-5062.

Pecatonica River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Anglers are catching decent numbers of 14-15 inch northerns and catfish says Tom Calam. Dipbait is the key for cats.

Rock River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
• Near Rockford there have been few reports. Water still running high.
SOURCE: Jan Prose at TJ’s Bait/Tackle & Canoe Rental in Oregon (815-732-4516)
• Near Oregon the river is dropping and has just opened. Carp and catfish are most numerous right now and catfish were good on dipbait at Castle Rock State Park. Cut bait and minnows are producing at the Oregon dam for channel cats and Dustin Logan caught a 25-inch walleye on Aug. 5.
SOURCE: Ray and Irene Hays, Bunny’s Bait Shop, Dixon (815-288-3812)
• Near Dixon the river reopened to boats on Tuesday and Ray Hays reports channel catfish are best on dipbait and also doing well on chicken liver, and nightcrawlers. Some crappie below the dam hitting larger minnows. Flathead are slower. Good numbers of carp taking the show. Big fish too. No bass reports. Sheephead are also slow. Some near Nelson but lots of little ones, bluegill sized.

Spoon River
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg and Paul Dinkheller at Dink’s in Lewistown (309-547-1094)
Anglers are back on the dam fishing at Bernadotte and flathead catfish are biting, with the biggest reported so far a 37-pounder caught by a Smithfield angler. Otherwise most have benn running 10-15 pounds. Channel catfish are also good on dipbait or deworms said Dinkheller. Some anglers are saying yellow dip worms are the key to success.

Over the next 20 minutes he and his son Dave combined for eight largemouths — all caught within sight of downtown Peoria and all caught despite a rising river and strong current.

The fast action was proof yet again that Illinois River bass fishing is back. For veteran river anglers like the Thompsons, the bass comeback is welcome
news. Best of all, the turnaround is not just a Peoria phenomena.

“There’s really no one place that’s best right now,” Bob Thompson said. “Beardstown. Havana. Chillicothe. Henry. They’ve all got fish. And there’s still fish around Pekin.”

Still fish around Peoria too. Or at least on the East Peoria side of the river. That’s where the Thompsons caught their bass while fishing a rocky ditch out of the current.

Just don’t ask which ditch. And don’t make the mistake of thinking you can cast anywhere to catch bass. “It’s a big river, but it fishes small,” Bob Thompson said. What he means is there are vast stretches of water where you’ll be hard-pressed to find bass.

But when you locate a prime spot, you might catch 20 or 30 keepers in short order. That’s exactly what the Thompsons did last weekend to win the Illinois
River Team Trail tournament with five bass weighing 12.35 pounds.

Cory Hasler and Sean Sonderleiter took second (five bass, 11.78 pounds) and had big bass of 3.44 pounds. Doug Gudat and Ben Roberts placed third (five, 11.56).

This year the Thompsons have won all four river tournaments they’ve entered. The key, Bob Thompson said, is reading river levels and current. And that can change almost daily.

For much of the spring and summer, high water allowed anglers to fish backwaters that have become unreachable. But even as the river dropped steadily toward normal pool, heavy rains in Chicago sent a surge of water that had the current zipping through Peoria on Friday.

“Everything changes out here depending on the water levels,” Bob Thompson said. “Right now you don’t want to be on the main river with this current. At normal pool you do want to be on the main river.

“You just want it to stabilize. And once it drops a little, they will bite like crazy.”

Reading the river is also important from a safety standpoint.

“The way siltation is around Peoria, you get off the channel by a foot or two and you better know where you are going,” Dave Thompson said.

Even regulars face risks. Washington angler Randy Marchard has been a fixture of river tournaments since the 1980s. Yet last weekend he totaled his Ranger bass boat after colliding with a large chunk of concrete in the Woodford County ditch.

More prevalent than rocks are Asian carp. “We went into one little ditch the other day and had four of them in the boat all at once, jumping and snorting and sliming everything,” Bob Thompson said.

That said, bass anglers also credit the invasive carp.

“They say the carp spawn twice a year and that’s putting lots of food in there for the bass,” said Brent Werries, coordinator of the Illinois River Team Trail. “A lot of these bass the guys are bringing in, their bellies are about to explode with little carp.”

No doubt a carp-imitating bait is in the works somewhere. Not that lure selection for river bass fishing is all that complicated.

Bob Thompson has one plastic container for all his river baits. Dave Thompson jokes you could fit his “in a Folger’s can.”

Small spinnerbaits. Square-billed crankbaits. Ringworms. Plastic baits that imitate crayfish. Those are the staples of most Illinois River bass chasers.

Using those familiar lures again on a regular basis makes Bob Thompson smile.

“For awhile there bass were no good on the river and we hardly even came out,” he said. “Now they’re back and so are we.”

Maybe the river that cuts across the Show-Me State is muddy and polluted and has been tamed by man to the point where it looks like nothing more than a drainage ditch. But it still contains some monstrous fish, he’ll tell you.

Want some proof? One week in the life of the river is all it takes.

On July 20, Bernal landed a 130-pound blue catfish near the point where the Missouri joins the Mississippi. Three days later, a 99-pound flathead catfish was taken on a bank pole in eastern Missouri by Robert Davidson.

Both fish have been approved as Missouri state records, and Bernal’s monster may become a world record.

So, what do you think of the Missouri River now?

“People bad-mouth the Missouri River, but it still has some huge cats in it,” said Bernal, 47, of Florissant, Mo. “There are still fish in there tha t would dwarf the one I caught.

“I’m not kidding. I’ve been fishing this ol’ river since 1995, and I’m constantly amazed at the quality of fish it puts out.

“When we go fishing, we’re going after the big boys. And this river has ‘em.”

Bernal should know. In his first year of fishing the river, he landed a 79-pound, 12-ounce blue cat, a fish that became an Illinois state record. That mark has been broken several times since then, but Bernal continues to catch big fish.

The one he caught in late July may be tough to beat, though.

Bernal, an unemployed land surveyor, had been waiting for the river to drop low enough that he could fish it. After a spring and early summer of constant rain, the Missouri was high and rolling for most of the first part of the fishing season.

But Bernal made up for lost time when he could finally get on the river. Fishing near the Columbia Bottom Conservation Area in eastern Missouri, he watched as his bait literal ly jumped into the boat.

An Asian carp practically leaped into Bernal’s lap, and he and friend Janet Momphard of St. Charles, Mo., cut the rough fish into chunks for bait.

That bait went unnoticed at first. Bernal and Momphard went a couple of hours without getting so much as a bite.

But that changed when Bernal positioned his boat farther into the river. The fish-finder he had bought last year started showing huge arcs, a sign that big catfish were on the roam. Bernal dropped anchor, and he and Momphard decided to try one last spot.

At about 12:45 a.m., the reel on Bernal’s heavy-duty rig started screaming and the 40-pound test line began streaming out. Bernal grabbed the rod and held on as the huge fish strained to get away.

Luckily for Bernal, the fish swam at the boat, not away from it. In fact, it swam under the boat for a moment before Bernal was finally able to bring it to the surface.

That’s when the battle got interesting. Momphard scrambled for a net - a big net - but the two fishermen quickly realized that it wouldn’t be big enough to corral the monstrous fish, which was 57 inches long and had a girth of 45 inches.

It would take a second net, one for each end of the fish, The two fishermen struggled to lift the fish into the boat. On their fourth try, they were able to finally wrestle it into the 22-foot-long johnboat.

Bernal had his fish weighed on certified scales, and Missouri Department of Conservation fisheries biologist Sarah Pepper certified the catch.

“When this fish finally balanced out the scales at 130 pounds, we were in shock,” Pepper said. “I weigh 109 pounds, so that fish was 21 pounds heavier than me.”

Fisheries officials estimated the giant blue at 25 to 30 years old. Bernal tried to keep it alive, but it eventually died and now will be mounted.

The fish shattered the former state record of 103 pounds, caught in the Missouri River in Atchison County in 1991. It’s likely that it also will break the all-tackle world record of 124 pounds, caught in 2005 on the Mississippi River.

Paperwork has been submitted to the International Game Fish Association, but the record won’t be official until a routine investigation is conducted.

As if that catch wasn’t enough to renew interest in the Missouri River’s giant catfish, the 99-pound flathead caught by Davidson three days later further stoked the fever.

Before fishing that day, Davidson, his 9-year-old boy Drake and his father, Jim, dropped by a friend’s house to get a look at the 54-pound flathead he had
caught that morning.

“I remember him saying to me, ‘If you’re lucky, you’ll catch one even bigger today,’” said Davidson, 44, who lives in Mokane, Mo. “We just laughed and said, ‘Like that’s going to happen.’?”

But it did happen.

As the three Davidsons were checking the bank poles they had set out along a bank near Mokane, they caught a 47 1/2 -pou nd blue cat, at the time a noteworthy catch.

But when they got to the second-to-the-last pole they had stuck in the bank, they found something twice as big at the end of the 150-pound test line.

“When we pulled up, the pole was bent over, but the line wasn’t moving,” Davidson said. “We thought it was just hung up.

“It even crossed my mind to cut the line.”

It’s a good thing he didn’t. When Davidson grabbed the pole from the bank, the fish took off. And Davidson found himself hanging on for dear life, fighting a monstrous fish without the benefit of a reel.

After a 20-minute fight, Davidson finally worked the flathead to the surface one-half mile from the point where he hooked the fish.

Davidson gaffed the fish, then stuck his arm into the fish’s mouth so that he could flop it into the boat.

“My friends and I knew there had to be a state-record flathead in the river,” said Davidson, who works for the Missouri Department of Transportat ion. “It was just a matter of who would be lucky enough to catch it.”

The fish broke the former alternative methods state record for flathead catfish by 5 pounds. That former record was caught on the St. Francis River below Lake Wappapello in 1971.

The flathead, which was lured by the green sunfish Davidson used as bait, was far from the world record of 123 pounds, caught in 1998 at Elk City Reservoir in Kansas. But it was still the third-biggest fish ever recorded in Missouri (trailing only the 139-pound, 4-ounce state-record paddlefish and Bernal’s giant blue catfish).

For officials with the Missouri Department of Conservation, the recent catches came as a reminder that the Missouri River is again alive and well.

In 1992, the department stopped commercial harvest of catfish on the Missouri River. Since then, several catches of cats 80 to 100 pounds have been reported.

“Having two state-record catfish caught three days apart proves the wisdom o f those management decisions,” said Chris Vitello, fisheries chief for the Department of Conservation. “Given a chance to grow, blue and flathead catfish can reach sizes that make even the most experienced angler’s heart race.”

Give us our choice of anywhere to fish in Illinois right now and we’d pick…

• Largemouth bass on the Illinois River.
• Frogging in a small farm pond before the season ends Aug. 31.
• Channel catfish on the Illinois River, at Rend Lake and ...
• Walleye and white bass on the Fox Chain O’ Lakes.
• Bluegill at Shabbona Lake, Lake Sara, .
• Blue catfish at LaSalle Lake.
• White bass at Rend Lake, Carlyle Lake and Lake Shelbyville.

WALL HANGERS

• Altona angler Eric Hall’s son caught a 6.5-pound bass on a top-water bait in a private Knox County farm pond on Wednesday night.
• Kory Brink of Mount Olive and his daughters Emma and Gracie show off a nice mess of bullfrogs they collected recently. Frog season ends Aug. 31.

NORTHERN ILLINOIS North of Interstate 80

Apple Canyon Lake
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Tom Calam said bluegill and crappie are fair, biting on minnows and leeches.

Lake Carroll
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337).
Tom Calam said fishing is average.

Forest Preserve Lakes
SOURCE: Lee’s Bait and Tackle of Elk Grove Village (847-593-6424); Henry’s (312-225-8538)
• Click here for a Cook County Forest Preserves lake fishing forum.
• Here are links to information on various forest preserve lakes. Cook County, DeKalb County, DuPage County, Kane County, Kendall County, Lake County, McHenry County and Will County.

Fox Chain O’ Lakes
SOURCE: Greg Dickson, Triangle Sports & Marine,  Antioch (1-847-395-0813).
Greg Dickson said the lake is currently in a high-water state, causing a no-wake boating rule to stay in effect. Walleye and stripers are excellent, bass are good and panfish are fair. Walleye are near the bridges or in the south river biting on jigs with leeches or nightcrawlers and gold roach minnows. Stripers are biting on jigs with leeches or nightcrawlers, gold roaches and zip lures. Bass are by the weedlines and docks, as well as in the north river. Panfish will be shallow, by the rock shoreline or in the weeds.
• Click here to check updates on no-wake status and water levels or call 847-587-8540 .

Lake Michigan
SOURCES: Henry’s (312-225-8538), Vet’s (773-734-6720) and Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times.
• On the Chicago lakefront, perch fishing reopened Sunday and the bite has been fair, with fish hitting near the docks and piers on baby roaches, waxworms, mealworms and minnows. Action improved by Tuesday according to Dale Bowman, with weed beds at Burnham producing well that day. Some boaters have also been fishing weed beds off Navy Pier. For salmon, Bowman quotes Capt. Bill Kelly as saying “60-80 feet is producing a mixed bag with lots of small lakers, then in 90-120, there are bigger lakers and rainbows. “
SOURCE: The Salmon Stop (847-244-2525 or fishing hotline 847-244-9876);  Capt. Nick Ganzer (847-234-7208).
• Near Waukegan, perch and steelhead trout are good. Perch are being caught off of the government pier on soft-shell crab and fat-head minnows. Steelhead trout are off of the pier bitting on frozen shad minnows and shrimp. Boats are in around 60-70 feet of water. Bowman said some lakers are starting at the Waukegan reef.
SOURCE: Mik-Lurch (219-989-0575)
• Near Indiana, salmon and perch are good. Salmon are in Illinois waters, between 65 and 74. Perch are best by Chicago and near Burns Ditch.

Pierce Lake
SOURCES: Pam Minihan, Dora’s Bait & Tackle, Rockford (815-963-1795).
Pam Minihan said catfish are spotty but best near the dam.

Shabbona Lake
SOURCES: Guide Jay Angel (815-739-7030) and Denny Sands, Shabbona Lakeside Bait & Tackle, Shabbona (815-824-2581).
Guide Jay Angel said bluegill fishing is excellent, walleye are good and bass and crappie are fair. Bluegill are near the shallow rock piles and weed beds in around 4-8 feet of water, near the bottom, biting on waxworms. Walleye are best in the evening, in deeper waters, around 6-16 feet, near the rock piles and deeper flats biting on leeches. Bass are shallow. Crappie are near the deep brushpiles and cribs. Muskie have been fair, including the 40-incher pictured below that was caught and released by Guide Pete Riedesel, who can be reached for guide trips at (815) 433-6109 .
• Park hours November to January 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; February to March 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; April 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; May to October 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
•Click here for a Shabbona Lake fishing forum

Wolf Lake
SOURCE: Mik-Lurch (219-989-0575)
Walleye are good bitting on leeches and medium roaches.

NORTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 80 and North of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36

Banner Marsh
SOURCE: Adam Jaegle, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
Bass fishing has been fairly slow with mostly smaller fish under 14 inches reported. Top-water bite has slowed some. Channel catfish remain underutilized and are biting well on dipbait and shrimp.

Lake Bloomington
SOURCE: Larry Dozard
Bluegill and catfish head the bill according to Larry Dozard, with both species rated as fair. Catfish have been running smaller this week, with best baits liver or dipbait. Bass are fair to slow along weed lines on plastics and crankbaits along weed lines and on small top-water baits. Crappie are fair to slow on jigs and crappie nibbles drifted in 12-20 feet of water.

Braidwood Lake
SOURCE: Del Colvin, Bert’s Bait, Essex (815-365-2103); Jon Meder, Jon’s Bait & Tackle, South Wilmington (815-237-2822)
Fishing is slow according to Colvin.

Clinton Lake
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730); Clinton Bait and Tackle, (217-935-3851)
Catfish are doing fair, biting near the 48 bridge and the wing dam by the Power Plant.

Dawson Lake
SOURCE: Leon and Judy Gibson, Moraine View Concession (309-724-8295)
Judy Gibson said catfish, walleye and bass are slow.

Emiquon Preserve
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); The Nature Conservancy (309-547-2730)
Bass fishing remains slower than most expect. Water levels are very low during the ongoing construction project and that appears to be impacting fishing. Paul Dinkheller has spoken to numerous disappointed groups from as far away as Chicago. But some are still catching fish in smaller schools off flats near deep water. Most are coming on spinnerbaits, lipless crankbaits and crankbaits. Good results in 3-6 feet of water. Don’t back off the ditches too far, though, or you won’t catch as many fish. Fish are also relating to drop-offs and taking plastics. Anglers must obtain a free permit at Dickson Mounds Museum (open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) before fishing here.

Evergreen Lake
SOURCE: Brad Wood, operations supervisor, (309-726-2022) or Larry Dozard
Fishing remains the same on the lake this past week according to Brad Wood. Crappie have been found deeper during the day and closer to the shore as evening approaches. Mostly being caught on minnows. Saugeye have become elusive with the warm weather. Bass remain to be caught mostly in the evenings. Bluegill fishing was good over the weekend on wax worms and bits of crawlers. Catfishing has been good in recent weeks mostly on livers and stink baits. Water is in the 80s, 1 foot below pool and has clarity of 1-2 feet.
• NOTE: The Swimming Beach and the concession stand will be closed weekdays starting Monday, August 9 and will be open weekends only through Sept. 6. Also, the Main Recreation Area (East) Boat Launch will be closed from 6 p.m. Friday to 1 p.m. on Saturday. The Main Recreation Area and Campground facilities remain open. Also, a portion of Evergreen Lake will be closed to ALL watercraft traffic. The area from the Boat Rental south across the lake and east will be closed from Midnight to approximately 1:00 P.M. Saturday, August 7, 2010. This includes the area around Deer Island, Six-Mile Creek Bay, and around the Boat Rental facility.
• Click here for up-to-date lake reports.

Heidecke Lake
SOURCE: Don Stephens, Greybeards (815-941-1504); Guide Mike Lynch (708-655-7667); Guide Greg Heath (815-258-9136)
Don Stephens said catfish and smallmouth are fair. Water is high and hot. Cats are down low, biting on meat. Smallmouth are at the north side biting on black buzz baits or jigs tipped with nightcrawlers.

LaSalle Lake
SOURCE: Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times; Guide Mike Lynch (708-655-7667)
Blue catfish action is very good according to Guide Matt Jones of Prophetstown. He has been averaging three fish or more per day in the 20-pound range, some up to 29 pounds and “tons of fish in the teens.” Jones is drift fishing with cut shad and cut bluegill. “Right now water is in the low 90s and their metabolism is through the roof and they are feeding and hitting hard.”
• Click here for a LaSalle Lake fishing forum.

Mazonia Lakes
SOURCE: Del Colvin, Bert’s Bait, Essex (815-365-2103)
Brian Walley finished in 1st place in the bass tournament this past weekend, catching over 8 pounds of fish with one weighing 4.75 lbs.

Powerton Lake
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
Blue catfish are still biting well according to Merle Keefer. An anger reported four over 20 pounds on cut bait the other day.

Snakeden Hollow SFWA
SOURCE: Nellie Thorne, Depot Bait and Tackle, Victoria (309-879-2401); Site office (309-879-2607)
Crappie are good at Oak Run, with fish under docks, in the shade and deep 10-12 feet. Bass are fair. Bluegill have been fair to good in 7-8 feet of water. Catfish are better evenings. Eric Hall’s son caught a 6.5-pound bass on a top-water bait in a private farm pond on Wednesday night.

Spring Lake
SOURCES: Troy Galvin, Galvin’s Spring Lake Market (309-267-6538) and Larry Karnes, Larry’s Restaurant and Family Bar, Manito (309-968-9500)
Fishing is very slow, with a few anglers reporting bass. Channel catfish are fair to good in the evenings when shade hits the west side of the lake. Shrimp and dipbait.

Lake Storey
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg (309-342-7776)
Panfish are biting fair. Most are bluegills from the bank on outside weed edges. Some crappie in the evenings and mornings close to the bank, otherwise most are out 8-12 feet deep. Jigs tipped with waxies are working. Bass are decent on plastics and crankbaits. Not so much top-water action lately. Walleye are biting along outside weed edges on jigs or jigs and spinners tipped with a minnow. Slow troll the outside edges. Catfish picked up some this week on dipbait and worms.

Strip Mines
(Fulton, Knox, Peoria and Stark counties)
SOURCE: Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); and Larry Dozard; Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793); Jim’s Bait and Tackle, Hanna City (309-565-9960)
Bluegill and crappie are better this week in many lakes reporting in Peoria/Fulton/Knox counties. Bluegill are lingering in 6-8 feet of water while crappie are surprisingly good according to Tim Presley and Larry Dozard. Best action is 12-14 feet deep for crappie, with jigs and waxies a good choice. Dozard said catfish were good at the Fulton County Recreational Area this week on dipbaits. Bass are slow overall with mostly smaller fish reported.

SOUTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36 and North of Interstate 70

Beaver Dam Lake
SOURCE: Gwen Gilmore, Gilmore Bait & Marine, Carlinville (217-854-8136); Kim Eggers, Beaver Dam Bait Shop, (217-854-6688)
Bass are fair, but deep.

Carlinville Lake
SOURCE: Gwen Gilmore, Gilmore Bait & Marine, Carlinville (217-854-8136)
Bass are fair, but down deep due to hot waters. Fish are in around 10-12 feet of water.

Charleston Side Channel Lake
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770)
Rick Cuddy said channel catfish are good but small, biting on cheesebait. In the river, bass are good but small, biting on small jigs and plastics.

Lake Decatur
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730)
White bass are doing good, biting near the 36 bridge and humps. Largemouth are doing fair.

Lake Glenn Shoals
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
Jack Rebman said catfish and bluegill are fair, crappie are spotty. Catfish are biting on shad, cheesebaits and Sonny’s bait.

Lake Hillsboro
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
Jack Rebman said catfish and bluegill are fair, crappie are spotty. Catfish are biting on shad, cheesebaits and Sonny’s bait.

Lake Jacksonville
SOURCE: Tom Holmes, Military Surplus Outlet, Jacksonville (217-243-6161) and Lake Jacksonville Campground (217-479-4646)
Catfish are good, biting on shrimp, stinkbait and chicken liver.

Lake Lou Yaeger
SOURCE: Denny’s Bait Shop, Litchfield (217-324-2628)
Catfish are fair and biting on shad.

