Extended summer of Chicago fishing: The Midwest Fishing Report

Good morning Dale. Saturday out of Waukegan Harbor was very productive. The photo shows two of my sons, Eric and Jonathan, and my grandson, Joshua, holding a total of 30 lbs of fish. One 11 lb lake trout, and two kings, a 9 lb and a 10 lb.Williams was out again Tuesday morning and lost one.

Snagging for chinook and coho salmon only is permitted from the following Lake Michigan shoreline areas from October 1 through December 31; however, no snagging is allowed at any time within 200 feet of a moored watercraft or as posted: A) Lincoln Park Lagoon from the Fullerton Avenue Bridge to the southern end of the Lagoon. B) Waukegan Harbor (in North Harbor basin only). C) Winnetka Power Plant discharge area. D) Jackson Harbor (Inner and Outer Harbors).

Things are still kind of slow now mainly because of the Heat, guys are fishing more at night after five or six and into the early hours of the morning getting Kings, but really haven’t had many reports.

Water super hot so fish are turning really fast dark and are hard to eat to bite Best batch of fish we have had in years came in thru the ditch late last week. Still nothing like the old days but better than the last few years for sure Burns ditch on 29th street gave a bunch up over the weekend upper streathes of salt creek and lil cal has fish trail creek has plenty also but has a ton of fishing pressure on it Spinners skein and spawn saks are baits to use Lake fishing for casters and trollers really slow

Chicago River and Lake Michigan Fishing Report Last week we fished hard with the surface temps on the raise daily. Fall feels more like summer than summer did. Surface temps went from 68 to 77 degrees through the coarse of the week the fish are as mixed up as much as we are. We caught Bass on jigs, small creature baits and wacky worms but had to work for them. Crappie started showing up in a few of the spots I normally find them this time of year but were slow white 1/8 jig 1 ½ in. twister tale and a waxie or minnow did the job. This week Wednesday we will start to get back close to normal fall temps so I expect the river to settle down with a few cooler days and nights. Saturday I had 2 couples out we caught some 12 to 14 inch Bass and lost a couple nice ones near the boat then we beat up on some Crappie and Gills and added in a few big Cats. I talked to a couple guys on the river near Harlem Ave, that said they were Carp fishing and had caught a few over 20 pounds they seem to be immune to the warm water. Till next week stay cool and tight lines. Capt. Pat — www.patharrisonoutdoors.com

Delavan Lake Fishing Report 9/24/17 through 10/1/17 With the exceptionally cool August, September has been exceptionally warm which has caused surface temperature fluctuations of 10-15 degrees. The fish don’t really know what pattern they should be following! We have some fall patterns working well but some of the summer patterns are being re-established. Walleye fishing was improving with the cooler water but the heat wave is turning the fish off a bit. I’m still getting a few fish every trip but not the numbers I should be seeing for late September. The best bait is nightcrawlers fished on a lindy rig with a chartreuse hook. The best locations have been by 3 flags and concrete point. Look for the fish in 20-22 ft of water. Largemouth bass have returned to their summer patterns. They are in the weed lines in 15-17 ft of water. Last week I caught several fish over 5 lbs. just west of the Yacht Club and by Willow Point. Split shot rigged nightcrawlers or drop shotting green pumpkin worms have been producing most of the action. Bluegills have been a bit slow. My best location has been by Assembly Park and near Township Park in 10-12 ft of water. The fish are averaging 8-10 inches but the numbers aren’t that great. Other fishermen have said that the better success is coming out of 4 ft of water but I haven’t tried for them that shallow. I’ve been catching them on small split shots with a leaf worm floating throughout the water column, 6-12 inches off bottom is where they seem to strike. Crappie fishing has been very good by 3 flags and by Browns Channel. The fish are in the weed line in 10-12 ft of water. Purple and pink mini-mites have been producing most of the action. Small fat heads are also a good choice. Northern pike action has been slow. The best success has been drifting suckers in 17-20 ft of water by the old Boy Scout camp or by Willow Point. As the water cools the pike fishing will improve but this heat wave is really affecting the northern pike. Good luck and I hope to see you on the water. For guide parties, please call Dave Duwe at 262-728-8063

