IL River Sauger Fishing

Illinois River - December 30, 2010

Icy Parking Lot

Since it's been a while since I fished for Sauger, I thought I'd try to get Jim Lukancic and Al Bernicky out on the river so we could try our luck. Jim had got called back to work for a couple days after being laid off and wasn't able to go, and so Al and I were disappointed he wasn't able to join us.

Launching the boat very carefully

The ride out to river was a messy one. The boat was covered with snow and road scum by the time we got there. The parking lot was a sheet of ice. That was great for the kids who come to the park to sled down the hill, but not great if you're pulling a bass boat. We took our time and had no trouble getting the boat safely in the 35 degree water. By this time, most of the morning fog had dissipated leaving a dreary and overcast day.

Bald Eagles in the distance

As soon as we were on our way to fish our first spot, I spotted a couple Bald Eagles in a tree up river from where we were. We never went close enough to try for some good photos and I figured that we'd see more of them during the day.

A Bald Eagle flies by

A short time after we started fishing, Al said " That bird is going to fly right over your head and you don't have your camera ready?". Sure enough, before I could grab the camera and get a good shot, a Bald Eagle flew right over us. I missed the good shot but caught him flying away from us.

One of my first nice Sauger

Fishing was slow. I caught one or two smaller fish in the first spot we tried, but since we were looking for more and bigger fish, we decided to move. Sitting in a bass boat when you're flying down the river at more than 50 mph is one thing. Doing it when the temperature is at about the freezing mark is quite another. I had to suck it up and take it for a few minutes while we ran to our next spot. That was one cold ride.

A young Bald Eagle watches over our fishing spot

On the way down river, we spotted more Eagles. I wasn't about to try to photograph them as we were moving for fear I'd freeze to death before I could aim the camera. I anticipated the air temperature was going to be a bit warmer than it was and I left my extra clothes in my car - which was parked back in Als driveway.

 Another shot of the Eagle

 Once we began fishing, I caught a nice fish right away. That gave us hope we were going to have a better day. Unfortunately every time we found ourselves on top of a school of fish, we had to move to let the tug boats get at the barges were fishing near.

Another fish out of the same hole

I caught another fish once we were able to get back on top of the same spot where had I caught the first, but we were forced off a few minutes later by another tug pushing a couple barges. This got old real quick. I'd catch a fish and we'd have move right away before we could get any more.

  

Another nice Sauger

We stayed as long as we could in that area and put a few more fish in the boat. Eventually the bite stopped once they stacked a couple barges right over the hole where we had found them so we decided to head back to where we started our day.

One more nice fish in the boat

By this time there were several boats drifting around the area we wanted to fish. They were catching a lot of small fish so we decided to try a different drift pattern. It worked since Al put a nice Walleye in the boat on the first drift we made.

A Barge passes us on its way up river

I put one more nice fish in the boat that we caught in much shallower water than everyone else was fishing. After a few more smaller fish we decided to head back. It wasn't worth it to stay out there and go through so many small fish. Not to mention that it was supposed to already be raining on us according to the weather forecast.

A scenic point on the river

Pulling the boat out wasn't too bad. Once it was out of the water, we had trouble getting traction on the ice to get it the rest of the way up the ramp. Al eventually got it and we stowed all the gear in preparation for the messy ride home.

3 hours at LaSalle

LaSalle Lake - April 8, 2010

I got to the lake right around 8:00 am. Before I pulled into the lot, I noticed the windmills that stretch as far as the eye can see were all turning at a pretty good clip. That told me the lake would be fairly rough. I still think it's funny that so many windmills surround a nuclear power plant, but I guess it's a good thing that they do. As I pulled into the parking lot I noticed that I was the only one there other than a couple shore fishermen.

I launched and headed for spot number one. I was only able to fish the north shorelines because the wind would have made it tough to stay out of the rocks on the east and south banks. There are no west banks other than within the restricted areas and you wont ever see me in there. As it was, the wind was carrying me along the shoreline a lot faster than I would have liked.

My first fish was a nice Bluegill that hit the crank bait I was throwing for bass. A few casts later and I had a 5 lb channel cat in the boat. After that it was slow going. I caught two more small catfish on crank baits and that was it. Never saw a Bass which is rare.

The highlight of the trip were the flocks of Pelicans I saw. I have never been so close to them and I was really kicking myself for forgetting to grab both cameras and my cell phone. I would have gotten some great photos of the Pelicans and the fog.

After switching spots a few times and not getting a bite for 2 hours, I packed up and headed in. I was still the only person dumb enough to brave the 25 mph+ wind out of the NNW and the 43 degree air temp since there were still no other trailers in the parking lot. The water temp was 55 at the ramp and 89 back in the discharge canal. Most of the lake was in the 70s.

Weather at LaSalle Lake

Since today is closing day for the 2009 season at LaSalle Lake, here's a video of some of the wind, weather, waves, and fog from the past 10 years. Don't forget to try full Screen and HQ.

LaSalle Lake - October 14, 2009

LaSalle Lake - October 14, 2009

More photos from today:

http://www.catchphotorelease.com/10142009.htm

Cold, Rainy, and Foggy

When I left the house it was cold, dark, and a moderate rain was falling. I left the cover on the boat for the ride to the lake hoping that the spray from the other vehicles on the highway would not wind up on the windshield and upholstery. The interior stayed clean, but the exterior was filthy by the time we got the boat in the water.

Boat Ramp Out of Order

The parking lot for trailers was empty when I got there. I was a little late due to being held up by a train in Seneca. It stopped just short of the last car clearing the crossing, then sat there for a while before it backed up and cleared the crossing before stopping again.