Lake Mattoon
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770); Joel Pittman, Mattoon Parks Department (217-254-6680)
Rick Cuddy said bass are fair and deep, biting on plastics, jigs and creature baits.

Mill Creek Lake
SOURCE: Dennis Shiley, Mill Creek Lake Park (217-889-3901)
Catfish are doing well.

Sangchris Lake
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-820-9674)
Catfish are doing well, with crappie being spotty. Catfish are biting on large minnows, leeches and stinkbait. Crappie are by the dam and deep, around 15 feet.

Lake Sara
SOURCE: Tony Niebrugge, Anthony’s Acres Resort, (217-868-2950)
Bluegill are excellent, catfish are good, bass are fair and crappie are slow. Bluegill are biting on waxworms, catfish taking nightcrawlers and chicken liver. Bass are being caught top water fishing in the early and late hours, using jigs near the weeds.

Lake Shelbyville
SOURCE: Guide Ken Wilson (217-774-5756 or 217-454-2672) at Lithia Springs Guide Service; Margie Oliver, Marv and Kathy’s Bait & Tackle, Sullivan (217-728-4044); Guide Steve Welch (217) 762-7257 or (217) 840-1221
Guide Ken Wilson said white bass are good, crappie and catfish are fair and walleye are slow. White bass are biting on crankbaits and tube jig rigs. Crappie are also taking crankbaits. Catfish can be found at the north end of the lake. All boat ramps are currently open and the water level is at 605.17.
• For a daily report on Lake Shelbyville call (217-774-2020).

Lake Springfield
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-820-9674) and Tater’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-2208)
White bass and catfish are doing well. Bass biting on cicadas and crazy blades. Cats bitting on stinkbait, leeches and nightcrawlers.

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS South of Interstate 70

Baldwin Lake
SOURCE: Site office (618-785-2555)
Fishing is poor. Water temperature is over 100.

Carlyle Lake
SOURCE: Josh Adkins; Buddy Langenhorst, Lavish’s Bait Shop , Carlyle (618-594-4413); Henkel’s (618-594-4818)
White bass, sauger and catfish are good. White bass are near the humps, ridges and islands biting on curly tails, little georges and crankbaits. Sauger are also taking crankbaits. Cats are biting on cut shad and Sonny’s bait.
• For the latest water level information call (618-594-4637).

Crab Orchard Lake
SOURCE: Ron Reed, Cooksey’s Bait, Marion (618-993-3366); Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354); Kyle Garner, Crappie Pro Shop, Carterville (618-985-8277)
Ron Reed said catfish and stripers are good, bluegill and bass are fair and crappie are slow.

Lake of Egypt
SOURCE: Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354)
Jason Johns said bass are good and schooling, allowing for a good bite.

Forbes Lake
SOURCE: Site manager Glenn Wegener (618-547-3381); Mike Polcyn, Mike’s Bait & Tackle Shop, Louisville (618-665-3209)
Glenn Wegener said catfish are good, bluegill, crappie, and bass are fair and walleye, stripers, and muskies are poor. Catfish are biting on chicken liver and stinkbait near the points and weedlines in the evening and night. Bluegill are biting on crickets and red wigglers near the shady weedlines. Crappie are taking minnows near the brush piles 6-10 feet deep. Bass are biting on crankbaits and plastic worms around the brushpiles and laydowns around 4-8 feet deep. Walleye and stripers are biting on crankbaits off of the points.

Kinkaid Lake
SOURCE: Janet Graeff, Top of the Hill Bait Shop, Muphysboro (618-684-2923); Guide Al Nutty (618-694-4897)
Guide Al Nutty said catfish and bluegill are good, crappie and bass are fair and walleye and white bass are spotty. Catfish are biting on cut shad, stinkbait, nightcrawlers and chicken liver. Bluegill are near the outer edge of the weedlines, biting on crickets and pieces of nightcrawlers. Crappie are in around 14-20 feet of water near the heavy brushpiles biting on minnows and jigs. Bass are off of the points biting on deep-diving crankbaits, carolina rigs, primarily motor-oil colored and plastic worms. Walleye are deep, around 26-28 feet. White bass are biting on small-diving crankbaits, red wigglers and in-line spinners.

Mermet Lake
SOURCE: Shawnee Bait & Tackle, Creal Springs (618-996-3089)
Catfish are good and bass are fair.

Rend Lake
SOURCE: Todd Gessner (618-513-0520); Jason Johns (618-927-3432); Bill Hudnall, Rend Lake Sporting Goods, Mount Vernon (618-242-2191)
Jason Johns said white bass and catfish are excellent. Bass and crappie are fair. White bass are biting on rooster tails, white grubs, and tube jigs. Bass and crappie are being caught in the early and late hours. Bass are taking crankbaits, spinnerbaits and buzzbaits off of the points. Crappie are in around 6-10 feet of water biting on minnows and jigs.

RIVERS

• Click here for water level information.

Des Plaines River
SOURCE: Andrew Ragas
• Click here for a Des Plaines River fishing forum.

DuPage River
SOURCE: Click here for a DuPage River fishing forum.

Fox River
• Click here for a Fox River fishing forum.

Illinois River
SOURCE: Carol Culjan at Cajun Sporting Goods in Utica (815-667-4222)
• Near Utica catfish are the best and only real option right now as water came up Wednesday and is running high and dirty according to Darrell “Buster” Culjan. “We’re not flooded but the water is high and dirty,” Culjan said. Nightcrawlers, Sonny’s cheesebait, shad and chicken liver are all working. White bass are backed off right now and probably will be for at least another week.
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Tim Presley, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193)
• Near Peoria catfish are improving and a rising river should help matters after levels had dropped to near-normal. Bass fishing has been very good on spinnerbaits, ringworms, beaver baits and square-billed crankbaits. Catches of 20-30 keepers per day not unheard-of. White bass have been biting well at Duck Island on Gay Blades and jigs tipped with minnows.
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094)
• Near Havana white bass were good, with very good reports from Sanganois. Reef Runners and other spoons have been good. Catfish are good on stinkbait and dew worms.

Kankakee River
SOURCE: Ed Mullady, Sportsman’s Letter (815-932-7285)
• River fishing has been good and the Kankakee has remained in good shape according to Ed Mullady, who reports:
In quieter parts of the river in Indiana, numerous bluegill on worms have been caught. Nice sized smallmouth and largemouth bass also good in Illinois through Momence. Smallmouth and largemouth bass are being caught on spinnerbaits, jig and double twister tails, minnow-shaped crankbaits and live minnows. Guide Matt Mullady reports nice smallmouth bass in the Kankakee area and battled an 8-pound channel catfish on an imitation helgramite. Spinners, plugs and plastics worm. Smallies are also good in the Kankakee River State Park and Wilmington areas.

Mississippi River
SOURCE: Iowa DNR
The river is dropping some and Galesburg area anglers have been catching fish on dipbait.

Mississippi River Pool 12
River stage at Dubuque is 11.01 feet and falling. Water clarity has improved as water levels are dropping and is fair.  Water temperature is in the low 80s.  Anglers should be on the lookout for radio tagged white crappie in Pool 12. Tags are attached externally to the dorsal fin and we ask that these fish be released or the tags returned from harvested fish.  Channel Catfish - Fair: Channel cats are biting on stink bait in side channels around snags and near the mouth of catfish creek.  White Bass - Fair: Look for white bass on current breaks along rocky shorelines.  Sampling crews have seen good numbers and sizes this week around Catfish Creek, Peosta Channel, and the head of City Island.  Bluegill - Fair: Bluegills are biting on crawlers under a bobber in shallow water around vegetation and wood.  Also look for them in marinas around docks.  Largemouth Bass - Fair: Bass are biting on top-water frogs fished around lily pads and vegetation.  Bass are also biting on crankbaits along rip rap shorelines around Dubuque and in Peosta Channel.  Walleye - Slow: Walleye fishing has been slow the past week with the high, dirty water, but look for fishing to improve as conditions do.  Freshwater Drum - Good: Drum are biting good on crawlers fished on the bottom in areas of moderate current.

Mississippi River Pool 13
River stage at Bellevue is 10.12 feet and falling. Water clarity is fair and water temperature is in the low 80s.  Channel Catfish - Good: Catfish are biting on stink bait fished around snags in the side channels.  Walleye - Slow: Walleye fishing has been slow with the high water the last week, but look for fishing to improve as the conditions do.  Freshwater Drum - Good: Drum have been biting on crawlers fished on the bottom in areas of moderate current.

Mississippi River Pool 14
River stage at Camanche is 12.82 feet and falling. Water clarity is poor but improving and water temperature is in the low 80s.  With poor water conditions, fishing has been slow over most of the pool, but a few fish are being caught in the sand pits where water clarity is better.

For fishing information in Pool 12-15 of the Mississippi River contact the Bellevue Fish Management and Research Station at 563-872-4976

Mississippi River Pool 16
River stage at Lock and Dam 15 is 11.76 feet and falling. Fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are being caught on dip baits and crawlers fished around brush piles and logjams along the main channel and side sloughs. Fishing along the flooded islands can be good as well.  Bluegill - Slow:  Crappie - Slow:  Walleye - Slow: Walleye fishing on the wing dams has been slow due to high and muddy water. There is debris in the water that makes trolling tough.

Mississippi River Pool 17
River stage at Lock and Dam 16 is 11.68 feet and falling. Fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water.  Channel Catfish - Fair: Some channel catfish are being caught on dip baits and crawlers fished around brush piles and logjams along the main channel and sloughs.  White Bass - Slow:  Bluegill - Slow:  Crappie - Slow:  Walleye - Slow: Walleye fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water. There is a lot of debris floating in the water that makes trolling wing dams difficult.

Mississippi River Pool 18
River stage at Lock and Dam 17 is 14.10 feet and falling. Flood stage is 15 feet. Fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water.  Channel Catfish - No Report:  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pool 19
River stage at Lock and Dam 18 is 10.27 feet and falling. Flood stage is 10 feet. Fishing has been tough due to high and muddy water.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are being caught on dip baits, crawlers and shad. Try fishing along brush piles and snags along the main channel and sloughs.  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pools 16-20: River conditions are still high throughout Pools 16-20. Many of the boat ramps are underwater. Fishing has been tough throughout the pools due to high and muddy water. There is lot of debris floating in the river so take caution when boating. For more fishing information on pools 16-20 of the Mississippi River contact the Fairport Fish Hatchery at 563-263-5062.

Pecatonica River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Tom Calam said the water level has fallen and fishermen are just starting to go out. The river was closed last week due to high waters.

Rock River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
• Near Rockford Tom Calam said the water level has fallen and fishermen are just starting to go out. The river was closed last week due to high water.
SOURCE: Jan Prose at TJ’s Bait/Tackle & Canoe Rental in Oregon (815-732-4516)
• Near Oregon Jan Prose said that river is still high, but going down slowly. Catfish are fair, biting on suckers, nightcrawlers and dipbait. By the dam, carp are fair.
SOURCE: Ray and Irene Hays, Bunny’s Bait Shop, Dixon (815-288-3812)
• Near Dixon Ray Hays said the river is still high and there is some runoff. However, catfish and carp are doing good, walleye and buffalo are fair, with crappie, white bass, drum and sheephead slow. Catfish are biting on worms near the shoreline, but bigger fish are deeper in the channels biting on crushed minnows. Walleye are biting on minnows and twister-tail jigs.

Spoon River
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg and Paul Dinkheller at Dink’s in Lewistown (309-547-1094)
The river has been down and fishable and bankpolers are out in force. Channel catfish are the best bet right now, as flatheads have slowed. Smallmouth bass are better in tributaries in the river’s northern reaches.

“It’s long past time do something about this deadly - and preventable - epidemic of lead poisoning in the wild,” said Jeff Miller, conservation advocate for the Center for
Biological Diversity. The center was one of the five groups that submitted the 100-page petition to the EPA, which includes hundreds of scientific studies the groups say demonstrate the harm lead does to wildlife. The groups say an estimated 10 million to 20 million birds and other animals die each year from lead poisoning in the U.S.

The center, along with the American Bird Conservancy, the Association of Avian Veterinarians, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility and a hunters group called Project Gutpile, are seeking a ban under the Toxic Substances Control Act.

Facing the greatest risk of severe toxic concentrations are animals that scavenge carcasses that have been killed by hunters, according to the petition. It says species such as bald and golden eagles and endangered California condors are often killed or sickened by lead poisoning by scavenging meat with lead fragments from ammunition.

The National Shooting Sports Foundation, a trade group for the firearms, ammunition, hunting and shooting sports industry, called the petition an “anti-hunting attack on traditional ammunition.”

There is already a national ban on lead ammunition for shooting waterfowl. The shooting group says that goes far enough.

“There is simply no scientific evidence that the use of traditional ammunition is having an adverse impact on wildlife populations that would require restricting or banning the use of traditional ammunition beyond current limitations, such as the scientifically-based restriction on waterfowl hunting,” said the group’s president, Steve Sanetti.
The group said that point is underscored by the rising population of bald eagles.

Michael Fry, the American Bird Conservancy’s conservation advocacy director, said the bald eagles’ recovery was due in part to the ban on lead ammunition in waterfowl hunting.

“It’s wonderful they’re recovering, but that’s no excuse to continue poisoning them,” he said.

The groups concede that non-lead ammunition is more expensive, but argue that as it becomes more available, its cost will come down.

The EPA has 90 days to grant or deny the petition. The agency did not respond to requests for comment Tuesday.

While the dog days of summer typically mark a great time to catch smallies, persistent rains this year have proven maddening for stream anglers like Tim Sefried of Elmwood.

“Normally I go to work and pass over all these different creeks that look good and I say, ‘Oh boy, when I get back I’m going to fish them,’” said Sefried, a railroad engineer. “But then when I come back from work, they’ve had a storm.”

And heavy rains in summer are the bane of smallmouth anglers. One reason July and August offer such good fishing is that water clarity is very good (at least by Illinois standards) and helps sight-feeding smallies hone in on lures.

When water turns muddy, catch rates drop.

Wading can also be more treacherous when water levels are up.

And extreme high water — such as that experienced by many Illinois streams in the past two years — can change the very structure of the river and move fish out.

That seems to be the case on the Mackinaw River according to fisheries biologist Wayne Herndon, who sampled that scenic river in late July. While Herndon saw big numbers of silver carp well past Congerville, more desirable fish were less obvious.

“We didn’t see a whole lot of smallmouth bass,” Herndon said. “I think that’s typical of streams that have been high for a long time. Maybe they came down to the Illinois River.”

Or maybe those bronzebacks moved into smaller tributaries. During stream sampling last week in the Spoon River basin, many of the best bronzebacks were in tributaries.

“Some of the small streams had super smallmouth bass in the upper reaches,” Herndon said, “In some areas the stream was wider than you could step across but not wider than you could jump across.”

Overall, when compared to the Mackinaw, Spoon River smallies were “longer, fatter and healthier” according to biologist Rob Hilsabeck. “It also seemed that in the main stems (of the rivers) there were not as many minnows or crawdads” as there were in the smaller tributaries, Hilsabeck said.

Maybe this is the summer to target smaller streams. One benefit of a wet summer is that flows in those creeks remain higher than usual for this time of year.

Whatever you do, don’t delay. High water or not, there are still fish to be caught. And as I’ve written before, there’s no better place to fish on a hot summer day than in a shady stream that winds through otherwise boring corn and bean country.

Local guide Jonn “Stream Stalker” Graham enjoyed a sizzling outing recently with client Dan Starmach, who caught 57 smallies during a five-mile canoe-and-fish trip.
Nearly all Starmach’s fish came on minnow-imitating baits: the Lucky Craft Pointer 65 or the Megabass Prop Darter.

“It seemed the fish could not feed fast enough,” said Graham, who can be reached for guide trips at (309) 399-7055.

Last Wednesday Sefried and a friend hooked into 14 smallies during stops on the Spoon River and an Illinois River tributary. Best actions was on soft plastic worms and crayfish-imitating crankbaits.

True to this year’s form, though, Sefried’s outing ended prematurely due to a downpour.

The state Department of Natural Resources confirmed Thursday the fish weighed 41 pounds, 8 ounces. That tops the previous record of about 36.5 pounds, set in 2004.

Roger Hellen of Franksville landed the fish July 16 while angling in the Lake Michigan waters north of Racine.

The 39-year-old says it took half an hour to reel it in. He says when he got it in the boat he was more exhilarated than exhausted.

Hellen is asking the International Game Fish Association to confirm it’s a world record. The association’s website says the current record is 41 pounds, 7 ounces.

Hellen caught the fish while competing in the Salmon-A-Rama tournament. The fish measured 40.6 inches long, compared to 40.5 inches for the previous record caught August 23, 2004, in Lake Michigan near Kewaunee.

Give us our choice of anywhere to fish in Illinois right now and we’d pick…

• The Illinois River for largemouth bass.
• Lake Michigan for salmon.
• Streams and rivers (those not flooded by recent rains) for smallmouth bass.
• Perch fishing on Lake Michigan starting Sunday when the season reopens for all ages and not just youngsters 15 and under.

WALL HANGERS

• Larry and Nancy Nichols of Peoria (pictured below) show off a nice catch of fish taken with Capt. Nick Ganzer, including a 15-pound brown trout, cohos, rainbows, lake trout—everything but a king.

• Rhinda Carter of Peoria caught this largemouth bass with a rubber worm in windy Lake Hanna City on July 11.

•  A 9-pound and a 7-pound walleye were caught on the Rock River near Grand Detour in the past week.

NORTHERN ILLINOIS North of Interstate 80

Apple Canyon Lake
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Tom Calam said the lake is currently closed due to high water levels. Declared a flood disaster due to around 17 inches of rain.

Lake Carroll
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337).
Tom Calam said the lake is currently closed due to high water levels. Declared a flood disaster due to around 17 inches of rain.

Forest Preserve Lakes
SOURCE: Lee’s Bait and Tackle of Elk Grove Village (847-593-6424); Henry’s (312-225-8538)
• Click here for a Cook County Forest Preserves lake fishing forum.
• Here are links to information on various forest preserve lakes. Cook County, DeKalb County, DuPage County, Kane County, Kendall County, Lake County, McHenry County and Will County.

Fox Chain O’ Lakes
SOURCE: Greg Dickson, Triangle Sports & Marine,  Antioch (1-847-395-0813).
Greg Dickson said the lake is currently in a high-water state, causing a no-wake boating rule to go into effect. Word is it may be lifted by this weekend. White bass, walleye and largemouth bass are good. White bass are at the river north, biting on crankbaits and small jigs tipped with spikes. Walleye are biting on leeches and nightcrawlers around current. Bass have been shallow.
• Click here to check updates on no-wake status and water levels or call 847-587-8540 .

Lake Michigan
SOURCES: Henry’s (312-225-8538), Vet’s (773-734-6720) and Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times.
• On the Chicago lakefront perch, steelhead, rock bass and carp are all fair. Perch season reopens Sunday for all ages. Youngsters have been catching perch in harbors and sizes vary widely. Salmon are in the shallow water due to the unusually cold water. Steelheads are taking nightcrawlers. Dale Bowman reports sheepheads are good at Montrose and elsewhere for shore anglers.
SOURCE: The Salmon Stop (847-244-2525 or fishing hotline 847-244-9876);  Capt. Nick Ganzer (847-234-7208).
• Near Waukegan, Salmon Stop reports salmon and trout are fair for boaters. Boats are going into 90-120 feet of water. Off the piers, steelhead and even some kings are good as well as bluegill, rock bass and perch. Capt. Nick Ganzer reports that salmon and trout fishing continues to be good. Summer lake patterns have stabilized. Generally, west winds have kept our waters calm, cool and comfortable. The threat of severe weather has missed our area and been north and south of us. We are now boating all five species of sport fish (kings, coho salmon, rainbows, browns and lake trout) and they increase in size daily. First and last light trips continue to be the most productive. Once the day brightens, the fishing moves to deep water (130-200 feet). Best lure depths have been above 60 feet . Stealth set-ups like extended leads (50-100 feet) from DR ball to lures; Leadcore (5-10 colors) down the middle and off boards with moonshine glow lures/ deadly. Pictured below is Mr. Penny with a 10-pound brown trout caught earlier in July.
SOURCE: Mik-Lurch (219-989-0575)
• Near Indiana, perch are spotty, but are being found by Pastrick Marina and Cal Park.

Pierce Lake
SOURCES: Pam Minihan, Dora’s Bait & Tackle, Rockford (815-963-1795).
Pam Minihan said catfish are fair. One 30-pound flathead catfish was caught near the Rockford dam on a dead minnow.

Shabbona Lake
SOURCES: Guide Jay Angel (815-739-7030) and Denny Sands, Shabbona Lakeside Bait & Tackle, Shabbona (815-824-2581).
Guide Jay Angel said fishing is slow. Crappie are near the campground cribs in around 5 feet of water biting on minnows. Perch are near the deeper weedlines biting on leeches. Numbers are actually better than for bluegills for some says Lakeside. Catfish are by the weedlines in around 8-12 feet of water also biting on leeches. Walleye are fair in the evening, in about 12 feet of water near the flats. Bass are in 12-16 feet of water near the rockpiles. Best fishing is in the early and late hours of the day. Water is running 80-83 degrees.
• Park hours November to January 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; February to March 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; April 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; May to October 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
•Click here for a Shabbona Lake fishing forum

Wolf Lake
SOURCE: Mik-Lurch (219-989-0575)
Walleye are fair in the evening hours, biting on leeches.

NORTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 80 and North of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36

Anderson Lake
SOURCE: Site manager Ed Oest (309-759-4484)
Some reports of decent crappie for boat anglers fishing near old duck blind debris on the main lake.

Banner Marsh
SOURCE: Adam Jaegle, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
Channel catfish are best bet here and are taking dipbaits. Evenings are best. Bass have been tougher, at least if you want keepers. You can catch plenty of 10- to 12-inchers on Senkos. But for bigger fish, go top-water early and late and then fish jigs along deeper weed edges.

Lake Bloomington
SOURCE: Larry Dozard
Fishing is fair for most species says Larry Dozard, with an added bonus of hybrid stripers and white bass active on the surface late in the day according to Guide Paul Center. For catfish use liver or dipbait. Bass are along weed lines and wacky worms are best during the day. Bluegill are targeting shade, weed edges and seawalls. Crappie are best in 8-16 feet of water.