Lake Geneva Fishing Report 9/24/17 through 10/1/17 We have had exceptionally warm weather in the past week so the summer pattern for fishing continues. Those fish that had already moved to the fall patterns are very confused! Smallmouth bass have been on the main lake points like Black Point, Conference Point and Cedar Point. They have been in a depth range of 20-25 ft. They can be caught while lindy rigging black tail chubs. The best leader length has been 24-36 inches. As the water cools the fishing for smallmouth will improve greatly. Bluegill fishing has been fantastic. The fish have been in 18-22 ft of water. Look for the fish by Gage Marine and Elgin Club. The fish are positioned 6-12 inches off bottom. A single hook and leaf worm has been producing most of the action. Largemouth bass have been biting off the weed flats by South Shore Club and by Colemans Point. Drop shot rigging Chompers finesse worms has been very successful. The key is to have an 18 inch dropper off the worm. As the water cools, the bass will move shallow. That should happen in the next couple weeks provided these 90 degree days don’t stick around. Rock bass will start to become more aggressive as the water cools in the 10-12 ft depth range. Look for the fish by Linn Pier and by Elgin Club for the largest concentration. Lake Trout are still biting. The best depth is 108-110 ft of water. Chrome/blue and chrome/green spoons have been producing most of the action. The season ends shortly so take Yellow perch fishing will improve as the water cools. Look for the fish by Belvidere Park and Knollwood. Use Thill slip bobbers with a small fat head minnow in 8-10 ft of water. Put the minnow about 1 ft off bottom. Northern pike have been slow. The fish will move shallower as the water cools. They are currently located in 27-30 ft of water and scattered. We need the cool temps to get them into the shallow weed flats. Once there they can be caught on slip bobbers fished with golden shiners. Good luck and I hope to see you on the water. For guide parties, please call Dave Duwe at 262-728-8063

Dale, Here are the Winter Lake Closures I have from IDNR for Central IL (& couple extra). ANDERSON LAKE –– – THIS AREA Will CLOSE TO BOAT FISHING in Main Lake on Oct. 21st with Last Day to Fishing being Oct. 20th during waterfowl season with bank fishing Only allowed. BANNER MARSH – ** THIS AREA WILL CLOSE TO BOAT FISHING Oct. 18th (last day to boat fish will be Oct. 17th) — AND BANK FISHING ONLY ALLOWED AFTER 1PM but NO FISHING ALLOWED in EAST POINT ACCESS AREA, which is CLOSED TO ALL FISHING to provide a GOOSE REFUGE AREA during season till Feb. 1st – –CLINTON LAKE -REMEMBER an easterly area of Clinton Lake between the DeWitt (CH14) and the 48 bridges willCLOSE to protect fish and wildlife FROM OCT. 10th through – typically March 31st – but with weekend, could be March 30th, 2018..? DOUBLE T S.F.&W.A. ** THIS AREA WILL CLOSE TO FISHING Oct. 1st with LAST DAY to Fish being Sept. 30th and will remain CLOSED till Feb 1st..EVERGREEN LAKE – -Bait Shop Fall Hours: 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. 7 Days And LAST DAY BAIT SHOP OPEN is Oct. 14th (Depending on bait supply)– Boat Rental Fall Hours: 8:00 A.M. – 4:00 P.M. SAT. & SUN. ONLY – BOAT RENTAL will CLOSE for the season Oct. 8th – – A SOUTHERN PART OF EVERGREEN LAKE – AROUND DEER ISLAND and ALL OF SIX-MILE CREEK BAY IS CLOSED TO GAS MOTORS from Oct. 15th through JAN. 1st to allow resting areas for migratory waterfowl. YOU ARE ALLOWED TO STILL RUN A TROLLING MOTOR IN THESE AREAS ONLY.-HENNEPIN-HOPPER LAKES – Lakes are CLOSED for the SeasonMcMASTER LAKE at SNAKEDEN HOLLOW –* THIS AREA WILL CLOSE TO FISHING for the Season on Oct. 16th (last day to fish is Oct. 15th) till Feb. 1st —NEWTON LAKE –As written in the fishing regs booklet : ** The cold arm of Newton Lake shall be Closed daily from one-half hour before sunrise until 1:00 pm to all fishing and boat traffic except for legal waterfowl hunters during waterfowl season commencing with regular duck season through the close of the Canada goose and regular duck season. * For here – Regular South Waterfowl Season: Nov. 23 – Jan. 31POWERTON LAKE –WINTER HOURS (Oct. 1st – April 30th): 8am – 4pm – THIS LAKE WILL CLOSE TO BOAT FISHING ON OCT. 21th (Last day for Boat fishing will be Oct. 20th) and CLOSES TO SHORE FISHING and ALL FISHING ON OCT. 28th (Last day for Shore fishing is Oct. 27th) and REOPENS TO SHORE FISHING ONLY ON DEC. 26th AND NO BOAT FISHING till FEB. 15th – –PRAIRIE LAKE in Jim Edgar/ Panther Creek State F&W Area – Lake access is CLOSED to Fishing from Nov. 1st – Jan. 15th until After 12:01 PM on Wednesdays and Saturdays.RICE LAKE –* THIS AREA WILL CLOSE TO FISHING on OCT. 21st with Last Day of Fishing being OCT. 20th and Will Re-Open at end of Duck & Goose Season..SPRING LAKE (South & North) –* THIS AREA WILL BE CLOSED TO BOAT FISHING in Hunting Area ON OCT. 21st with Last Day to Boat Fish being Oct. 20th –with BANK FISHING ALLOWED ONLY AFTER 1pm–AREAS THAT REMAIN OPEN TO BOATS ARE NORTH OF MAPLE ISLAND with ramp at north end at the Sky Ranch Road launch and IN PIKE HOLE with carry in boats –AND Shore Fishing is allowed in entire Lake after 1pm in Hunting areas or at boat ramps all day..SANGCHRIS LAKE –* THE WEST and EAST ARMS OF LAKE and Small AREA NEAR DAM ARE CLOSED DURING WATERFOWL SEASON to boat traffic effective Oct. 18th (last day to boat fish will be Oct. 17th) through Jan. 31, 2018 (during this time fishing boat traffic is permitted in the center hot arm only). Keep up the Good Work,Enjoy the Fall & GOOD FISHINGlarrysfishinghole.comLarry