Neither the road leading into the lake, nor the parking lot are paved so when it rains it can be very sloppy. We were concerned after we saw the "Do not Enter" sign in front of one of the ramps and discussed going back towards home and fishing the river again. After a closer look at the sign we figured out that it was only for the one ramp because of a hole that had developed near the bottom of it. The fact that there were no other boats there also concerned us because they have a tendency to close the lake to boats if its windy. More on that later.

Empty Lot

There was a lot of thick fog blowing across the lake with the cold east wind. Both Mike and I were surprised at how brutal it was considering that there didn't appear to be much wind at all on the way there. LaSalle is a cooling lake for the LaSalle nuclear power plant. It's 2,600 acres of water that is built on high ground so that it catches the wind to keep the water cool. This means it can get very dangerous out there too.

Fog and Rain

Mike caught the first couple of fish. His first fish was a nice Largemouth. A little later he hooked a catfish and kept it in the water until it got loose. He didn't want it in the boat. Mike also wound up with a nice Smallmouth and a couple more Largemouth before we were done.

Mike with the best Largemouth of the day

Fishing was a lot tougher than we expected. Usually fishing at LaSalle is phenomenal when there is a good cloud cover and a good breeze. Not today. We worked several areas with no luck but Mike was able to pick off a fish here and there while I hauled water.

My first fish of the day - Freshwater Drum

When we got to the warm water discharge canal, I grabbed a rod with a blade bait and promptly caught a Freshwater Drum. As we worked our way into the warm water (which was only in the low 70s) we thought we'd at least catch a couple small catfish. Neither of us got a bite so we moved on.

Me and my best fish of the day

I didn't catch my Smallmouth until we were almost done for the day. The fish hit right at the boat and took off. I didn't let him go very far and when I got him back to the boat I hoisted him up out of the water, unhooked him, and posed for a photo before releasing him.

Not the best of days - but my favorite kind to fish

As we were leaving we saw two boats launching. We were concerned that one of them was taking a baby out in those conditions. Judging by the issues they were having getting their boat in the water, then off the rocks after it got away from them, they did not seem to be experienced boaters. That lake has taken several lives over the years and today was not a day for the inexperienced to be out there. Usually they close the lake to boats if it gets windy because 6 and 7 foot waves can materialize very quickly.

To see some of what this lake is capable of dishing out, take a look at these links:

http://www.catchphotorelease.com/lasallesign2.htm

http://www.catchphotorelease.com/w38.htm

http://www.catchphotorelease.com/w14.htm

http://www.catchphotorelease.com/w15.htm

http://www.catchphotorelease.com/w20.htm

http://www.catchphotorelease.com/w5.htm

http://www.catchphotorelease.com/w4.htm

Des Plaines River - September 24, 2009

More photos from today:

http://www.catchphotorelease.com/09242009.htm

Sunrise over the river industy

My friend Al Bernicky and I hit the Des Plaines River Thursday morning. The purpose of this trip was to catch fish, and also to make sure I corrected the problem that was causing the outboard alarm to sound. Fortunately the owner’s manual was very clear as to what I needed to do and everything worked fine. There's a reason they tell you to read the entire manual before you operate the machinery.

Sun through the approaching clouds

We ran through the fog that was rising off the water to our first spot. On the way I took the usual sunrise photos and let Al take the wheel so I could get some good photos. We beat up that area pretty good and all we got out of it was a small Largemouth that hit my crank bait.

Largemouth Bass doing the tail-walk

On the way to the next spot I let Al take the wheel again so I could shoot some video. There was still some fog rising up off the water and it looked pretty neat. I also got some video of a Bald Eagle in a tree way off in the distance and a snake that swam out to greet us.

Bald Eagle in the distance

I combined the day’s photos with the video and put his together from it:

Al suggested another spot I’ve fished before where I’ve had mixed results and that was where the fish were. Al out-fished me two to one in that spot. We threw crank baits, jigs and plastics worms and only the plastic worm struck out. I had a couple fish pick up the worm, but couldn’t hook up.

Al with the first decent Largemouth of the day

After the bite slowed, we moved on to where I’d caught fish the last few trips. We beat up that spot with pretty good but it was pretty much for nothing. If I remember correctly, we both got a fish there, but nothing to really brag about.

My best Largemouth of the day

We hit a couple spots I’ve never fished before on the way back with no luck. In one spot the Shad were so thick you could have walked across them. I also got a couple photos of a sunken boat that was sticking out of the water.

Someone had a bad day a while back

We ran back to where we caught fish and they were still there. The bite was actually a little better and Al still caught more fish. We were throwing the same lure for a while but Al had the magic touch. I caught fish there, but he caught the biggest two of the day.

Typical size Largemouth for today

We stuck it out as long as we could until I had to be on my way so that I could get to where I needed to be later that afternoon. The water temperature was a little cooler than the last trip at 76 to 86 at the one discharge we fished. It was cloudy all day with very little wind which made it really nice to be out there. With any luck, Al and I will get back out there in the near future.

Braidwood Lake Fog

This video was taken March 1st, 2007 (opening day) and on March 7th at Braidwood Lake. Fishing was good both days although we were chased off by approaching thunderstorms on opening day. They would not let anyone launch because the fog was so thick a week later. Most of the guys there have fished in the pea soup before and know to be very careful, and to idle to whatever spot they're headed to.

Monee Reservoir Video from 9-18-2009

Here is a video I created that shows different views of the fog. Try the HQ button and full screen!


If I have time I'll add music.