Braidwood Lake
SOURCE: Del Colvin, Bert’s Bait, Essex (815-365-2103); Jon Meder, Jon’s Bait & Tackle, South Wilmington (815-237-2822)
Fishing is slow.

Clinton Lake
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730); Clinton Bait and Tackle, (217-935-3851)
Joanne Lowe said catfish and white bass are good. Cats are taking cut shad and shad guts in the evening hours. Crappie are slowing down. Below the dam, stripers are taking top-water offerings early. Otherwise heavier jigs with minnows are producing fish.

Dawson Lake
SOURCE: Leon and Judy Gibson, Moraine View Concession (309-724-8295)
Leon Gibson said catfish are good, while bluegill, bass and walleye are fair. Catfish are along the edge, biting on liver and shrimp. Bluegills are biting on nightcrawlers.

Emiquon Preserve
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); The Nature Conservancy (309-547-2730)
Bass fishing has picked up some in the past week but is still behind last year’s torrid pace. Low-light conditions are best. Anglers must obtain a free permit at Dickson Mounds Museum (open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) before fishing here.

Evergreen Lake
SOURCE: Brad Wood, operations supervisor, (309-726-2022) or Larry Dozard
Fishing on Evergreen has been fair in recent weeks says Wood. Water is running in the low to mid 80s with clarity of 1-2 feet and levels about 1 foot low. Crappie limits are still being caught on a regular basis using minnows in 20-25 feet of water suspended midway. Saugeye reports have been few and far between with some smaller ones being picked up here and there on humps and off of points. There are some nice reports of bass being caught during early morning hours or late evening on top-water baits around weed beds and laydowns. Catfishing has been fair with most being caught at night using livers and stink baits.
• Click here for up-to-date lake reports.

Heidecke Lake
SOURCE: Don Stephens, Greybeards (815-941-1504); Guide Mike Lynch (708-655-7667); Guide Greg Heath (815-258-9136)
Don Stephens said that fishing is slow. However, catfish are good. Catfish are bitting on stinkbait, dead minnows, chicken liver and nightcrawlers near the bottom.

LaSalle Lake
SOURCE: Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times; Guide Mike Lynch (708-655-7667)
• Click here for a LaSalle Lake fishing forum.

Powerton Lake
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
The lake reopened to anglers today after being shut down for levee repairs. Few reports in recent weeks other than anglers noting the hot water and small catfish.

Snakeden Hollow SFWA
SOURCE: Nellie Thorne, Depot Bait and Tackle, Victoria (309-879-2401); Site office (309-879-2607)
Large minnows have been good for bass with best action deeper along weed edges says Nellie Thorne. An angler at Oak Run reported catching 130 crappie fishing deep with waxies. Some crappie in deeper water also at Snakeden’s lakes, including McMaster. Walleye have been biting on nightcrawlers in McMaster. Catfish are very good. The largest is a 13-pounder caught by Annie at Cabin Fever. Dipbait is the best bet right now. Bluegill are slower, most coming from deeper water.

Spring Lake
SOURCES: Troy Galvin, Galvin’s Spring Lake Market (309-267-6538) and Larry Karnes, Larry’s Restaurant and Family Bar, Manito (309-968-9500)
Fishing has been slow with few anglers out. Some reports of bass on top-water weedless lures on the south end Thursday morning. Channel catfish are still best, with the evening bite best. Shrimp and dipbait are top choices. Shad would work but has been in short supply. Few reports on bluegill or crappie.

Lake Storey
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg (309-342-7776)
Few anglers have been out with the hot weather. Decent reports on bluegill and crappie, some even in 3-4 feet of water. A few walleye have also been reported on the outside edges of weedlines, most on minnows. Some catfish but not great reports.

Strip Mines
(Fulton, Knox, Peoria and Stark counties)
SOURCE: Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); and Larry Dozard; Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793); Jim’s Bait and Tackle, Hanna City (309-565-9960)
Mixed reports on crappie, with some surprisingly good action on fish in deeper water this past week. Good sizes and numbers reported. Catfish are fair to good on dipbaits fished under a bobber or jug along outer weedlines early or late in the day says Larry Dozard. Bass have been good on Senkos or jigs for larger fish says Adam Jaegle. Target deeper weed edges. Wacky worms will also work if you can wait long enough for them to get down to the deeper fish. Bluegill are fair but have also been deeper.

SOUTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36 and North of Interstate 70

Beaver Dam Lake
SOURCE: Gwen Gilmore, Gilmore Bait & Marine, Carlinville (217-854-8136); Kim Eggers, Beaver Dam Bait Shop, (217-854-6688)
Bass are fair in 6-8 feet of water.

Carlinville Lake
SOURCE: Gwen Gilmore, Gilmore Bait & Marine, Carlinville (217-854-8136)
Bass and catfish are fair. Catfish are biting on shrimp.

Charleston Side Channel Lake
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770)
Rick Cuddy said channel catfish are fair. Catfish are biting on cheese and shrimp in the evening hours.

Lake Decatur
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730)
Joanne Lowe said white bass, catfish and buffalo are good. Cats, while good, are small in size. By the dam, Asian carp, hybrid stripers and buffalo are good.

Lake Glenn Shoals
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
Jack Rebman said bass and catfish are fair. Catfish are biting on Geno’s cheesebait, Sonny’s bait and chicken liver. Bass are biting on crankbaits and plastics in around 5-6 feet of water.

Lake Hillsboro
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
Jack Rebman said catfish are good. Catfish are biting on Geno’s cheesebait at about 4-5 feet in the early and late hours.

Lake Mattoon
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770); Joel Pittman, Mattoon Parks Department (217-254-6680)
Rick Cuddy said catfish are good while bass are fair. Bass are biting on soft plastics and jigs.

Mill Creek Lake
SOURCE: Dennis Shiley, Mill Creek Lake Park (217-889-3901)
Bass fishing has slowed

Lake Sara
SOURCE: Tony Niebrugge, Anthony’s Acres Resort, (217-868-2950)
Catfish and bluegill are good. Crappie and bass are slow. Cats are biting on chicken liver, stinkbait and nightcrawlers. Bluegill are taking waxworms and nightcrawlers. Bass are being caught on various top-water lures.

Lake Shelbyville
SOURCE: Guide Ken Wilson (217-774-5756 or 217-454-2672) at Lithia Springs Guide Service; Margie Oliver, Marv and Kathy’s Bait & Tackle, Sullivan (217-728-4044); Guide Steve Welch (217) 762-7257 or (217) 840-1221
Guide Steve Welch said white bass are extremely good, possibly best in Illinois. Bass are bitting on candy stripers, a bait invented by Guide Steve Welch, that can be found at http://www.lakeshelbyvilleguide.com. Bass are in around 10 feet or less of water, near the north end of the lake. White bass have also been a nuisance for Guide Ken Wilson while he is trolling for crappie. Some reports of nice catfish on the north end for anglers who are drift fishing.
• For a daily report on Lake Shelbyville call (217-774-2020).

Lake Springfield
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-820-9674) and Tater’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-2208)
White bass and catfish are doing well. Bass biting on Cicadas and crazy blades. Cats biting on stinkbait, leeches and nightcrawlers.

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS South of Interstate 70

Baldwin Lake
SOURCE: Site office (618-785-2555)
Fishing has slowed. A few crappie have been caught on jigs. Water temperature is 92 degrees.

Carlyle Lake
SOURCE: Josh Adkins; Buddy Langenhorst, Lavish’s Bait Shop , Carlyle (618-594-4413); Henkel’s (618-594-4818)
Buddy Langenhorst said white bass and catfish are excellent, while crappie, largemouth and sauger are fair. White bass are biting on Little Georges and plastic curly tails. Catfish are biting on cheesebait and Secret Seven. Largemouth bass are taking crankbaits near the rocks and plastics near the wood. Sauger are in the river biting on hair jigs and crankbaits.
• For the latest water level information call (618-594-4637).

Crab Orchard Lake
SOURCE: Ron Reed, Cooksey’s Bait, Marion (618-993-3366); Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354); Kyle Garner, Crappie Pro Shop, Carterville (618-985-8277)
Ron Reed said fishing is slow. Catfish are fair with crappie very slow. Catfish are biting on leeches, cheese and cutbaits by the rocks or under the bridges. Crappie are 5-6 or 10-12 feet deep over the open sets biting on jigs and minnows. Bluegill are off the bank at around 4-5 feet. Bass are biting on spinnerbaits and soft plastics. Guide Jason Johns said the best spot for bass is shallow in the grass.

Lake of Egypt
SOURCE: Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354)
Jason Johns said bass are excellent at night. They are off the main lake points and bridge corners.

Forbes Lake
SOURCE: Site manager Glenn Wegener (618-547-3381); Mike Polcyn, Mike’s Bait & Tackle Shop, Louisville (618-665-3209)
Catfish are good, while bluegill, largemouth and crappie are fair, with stripers slow. Cats are biting on liver and stinkbait in the evening hours. Bluegill are in about 4-6 feet of water biting on red wigglers. Largemouth bass are taking plastic worms and crankbaits near the brush iles, laydowns and off of the points. Crappie are biting on jigs and minnows.

Horseshoe Lake, Alexander County
SOURCE: Jim Melton, Melton’s Fish Camp (618-776-5504)
Jim Melton said catfish are good and crappie are spotty. Catfish are in biting on nightcrawlers drift fishing in the middle of the lake over deeper water. Crappie are biting on tube jigs and minnows deep in the middle of the lake.

Kinkaid Lake
SOURCE: Janet Graeff, Top of the Hill Bait Shop, Muphysboro (618-684-2923); Guide Al Nutty (618-694-4897)
Guide Al Nutty said crappie and catfish are good, while bluegill, walleye and largemouth bass are fair. Crappie are measuring around 9-11 inches in length and being found in about 12-18 feet of water biting on small minnows. Catfish are 12-15 inches deep at night, 8-12 feet during the day. Cats biting on nightcrawlers, cut shad and stinkbait near the brush piles and laydowns. Bluegill are biting on crickets near the outside edge of the weeds but are small. Walleye are down by the dam in around 7-9 feet of water, biting on deep-diving crankbaits. Largemouth bass are biting on deep-diving crankbaits and Carolina rigs off of the points.

Little Grassy Lake
SOURCE: Shirley Lowery, Little Grassy Boat Dock (618-457-6655)
Bluegill are very good and catfish are good with bass fishing slow. Bluegill are spawning and are biting on crickets and red wigglers. Cats are deep, biting on chicken liver and shrimp. Bass are biting on chartreuse lizards and light-colored buzzbaits.

Mermet Lake
SOURCE: Shawnee Bait & Tackle, Creal Springs (618-996-3089)
Catfish are good and bass are fair.

Newton Lake
SOURCE: Ruth Rauch, Rauch’s Bait & Tackle, Newton (618-752-2151)
Catfish are good. Water is hot, but trolling deep at around 16-18 feet during the day and shallower during the night hours has been shown to work.

Rend Lake
SOURCE: Todd Gessner (618-513-0520); Jason Johns (618-927-3432); Bill Hudnall, Rend Lake Sporting Goods, Mount Vernon (618-242-2191)
Jason Johns said white bass and catfish are great, but largemouth bass and crappie are slow. White bass are biting on jigs and rooster tails. Cats are biting on cut shad and leeches. Largemouth are by the rocks, taking shaky head rigs and crankbaits. Crappie are best in the morning and evening hours.

RIVERS

• Click here for water level information.

Des Plaines River
SOURCE: Andrew Ragas
• Click here for a Des Plaines River fishing forum.

DuPage River
SOURCE: Click here for a DuPage River fishing forum.

Illinois River
SOURCE: Carol Culjan at Cajun Sporting Goods in Utica (815-667-4222)
• Near Utica water has dropped down and is cleaning up nicely. Catfish are good on crawfish and cut shad or dipbait. The dam has been a hotspot for cats. Early and night is best along the edge of the channel. White bass are biting early 5-9 a.m. on blade baits and panther martin silver spinners or rooster tails. No reports yet from the dam on white bass, but they may be moving up with clearer water says Darrell “Buster” Culjan. A few smallmouth and largemouth are also biting. The Big Vermilion is very low and clean and spinners and leeches under a bobber are working well for smallies.
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Tim Presley, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193)
• Near Peoria white bass are still slow but largemouth bass have picked up nicely as water has dropped says Adam Jaegle. Spinnerbaits and crankbaits are producing nice catches. Channel catfish have slowed some with the dropping water and are moving to channel edges during the day. Dipbait on flats in the evening is still a good producer.
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094)
• Near Havana catfish are fair on dipbait but the real story has been largemouth bass, which are good on crankbaits says Paul Dinkheller. Plastic worms will also work well early around structure. White bass are not as easy to find, though if you can find shad you will catch white bass.

Kankakee River
SOURCE: Ed Mullady, Sportsman’s Letter (815-932-7285)
• Ed Mullady reports that the Kankakee is up and down depending upon how much rain reaches it! In Indiana, area around the Point north of English Lake, smallmouth bass have been good on minnows and spinners with some largemouth there and at nearby Kankakee State (Indiana) F&W area on minnows, plastic worms and imitation frogs. From the LaSalle F&W Area (Indiana Rt. 41 to the Illinois line) fair to good on largemouth bass at quieter water shorelines on above baits. Some pike on big minnows, Dr. Spoons here, also very close to the bank.
• In Illinois,  catfishing is good up and down the river. Best at night on minnows, cheesebaits, chicken liver. Some caught during the day near weedbeds, logs on cheesebaits, plastic catfish grub with cheese hamburger. In the Momence area, good for smallmouth and largemouth bass. Smallies best on jig and twister tail, medium minnows, crankbaits, Mepps No. 2, 3 spinners, imitation frogs, helgramites. Largemouth bass good on spinnerbaits, Jitterbugs, Rattlin Rogues, fly-rod bass-size poppers, streamer flies and plastic worms. Smallmouth bass are also good around Kankakee River State Park in Illinois especially around Nature, Carly and Gordon Islands.

Mississippi River
SOURCE: Iowa DNR
Anglers from the Galesburg area have been frustrated by high water on the river during what should be a hot time for catfishing most years.

Mississippi River Pool 12
River stage at Dubuque is 11.18 feet and rising.  Water clarity is fair and water temperature is in the low 80s. Anglers should be on the lookout for radio tagged white crappie in Pool 12. Tags are attached externally to the dorsal fin and we ask that these fish be released or the tags returned from harvested fish.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel cats are biting well on stink bait around snags in sloughs and side channels.  Bluegill - Fair: Bluegills are biting the backwaters and marinas around snags, vegetation beds, and docks on crawlers under a bobber.  Largemouth Bass - Fair: Bass have been biting on top-water frogs around vegetation in the backwaters and sloughs.  Walleye - Fair: Walleye fishing has been good around Steamboat on crankbaits in 12-20 feet of water.  Some fish are also coming off of wing dams.  With the high water, look for dams or sections of dam that have less current.  Freshwater Drum - Excellent: Drum are biting on crawlers fished on the bottom.

Mississippi River Pool 13
River stage at Bellevue is 10.09 feet and rising. Water clarity is fair and water temperature is in the low 80s.  Channel Catfish - Fair: Channel cats have been biting on stink bait fished in the sloughs and side channels.  White Bass - Fair: The white bass have been working schools of bait fish along the river front in Bellevue.  Cast minnow imitating crankbaits or spinners into the frenzy and hold on.  Largemouth Bass - Fair: Bass have been biting well on top-water frogs dragged over vegetation in backwaters and sloughs.  Walleye - Fair: With the high water, look for walleyes on wing dams or sections of wing dams with less current.  Fish are biting on cranks or three-way rigs tipped with crawlers.  Freshwater Drum - Good: Drum have been biting on crawlers fished on the bottom.

Mississippi River Pool 14
River stage at Camanche is 12.18 feet and rising. Water clarity is fair and water temperature is in the low 80s.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel cats are biting on stink bait or shrimp fished around snags in the side channels and sloughs.  Largemouth Bass - Fair: Bass have been biting on top-water frogs dragged over vegetation in the backwaters and sloughs.  Freshwater Drum - Good: Drum have been biting on crawlers fished on the bottom in areas of flowing water.

For fishing information in Pool 12-15 of the Mississippi River contact the Bellevue Fish Management and Research Station at 563-872-4976

Mississippi River Pool 16
Tail water stage at Lock and Dam 15 is 9.37 feet.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are biting on crawlers, leeches and dip baits fished along riprap shorelines and snags along the main channel and sloughs.  White Bass - Slow:  Bluegill - Slow: Some bluegills are being caught in Sunset Marina fishing pieces of worm under a bobber. Some fish are also being picked up casting small spinners. Fishing has been best right before evening.  Crappie - Fair: Some crappies are being caught in Sunset Marina on minnows. Fishing has been best towards evening.  Sauger - Slow:  Walleye - Slow: Wing dam fishing has been slow due to recent high and muddy water.

Mississippi River Pool 17
Tail water stage at Lock and Dam 16 is 8.40 feet. Big Timber access is open. Fishing has been slow. Most fishing reports are coming from area lakes and ponds.  Channel Catfish - Fair: Some channel catfish are being caught using stink bait and crawlers fished around snags. Some channel catfish are also being caught from shore along the Muscatine riverfront using night crawlers and stink bait.  White Bass - Slow:  Bluegill - Slow:  Crappie - Slow:  Walleye - Slow:

Mississippi River Pool 18
Tail water stage at Lock and Dam 17 is 10.71 feet.  Fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water. Most fishing reports are coming from area lakes and ponds.  Channel Catfish - No Report:  White Bass - No Report:  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pool 19
Tail water stage at Lock and Dam 18 is 7.44 feet. Fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water. Most fishing reports are coming from area lakes and ponds.  Channel Catfish - Fair: Channel catfish are being caught on crawlers and stink bait.  White Bass - No Report:  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pools 16-20:  River conditions are improving. Some of the boat ramps are still closed. Main channel water temperature is 82 degrees. Fishing has been slow throughout the pools. Most fishing reports are coming from area lakes and ponds. For more fishing information contact the Fairport Fish Hatchery at 563-263-5062.

Pecatonica River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Tom Calam said the river is currently closed due to high water levels. Declared a flood disaster due to around 17 inches of rain.

Rock River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
• Near Rockford, Tom Calam said the river is currently closed due to high water levels. Declared a flood disaster due to around 17 inches of rain.
SOURCE: Ray and Irene Hays, Bunny’s Bait Shop, Dixon (815-288-3812)
• Near Dixon Ray Hays said the water is high, warm and contains debris. The river is currently closed to boats. However, Carp are good, catfish and walleye are fair. Cats are small, but bitting on shrimp, chicken liver and crushed minnows in the backwater. Walleye are bitting on minnows and roadrunners with worms. A 9-pound and 7-pound walleye was caught near Grand Detour

Spoon River
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg and Paul Dinkheller at Dink’s in Lewistown (309-547-1094)
Spoon River has been fishable prior to Wednesday’s rains, which bumped the level back up. Depending on rains, anglers should be back on the dam at Bernadotte by this weekend. They have been catching a few flatheads and good numbers of channel cats on dipbait says Dinkheller.

Fish appear to be gulping for air at the surface of the pond, or they may show up dead around the shoreline for no apparent reason.

Alarm bells start to go off, and the pond owner frantically tries to determine what is going wrong.

Chances are it’s a common story.

In mid-to-late summer, high temperatures, a shallow body of water and dying algae combine to reduce oxygen levels in ponds to dangerously low levels. August is typically the busy month for fish kills, but this year they have started earlier than usual.

“With the unusually hot weather, there has been an increase in summer kills,” says Dan Stephenson, district fisheries biologist with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
Stephenson has been helping with administrative duties in the Springfield office lately, and he has fielded a number of calls.

“We received a number of reports statewide that I forwarded to the district biologists, and I’ve had quite a few in my district, too,” he says.

Stephenson says pond owners retire for the evening with no problems, only to wake up to dead or gasping fish.

“Ponds are at their lowest oxygen levels just before sunrise,” he says. “Pond owners are always astounded when I explain what’s happening.

“‘It’s never happened before,’” he says. “I hear it nearly every time.”

And if dead and dying fish aren’t enough of a shock, Stephenson says the big ones die first.

“Summer kills never get 100 percent of the total number of fish in the pond but generally do create a situation where the pond population is out of balance,” he says. “A summer kill gets the larger fish first, such as the grass carp (and) — if they are there — large channel catfish and bass

“The kill works its way to smaller and smaller fish, and the kill gets more severe.”

Why it happens
Just like people, ponds go through an aging process.

Fish kills often occur on older ponds that have become shallow as they fill with sediment over time.

“These kills occur on relatively small, shallow, old, fertile ponds or ponds that are older than 15 years in age and less than 12 feet deep,” Stephenson says.

One culprit is an overabundance of plankton algae, the microscopic plants that make pond water appear green — not the pond scum that is visible on the surface.

“These microscopic plants build up their numbers over the course of the summer, making the pond a pea-soup green,” he says. “With a few cloudy days or even overnight, these tiny plants die without sunlight and go to the bottom of the pond, where they begin to decompose.

“The bacteria that perform decomposition use up the oxygen, leaving little remaining for the fish,” Stephenson says.

The good news is summer kills only last a few days. But Stephenson says the factors that caused the kill don’t just go away.

Aeration can extend a pond’s life, but installing a pump and fountain to aerate a shallow pond may not happen quickly enough to stop a kill in progress.

“It makes a pond owner sick to see his fish population belly up,” Stephenson says.

But at this point, it may be best to break the dam, let the bottom dry out and then have the sediment removed and the pond deepened. This is equivalent to starting over, and it can be expensive.

Sometimes, though, there is little choice.

“If it’s happened once, it will likely happen again,” he says. “Ponds and lakes go through an aging process, and this is part of it that happens towards the end of the pond’s life.”

The 47-year-old Florissant man was fishing in the Missouri River just before 1 a.m. Tuesday when he snagged a 130-pound blue catfish measuring 57 inches long and 45 inches in girth.

STLtoday.com, the website for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, reported it appears to be a state record, topping a 117-pound catfish caught on a trotline in the Osage River in 1964.

Bernal said he fought the fish for 15 minutes and spent another half-hour lifting it into his boat near the Columbia Bottom Conservation Area. His girlfriend, Janet Momphard of St. Charles, was on hand to help.

“I am still numb,” Bernal said. “I’m still in shock that he’s actually that big. That’s the biggest fish I’ve ever seen.”

Officials said Bernal’s fish appears to be a world record-setter among blue catfish, beating a 124-pounder caught in the Mississippi River in 2005 by an Alton, Ill., angler.

Of those cau ght in Missouri, the biggest previous blue catfish listed on the state Department of Conservation website weighed 103 pounds and was taken in the Missouri River in 1991.

Bernal told the Post-Dispatch he can hardly believe the size of his fish.

“This is pretty much it for me,” he said. “This is pretty much it. But I’m still gonna go out there. I’m gonna go out there and catch a bigger one. We’ll just have to see what happens. You never know.”

Most years, his sons have all the good stories to tell. But this year, Havera came back with a tale worth retelling. Here is his account of the catch.

“Hooked this 42 inch northern while just starting to retrieve the 9 inch smallie. Fortunately the northern somehow got the single hook in the side of its mouth and the bass had the line running through its lower jaw where the hook pulled out and the bass just slid up and down the line.

“Eventually saw the bass first since it was several feet above the northern on the line and was about ready to credit it as the baddest smallie ever until the northern flashed by the boat!

“After 20 minutes both were in the boat. I’ve gotten northern on northern and northern on bass before but usually they can’t release from their grip on the prey fish-or don’t want too-until it’s too late.

“Got the fish on July 2 in southern Ontario. Released the northern for the next trip. The bass was a goner.”

Give us our choice of anywhere to fish in Illinois right now and we’d pick…

• Channel catfish, all over the state, particularly just before dark.
• Salmon fishing out of Waukegan or North Point harbors on Lake Michigan.
• Saugeye at Argyle Lake.

WALL HANGERS

• A 40-inch muskie was caught at the Oregon dam on the Rock River this week.
• Zach Wallin, 16, caught this 24-pound chinook salmon on July 8 while fishing aboard Frank Didier’s Snow Goose boat.

NORTHERN ILLINOIS North of Interstate 80

Apple Canyon Lake
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Tom Calam said bluegill and panfish are good, with crappie, walleye and bass fair. Bluegill are around 6-9 inches long. Panfish are biting on crickets, waxies and leaf and trout worms in around 20-25 feet of water. On Lake Summerset, walleye are spotty, but are coming out at the late hours. Panfish are fair, biting on waxworms and artificial bait.

Lake Carroll
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337).
Tom Calam said walleye are fair with panfish being hit and miss. Walleye are deep by the breaking walls, biting on minnows, leeches and crankbaits. On Lake Le-Aqua-Na, a Kiddies Fishing Pond was opened Saturday for kids 8 and under. Bluegill, catfish, crappie and panfish are good. On the main lake, largemouth bass and catfish are good, bass bitting on leeches and cats on nightcrawlers, dipbait and live bait.

Forest Preserve Lakes
SOURCE: Lee’s Bait and Tackle of Elk Grove Village (847-593-6424); Henry’s (312-225-8538)
• Click here for a Cook County Forest Preserves lake fishing forum.
• Here are links to information on various forest preserve lakes. Cook County, DeKalb County, DuPage County, Kane County, Kendall County, Lake County, McHenry County and Will County.

Fox Chain O’ Lakes
SOURCE: Greg Dickson, Triangle Sports & Marine,  Antioch (1-847-395-0813).
Catfish and walleye are good. Catfish will be near the river on shallow and flat areas biting on nightcrawlers and prepared bait. Walleyes will be best near the bridges and current areas. They are biting on leeches and nightcrawlers. Bass, smallmouth, bluegill and crappie are fair. Bass will be near the emergent weeds and laydowns. Fishing the shoreline or deep weeds is the best bet. Bass are biting on plastic worms and plastic frogs. Smallmouth are taking crank and spinnerbaits. Bluegills are in the shallow water and the crappie are near channels, so check near the boat lifts and downed trees. For muskie, Mike Jackson of the Arlington Heights Daily Herald said “Channel Lake appears to be the hot spot now for muskies as well as largemouth bass in the weeds.” Try bucktail spinners for muskie.
• Click here to check updates on no-wake status and water levels or call 847-587-8540 .

Lake Michigan
SOURCES: Henry’s (312-225-8538), Vet’s (773-734-6720) and Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times.
• On the Chicago lakefront salmon and perch are good, Bass are fair. Salmon are deep, around 100 or more feet off of the shore and are biting on artificial lures. Perch are still off limits to adults, but are biting on minnows, pond crabs, nightcrawlers and artificial lures. Mike Jackson reports, “Lake trout action is very good straight out of Belmont.”
SOURCE: The Salmon Stop (847-244-2525 or fishing hotline 847-244-9876);  Capt. Nick Ganzer (847-234-7208).
• Near Waukegan Salmon Stop reports brown trout, king salmon and steelhead trout are good in the early and late hours. They are biting on flys and dodgers. Capt. Nick Ganzer reports: “Waukegan/North Point waters continue to enjoy good to excellent chinook, coho and steelhead fishing. Most fish are being taken inside of 100 feet of water. Even though surface temps are in the 70s the thermocline remains down 25-30 feet (50-degree water). Best action continues to be early morning and evenings. Action slows on bright days. Best set-ups: dodger/flashers w flies off DR/dipsies. Leadcore w/ Hey Baby/ Bloody nose/J Plugs/ glow spoons, deadly. Best depths continue to be 40-60 feet Fish continue to hold North and South of Waukegan Harbor. Boats report as many as 10-20 fish on per trip/ boating fish is dependent on angler skill. Several four-year-old kings being caught.”
SOURCE: Mik-Lurch (219-989-0575)
• Near Indiana fishing has varied day to day. Fishing has been good off of the Pier, Mount Baldy and New Buffalo. Salmon are good and are in around 40-60 feet of water biting on meat rigs, dodgers and flys.  Perch are also in the weedbeds at around 20-30 feet of water.

Shabbona Lake
SOURCES: Guide Jay Angel (815-739-7030) and Denny Sands, Shabbona Lakeside Bait & Tackle, Shabbona (815-824-2581).
Perch, bluegill, Crappie and catfish are all fair. Water temperature is 81. Due to the heat, live baits will work best near weeds or deep by weedbeds and trees.
• Park hours November to January 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; February to March 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; April 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; May to October 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
•Click here for a Shabbona Lake fishing forum

Wolf Lake
SOURCE: Mik-Lurch (219-989-0575)
Mik-Lurch is hosting a fishing derby on Saturday, from 7 a.m. to noon at Wolf Lake Park.

NORTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 80 and North of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36

Anderson Lake
SOURCE: Site manager Ed Oest (309-759-4484)
Very few anglers have been out with this hot weather. The river has been dropping about 6 inches every 24 hours. Plan is to aerial seed millet next week if possible in the West Point Area.

Argyle Lake
SOURCE:Site manager Robin Hinchee (309-776-3422); The Deck II Bait and Boat Rental shop (309-776-4275)
Saugeye are very good says Robin Hinchee. Some good action along the boat docks, with 3-4 pounders reported. Crappie and bluegill are also good. Catfish are fair.

Banner Marsh
SOURCE: Adam Jaegle, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
To catch bass you need to show up early or fish late. Scum frog bite has improved and buzzbaits are also producing. Low-light conditions help fishing. Channel catfish are fair to good on dipbait, liver and shrimp.

Lake Bloomington
SOURCE: Larry Dozard
Channel catfish are fair to good on liver and dipbaits says Larry Dozard. Bass were fair along outer weedlines, off points or near deeper timber on crankbaits, swim baits and plastics. Bluegill are fair and small, taking waxworms and crickets along weed edges and seawalls. Anglers report a few crappie on drifted minnows or small swimbaits near brush in 10-15 feet of water.

Braidwood Lake
SOURCE: Del Colvin, Bert’s Bait, Essex (815-365-2103); Jon Meder, Jon’s Bait & Tackle, South Wilmington (815-237-2822)
Meder said the south ramp is shut down.

Clinton Lake
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730); Clinton Bait and Tackle, (217-935-3851)
Joanne Lowe said catfish are good and white bass are fair. Catfish are biting on stinkbait, shad guts and shrimp. Walleye and stripers are fair according to Clinton Bait and Tackle.

Dawson Lake
SOURCE: Leon and Judy Gibson, Moraine View Concession (309-724-8295)
Catfish are good, with bass and walleye fair. Catfish are biting on chicken liver. Walleye are deep and taking jigs and worms.

Emiquon Preserve
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); The Nature Conservancy (309-547-2730)
Frustration is mounting for bass anglers accustomed to huge catches here. Some reports have even come in of anglers blanking. But there are still bass to be caught. Try inside weed edges off deeper ditches with crankbaits. Soft plastics are also good early or in low light conditions. Anglers must obtain a free permit at Dickson Mounds Museum (open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) before fishing here. Water levels are well down from earlier this year and there’s much more exposed shoreline.

Evergreen Lake
SOURCE: Brad Wood, operations supervisor, (309-726-2022) or Larry Dozard
Saugeye are still being caught, but they have been slower says Brad Wood. Most are still being caught with crawlers. Crappie limits are still being caught regularly on tubes and minnows. Most crappie reported are in 15-20 feet of water. Larry Dozard said crappie were suspended around brush in west part of lake on points at or in coves about 10 foot water on jig and minnows or small swim baits. Bluegill continue to do OK along weed lines on waxies and crawler pieces. Catfishing continues to be good on livers, shrimp, and stinkbaits. Bass are best on top water baits in the evenings. Water clarity is 1-2 feet and temperature is in the low 80s.
NOTE: The Main Recreation Area (East) Boat Launch WILL BE CLOSED from 6:00 p.m. on Friday, July 16th, to Noon on Saturday, July 17th, 2010 for the Evergreen Lake International Triathlon. Fishermen/Boaters are asked to use the White Oak (West) Boat Launch during these closure times. Campground facilities remain open. Also, a portion of Evergreen Lake will be closed to ALL watercraft traffic. The area from the Boat Rental south across the lake and east will be closed from Midnight to approximately 10:00 a.m. Saturday, July 17th, 2010. This includes the area around Deer Island, Six-Mile Creek Bay, and around the Boat Rental facility.
• Click here for up-to-date lake reports.

Heidecke Lake
SOURCE: Don Stephens, Greybeards (815-941-1504); Guide Mike Lynch (708-655-7667); Guide Greg Heath (815-258-9136)
Muskies are good, walleye are fair and stripers are still slow says Greybeards. Muskies are biting on crankbaits and walleye are biting on nightcrawlers.

LaSalle Lake
SOURCE: Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times; Guide Mike Lynch (708-655-7667)
• Click here for a LaSalle Lake fishing forum.

Mazonia Lakes
SOURCE: Del Colvin, Bert’s Bait, Essex (815-365-2103)
Bass and crappie are fair to poor said Del Colvin.

Powerton Lake
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
A few blue catfish early in the week but extremely warm water after that has kept many anglers away. Powerton Lake will close to any public use for additional levee work July 26-28 and will reopen to anglers on July 29 at 6 a.m.

Snakeden Hollow SFWA
SOURCE: Nellie Thorne, Depot Bait and Tackle, Victoria (309-879-2401); Site office (309-879-2607)
Few anglers out lately due to the heat. Channel catfish are best on bankpoles at night. The few rod-and-reelers catching them are doing best at night on dipbait. A few bluegill have been reported. Crappie have slowed, with a few coming suspended over deep water.

Spring Lake
SOURCES: Troy Galvin, Galvin’s Spring Lake Market (309-267-6538) and Larry Karnes, Larry’s Restaurant and Family Bar, Manito (309-968-9500)
Fishing has been slow. Channel catfish are fair, with a few still biting in the evenings. Anglers are pretty scarce. Best bet is shrimp and dipbait. Fish the shade in the evenings.

Lake Storey
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg (309-342-7776)
Few anglers out lately, though bluegill are still good on small pieces of worm, waxworms or crickets. They are early and late too or in the shade. Bass have been biting well early and late on top-waters on weeds and around outside weed edges with plastics or crankbaits. Few crappie reports, some in 8-12 feet of water. No muskie news. Walleye are slow.

Strip Mines
(Fulton, Knox, Peoria and Stark counties)
SOURCE: Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); and Larry Dozard; Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793); Jim’s Bait and Tackle, Hanna City (309-565-9960)
Summer patterns. What’s that mean? Algae blooms. Weeds. Fish early and late for bass with top-waters. Lots of small bluegill along shore weeds and on laydowns, with occasional big fish biting in deeper water. Perhaps best of all are channel catfish on dipbait and shrimp in 4-10 feet of water.

SOUTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36 and North of Interstate 70

Charleston Side Channel Lake
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770)
Rick Cuddy said channel catfish are doing good, bass while crappie and stripers are fair. Cats are biting best on cheesebait. Bass are being caught with top-water baits in the early and late hours and jigs. Fish are deep in the water. On the river, largemouth bass are biting on small spinnerbaits, jigs and small plastics.

Lake Decatur
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730)
Joanne Lowe said catfish are good while white bass, crappie and drum perch are fair. Catfish are taking nightcrawlers, shrimp, stinkbait and shad. Fish are shallow. Near the dam, Asian carp, buffalo and catfish are all doing well. Carp and buffalo are biting on doughballs.

Lake Glenn Shoals
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
Jack Rebman said catfish are good, bass are fair and crappie are slow. Catfish are biting on leeches, cheese, shrimp and liver. Bass are taking top-water baits and plastics off of the points. Both fish are doing well in the early and late hours and are shallow.

Lake Hillsboro
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
Jack Rebman said catfish are good, bluegill and bass are fair. Bluegill are biting on redworms.

Lake Jacksonville
SOURCE: Tom Holmes, Military Surplus Outlet, Jacksonville (217-243-6161) and Lake Jacksonville Campground (217-479-4646)
Catfish are doing well on stinkbait and shrimp.

Lake Mattoon
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770); Joel Pittman, Mattoon Parks Department (217-254-6680)
Rick Cuddy said bass are good, with catfish fair. Bass taking plastics and jigs. Fish are in around 8-10 feet of water.

Mill Creek Lake
SOURCE: Dennis Shiley, Mill Creek Lake Park (217-889-3901)
Bass, catfish and crappie are all good.

Sangchris Lake
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-820-9674)
Catfish are doing well, biting on stinkbait and leeches.

Lake Sara
SOURCE: Tony Niebrugge, Anthony’s Acres Resort, (217-868-2950)
Bluegill are good, while catfish and bass are fair. Bluegill are biting on nightcrawlers. Cats are biting on nightcrawlers and redworms. Water temperature is around 86.

Lake Shelbyville
SOURCE: Guide Ken Wilson (217-774-5756 or 217-454-2672) at Lithia Springs Guide Service; Margie Oliver, Marv and Kathy’s Bait & Tackle, Sullivan (217-728-4044); Guide Steve Welch (217) 762-7257 or (217) 840-1221
Guide Ken Wilson said trolling for crappie is best in 15 feet of water. White bass are in 18 feet and are also being caught by trolling Bandit crankbaits. Walleye are slow. The lake is running about 86 degrees and is slightly above summer pool.
• For a daily report on Lake Shelbyville call (217-774-2020).

Lake Springfield
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-820-9674) and Tater’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-2208)
Catfish are doing well, biting on stinkbait and leeches.

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS South of Interstate 70

Baldwin Lake
SOURCE: Site office (618-785-2555)
Catfish, bluegill and crappie are good. Catfish are biting on cut shad and leeches. Bluegill are biting on crickets and worms. Crappie are taking jigs and minnows.

Carlyle Lake
SOURCE: Josh Adkins; Buddy Langenhorst, Lavish’s Bait Shop , Carlyle (618-594-4413); Henkel’s (618-594-4818)
Buddy Langenhorst said catfish, white bass and bluegill are good with largemouth bass fair. Catfish biting on cutbait, nightcrawlers, shrimp, Geno’s cheesebait and dipbait. White bass taking crankbaits, curly tails, tube jigs, spinnerbaits and rooster tails. Bluegill biting on waxworms and mealworms. Largemouth taking crankbaits, buzzbaits and spinnerbaits. Trotliners are using cut bait. On the river, catfish, white bass and bluegill are good. Catfish taking cheese, shad, cut bait and leeches.. White bass biting on minnows, curly tails and rooster tails. Bluegills biting on waxworms and mealworms.
• For the latest water level information call (618-594-4637).

Crab Orchard Lake
SOURCE: Ron Reed, Cooksey’s Bait, Marion (618-993-3366); Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354); Kyle Garner, Crappie Pro Shop, Carterville (618-985-8277)
Ron Reed said bluegill, crappie, bass and catfish are good. Bluegills are around the bank biting on crickets and waxworms Crappie are deep and biting on minnows and jigs. Bass are biting on artificial worms and spinnerbaits.Catfish are biting on leeches, cheese and cut baits and are by the bank or deep.

Lake of Egypt
SOURCE: Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354)
Jason Johns said bass are extremely good at night. Crappie are fair in the early and late hours, suspended around 10-15 feet. Bass are biting on shaky-heads and Carolina rigs off the points.

Horseshoe Lake, Alexander County
SOURCE: Jim Melton, Melton’s Fish Camp (618-776-5504)
Jim Melton said channel catfish are fair, biting on nightcrawlers and liver drift fishing in the middle. Crappie are spotty, but can be found by the trees in deeper water. Jigs are best for them.

Kinkaid Lake
SOURCE: Janet Graeff, Top of the Hill Bait Shop, Muphysboro (618-684-2923); Guide Al Nutty (618-694-4897)
Guide Al Nutty said catfish are very good and bass are good while bluegill, walleye and crappie are fair. The water is too warm for muskies, with temperatures running 85-89. Catfish are at a depth of 10-14 feet during the day and in the shallow water, around 18 inches, at night.. Cats are biting on nightcrawlers, shad, cut bait, small bluegills and large minnows. Bass are biting on Carolina rigs and deep-diving crankbaits and are in about 8-12 feet of water. Walleye are being caught trolling and on deep-diving crankbaits at a depth of around 14-16 feet. Bluegills are taking pieces of nightcrawlers, redworms and crickets.

Little Grassy Lake
SOURCE: Shirley Lowery, Little Grassy Boat Dock (618-457-6655)
Bluegill are very good, while catfish and bass are fair. Bluegill are spawning again and are taking crickets near the shore. Cats are deep, biting on chicken liver, shrimp and nightcrawlers. Bass are in about 6 feet of water 10 feet off of shore taking buzzbaits and dark rubber lizards.

Newton Lake
SOURCE: Ruth Rauch, Rauch’s Bait & Tackle, Newton (618-752-2151)
Water is hot. Catfish are fair.

Rend Lake
SOURCE: Todd Gessner (618-513-0520); Jason Johns (618-927-3432); Bill Hudnall, Rend Lake Sporting Goods, Mount Vernon (618-242-2191)
Jason Johns said catfish are good, with bass fair and crappie slowed down. Cats are on the main lake flats and drop offs bitting on cut bait. Bass are near the rocks and deep, taking Shaky heads, plastics and crankbaits. Crappie are best in the early and late hours, biting on white jigs and minnows. A surprising number of big fish are being caught up to 16 inches, including the slab below caught on July 8 by Nick Palentino of Chicago.

RIVERS

• Click here for water level information.

Des Plaines River
SOURCE: Andrew Ragas
The river is up and muddy, but not flooded. Water temperatures are warm and running near 80-degrees. Gauge height is at a .6, with flow rates at a 690 over 430. Wade with caution due to the dark water, but take note that the river is still completely fishable.

For now, the best options to catch anything from the river is to either fish early or late in the day, and take advantage of low-light
conditions.

Northern Pike and Channel Catfish are providing anglers with the best excitement. Before the most recent wave of rainfall, there were unconfirmed reports of Pike being caught in the mid 30-inch range, along with the standard small snakes around everywhere too.

Most Pike are now relating to the deepest and coldest water possible, whether it is deeper pools, in the middle of current, mid-river channels and the edges, weedbeds, shaded shorelines, and downed wood. For the most part, fish are running small in the 15 to 25 inch range. Spinnerbaits, inline spinners with #3 and 4 blades, shallow running crankbaits, and buzzbaits have been catching fish.

Channel Catfish seem to be all over the place right now as well, and providing anglers with the most consistency. It’s an all-day bite, but the fishing tends to pick up in early mornings, and at around sunset into dark. Dunk some live or cut bait in the deeper pools with current, and enjoy sipping a cold beer from your lawn chair on shore! Majority of these fish are small, with the decent fish running in the range of 3 to 5 pounds.

Not much action taking place amongst other species of fish, and likewise on the feeder creeks and streams.
• Click here for a Des Plaines River fishing forum.

DuPage River
SOURCE: Click here for a DuPage River fishing forum.

Illinois River
SOURCE: Carol Culjan at Cajun Sporting Goods in Utica (815-667-4222)
• Near Utica the water is clean and the weather is hot. Catfish are biting early morning on cut bait shad and dipbait and some shrimp. Early is 3 a.m. to 9 a.m. and then they are done. No reports of white bass this week. The water was still 3-4 feet high down by Hennepin and Henry and still draining out of backwaters. Once the water drops a bit more the whites should be good.
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Tim Presley, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193)
• Near Peoria, the river is dropping and catfish are good on the river and in backwaters like Duck Island. Dipbait will give you all the cats you want, though you’ll have to sort through some small fish. 
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094)
• Near Havana there have been few reports, aside from decent catfish action on flats in the evening on dipbait and cut Asian carp. Some largemouth bass on spinnerbaits, but action is not great.

Kankakee River
SOURCE: Ed Mullady, Sportsman’s Letter (815-932-7285)
• Ed Mullady reports smallmouth and largemouth bass are good in the Momence area. Smallmouths are also good from the Kankakee River State Park into Des Plaines Conservation Area. Use weighted keeper hooks and twister tails, live minnows and Mepps spinners.

Mississippi River
SOURCE: Iowa DNR
The Missisippi River is still high, but you can put a boat in says Al Hayden.

Mississippi River Pool 12
River stage at Dubuque is 11.17 feet and falling.  Water clarity is fair and water temperatures are in the low 80s. Anglers should be on the lookout for radio tagged white crappie in Pool 12. Tags are attached externally to the dorsal fin and we ask that these fish be released or the tags returned from harvested fish.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel cats are biting well on stink bait around snags in sloughs and side channels.  Bluegill - Fair: Bluegills are biting the backwaters and marinas around snags, vegetation beds and docks on crawlers under a bobber.  Walleye - Fair: Walleye fishing has been good around Steamboat on crankbaits in 12 to 20 feet of water.  Some fish are also coming off of wing dams.  With the high water, look for dams or sections of dam that have less current.  Freshwater Drum - Excellent: Drum are biting on crawlers fished on the bottom.

Mississippi River Pool 13
River stage at Bellevue is 10.30 feet and falling. Water clarity is fair and water temperatures are in the low 80s. Channel Catfish - Fair: Channel cats have been biting on stink bait fished in the sloughs and side channels.  White Bass - Fair: The white bass have been working schools of bait fish along the river front in Bellevue. Cast minnow imitating crank baits or spinners into the frenzy and hold on.  Walleye - Fair: With the high water, look for walleyes on wing dams or sections of wing dams with less current.  Fish are biting on cranks or three-way rigs tipped with crawlers.  Freshwater Drum - Good: Drum have been biting on crawlers fished on the bottom.

Mississippi River Pool 14
River stage at Camanche is 12.88 feet and falling. Water clarity is poor and water temperatures are in the low 80s. Channel Catfish - Fair: Channel cats are biting on stink bait fished around snags in the side channels and sloughs.  Walleye - Fair: A few walleyes are being caught in the sand pits.  Freshwater Drum - Good: Drum have been biting on crawlers fished on the bottom in areas of flowing water.

For fishing information in Pool 12-15 of the Mississippi River contact the Bellevue Fish Management and Research Station at 563-872-4976

Mississippi River Pool 16
Tailwater stage at Lock and Dam 15 is 10.63 feet and falling. Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are biting on crawlers, leeches and dipbaits fished along riprap shorelines and snags along the main channel and sloughs.White Bass - Fair: White bass are being caught casting crankbaits, spinners, and jigs/twisters in Sunset Marina. A few white bass are starting to be picked up in front of the Dock restaurant casting jigs and twisters.  Bluegill - Slow: Some bluegills are being caught in Sunset Marina fishing pieces of worm under a bobber. Some fish are also being picked up casting small spinners. Fishing has been best right before evening. Crappie - Fair: Some crappies are being caught in Sunset Marina. Fishing has been best towards evening. Sauger - Slow:  Walleye - Slow:

Mississippi River Pool 17
Tailwater stage at Lock and Dam 16 is 10.36 feet and falling. Big Timber access is closed. Fishing has been slow. Most fishing reports are coming from area lakes and ponds.  Channel Catfish - Fair: Some channel catfish are being caught using stinkbait and crawlers fished around snags. Some channel catfish are also being caught from shore along the Muscatine riverfront using night crawlers and stinkbait.  White Bass - Slow:  Bluegill - Slow:  Crappie - Slow:  Walleye - Slow:

Mississippi River Pool 18
Tailwater stage at Lock and Dam 17 is 13.29 feet and falling. Floodstage is 15 feet. Fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water. Most fishing reports are coming from area lakes and ponds.  Channel Catfish - No Report:  White Bass - No Report:  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pool 19
Tailwater stage at Lock and Dam 18 is 9.80 feet and falling. Floodstage is 10 feet. Fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water. Most fishing reports are coming from area lakes and ponds.  Channel Catfish - Fair: Channel catfish are being caught on crawlers and stinkbait.  White Bass - No Report:  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pools 16-20: River conditions are still high and muddy. Many of the boat ramps are under water. Main channel water temperature is 81 degrees. Fishing has been slow throughout the pools. There is debris floating in the river so take caution when boating. For more fishing information contact the Fairport Fish Hatchery at 563-263-5062.

Pecatonica River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Tom Calam said catfish are good, biting on worms and chicken liver. Some trot-liners have been catching catfish. Walleye have slowed down.
Rock River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
• Near Rockford Tom Calam said catfish are good, biting on dipbait and nightcrawlers.
SOURCE: Jan Prose at TJ’s Bait/Tackle & Canoe Rental in Oregon (815-732-4516)
• Near Oregon catfish are good, bitting on leeches. Some snapping turtles have been caught. A 40-inch muskie was caught south of the dam on the east side. The water level of the river is still dropping at a steady pace.
SOURCE: Ray and Irene Hays, Bunny’s Bait Shop, Dixon (815-288-3812)
• Near Dixon catfish are good and walleye are fair. Channel catfish are biting on chicken liver, cheese, worms and shrimp near the shoreline. Flatheads are below Rock Falls and near the shore biting on nightcrawlers.. Walleye are by Lowe Park, Peoria Ave. bridge and the old railroad bridge biting on minnows. Crappie are near Nelson railroad and Lowe Park biting on minnows.
SOURCE: Guide Matt Jones (815-537-5506 or 815-590-1469 cell) and Doc at Kodiak Outdoor Sports in Dixon (815-284-3075)
• From Rock Falls to Quad Cities, Guide Matt Jones said fish are off and on. Flathead catfish are biting on live bait. Channel catfish are still shallow and biting on cutbait and cheese. Water the level is still dropping. Fishing should pick up soon.

Spoon River
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg and Paul Dinkheller at Dink’s in Lewistown (309-547-1094)
Channel catfish have been good on dipbait and chicken liver says Hayden. Dipbait is working well downstream says Paul Dinkheller. Some are dipping dew worms in the bait even. Handfishing has been going strong for flatheads, which are in the holes. Bankpolers are getting out again. But the Asian carp are very bad.

Angler Spencer Miller weighed the 84-pound bighead carp pictured above on Thursday at Henry’s Sports, Bait & Marine in Chicago.

Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times reports that was the second huge bighead weighed in less than an hour. Another 73-pounder was taken out of the store before information was gathered.

Henry’s owner Tom Palmisano told FOX Chicago News, “We have had Asian carps in caught in our lagoons,” Palmisano said. “We have seen them for 10 years in the lagoons.”

At the same time, the Garfield Park lagoon has experienced a major fish kill.

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources plans to take possession of a large fish pulled from the Garfield Park lagoon on Chicago’s West Side to determine if it is really a bighead.

The lagoon is not connected to any river or other waterway, so its fish cannot get into Lake Michigan.

Palmisano says he suspects the DNR may have accidentally brought in some young Asian carp when it was stocking the lagoon with catfish.

The DNR plans to go to the bait shop on Monday to examine the fish.

Give us our choice of anywhere to fish in Illinois right now and we’d pick…

• Smallmouth bass fishing in a stream that is not flooded.
• Salmon fishing early mornings on Lake Michigan, since fish have moved shallow due to colder water close to shore.
• Channel catfish at Clinton Lake, at Kinkaid Lake, Carlyle Lake, on the upper Illinois River, at Lake Hillsboro and Sangchris Lake and most of south-central Illinois,
• Largemouth bass at night on Lake of Egypt or at dusk on most lakes and ponds on top-water lures.
• White bass are good at Lake Shelbyville.
• LaSalle or Powerton lakes for blue catfish.

WALL HANGERS

• A 47-pound flathead catfish was caught by a hawger in the Spoon River last week.
• Jon Berhenke caught the steelhead pictured below while fishing with Capt. Nick Ganzer.

NORTHERN ILLINOIS North of Interstate 80

Apple Canyon Lake
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Tom Calam said bluegills and crappie are fair. They are biting on crickets, waxies, jigs and minnows.

Lake Carroll
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337).
Panfish and walleye are fair. Panfish are biting on crickets, leeches and waxies. Walleye are biting on crankbaits and jumbo leeches trolling.

Forest Preserve Lakes
SOURCE: Lee’s Bait and Tackle of Elk Grove Village (847-593-6424); Henry’s (312-225-8538)
• Click here for a Cook County Forest Preserves lake fishing forum.
• Here are links to information on various forest preserve lakes. Cook County, DeKalb County, DuPage County, Kane County, Kendall County, Lake County, McHenry County and Will County.

Fox Chain O’ Lakes
SOURCE: Greg Dickson, Triangle Sports & Marine,  Antioch (1-847-395-0813).
Catfish and walleye are good. Catfish will be near the river on shallow and flat areas biting on nightcrawlers and prepared bait. Walleyes are best near the bridges and current-laden areas. They are biting on leeches and nightcrawlers. Bass, smallmouth, bluegill and crappie are fair. Bass will be near the emergent weeds and lay downs. Fishing the shoreline or deep-weeds are the best bet. Bass are biting on plastic worms and plastic frogs. Smallmouth are taking crank and spinnerbaits. Bluegills are in the shallow water and the crappie are near channels, so check near the boat lifts and downed trees.
• Click here to check updates on no-wake status and water levels or call 847-587-8540 .

Lake Michigan
SOURCES: Henry’s (312-225-8538), Vet’s (773-734-6720) and Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times.
• On the Chicago lakefront perch season is closed, allowing only children under the age of 16 to catch them, with a limit of ten fish. Perch are biting on soft-shell crab and minnows. Smallmouth are doing fair, biting on golden roaches early in the morning and on crankbaits. Bowman reports that southwest winds have brought cooler water close to shore and has helped improve fishing for kings in particular but also coho, browns and steelhead in 40-60 feet of water from Burnham to off Evanston. That’s according to Capt. Bill Kelly.
SOURCE: The Salmon Stop (847-244-2525 or fishing hotline 847-244-9876);  Capt. Nick Ganzer (847-234-7208).
• Near Waukegan , Capt. Nick Ganzer reports that water conditions continue to be excellent for fishing. Water temps are in the 50s to low 60s because of upwelling from continued west winds. Last week the thermocline was down 35 feet, with fair to good fishing from 35-110 feet. Kings, coho, steelheads continue to be taken mostly off downriggers and leadcore with Glow spoon/ flasher/flies. Pictured below are Phil and Tanner Wedgwood with some kings and cohos.
SOURCE: Mik-Lurch (219-989-0575)
• Near Indiana, perch are biting near Cal Park by the weed beds in about 14-feet of water. Near Cortege, perch are in around 12- to-30-feet of water. Trolling northwest of the gong, about 15 miles, king, cohos and lakers are in about 55- to 70-feet of water. Smallmouth are doing fair. Some steelhead off Michigan City.

Shabbona Lake
SOURCES: Guide Jay Angel (815-739-7030) and Denny Sands, Shabbona Lakeside Bait & Tackle, Shabbona (815-824-2581).
Bluegill are excellent, with catfish and walleye good and crappie, bass, muskies and hybrid stripers fair. Bluegill are about 6-8 inches long, suspended about the rock piles in around 4-16-feet of water biting on waxworms. Catfish are in the deeper weedlines in around six to nine feet of water biting on Sonny’s super sticky bait and leeches. Bass are also in six to nine feet of water near the deeper weed lines biting on leeches. Nick Bellandi,12, of Aurora caught a 20.5 inch, 4.5 pound bass. Walleye are around the 12- to 16-inch range near the deeper weed lines and rock piles in 4-12 feet of water. Crappie are near the nine camp ground crib and the deeper brush piles biting on minnows. Hybrid stripers are suspended above the rock piles, biting on minnow lures and Rat-L-Traps.
• Park hours November to January 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; February to March 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; April 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; May to October 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
•Click here for a Shabbona Lake fishing forum

Wolf Lake
SOURCE: Mik-Lurch (219-989-0575)
Bass are good, while walleye are fair.

NORTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 80 and North of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36

Anderson Lake
SOURCE: Site manager Ed Oest (309-759-4484)
Very few bank anglers have been out. The boat ramp reopened Tuesday for access.

Banner Marsh
SOURCE: Adam Jaegle, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
Bass fishing is fair to good in the evenings on weedless top-waters. Lots of weeds on the Main Access. Channel catfish are good on dipbait and chicken liver or shrimp. Redear sunfish were on the beds in shallow water this week, though most were just 6-7 inches long.

Lake Bloomington
SOURCE: Larry Dozard
Channel catfish are fair says Dozard and so are bluegill on waxies and crickets along weed edges and sea walls. Bass are fair to slow along outer weed lines. Anglers are catching a few hybrid stripers on spoons in the pumphouse area of the lake, but overall they are slow to fair.

Braidwood Lake
SOURCE: Del Colvin, Bert’s Bait, Essex (815-365-2103); Jon Meder, Jon’s Bait & Tackle, South Wilmington (815-237-2822)
Catfish are doing extremely well. Water temperature is 108 degrees, causing catfish to come up near the surface of the lake. Bluegill fishing has slowed and bass are not doing well.

Clinton Lake
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730); Clinton Bait and Tackle, (217-935-3851)
Catfish are doing very well. White bass, largemouth bass, strippers and Asian carp are also doing well. Catfish are biting on shad guts, cut shad, dip bait and nightcrawlers. White bass are biting on sandblasters, cicadas and big dudes. Largemouth are taking buzzbaits, jigs, worms and crankbaits. Stripers are biting on top water and carp are biting on shad bodies and plastics. The fish being caught deeper are larger.

Dawson Lake
SOURCE: Leon and Judy Gibson, Moraine View Concession (309-724-8295)
Bass, catfish and walleye are good with bluegill and redears fair. Bass are biting on spinnerbaits, jigs and top waters, cats are biting on shrimp, liver and cheese. Catfish are coming shallow to feed along the banks. Walleye are also coming shallow to feed, but are biting on nightcrawlers.

Emiquon Preserve
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); The Nature Conservancy (309-547-2730)
Very few anglers have been out here lately. Fishing has slowed, with most anglers reporting fewer than 10 bass per trip. Don’t show up expecting 30-50 bass right now. Weed coverage is thick. Very few panfish reports of late. Anglers must obtain a free permit at Dickson Mounds Museum (open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) before fishing here.

Evergreen Lake
SOURCE: Brad Wood, operations supervisor, (309-726-2022) or Larry Dozard
Fishing is good overall according to Wood, with catfish and bass heading the bill. The saugeye have slowed down a bit. Catfishing has been great with several nice fish being caught on mostly liver, shrimp or cheese bait (Yes, we sell these at our Bait Shop!). Bass continue to hit artificial lures on the lake. Many anglers are switching up lures often. Crappie are biting well but are being caught in 15-20 feet of water suspended at about 10 feet. The saugeye are biting, but anglers are reporting having to work hard for them. Jig and crawler or jig and leech still best. Bluegill continue to be caught along weeds and rip rap with wax worms and crawler pieces.
• Click here for up-to-date lake reports.

Heidecke Lake
SOURCE: Don Stephens, Greybeards (815-941-1504); Guide Mike Lynch (708-655-7667); Guide Greg Heath (815-258-9136)
Fishing has slowed. Water temperature was 81 degrees Fahrenheit early. Catfish are fair, biting on nightcrawlers and stinkbait near the shoreline.

LaSalle Lake
SOURCE: Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times; Guide Mike Lynch (708-655-7667)
Blue cats of 20-30 pounds have been reported on cut bait drifted 3-6 feet off the bottom according to Jordan Hubinsky of Time on the Water Marina, Spring Valley (815-663-1000).
• Click here for a LaSalle Lake fishing forum.

Mazonia Lakes
SOURCE: Del Colvin, Bert’s Bait, Essex (815-365-2103)
Bass are biting well on top-waters on shad and spinnerbaits. Check the weeds as well. Bluegill are fair, but have moved deeper into the water, biting on redworms. Catfish are slow. Water is high.

Powerton Lake
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
Blue catfish are biting better here, with bluegill a top bait says Merle Keefer. Ryan Schmidt and Terry Norman of Pekin combined to catch a 40-pounder this week while several 20-pounders were also reported.

Snakeden Hollow SFWA
SOURCE: Nellie Thorne, Depot Bait and Tackle, Victoria (309-879-2401); Site office (309-879-2607)
Bass fishing has been fair on top-water and weedless baits. Crappie are fair over deep water in McMaster Lake, suspended at about 5 feet. Waxworms are working well. Dipbait working well for catfish in most lakes.

Spring Lake
SOURCES: Troy Galvin, Galvin’s Spring Lake Market (309-267-6538) and Larry Karnes, Larry’s Restaurant and Family Bar, Manito (309-968-9500)
Bass fishing has been fair on both ends of the lake, with lizards a good choice for the past week. Also some on top-waters and other weedless plastics. Channel catfish are very good on shrimp and dipbait in the evenings. “When the sun goes down behind the trees it shades the whole park road and the fish start biting,” Larry Karnes said.  Bluegill reports have slowed down some.

Lake Storey
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg (309-342-7776)
Last Saturday was a very good day, with one angler reporting seven walleye, one muskie, several bass and 14 catfish on the same outing. In the past few days very few anglers have been out. A few catching bluegill, which are fair and off the weed edges. At Oak Run fishing has been slow. Lakes have an algae bloom. Crappie have slowed and have moved into 10-12 feet of water on minnows or jigs and waxies.

Strip Mines
(Fulton, Knox, Peoria and Stark counties)
SOURCE: Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); and Larry Dozard; Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793); Jim Kennedy, Jim’s Bait and Tackle, Hanna City (309-645-8318)
The evening bass bite is much better than the morning bite, with nice reports in the past week of fish topping 20 inches. Larry Waughop of Elmwood had a pair of fish over 20 inches this week. Outside the evening frog and top-water bite, fishing for bass is best on outer weedlines in 6-8 feet of water on crankbaits or soft plastics. Some frogs working during the day on weed mats, which have been late in developing. Catfish were fair to good this week says Dozard, who found them shallow on dipbait. Redear are on the beds but bluegill are off weedlines. Very mixed reports on crappie: some finding good numbers of suspended fish in 10-12 feet of water says Tim Presley, others struggling mightily.

SOUTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36 and North of Interstate 70

Carlinville Lake
SOURCE: Gwen Gilmore, Gilmore Bait & Marine, Carlinville (217-854-8136)
Catfish and bass are doing well. Catfish are deep, biting on shrimp, worms and liver. Bass are biting on lures and minnows in 3-4 feet of water. Bluegill are also at this depth, biting on red wigglers.

Charleston Side Channel Lake
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770)
Channel catfish are doing good, biting on cheesebait, nightcrawlers and chicken liver. Crappie are slow, biting on small worms and tube jigs. Largemouth bass are fair, taking small plastics and jigs. Fish are in around 6-8 feet of water.

Lake Decatur
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730)
White and largemouth bass, carp and catfish are doing good. Largemouth are biting on buzzbaits, spinnerbaits, jigs and crankbaits. Catfish are taking mud leeches, cheese, shrimp, stinkbait, dipbait and shad. Fish are deep. Near the dam, white bass, stripers, carp, crappie and catfish are all doing well.

Lake Glenn Shoals
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
Catfish and crappie are doing well. Catfish are biting on leeches and shad and are shallow in the early and late hours, deeper during the day. Crappie biting on minnows and light-green jigs. Bass are fair, biting off the points on spinners and deep-diving crankbaits.

Lake Hillsboro
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
Catfish and crappie are doing very well. Catfish are biting on leeches and shad. Crappie biting on minnows and light-green jigs. Bass are fair, biting off the points on spinners and deep-diving crankbaits.

Lake Jacksonville
SOURCE: Tom Holmes, Military Surplus Outlet, Jacksonville (217-243-6161) and Lake Jacksonville Campground (217-479-4646)
Catfish and bluegill are fair. Cats are biting on stinkbaits and shrimp. Bluegills are taking crickets.

Lake Mattoon
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770); Joel Pittman, Mattoon Parks Department (217-254-6680)
Bass fishing is good. Bass biting on crankbaits in a baby bass or shad color, plastics like 10-inch worms or creature baits, like Baby Brush hogs. Bass are in around 8-10 feet of water.

Mill Creek Lake
SOURCE: Dennis Shiley, Mill Creek Lake Park (217-889-3901)
Bass and catfish are good. Bass are around weed lines biting on spinnerbaits. Catfish taking shrimp, stinkbait and liver. Fish are around 5-10 feet of water.

Sangchris Lake
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-820-9674)
Catfish are doing well, biting on stinkbait, leeches and worms near the bottom. Bluegill are also biting on crickets, but are only fair.

Lake Sara
SOURCE: Tony Niebrugge, Anthony’s Acres Resort, (217-868-2950)
Catfish are doing well, biting on nightcrawlers and chicken liver in about 6-8 feet of water. Largemouth bass and bluegill are doing fair, largemouth near the weeds biting on small jigs and bluegill taking wax worms off of the sandy banks. Both are in around 3-6 feet of water.

Lake Shelbyville
SOURCE: Guide Ken Wilson (217-774-5756 or 217-454-2672) at Lithia Springs Guide Service; Margie Oliver, Marv and Kathy’s Bait & Tackle, Sullivan (217-728-4044); Guide Steve Welch (217) 762-7257 or (217) 840-1221
Guide Ken Wilson says that white bass are doing well, biting on crankbaits, Bandit 200’s with splatter-back coloring, rooster-tails and sandblasters at around 14- to 18-feet of water and are probably the best bet. Crappie are also doing well, biting on crankbaits trolling at a speed of 1.5 mph to 2.8 mph gps speed at a depth of 12- to 15 feet. Stay on the main lake near the river channels on the south end. Largemouth bass are fair, taking plastics and Carolina rigs. Catfish and walleye are slow. Lake is on the fall and all boat ramps are open.
• For a daily report on Lake Shelbyville call (217-774-2020).

Lake Springfield
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-820-9674) and Tater’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-2208)
Catfish are doing well, biting on stinkbait, leeches and worms near the bottom. White bass are slow.

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS South of Interstate 70

Carlyle Lake
SOURCE: Josh Adkins; Buddy Langenhorst, Lavish’s Bait Shop , Carlyle (618-594-4413); Henkel’s (618-594-4818)
Catfish, white bass and largemouth bass are good. Catfish biting on cut shad and dipbait. White bass taking crankbait, curly tails and rooster tails. Largemouth taking crank, spinners and jigs. Bluegill are fair, biting on waxworms and mealworms. Walleye are slow, but taking crankbaits trolling. On the river, Catfish and white bass are good. Catfish taking nightcrawlers, shrimp, shad, leeches and stinkbait. White bass biting on minnows, crankbaits, curly tails and rooster tails. Some crappie near the old riverbed biting on tube jigs and minnows.
• For the latest water level information call (618-594-4637).

Crab Orchard Lake
SOURCE: Ron Reed, Cooksey’s Bait, Marion (618-993-3366); Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354); Kyle Garner, Crappie Pro Shop, Carterville (618-985-8277)
Catfish are good, biting on leeches, cheese and cutbaits. Crappie are fair, biting on minnows and jigs in around 10- to 12-feet of water. Bluegills are around the bank by the rocks, biting on crickets, waxworms and red wigglers. Bass are biting on artificial worms, buzzbaits and spinnerbaits.

Lake of Egypt
SOURCE: Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354)
Bass fishing is extremely good at night. Fish are biting on Shaky-head jigs and Carolina rigs off of the main points and drop-offs.

Forbes Lake
SOURCE: Site manager Glenn Wegener (618-547-3381); Mike Polcyn, Mike’s Bait & Tackle Shop, Louisville (618-665-3209)

Horseshoe Lake, Alexander County
SOURCE: Jim Melton, Melton’s Fish Camp (618-776-5504)
Channel catfish are fair, biting on liver and nightcrawlers at the bottom. A few crappie deep near bottom.

Kinkaid Lake
SOURCE: Janet Graeff, Top of the Hill Bait Shop, Muphysboro (618-684-2923); Guide Al Nutty (618-694-4897)
Guide Al Nutty said catfish are very good and bass are good. Catfish are at a depth of 6-10 feet during the day and in the shallow water, around 1 to 1.5 feet, at night when they will be looking for food. Stinkbaits are the best bet this time of the year due to the heat. Bass are biting on Carolina rigs and deep-diving crankbaits. Still some surface action, some smaller bass being caught by the weeds. Walleye are spotty but being caught at a depth of 14- to 16-feet on crankbaits. Crappie are fair and can be found around the outside edge of weed beds and brush piles. They are biting on jigs. Some 15- to 17-inch white bass have been caught. Bluegill are doing fair, biting on crickets and red wigglers near the outside weeds.

Little Grassy Lake
SOURCE: Shirley Lowery, Little Grassy Boat Dock (618-457-6655)
Catfish are good. Cats are deep, in about 20 feet of water, biting on chicken liver, shrimp and nightcrawlers. Bass are in about 4-6 feet of water taking lizards, frogs and large minnows. Bluegills are biting on crickets. Redears are on the bottom, about ten feet, biting on nightcrawlers.

Newton Lake
SOURCE: Ruth Rauch, Rauch’s Bait & Tackle, Newton (618-752-2151)
Water is hot. Bass are fair, but fish are deep.

Rend Lake
SOURCE: Todd Gessner (618-513-0520); Jason Johns (618-927-3432); Bill Hudnall, Rend Lake Sporting Goods, Mount Vernon (618-242-2191)
Crappie have slowed but are still fair. Biting on minnows and jigs around brush in about six to ten feet of water. Bass are fair, biting on Shaky head jigs and crankbaits. Catfish are good.

RIVERS

• Click here for water level information.

Des Plaines River
SOURCE: Andrew Ragas
• Click here for a Des Plaines River fishing forum.

DuPage River
SOURCE: Click here for a DuPage River fishing forum.

Fox River
SOURCE: Jim Hardy, Big Jim’s Bait & Tackle, Ottawa (815-434-3921)
Jim Hardy said catfish are fair and near the shade. Cats are biting on cutbait. Water level is below normal.
• Click here for a Fox River fishing forum.

Illinois River
SOURCE: Carol Culjan at Cajun Sporting Goods in Utica (815-667-4222)
• Near Utica the river is still dropping, the park is open and catfish are biting well on Sonny’s cheesebait asys Darrell “Buster” Culjan Catfish are on channel edges and best in the mornings and evenings. Fishing is actually decent and the river is in pretty good shape if heavy rains hold off. Catfish and smallies are biting in the Big Vermilion River. A few white bass and smallies on the Illinois on blade baits. No reports yet on sauger on crankbaits.
SOURCE: Jordan Hubinsky, Time on the Water Marina, Spring Valley (815-663-1000)
• Near Spring Valley the river is fishable and good numbers of catfish are coming in. An angler had five over 60 pounds the other day on cut bait and circle hooks on the flats. Herring is best with some using cut Asian carp.
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Tim Presley, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193)
• Near Peoria
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094)
• Near Havana catfish have been biting well on the east side of the Emiquon levee where the pumps are dumping into the river.

Kankakee River
SOURCE: Ed Mullady, Sportsman’s Letter (815-932-7285)
• The river is in good fishable condition says Ed Mullady, with smallmouth bass and largemouth bass fair to good east of Momence on minnows, plastic worms and crayfish. Near the Kankakee River State Park crappie and rock bass are good on minnows, worms, spinners and twister tails. Catfish are good throughout the river on cheesebaits, chicken liver, minnows and nightcrawlers.

Mississippi River
SOURCE: Iowa DNR
Fishing in the Oquawka pool is good on dipbait, particularly up near the dam.

Mississippi River Pool 11
Water levels at Guttenberg are 10.6 feet and expected to remain steady over the holiday weekend.  Water temperatures are in the mid 70’s, and water clarity is quite good except near the mouth of the Turkey River.  Northern Pike - Slow: A few pike beginning to gather at the mouths of cold water tributaries and springs although the high water has pushed them out some.  Channel Catfish - Good: Catfishing is best during high water conditions like those being experienced now.  Try fishing along the shoreline or edges of flooded vegetation for best results.  You do not need to cast far out to catch nice catfish.  Stink baits or chicken liver are the baits of choice right now.  Flathead Catfish - Fair: Some nice flathead catfish have been caught below the dam jigging heavy spoons or one-eyed jigs.  Bluegill - Fair: Small bluegills and other sunfish are being caught along the bank with bobber and worms.  Smallmouth Bass - Fair: Some smallmouth being caught fishing near rock in good current.  Largemouth Bass - Fair:  Largemouth can be caught along shorelines with woody debris.  Small largemouth’s can be seen chasing minnows along the bank.  Small spinners or jigs will work best.  Freshwater Drum - Good: Good catches of drum still being reported in the upper part of pool 11.  During high water fish will often be found near shore in eddy area but away from the strong current. One-eyed jigs or night crawlers have been working well.

Water temperature at Guttenberg is in the mid to upper 70’s. River levels are high and expected to remain steady over the next five days.  Water levels are: Lansing 11.1, Lynxville 18.8 and Guttenberg 10.7. Water clarity is fair except near mouths of Upper Iowa, Yellow and Turkey Rivers. There has been a large mayfly hatch this past week.

Mississippi River Pool 16
Tailwater stage at Lock and Dam 15 is 11.68 feet. Fishing has been slow. Most fishing reports are coming from area lakes and ponds.    Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are biting on crawlers, leeches and dipbaits fished along riprap shorelines and snags along the main channel and sloughs.  White Bass - Fair: White bass are being caught casting crankbaits, spinners, and jigs/twisters in Sunset Marina.  Bluegill - Slow: Some bluegills are being caught in Sunset Marina fishing pieces of worm under a bobber. Some fish are also being picked up casting small spinners. Fishing has been best right before evening.  Crappie - Slow:  Sauger - Slow:  Walleye - Slow:

Mississippi River Pool 17
Tailwater stage at Lock and Dam 16 is 11.47 feet. Big Timber access is closed. Fishing has been slow. Most fishing reports are coming from area lakes and ponds.  Channel Catfish - Fair: Some channel catfish are being caught using stinkbait and crawlers.  White Bass - Slow:  Bluegill - Slow:  Crappie - Slow:  Walleye - Slow:

Mississippi River Pool 18
Tailwater stage at Lock and Dam 17 is 14.22 feet and rising. Flood stage is 15 feet. Fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water. Most fishing reports are coming from area lakes and ponds.  Channel Catfish - No Report:  White Bass - No Report:  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pool 19
Tailwater stage at Lock and Dam 18 is 10.44 feet. Flood stage is 10 feet. Fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water. Most fishing reports are coming from area lakes and ponds.  Channel Catfish - Fair: Channel catfish are being caught on crawlers and stinkbait.  White Bass - No Report:  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pools 16-20: River conditions are still high and muddy. Many of the boat ramps are under water. Main channel water temperature is 78 degrees. Fishing has been slow throughout the pools. There is debris floating in the river so take caution when boating. For more fishing information contact the Fairport Fish Hatchery at 563-263-5062.

Pecatonica River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Tom Calam said catfish are fair, biting on cutbait, dipbait and leeches.

Rock River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
• Near Rockford, Tom Calam said catfish are fair, biting on cutbait, dipbait and leeches.
SOURCE: Jan Prose at TJ’s Bait/Tackle & Canoe Rental in Oregon (815-732-4516)
• Near Oregon, catfish are fair. They are biting on shrimp, leeches and dipbait near the shoreline. Flatheads are biting on bluegills and suckers. Carp are biting on nightcrawlers. A 26.5 pound flathead catfish was caught at the dam with a bluegill by Tyrus Trambel (pictured above with a friend). Water is a little murky, but has fallen one foot from last week.
SOURCE: Ray and Irene Hays, Bunny’s Bait Shop, Dixon (815-288-3812)
• Near Dixon, channel catfish are good and biting on chicken liver and cheese. Flatheads are spotty, but biting on chubs and goldfish. Largemouth and smallmouth bass slow. Drum are also slow, but biting on worms. Crappie are below the bridge, by the Nelson railroad bridge and up around the park biting on minnows. Carp are doing very well and taking mulberries. Water is high but fairly clear.
SOURCE: Guide Matt Jones (815-537-5506 or 815-590-1469 cell) and Doc at Kodiak Outdoor Sports in Dixon (815-284-3075)
• Elsewhere. From Rock Falls to Quad Cities, Guide Matt Jones said flathead catfish are off and on, but are biting on live bait. Channel catfish are still feeding with cutbait and cheese. Water is clear and the level is dropping. Within the next week, fishing should become more consistent.

Spoon River
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg and Paul Dinkheller at Dink’s in Lewistown (309-547-1094)
Flatheads are in their holes now and hawgers are out in force, with the biggest a 47-pounder last week. But the Spoon is supposed to come back up quickly and get out of the banks.

“Dude, that’s a big one. You can tell by the croak,” Chef Todd said, trying his best to whisper, but failing. “It’s like elk. The deeper the call, the bigger the frog.”

So began my first evening of frog gigging — a night of bent gig tines, swooping bats, abundant bugs, sticky mud and, most of all, fun. The outing was long overdue, as Chef (pictured below) has spent a decade sharing tales of his youthful frog hunts on the Mississippi River near Shokokon.

“Biggest frog I ever stuck, I saw him sitting in a ditch while I was riding home on the school bus. He was huge,” Chef said. “I got home, grabbed my fishing pole, rode my bike over to the ditch and caught him on a little piece of red cloth.

“That frog had to go a pound and a half. And he had a baby snapping turtle in his stomach that was still alive.”

Voracious eaters, bullfrogs will bite during the day on worms, pieces of cloth and sometimes even bare hooks. But the wildest time to go frogging is after dark, when bullfrogs and bugs are most active.

Some of the best action is in smaller waters, like the 3-acre Peoria County lake we visited last Thursday. Aside from an occasional hungry heron, turtle, snake or raccoon, the bullfrogs around this two-year-old lake had never been bothered.

The allure of virgin water kept Chef Todd energized despite sitting in a tippy, 12-foot john boat one month after having a hip replaced.

The taste of frog legs are that enticing to some folks, even if frog season doesn’t stir the same excitement it once did.

“I really think it’s a dying sport,” the Head Worm said. “The frogs aren’t there like they used to be and the people don’t go out after them like they used to.”

That’s too bad. Based on my evening, frogging is good, muddy fun.

The scene was impressive once we launched and darkness descended. Insects were everywhere. So were frogs. Spotlighting the bank revealed gleaming eyes every few feet.

What shocked me was how content those normally skittish frogs were as we glided toward them under power of trolling motor or paddle. Most sat still right until they felt the gig — a multi-pronged spear which in our case had five (briefly) sharp tines.

“They freeze when you blind them with the light,” Chef Todd said. “A few might jump. But if you keep the light on them, they usually just sit there.”

Pickings were so good even I gigged a limit in relatively short order. True to form, though, after proclaiming frogging “easy” I missed three straight.

As with anything, there’s a learning curve.

Frogs suspended in weeds over deeper water are much harder to gig — particularly with dull points.

And dull, bent points are likely if you jab hard at frogs sitting on rocks.

Also worth noting is just how many bugs come out at night over the water. Bug spray is an absolute necessity. So is a little luck.
Because with the bugs come bats, some swooping amazingly close.

“We’re lucky we didn’t get one in the ear,” Chef Todd said.

That we encountered no water snakes was also a bonus.

“One night we hit a couple eyes and it turned out to be a 5-foot water snake,” Chef Todd said. “It was curled all around the pole and damn near tipped our canoe.”

As for that biggest, loudest bullfrog, we visited him for almost last. Not 50 feet from our takeout point, he sat bellowing on the bank.

“Paddle easy dude, he’s a big one,” cautioned the Chef, who by then was content to sit in the back of the boat and croak orders.

After a quick stab, the frog was in the boat. By the time you read this, his fried legs will have served as a tasty reminder of an enjoyable night outdoors.

Give us our choice of anywhere to fish in Illinois right now and we’d pick…

• Channel catfish. Just about anywhere you go, catfish are biting.
• Spring Lake or Banner Marsh for largemouth bass.

WALL HANGERS

• Brent Kosowski of Farmington and his buddies from Farmington caught the 35 fish of up to 40 pounds pictured below on June 26 while bankpoling on the Rock River near Prophetstown.

• Dr. Brad Cotton caught the 6-pound bass pictured below at Mission Oak Inn in Henry last Sunday.

• Rusty Stear of Mapleton caught a 6-pound bass last Sunday at Banner Marsh.

• Seth Heberer and Tim Feicke of Pekin caught an 8-pound bass last Sunday at north Spring Lake in Tazewell County.

NORTHERN ILLINOIS North of Interstate 80

Apple Canyon Lake
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Bluegills are very good and are biting on leeches, waxworms, and leeches says Calam. Crappie are good. They are biting on minnows and artificial bait in 15-20 feet of water. Bass fishing is fair.

Lake Carroll
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337).
Walleye are fair, biting on jumbo leeches near the point breaks.

Forest Preserve Lakes
SOURCE: Lee’s Bait and Tackle of Elk Grove Village (847-593-6424); Henry’s (312-225-8538)
• Click here for a Cook County Forest Preserves lake fishing forum.
• Here are links to information on various forest preserve lakes. Cook County, DeKalb County, DuPage County, Kane County, Kendall County, Lake County, McHenry County and Will County.

Fox Chain O’ Lakes
SOURCE: Greg Dickson, Triangle Sports & Marine,  Antioch (1-847-395-0813).
Catfish are doing well on cheesebaits, particularly in shallow mud flats. White bass good at Bluff and Marie lakes said Triangle. Walleye taking leeches and nightcrawlers near current. Largemouth bass are near the shoreline or along weed edges taking plastic worms or plastic frogs. Bluegill are shallow by deadfalls taking waxworms. Crappie are deep but moving to shallow areas, so check connecting channels. Crappie are biting on minnows. Evenings are best.
• Click here to check updates on no-wake status and water levels or call 847-587-8540 .

Lake Michigan
SOURCES: Henry’s (312-225-8538), Vet’s (773-734-6720) and Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times.
• On the Chicago lakefront perch are off limits to anyone 16 and older, which is a shame since fishing had just picked up of late. Anglers are opting instead for rock bass and other panfish along weeds. Salmon are fair to good early.
SOURCE: The Salmon Stop (847-244-2525 or fishing hotline 847-244-9876);  Capt. Nick Ganzer (847-234-7208).
• Near Waukegan kings, cohos and steelhead continue to frequent Waukegan waters says Ganzer. West winds have kept water cool and fish close to shore (35-60 feet deep).  Dodger/flasher/ flies best baits fished from downriggers/dipsies, and spoons off leadcore deadly. Boats are averaging 5-10 fish per trip. Salmon Stop said salmon are decent in 70-90 feet on glow spoons or white glow Dodgers and glow tinsel flies according to Dale Bowman.
SOURCE: Mik-Lurch (219-989-0575)
• Near Indiana Mik-Lurch said perch were good inside the Cal Park breakwall. This weekend should be good. Bowman said steelhead are hitting spinners or floating shrimp under bobbers.

Pierce Lake
SOURCES: Pam Minihan, Dora’s Bait & Tackle, Rockford (815-963-1795).
Crappie are not biting.

Shabbona Lake
SOURCES: Guide Jay Angel (815-739-7030) and Denny Sands, Shabbona Lakeside Bait & Tackle, Shabbona (815-824-2581).
Clarity of the lake is improving, with about 12 inches of visibility. Bluegills, walleye, crappie and bass are all good. Bluegills are near weed-lines biting on leeches and waxworms. Walleye are near the rock piles in 4-16 feet of water taking leeches. Crappie are by the brushpiles and measuring up to 12 inches taking minnows. Bass are very good near the dam base and deep weed-lines. Bass are biting on Yum dingers and there is top-water action in the evening.
• Park hours November to January 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; February to March 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; April 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; May to October 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
•Click here for a Shabbona Lake fishing forum

NORTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 80 and North of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36

Banner Marsh
SOURCE: Adam Jaegle, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
Bass were excellent last weekend with 43 teams combining for 156 fish of 317.45 pounds last Sunday during a Bass 25 Peoria tournament. Tim McCoy and Adam Jaegle of Bartonville won with six fish of 24.75 pounds and big bass was a 6-pounder caught by Rusty Stear of Mapleton. Jigs, tubes, frogs and lizards all produced fish. Catfish are also good here on chicken liver, dipbait and leeches.

Lake Bloomington
SOURCE: Larry Dozard
Crappie are fair to good and suspended 5-7 feet from shore says Dozard. Tube jigs worked well and “color did not seem to matter as much as the retrieve needed to have some horizontal motion to get them to hit.” Bass are slow.

Braidwood Lake
SOURCE: Del Colvin, Bert’s Bait, Essex (815-365-2103); Jon Meder, Jon’s Bait & Tackle, South Wilmington (815-237-2822)
Catfish are doing extremely well said Colvin. They are biting on nightcrawlers, roaches and some bluegill.

Clinton Lake
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730); Clinton Bait and Tackle, (217-935-3851)
Catfish are good with crappie and walleye fair. Catfish biting on shad. Crappie are taking minnows and jigs. Walleye biting on worms. Water is high. Jimmy G caught the walleye pictured below in the spillway this week but reported fishing was slow overall.

Dawson Lake
SOURCE: Leon and Judy Gibson, Moraine View Concession (309-724-8295)
Walleye, catfish, bluegill are all good. Cats biting on shrimp, cheese and liver. Bluegills are taking worms.

Emiquon Preserve
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); The Nature Conservancy (309-547-2730)
The boat ramp is fine and launching is not a problem, but bass fishing has been slow for the past week. Several anglers report average catches of 5-15 fish which is below normal for Emiquon. Lots of water being pumped out of the site which could have an impact. Anglers must obtain a free permit at Dickson Mounds Museum (open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) before fishing here.

Evergreen Lake
SOURCE: Brad Wood, operations supervisor, (309-726-2022) or Larry Dozard
Saugeye head the bill with lots of small fish caught and reports of fish 18.5 inches long and 25 inches long on Tuesday, according to Dozard. Anglers are doing best with jigs and twisters or crawlers. Crappie are fair on main lake points and near the creek channel. Trolling crankbaits is working for crappie. Trolling also yielded a pair of small muskie this week.
• Click here for up-to-date lake reports.

Heidecke Lake
SOURCE: Don Stephens, Greybeards (815-941-1504); Guide Mike Lynch (708-655-7667); Guide Greg Heath (815-258-9136)
Walleye decent on leeches drifted under bobbers.

LaSalle Lake
SOURCE: Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times; Guide Mike Lynch (708-655-7667)
Blue catfish are fair in the deeper holes with fish up to 12 pounds. Mik-Lurch said hybrids are taking chicken liver in the first pool.
• Click here for a LaSalle Lake fishing forum.

Mazonia Lakes
SOURCE: Del Colvin, Bert’s Bait, Essex (815-365-2103)
Del Colvin of Bert’s Bait said that bass are doing very well. Bass are biting on spinnerbaits and top-water walk-the-dog baits. Bluegills are also biting around 10 feet deep on waxies and small redworms. Catfish are doing well here, taking nightcrawlers and roaches.

Powerton Lake
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
Blue catfish are fair but most are running 10 pounds or less said Keefer.

Snakeden Hollow SFWA
SOURCE: Nellie Thorne, Depot Bait and Tackle, Victoria (309-879-2401); Site office (309-879-2607)
Unexpected news is that crappie are biting on minnows again said Thorne. Catfish are best and have been taking dipbait very well. Good numbers and decent-sized fish. Bass are fair on top-water lures. Bluegill have slowed some and backed off the shallows.

Spring Lake
SOURCES: Troy Galvin, Galvin’s Spring Lake Market (309-267-6538) and Larry Karnes, Larry’s Restaurant and Family Bar, Manito (309-968-9500)
Bass fishing was good last weekend with 60 fish of 177.81 pounds caught at a Central Illinois Bass tournament at Spring Lake north. Seth Heberer and Tim Feicke of Pekin won with six bass weighing 23.13 pounds and had big bass of 8 pounds. Catfish are fair to good on the south end with the best results on dipbait and shrimp says Karnes. Some on nightcrawlers, but you’ll get bothered by smaller fish on the crawlers. Bluegill are biting but have been running smaller.

Strip Mines
(Fulton, Knox, Peoria and Stark counties)
SOURCE: Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); and Larry Dozard; Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
Bluegill have backed out of the shallows and are fair for most of the day until they decide to start biting. “All the sudden when they start hitting they’ll go real good for an hour and then they’ll back off again,” said Tim Presley of Presley’s Outdoors. More small fish reported this week. Bass are good early and late and shallow. Frogs, top-waters and shaky head all working well early. Zara spook bite has also been strong. Later in the day plastics are working fair on weed edges and crankbaits or jigs can produce fish off points.

SOUTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36 and North of Interstate 70

Carlinville Lake
SOURCE: Gwen Gilmore, Gilmore Bait & Marine, Carlinville (217-854-8136)
Bass doing very well and are in the five-pound range, while catfish are fair. Bass biting on Bandit 200s. Catfish taking worms and Sonny’s super sticky bait. Fish are at a depth of 8 feet.

Charleston Side Channel Lake
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770)
Rick Cuddy said channel catfish and largemouth bass are doing well. Cats are biting on cheese and shad. Bass are biting on plastics and plastic worms.

Lake Decatur
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730)
White bass and largemouth bass are doing fair. Catfish are doing well. Some carp are also biting. Largemouth are biting on jigs and plastic worms. Cats are taking shad, shrimp and stinkbait.

Lake Glenn Shoals
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
Jack Rebman said bass and catfish are good in the early and late hours. Bass are in the two to three-pound range biting on spinnerbaits and crankbaits at a depth of 1-2 feet. Cats are doing good, biting on mud leeches and cheesebait at a depth of two to three-feet. A few crappie still biting deep during the day on small jigs.  Bluegills are fair, taking crickets and redworms.

Lake Hillsboro
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
Catfish, bass and crappie are all fair. Catfish biting on mudleeches and cheese. Bass taking spinnerbaits and crankbaits. Crappie taking jigs.

Lake Jacksonville
SOURCE: Tom Holmes, Military Surplus Outlet, Jacksonville (217-243-6161) and Lake Jacksonville Campground (217-479-4646)
Water is high.

Lake Lou Yaeger
SOURCE: Denny’s Bait Shop, Litchfield (217-324-2628)
Catfish are good. Biting on leeches, minnows, worms and some stinkbait.

Lake Mattoon
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770); Joel Pittman, Mattoon Parks Department (217-254-6680)
Rick Cuddy said the bass and catfish are doing well, at a depth of about 8 feet. Bass biting on Zoom baby brush hogs and spinnerbaits. Catfish biting on cheese.

Sangchris Lake
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-820-9674)
Jack Raymond said catfish are doing very well, with crappie and bluegills doing fair. Catfish biting on stinkbait and shrimp and are about eight-feet deep. Crappie are by the dam at a depth of fourteen-feet taking minnows. Bluegills are biting on crickets, the overflow is a good place to look.

Lake Sara
SOURCE: Tony Niebrugge, Anthony’s Acres Resort, (217-868-2950)
Tony Niebrugge said bluegill and catfish are doing very well. Bluegills are biting on nightcrawlers and the catfish are biting on anything. Fish are running around two to three-feet deep.

Lake Shelbyville
SOURCE: Guide Ken Wilson (217-774-5756 or 217-454-2672) at Lithia Springs Guide Service; Margie Oliver, Marv and Kathy’s Bait & Tackle, Sullivan (217-728-4044); Guide Steve Welch (217) 762-7257 or (217) 840-1221
Guide Ken Wilson says white bass are biting very well on crankbaits, Bandit 200’s with splatter-back coloring, rooster-tails and sandblasters at around 12-13 feet. North end has been excellent. Walleye fishing has slowed but a few keepers are still biting. Few crappie biting on minnows in 14-16 feet of water. Catfish are also good, biting on crankbaits. The lake level is up 10 feet and rising but launches are still open.
• For a daily report on Lake Shelbyville call (217-774-2020).

Lake Springfield
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-820-9674) and Tater’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-2208)
Jack Raymond said catfish and bluegill are good. Catfish are biting on stinkbait and shrimp and are at the bottom. Bluegill are by the shore and biting on nightcrawlers.

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS South of Interstate 70

Baldwin Lake
SOURCE: Site office (618-785-2555)
Catfish are excellent, bluegill are good and crappie are slow. Cats are biting on nightcrawlers and stinkbait. Bluegills are taking waxworms and mealworms.

Carlyle Lake
SOURCE: Josh Adkins; Buddy Langenhorst, Lavish’s Bait Shop , Carlyle (618-594-4413); Henkel’s (618-594-4818)
Buddy Langenhorst said white bass are really good, walleye, bluegill, catfish and largemouth bass are all good. White bass are around the brush, 4-8 feet deep biting on crankbaits and curlytails. Walleye also taking crank and curlytails, as well as Bandit 200s. Bluegill biting on waxworms and mealworms around 10-15 feet deep. Catfish are taking shad, leeches and stinkbait around two feet from bottom. Cats have finished their spawning here. Largemouth bass are taking crank and spinnerbaits.
• For the latest water level information call (618-594-4637).

Cedar Lake
SOURCE: Ron Reed, Cooksey’s Bait, Marion (618-993-3366); Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354); Kyle Garner, Crappie Pro Shop, Carterville (618-985-8277)
Crappie, bluegill and catfish are good. Crappie are 10-12 feet deep biting on jigs and minnows. Bluegills are by the bank at a depth of around 10 feet, biting on crickets and waxworms. Catfish are biting on stinkbait, leeches and cutbait and are near the rocks. Bass are slow, but still biting on worms and spinnerbaits.

Forbes Lake
SOURCE: Site manager Glenn Wegener (618-547-3381); Mike Polcyn, Mike’s Bait & Tackle Shop, Louisville (618-665-3209)
Catfish are good, with both largemouth bass and crappie doing fair. Catfish are in the 5- to 10-pound range at a depth of four to six-feet biting on minnows, chicken liver, and nightcrawlers. Bass are biting on crank and plastic worms and are around lay-downs and points. Water is clear and slightly murky; the water temperature is in the upper 80s.

Horseshoe Lake, Alexander County
SOURCE: Jim Melton, Melton’s Fish Camp (618-776-5504)
Crappie still slow, will be close to bottom and near the tupalo tree clumps biting on jigs. Channel catfish are in the middle biting on nightcrawlers.

Kinkaid Lake
SOURCE: Janet Graeff, Top of the Hill Bait Shop, Muphysboro (618-684-2923); Guide Al Nutty (618-694-4897)
Guide Al Nutty said catfish, bluegill, walleye, largemouth bass, white bass, crappie and bluegill are good. Catfish and crappie are at a depth of 6-8 feet. Cats are biting on cut shad, nightcrawlers and chicken liver. Crappie are in the weeds, brush, and laydowns biting on minnows and jigs. Walleye are 14-18 feet deep and are being caught trolling with tail-dancers. White bass of 17 to 18 inches are biting on inline spinners and small-diving crankbaits. Largemouth bass have seen some surface action near the weeds. They are biting on Carolina rigs and off the points on deep-diving crankbaits. Bluegills are bedding and biting on crickets mainly, but also on red-wigglers, nightcrawlers, mealworms and waxworms.

Little Grassy Lake
SOURCE: Shirley Lowery, Little Grassy Boat Dock (618-457-6655)
Catfish, bass, and bluegill are good. Some catfish are still shallow, those who are not still bedded will be around twenty-feet deep. Biting on liver, shrimp, and nightcrawlers. Bass are 4-6 feet deep biting on black rubber lizards and frogs. Bluegills are biting on crickets and mealworms and are three-feet deep.

Newton Lake
SOURCE: Ruth Rauch, Rauch’s Bait & Tackle, Newton (618-752-2151)
Bass, catfish, and bluegill are all good. Bass are biting on minnows and deep-diving crankbaits at a depth of around 14-16 feet. Catfish are taking large minnows, shrimp and jigs. Bluegills are biting on large redworms. Water temperature is 93 degrees.

Rend Lake
SOURCE: Todd Gessner (618-513-0520); Jason Johns (618-927-3432); Bill Hudnall, Rend Lake Sporting Goods, Mount Vernon (618-242-2191)

RIVERS

• Click here for water level information.

Des Plaines River
SOURCE: Andrew Ragas
• Click here for a Des Plaines River fishing forum.

DuPage River
SOURCE: Click here for a DuPage River fishing forum.

Illinois River
SOURCE: Jim Hardy of Big Jim’s Bait & Tackle in Ottawa (815-434-3921)
• Above the Starved Rock dam Jim Hardy said catfish are fair near the banks, biting on cutbait and worms. The water is starting to drop.
SOURCE: Carol Culjan at Cajun Sporting Goods in Utica (815-667-4222)
• Near Utica Starved Rock State Park has reopened and the river is dropping fast. The main action is for for carp and catfish. Water is dirty.
SOURCE: Celeste Pollack, Wolf Hollow Archery Bait & Tackle, Chillicothe (309-274-9653)
• Near Chillicothe catfish are still hot according to Jeff Simmons of Galesburg, who caught 107 in two days this week while fishing with his 12-year-old grandson Shelton Adcock one day and Jon Nelson the next. Fish are still in the trees and along the river edge. Launching is tricky due to the high water.
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Tim Presley, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193)
• Near Peoria channel catfish are very good in the flooded grass on nightcrawlers and shrimp. Edges of flooded timber are also good.
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094)
• Near Havana channel catfish are excellent on the river side of the Emiquon Preserve levee, particularly near where water from Emiquon is being pumped into the river. Dipbait, leeches and crawlers all working.

Kankakee River
SOURCE: Ed Mullady, Sportsman’s Letter (815-932-7285)
Ed Mullady reports that the river and tributaries are clearing and dropping. He advises, “Try areas near the bank, at creek and ditch mouths, along weed beds and riffles.”

Mississippi River
SOURCE: Iowa DNR
Mississippi River Pool 11
Water levels at Guttenberg are 10.6 feet and expected to remain steady over the holiday weekend.  Water temperatures are in the mid 70’s, and water clarity is quite good except near the mouth of the Turkey River.  Northern Pike - Slow: A few pike beginning to gather at the mouths of cold water tributaries and springs although the high water has pushed them out some.  Channel Catfish - Good: Catfishing is best during high water conditions like those being experienced now.  Try fishing along the shoreline or edges of flooded vegetation for best results.  You do not need to cast far out to catch nice catfish.  Stink baits or chicken liver are the baits of choice right now.  Flathead Catfish - Fair: Some nice flathead catfish have been caught below the dam jigging heavy spoons or “one eye’s”.  Bluegill - Fair: Small bluegills and other sunfish are being caught along the bank with bobber and worms.  Smallmouth Bass - Fair: Some smallmouth being caught fishing near rock in good current.  Largemouth Bass - Fair:  Largemouth can be caught along shorelines with woody debris.  Small largemouth’s can be seen chasing minnows along the bank.  Small spinners or jigs will work best.  Freshwater Drum - Good: Good catches of drum still being reported in the upper part of pool 11.  During high water fish will often be found near shore in eddy area but away from the strong current.

Water temperature at Guttenberg is in the mid 70’s. River levels are high and expected to remain high over the next week: Water levels are: Lansing 11.8, Lynxville 19.4 and Guttenberg 10.6. Water is generally clear except near mouths of Upper Iowa, Yellow and Turkey Rivers.

Mississippi River Pool 16
Tail water stage at Lock and Dam 15 is 11.92 feet. River stage is forecast to fall slowly over the weekend.  Channel Catfish - Good: Channel catfish are biting on night crawlers, leeches and dip baits fished along riprap shorelines and snags along the main channel and sloughs.  White Bass - Fair: White bass are being caught casting crankbaits, spinners, and jigs/twisters in Sunset Marina.  Bluegill - Fair: Some bluegills are being caught in Sunset Marina fishing pieces of worm under a bobber.  Some fish are also being picked up casting small spinners. Fishing has been best right before evening.  Crappie - Fair: Some crappies are being picked up in Sunset Marina casting in-line spinners and Road Runner’s. Fishing has been best right before evening.  Sauger - Slow:  Walleye - Slow:

Mississippi River Pool 17
Tail water stage at Lock and Dam 16 is 11.77 feet. Big Timber access is closed.  Channel Catfish - Fair: Some channel catfish are being caught using stink bait and crawlers.  White Bass - Slow:  Bluegill - Slow:  Crappie - Slow:  Walleye - Slow:

Mississippi River Pool 18
Tail water stage at Lock and Dam 17 is 14.17 feet and falling. Flood stage is 15 feet. Fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water.  Channel Catfish - Fair: Some channel catfish are being caught on stink bait, crawlers, and shad.  White Bass - No Report:  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pool 19
Tail water stage at Lock and Dam 18 is 10.5 feet. River stage is falling.  Flood stage is 10 feet. Fishing has been slow due to high and muddy water.  Channel Catfish - Fair: Channel catfish are being caught on crawlers and stink bait.  White Bass - No Report:  Bluegill - No Report:  Crappie - No Report:  Walleye - No Report:

Mississippi River Pools 16-20: River conditions are still high and muddy. Many of the boat ramps are under water. Main channel water temperature is 77 degrees. Fishing has been slow throughout the pools. There is debris floating in the river so take caution when boating. For more fishing information contact the Fairport Fish Hatchery at 563-263-5062.

Pecatonica River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Tom Calam said the river is starting to go down. Catfish are fair, biting on nightcrawlers, cutbait and dipbait near banks.

Rock River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Flathead catfish are spawning and can be caught in the 10-15 foot range. Channel catfish have finished spawning, biting on cut bait and cheese. Bluegills and bass are good.
• Near Rockford Calam said the river is starting to go down. Catfish are fair, biting on nightcrawlers, cutbait and dipbait near banks.
SOURCE: Jan Prose at TJ’s Bait/Tackle & Canoe Rental in Oregon (815-732-4516)
• Near Oregon channel catfish fair and are near the shoreline biting on shrimp and cut bait. Flatheads are slow, but are biting on nightcrawlers and goldfish by the banks.
SOURCE: Ray and Irene Hays, Bunny’s Bait Shop, Dixon (815-288-3812)
• Near Dixon channel catfish are in shallow water near the shoreline biting on cheese, chicken liver, and redworms. Flatheads are taking goldfish. Smallmouth bass are by Lowel Park and the northside boat ramp. Crappie are below the bridge and by the Nelson railroad bridge biting on minnows. Some stripers are also taking minnows by Nelson. Drum perch are biting on worms and carp are taking mulberries.

Spoon River
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg and Paul Dinkheller at Dink’s in Lewistown (309-547-1094)
Spoon River is dropping nicely and anglers have started catching channel cats again on leeches and crawlers. Leeches are best says Dinkheller. Hawgers are also handfishing some nice flatheads on the spawn.

Give us our choice of anywhere to fish in Illinois right now and we’d pick…

• Channel catfish at the Fox Chain O’ Lakes, Spring Lake and in most of south-central Illinois.
• Throwing a scum frog in a weedy lake at 5 a.m. or 8 p.m.
• Lake Shelbyville for white bass, which are running big and biting well.

WALL HANGERS

• Justin Harmony caught the 5.6-pound bass pictured below on June 18 while fishing near Sherman.

• Jack Jennings caught the 7-pound bass pictured below at Lake of Egypt while fishing with Matt Strobel of SnS Guide Service.

• Dean Willmenn, who makes bait at Lavish’s Bait Shop, caught a 13-pound channel catfish this week out of Carlyle Lake.

NORTHERN ILLINOIS North of Interstate 80

Apple Canyon Lake
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Nice size bluegill in the 8- to 10-inch range are biting well. Crappie are fair on minnows, leeches and crawlers. Walleye fishing has slowed. Some small bass being caught with crankbaits or spinners.

Lake Carroll
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337).
Early morning and late evening bite best here for walleye. Trollers using leeches, crawlers and plastics

Forest Preserve Lakes
SOURCE: Lee’s Bait and Tackle of Elk Grove Village (847-593-6424); Henry’s (312-225-8538)
• Click here for a Cook County Forest Preserves lake fishing forum.
• Here are links to information on various forest preserve lakes. Cook County, DeKalb County, DuPage County, Kane County, Kendall County, Lake County, McHenry County and Will County.

Fox Chain O’ Lakes
SOURCE: Greg Dickson, Triangle Sports & Marine,  Antioch (1-847-395-0813).
Bluegill are biting well on waxworms says Triangle. Catfish are also very good and taking dipbait or crawlers. Dale Bowman reports Grass or southern lakes are best for cats. Walleye are biting well in current on leeches. Low-light conditions are best. Topwaters are working for muskies in the evenings, sometimes in the early morning. Mike Jackson of the Arlington Heights Daily Herald reports: “If you choose to work hard and move around quite a bit chances are you may stumble onto a muskie on Channel Lake or Lake Catherine. Pistakee Lake bluegill action is excellent in 8 feet. The walleye activity has picked up right near the Route 12 bridge and the Grass Lake Road bridge.”
• Click here to check updates on no-wake status and water levels or call 847-587-8540 .

Lake Michigan
SOURCES: Henry’s (312-225-8538), Vet’s (773-734-6720) and Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times.
• On the Chicago lakefront perch are spotty with some bank anglers catching fish at Montrose according to Dale Bowman. Soft shell and minnows best and finding weeds is a key. Boaters have fared better with nice catches off Navy Pier last Sunday. Lake trout good to very good in 95-105 feet of water east of Wilson crib according to Capt. Bill Kelly. Good coho and chinook in places, steelhead deeper.
SOURCE: The Salmon Stop (847-244-2525 or fishing hotline 847-244-9876);  Capt. Nick Ganzer (847-234-7208).
• Near Waukegan threats of thunderstorms have hampered fishing according to Capt. Nick Ganzer, even though most storms have been South. Fishing continues to be best in about 40-110 feet. Early mornings or evening trips have been the most productive. Salmon/trout are being taken on leadcore off boards (3-8 colors), dipsies and riggers. The water has stratified with the thermocline at 45 feet. We are taking mostly coho (3-6 pounds), kings (9-18 pounds), rainbows (5-10 pounds), some lakers and a few browns. The storms have fish scattered, making for long spells between strikes. Boats are averaging 5-10 fish per trip. Pictured above is Tom Grueder with a 9-pound lake trout. The Salmon Stop advises a Little Boy Blue or aqua fly behind a white plastic Dodger. Shore anglers are catching a few perch off the government pier, but panfish in the harbor are biting better.
SOURCE: Mik-Lurch (219-989-0575)
• Near Indiana salmon are best on meat rigs and some steelhead are reported off the Michigan City piers.

Shabbona Lake
SOURCES: Guide Jay Angel (815-739-7030) and Denny Sands, Shabbona Lakeside Bait & Tackle, Shabbona (815-824-2581).
Walleye have been biting well in the shallows by the rock piles according to Jay Angel. Not many big fish and a fair number of smaller fish like the one pictured above that was caught by Cindy. Leeches have been best and big fish should bite as the summer progresses. The rock piles also produced some big catfish, perch and good numbers of hybrid stripers. Most of those fish bite best in the evening. Bass were slow for last Saturday’s opener after thunderstorms rolled through. Water is in the high 70s.
• Park hours November to January 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; February to March 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; April 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; May to October 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
•Click here for a Shabbona Lake fishing forum

NORTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 80 and North of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36

Anderson Lake
SOURCE: Site manager Ed Oest (309-759-4484)
Not much fishing activity lately and catfish have been slow. Launching is very difficult due to the high water.

Banner Marsh
SOURCE: Adam Jaegle, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
Bass have improved here, with good action on the main lake. Bell’s Landing also produced nicely for last Monday’s Presley’s Outdoors tournament, which saw Bill Hurst and Steve Schmidt weigh in a 5.3-pound lunker for big bass. Jigs, topwaters, worms and Senkos all produced. Merle Keefer also had reports of an 8-pounder caught this week on a Sluggo. Catfish are still biting well here.

Lake Bloomington
SOURCE: Larry Dozard
Bluegill are fair on crickets and waxies along weed edges says Larry Dozard. Bass are also fair but are biting best early and late along weed edges on soft plastics or on topwaters. One week ago an angler caught a 66-pound flathead catfish drifting a shiner minnow. That has also worked for hybrid stripers, which are slow overall. Catfish are fair. Crappie are slow.

Braidwood Lake
SOURCE: Del Colvin, Bert’s Bait, Essex (815-365-2103); Jon Meder, Jon’s Bait & Tackle, South Wilmington (815-237-2822)
Bluegill are fair says Jon Meder and biting on redworms and waxworms at a depth of 20-25 feet. Look around the north bank east from the boat dock and the little islands south of the dock.

Clinton Lake
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730); Clinton Bait and Tackle, (217-935-3851)
Walleye, catfish and bass are fair. Mainly biting on worms and minnows. Some crappie biting on tube jigs and minnows. White bass taking bladebaits. Catfish also taking shad, dipbait and shrimp.

Dawson Lake
SOURCE: Leon and Judy Gibson, Moraine View Concession (309-724-8295)
Walleye, catfish, bluegill and bass are all good. Cats biting on shrimp and liver in the shallow water. Bluegills are also shallow and taking worms. Bass are biting on plastic worms and spinnerbaits. Walleye are at a depth of 7-10 feet. A 16-inch walleye was caught using worms on June 18.

Emiquon Preserve
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); The Nature Conservancy (309-547-2730)
Bass fishing slowed over the weekend, with several anglers saying they caught only a handful of fish. Heavy rains appear to be having an impact. Earlier last week bass fishing had been very good. Few reports from this week make it tough to say how things are right now. One group did manage a small mess of bluegill and crappie on Tuesday. Water is very dirty, though. Anglers must obtain a free permit at Dickson Mounds Museum (open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) before fishing here.

Evergreen Lake
SOURCE: Brad Wood, operations supervisor, (309-726-2022) or Larry Dozard
Good fishing continues on Evergreen says Wood. The last few weeks have been wet ones, but that has not changed the fishing. Saugeye and bass are the best bet right now, with several nice fish being caught. In recent weeks daily limits of saugeye have been pulled from the lake by many anglers. Still the best set up has been light colored curly tailed tubes and night crawlers. Bass continue to hit artificial lures on the lake, including the nice fish pictured below caught by Terry Brown on June 19. Many anglers are switching up lures often, saying that being versatile is key. Crappie are still being caught in 15-20 feet of water suspended at about 10feet deep. Bluegill continue to be caught along weeds and rip rap with wax worms and crawler pieces. Catfishing has been great with several nice fish being caught on mostly liver or shrimp. Water is in the mid-70s and clarity was at 1-2 feet prior to storms Wednesday night.
• Click here for up-to-date lake reports.

Heidecke Lake
SOURCE: Don Stephens, Greybeards (815-941-1504); Guide Mike Lynch (708-655-7667); Guide Greg Heath (815-258-9136)
Bass are good and biting on worms. Walleye are taking worms as well as leeches and small minnows and are pretty good. Catfish are also taking worms and are doing well. Crappie have slowed down. Fish are at a depth of 12 feet and are near the north side. Mike Jackson reports: the lake is “giving up some nice stripers and walleyes not far from the narrows.”

Hennepin Canal
SOURCE: Jordan Hubinsky, Time on the Water Marina, Spring Valley (815-663-1000)
• Bass are biting well in the evenings, with reports of fish up to 5 pounds on jigs. Topwaters also working.

LaSalle Lake
SOURCE: Dale Bowman of the Chicago Sun-Times; Guide Mike Lynch (708-655-7667)
• Click here for a LaSalle Lake fishing forum.

Powerton Lake
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
Water has warmed dramatically and most reports are of smaller channel catfish. Merle Keefer says there are still blue cats of 8-10 pounds being caught.

Snakeden Hollow SFWA
SOURCE: Nellie Thorne, Depot Bait and Tackle, Victoria (309-879-2401); Site office (309-879-2607)
Not many anglers have been out and the lakes are up quite a bit. Catfish have been fair with some 3- and 4-pounders coming on dipbait or nightcrawlers. Bluegill have slowed but the bite should still be fair to good along weed edges.

Spring Lake
SOURCES: Troy Galvin, Galvin’s Spring Lake Market (309-267-6538) and Larry Karnes, Larry’s Restaurant and Family Bar, Manito (309-968-9500)
Catfish are very good on shrimp and dipbait and a few on nightcrawlers says Larry Karnes. Evenings are best, though a pair of anglers did manage six keepers Wednesday afternoon. Bluegill are good to very good with lots of small fish but also several decent keepers. Bank anglers are doing well right along the rocky shoreline. Bass are fair on topwaters and buzz baits in the weeds. Merle Keefer reports seeing pictures of a 7.4-pound bass caught out of here on a topwater.

Lake Storey
SOURCE: Al Hayden, Al’s Sporting Goods, Galesburg (309-342-7776)
Few reports lately. Catfish have been slow. Bluegill are still biting pretty well. Bass are fairly decent on a variety of lures, with plastics and crankbaits the main two followed by some topwater.

Strip Mines
(Fulton, Knox, Peoria and Stark counties)
SOURCE: Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193); Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094); and Larry Dozard; Jason Grider, Riverside Bait, Pekin (309-347-3793)
Several nice bass have been caught in the past week on topwaters and various finesse presentations. Senkos are good as are wacky worm rigs. Fishing early (5-6 a.m.) and evenings is probably more important than lure choice. Scum frog bite good in some lakes, slower elsewhere. Shady spots are a key during the day says Dozard. Crankbaits and Carolina rigs off points will also work. Bluegill are still biting but many smaller fish have been reported. Full moon Sunday should help bring bigger fish shallow. Catfish are improving on dipbait and chicken livers.

SOUTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS South of Interstate 72/U.S. Route 36 and North of Interstate 70

Beaver Dam Lake
SOURCE: Gwen Gilmore, Gilmore Bait & Marine, Carlinville (217-854-8136); Kim Eggers, Beaver Dam Bait Shop, (217-854-6688)
Bluegill, catfish, and crappie biting. Crappie favoring crickets, but also taking minnows and worms.

Carlinville Lake
SOURCE: Gwen Gilmore, Gilmore Bait & Marine, Carlinville (217-854-8136)
Bass biting on Bandit 200s. Catfish taking worms and Sonny’s super sticky dipbait. Fish are at a depth of 8 feet. A 20-pound, 13-ounce drum perch was caught this week.

Charleston Side Channel Lake
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770)
Channel catfish still a good bet here. Cats biting on cheesebaits, dipbaits, chicken liver and cut shad. Some large and spotted bass have been caught in the river on small spinner baits or jigs. Water level has been changing, but fish are around 8 feet deep.

Lake Decatur
SOURCE: Joanne Lowe, Mike’s Tackle World, Decatur (217-423-0730)
Flooding causing high water. Some channel catfish, carp, white bass and largemouth bass were caught earlier in the week.

Lake Glenn Shoals
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
A few bass in the 5-pound range were caught this week, biting off the points on plastic baits. Channel cats good in the early and late hours. Leeches still going best, with cheese, chicken liver and shad also working. A few crappie still biting deep during the day on small jigs. Bluegills are decent, taking crickets and red worms.

Lake Hillsboro
SOURCE: Jack Rebman, Kink’s Corner, Hillsboro (217-532-5442)
Catfish good here on leeches, cheese, chicken liver or shad. A 15-pound channel cat was caught. Crappie are decent taking small jigs, favoring a combination of blue and grey. Bass are coming in at around 4 pounds. Fish have moved deep.

Lake Jacksonville
SOURCE: Tom Holmes, Military Surplus Outlet, Jacksonville (217-243-6161) and Lake Jacksonville Campground (217-479-4646)
Large numbers of bass and catfish reported. Bass are in the shade, taking jigs and catfish are biting on nightcrawlers. Cats are around 2-3 pounds.

Lake Mattoon
SOURCE: Rick Cuddy, Prairie Outfitters, Charleston (217-348-6770); Joel Pittman, Mattoon Parks Department (217-254-6680)
Bass fair to good in the 5-6 pound range at about 8-10 feet deep. Zoom baby brush hogs and black and blue jigs are best. Some Catfish bitting mainly on cheese. Water is murky.

Sangchris Lake
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-820-9674)
Catfish biting on stinkbait, dip, shrimp, cheese, dough and nightcrawlers. Bluegills are in the shallows around 2-3 feet deep.

Lake Sara
SOURCE: Tony Niebrugge, Anthony’s Acres Resort, (217-868-2950)
Bluegill biting well on waxworms around 4-5 feet deep. White bass are taking minnows. Bass biting on plastics in the weeds. Catfish are getting better at around 12-13 pounds , biting on nightcrawlers. Crappie have slowed down.

Lake Shelbyville
SOURCE: Guide Ken Wilson (217-774-5756 or 217-454-2672) at Lithia Springs Guide Service; Margie Oliver, Marv and Kathy’s Bait & Tackle, Sullivan (217-728-4044); Guide Steve Welch (217) 762-7257 or (217) 840-1221
Guide Ken Wilson says white bass are biting on crankbaits or blade baits and some are coming up top early on Points 3, 5 and near the Coal Shaft bridge. Largemouth bass biting on the points with crankbaits, worms, and plastics. Walleye have slowed but a few fish are still being caught. Few crappie biting on minnows in 10-15 feet of water. Guide Steve Welch has been catching a lot of white bass on sand blasters, a blade bait with a heavy weight. Fish are around 2 pounds and are in 10-20 feet. Welch has done best off the north end on ledges and is also catching walleye and catfish. Lake is about 4 feet above normal pool and rising.
• For a daily report on Lake Shelbyville call (217-774-2020).

Lake Springfield
SOURCE: Jack Raymond, Peter’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-9500); Trevor Miller, Big Red’s Bait and Tackle, Springfield (217-820-9674) and Tater’s Bait, Springfield (217-528-2208)
Catfish biting on stinkbait, dip, shrimp, cheese, dough and nightcrawlers. Some cats being caught on shad and big minnows. Crappie anglers are getting fish on small minnows. Bluegills are also biting. Bass taking shaky head worm baits around 10 feet deep. Water is clear from around the railroad bridge and north and muddy from that point south.

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS South of Interstate 70

Carlyle Lake
SOURCE: Josh Adkins; Buddy Langenhorst, Lavish’s Bait Shop , Carlyle (618-594-4413); Henkel’s (618-594-4818)
Catfish are biting from 15-30 feet off the bank. Dean Willmenn, who makes bait at Lavish’s Bait Shop, caught a 13-pound channel catfish this week. White bass are bitting on crank and curly tail baits. Some cats are near the rocks and biting on worms and chicken liver.
• For the latest water level information call (618-594-4637).

Cedar Lake
SOURCE: Ron Reed, Cooksey’s Bait, Marion (618-993-3366); Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354); Kyle Garner, Crappie Pro Shop, Carterville (618-985-8277)
Bass biting on deep-diving crankbaits as well as carolina rigs, plastic, and watermelon.

Crab Orchard Lake
SOURCE: Ron Reed, Cooksey’s Bait, Marion (618-993-3366); Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354); Kyle Garner, Crappie Pro Shop, Carterville (618-985-8277)
Crappie are deep, at a range of 10-12 feet, bitting on minnows and jigs. Check brush, by the dam and sunken islands. Bluegills are taking wax worms and crickets. Catfish biting on leeches, cut bait and cheese. Bass are shallow.

Lake of Egypt
SOURCE: Guide Matt Strobel (618-922-0354)
Bass are running Deep. Jack Jennings caught a 7.2lb bass with a shaky on his second cast Friday morning. The following day, his brother Terry Jennings caught a 7.95lb bass with a 1oz shad spinner bait. Jason Johns says that bass fishing at night is going extremely well.

Forbes Lake
SOURCE: Site manager Glenn Wegener (618-547-3381); Mike Polcyn, Mike’s Bait & Tackle Shop, Louisville (618-665-3209)

Horseshoe Lake, Alexander County
SOURCE: Jim Melton, Melton’s Fish Camp (618-776-5504)
Crappie still slow, will be close to bottom and in the shade. Channel catfish are in the middle bitting on nightcrawlers.

Kinkaid Lake
SOURCE: Janet Graeff, Top of the Hill Bait Shop, Muphysboro (618-684-2923); Guide Al Nutty (618-694-4897)
Matt Strobel says that bass are around 10-22 feet deep biting on shaky heads, jigs, and spinner baits. Other sources confirmed the depth, adding frogs, buzz, plastic and crankbaits.

Rend Lake
SOURCE: Todd Gessner (618-513-0520); Jason Johns (618-927-3432); Bill Hudnall, Rend Lake Sporting Goods, Mount Vernon (618-242-2191)
Bass fair to slow. Best time is early or late at the points using jigs, spinners and deep-diving crankbaits. Catfish are on surface due to the Japanese beetles. Cats will bit on top water, drift and rocks. Cut shad is the best. Crappie are 8-15 feet deep near the creek and river channels. Water running close to 90 degrees.

RIVERS

• Click here for water level information.

Des Plaines River
SOURCE: Andrew Ragas
• Click here for a Des Plaines River fishing forum.

DuPage River
SOURCE: Click here for a DuPage River fishing forum.

Illinois River
SOURCE: Carol Culjan at Cajun Sporting Goods in Utica (815-667-4222)
• Near Utica the river is “rolling mud and a mess” according to Kathy at Cajun Sporting goods. As of Thursday morning Starved Rock State Park was still open but expectations are the ramps there will be closed soon.
SOURCE: Merle Keefer, Pekin Bass & Bow (309-347-3334); Tim Presley, Presley’s Outdoors, Bartonville (309-697-1193)
• Near Peoria a few anglers have been fishing flooded timber for catfish, but the rising river is making boat launching tougher. Rod and reel anglers are doing well on dipbait and shrimp in the flooded trees. On rainy days crawlers are working well.
SOURCE: Paul Dinkheller, Dink’s, Lewistown (309-547-1094)
• Near Havana anglers are catching channel catfish on the backside of the Emiquon Preserve levee where the pump is depositing water into the river. “And if you can get into the backwaters or timber in places, you can catch catfish,” said Dinkheller, noting that launching a boat is getting tougher to do due to the high water.

Kankakee River
SOURCE: Ed Mullady, Sportsman’s Letter (815-932-7285)
• High water has slowed angling.

Mississippi River
SOURCE: Iowa DNR

Pecatonica River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
River is high, was only 11 inches from flood stage prior to Wednesday’s rains.

Rock River
SOURCE: Tom Calam, Tom’s Bait & Tackle, Freeport (815-232-3337)
Flathead catfish have begun spawning in the shallows. Some can be found in the 5-15 feet deep range. Channel catfish have finished spawning, bitting on cut bait in the shallow cover and flats. Crappie, bass, and bluegill are all biting on nightcrawlers around 1-4 feet deep. Water is high and mud colored, but is not too dirty and should clear up soon.  Flatheads are bitting on bullhead and bluegill. Channel cats are also in the 8-12 feet range bitting on shade, shrimp and liver. There is a river clean-up on June 26.
• Near Rockford channel catfish biting on cut and dipbait.
SOURCE: Jan Prose at TJ’s Bait/Tackle & Canoe Rental in Oregon (815-732-4516)
• Near Oregon channel catfish are near the shoreline biting on shrimp, cut bait and dipbait. Some big carp have been taking nightcrawlers. Flatheads are near the dam, including the 33-pounder pictured above caught by Chad and Tim of Oregon on an 8-inch sucker.
SOURCE: Ray and Irene Hays, Bunny’s Bait Shop, Dixon (815-288-3812)
• Near Dixon the channel cats are biting good near shoreline on chicken liver and shrimp. Flatheads were below the bridge to the rock walls before the rain and were bitting bluegill, goldfish and chubs. Carp at taking worms. Walleye are fair biting on minnows. Water is high but not dirty.

Commercial fishermen landed the 3-foot-long, 20-pound bighead carp in Lake Calumet on Chicago’s South Side, about six miles from Lake Michigan, according to the Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee.

Officials said they need more information to determine the significance of the find.

“The threat to the Great Lakes depends on how many have access to the lakes, which depends on how many are in the Chicago waterway right now,” said John Rogner, assistant director of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

But environmental groups said the discovery leaves no doubt that other Asian carp have breached barriers designed to prevent them from migrating from the Mississippi Riv er system to the Great Lakes and proves the government needs to act faster.

“If the capture of this live fish doesn’t confirm the urgency of this problem, nothing will,” said Andy Buchsbaum, director of the National Wildlife Federation’s Great Lakes office.

Scientists and fishermen fear that if the carp become established in the lakes, they could starve out popular sport species and ruin the region’s $7 billion fishing industry. Asian Carp can grow to 4 feet and 100 pounds and eat up to 40 percent of their body weight daily.

Rogner, from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, estimated that the male carp was about 3 to 4 years old. It was caught live but has since been killed and will be sent to the University of Illinois to determine if it was artificially raised or naturally bred.

The fish was sexually mature, but Lake Calumet’s conditions aren’t conducive to reproduction because the water is too still, Rogner said. Even so, the lake is the i deal living environment for the fish because it’s quiet and near a river system, he added.

“It fits the model to a T,” he said. “They may be concentrated in that area.”

Officials said they’ll use electrofishing and netting to remove any Asian carp from the lake.

They have been migrating up the Mississippi and Illinois rivers toward the Great Lakes for decades.

There are no natural connections between the lakes and the Mississippi basin. More than a century ago, engineers linked them with a network of canals and existing rivers to reverse the flow of the Chicago River and keep waste from flowing into Lake Michigan, which Chicago uses for drinking water.

Two electric barriers, which emit pulses to scare the carp away or give a jolt if they proceed, are a last line of defense. The Army corps plans to complete another one this year.

“Is it disturbing? Extraordinarily. Is it surprising? No,” Joel Brammeier, president of the Alliance for the Gre at Lakes, said of the carp’s discovery beyond the barriers.

He said the capture highlights the need to permanently sever the link between the Mississippi River and the Great Lakes. The Army Corps is studying alternatives, but says the analysis will take years.

“Invaders will stop at nothing short of bricks and mortar, and time is running short to get that protection in place,” Brammeier said.

In Michigan, officials renewed their demand to shut down two shipping locks on the Chicago waterways that could provide a path to Lake Michigan. The U.S. Supreme Court has twice rejected the state’s request to order the locks closed, but state Attorney General Mike Cox said he was considering more legal action.

“Responsibility for this potential economic and ecological disaster rests solely with President Obama,” Cox said. “He must take action immediately by ordering the locks closed and producing an emergency plan to stop Asian carp from entering Lake Michigan.”

A Chicago-based industry coalition called Unlock Our Jobs said the discovery of a single carp did not justify closing the locks. Doing so would damage the region’s economy and kill jobs without guaranteeing that carp would be unable to reach the lakes, spokesman Mark Biel said.

“A few isolated incidents of Asian carp in this small section of the Illinois Waterway does not mean existing barriers have failed,” said Biel, also executive director of the Chemical Industry Council of Illinois. “Additional regulatory controls and river barriers should be explored before permanent lock closure is even considered.”

Here’s more information from a Department of Natural Resources press release about the Asian carp discovery.

The Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee (RCC) announced today that one bighead Asian carp has been found in Lake Calumet along the Chicago Area Waterway System (CAWS). This is the first physical specimen that has been found in the CAWS above the U.S. Army Corps of Engineer’s Electric Barrier System.

RCC agencies will enact immediate measures to remove any additional Asian carp found during sampling efforts, including but not limited to electrofishing and netting.

“We set out on a fact finding mission and we have found what we were looking for,” said John Rogner, Assistant Director of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR). “This is important evidence and the more information we have about where Asian carp are, the better chance we have of keeping them out of the Great Lakes.” 

The Bighead carp was found in Lake Calumet which sits between T. J. O’Brien Lock and Dam and Lake Michigan.  The find was made in the northwest corner of the lake near Harborside Golf Course, approximately six miles downstream of Lake Michigan by a commercial fisherman contracted by the Illinois DNR during routine sampling efforts in the area.  The fish was measured to be 34.6 inches long and weighed 19.6 pounds. 

This capture represents the first Asian carp discovered above the electric barrier system and just the second in the Chicago Area Waterway System. 

The first Asian carp was found on December 3 in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal (CSSC) below the electric barrier system and just above the Lockport Lock and Dam.

Intensive sampling operations on the CAWS by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service first began on
February 17 in an attempt to locate either Silver or Bighead Asian carp above the Electric Fish Barrier System.

Previous sampling actions throughout the last four months above the barrier did not produce any Silver or Bighead carp. 

Additional sampling actions on Lake Calumet above T.J O’Brien Lock and Dam will include IDNR and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service fishery biologists supported by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and commercial fishermen. Commercial fishing nets and electrofishing gear will continue to be used in Lake Calumet and additional resources will be deployed to begin sampling up the Calumet River leading to Lake Michigan.  Electrofishing and sampling efforts in Lake Calumet and the Calumet River will continue throughout the next several weeks.

During these activities every effort will be made to minimize the impact to waterway users and provide as much advanced notice of any possible waterway restrictions.

“This issue is an extremely high priority for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and we will continue to work directly with our partners and stakeholders to implement the Asian Carp Control Strategy Framework using all available tools and techniques,” said Mike Weimer,  U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Assistant Regional Director of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Program.  “We remain firmly committed to achieving our collective goal of preventing Asian carp from becoming established in Great Lakes waters.”

The sampling effort is an important and continued effort in the Asian Carp Control Strategy Framework, which includes both short and long term actions to stop the migration of Asian carp into the Great Lakes.

Sampling and monitoring will also continue at five fixed sampling stations throughout the Chicago Area Waterway System as detailed in the RCC’s Sampling and Monitoring plan to search for Asian carp.  Commercial fishing operations will also continue to remove Silver or Bighead carp in downstate waters where the fish are known to be present. 

“The Army Corps of Engineers will continue to operate the locks and dams in the Chicago Area Waterway System for Congressionally authorized purposes of navigation, water diversion, and flood control.  We will continue to support fish suppression activities by modifying existing structures such as locks as requested by other agencies to support this common goal,” said Colonel Vincent Quarles, Command of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Chicago District. “At this time there is no intention to close the locks.”

Short and long term control efforts as part of the Asian Carp Control Strategy Framework include:

• Operations to reduce propagule pressure on barriers
• Increased fish collection effort and population suppression
• Evaluation of modified and structures operations in support of fish suppression activities
• Emergency measures to prevent bypass of fish between (1) Des Plaines River and CSSC and (2) I&M Canal and CSSC during flood events
• Increased biological control efforts
• Barrier operations

The new proprietor of Riverside Bait in Pekin figures he’s come to grips with at least a half-dozen catfish of 50 pounds or greater this spring.

The largest arrived Wednesday evening in the back of a hatchback driven by Josh Shelton of Peoria. That huge flathead catfish tipped Riverside’s certified scale at 67.2 pounds,

“That thing was a monster,” said Grider, who this year took over the business started by his father, Tom. “They just keep bringing big ones in.”

Such is the advantage of being located near Powerton Lake.

Though Powerton is no longer a must-fish hotspot for smallmouth anglers, the 1,400-acre rock-lined cooling lake is one of Illinois’ finest trophy catfish destinations. Strong current throughout the lake, abundant baitfish and artificially warm waters allow catfish to grow fat fast. Evidently catfish are better able to withstand the lake’s extreme summer temperatures than other species.

This spring has been particularly productive, thanks mostly to big-bellied blue catfish. Stocked in 1999 from Arkansas, blue cats have been steadily adding weight every year since their release.

The biggest so far was a 57-pounder Grider weighed last week that was caught by an unnamed angler who was fishing with shad guts. That’s just one of several fish over 50 pounds this spring, including a 55-pounder caught by Peorian Dewey Banks in early May on cut Asian carp.

Those weights are right on schedule according to fisheries biologist Wayne Herndon, who years ago predicted we’d see blue cats approaching 60 pounds by 2010.

Oddly enough, flatheads had been fairly quiet until recently. Most years at Powerton you’ll see a few flatheads pushing 50 pounds caught from February to mid-May.

While that didn’t happen this winter, there’s apparently no cause for worry based on Shelton’s catch. His fish is the largest reported from Powerton since Pastor Charles Everly caught a 65-pounder in March of 2009.

Other flatheads that likely topped 60 pounds include a 48-incher caught by Brian Slayback of Canton in February of 2007 and a 67-pounder biologists netted in 2006. All of those huge fish came out of Powerton’s discharge. That’s also the area from which Jonathan Cleveland (pictured below)recently caught a 38.2-pound, 42-incher.

Baits, however, have varied widely. Cleveland fished a nightcrawler, Slayback tight-lined cut bluegill, Everly relied on waxworms and Shelton floated a large golden roach shiner.

Obviously, Powerton’s flatheads aren’t finicky. But Grider said Shelton relies on big shiners. With good reason. In addition to the flathead, he also caught a 17.6-pound northern pike out of Spring Lake this spring.

While he kept the pike, Shelton released the flathead after taking pictures.

“Most people eat these things, but I try to encourage them to throw them back,” Grider said.

That’s a sensible decision. Powerton reopened to anglers in 1984 after being rehabilitated, so that 67.2-pound flathead could be almost 30 years old. A fish like that has the potential to eventually top the state record of 78 pounds, or at least to make a lasting impression on anyone it encounters.

“Josh said the fish gave him about an hour fight,” Grider said. “It was real yellow, almost like a bullhead. Just a beautiful fish.”

Understand, I’m not one who preaches catch-and-release very often. If you buy a fishing license you can keep legal fish.

But a fish this old and this big is an extreme case. So if you’ve already got a freezer full of meat, take pictures and let that swimming muscle go to provide a thrill for somebody else.