Good Afternoon fellas. Here is a quick update as far as the fishing is concerned Pike action has been very good from the Little Sturgeon area north up to Sturgeon Bay. Look for weed edges and shoreline drops with weed cover. Casting or trolling large crank baits, spoons and spinner baits is a very good option along with dragging around large sucker minnows Perch fishing was on fire up until the super-hot weather pattern we got into, then it seemed to slow a bit. Once our normal fall weather and weather patterns come back like they should around the middle of the week I anticipate the Perch fishing will pick back up like it was and just get better as we move through fall just like the past 3 years. Little Sturgeon, Riley’s Bay, Sawyer Harbor and downtown Sturgeon Bay all good spots for Perch. Fathead minnows and crawler pieces the best live baits Salmon fishing in the Sturgeon Bay ship canal is still going strong as those fish are approaching the spawn. Trolling and casting an assortment of plugs and spoons working well along with soaking spawn sacs. Not a lot of fishermen have been traveling out to the deep water out on the lake, but the ones that have been, are experiencing some pretty good fishing right now for some nice 2 and 3 year old Salmon and some nice sized Rainbows. 120 to 180 feet has been the best depth and Howie Flies and an assortment of spoon working well Bass fish has been going OK…the fish are a bit spotty I guess you could say. With cooler temps forcasted, that should push them into their fall pattern where they will group up out on the reefs and deep ledges and make them a bit more predictable and easier to find. Generally the best baits this time of year are tubes, drop shot baits, spinner baits and live baiting with sucker minnows Walleye action has slowed a bit mainly because of our hot weather pattern, but should go back to normal, good fishing once we cool off. This time year the night trolling bite usually kicks into gear, but day time fishing is still pretty good to both trolling and rip jigging. Thanks; Lance LaVine Howie’s Tackle 1309 Green Bay Rd Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235 Ph: 920-746-9916

Burns ditch on 29th street gave a bunch up over the weekend upper streathes of salt creek and lil cal has fish trail creek has plenty also but has a ton of fishing pressure on it Spinners skein and spawn saks are baits to use

Hi Dale Fishing was Improved this week from the slow past few weeks. Fishing in the harbor remains slow for kings. The warmer than normal harbor temps have kept the bass active. Fishing for lake trout has been good in 100 to 150 feet of water South of the harbor. When the trout are holding to the bottom Jimmy Fly Mo rigs behind 8 dodgers right on the bottom work. When they move up in the water column Magnum Warrior UV spoons have been the preferred lures. Trollers looking for sliver fish have to go deep, 250to 300 feet. Steelhead, 3 year old kings and 2 year old coho are out there deep, 100 feet to the bottom. Fishing there is inconsistent with some very good catches and some days very bad out there.Capt. Scott Wolfe http://www.facebook.com/SchoolofFishCharters1/ http://www.schooloffishcharters.com

Things are still kind of slow now mainly because of the Heat, guys are fishing more at night after five or six and into the early hours of the morning getting Kings, but really haven’t had many reports. Boats are still going farther south if they care to spend the gas money but there are nicer fish the farther south they go

With a weekend of weather that seemed more like mid-July than late September, air temps in the 80’s this past week brought water temps back into the 70’s. Some places as high as 74 degrees – quite a rise from the 62 degree marks the week before. The summer-like temps took their toll on anglers looking for the typical fall patterns. Some good catches taking place, for others things all mixed up. Smallmouth Bass: Good – Some deep water bites (as deep as 35’) on the deeper lakes, while shallower lakes and Flowages finding fish as shallow as 3-6’. 3-4 suckers, chubs and mud minnows best. Drop shotting working best on the deep fish. Good reports of 19-20+ fish. Walleye: Good – Flowages producing some good catches on suckers, black chubs and muds. Play shallows early, move to deep wood mid-morning. On natural lakes, deep gravel humps and gravel/mud transitions of 18-35’ using 1/8-1/4 oz jigs on Lindy rigs with large fatheads. Musky: Good – Heat means speed, bucktails and spinner baits. Some good top-water reports. Weed flats to outside edges of 8-14’. Northern Pike: Good – #4-#5 Mepps spinner baits and fast moving 4-5 swim baits (GT360). Lots of action fish mostly low 20ers. Bluegill: Good – Tough to locate at times. But once found (search 12-14’ weed edges – 6-8’ down) good to go. Largemouth Bass: Good–Fair – Sort of lost the edge. Lots of reports of anglers missing out on bass bite. Wacky worming doing best. Yellow Perch: Good – Some very good catches of 10-12 Perch on ½ crawlers. Search out shallow weed flats or drowned wood that holds insects, minnows. Crappie: Good-Fair – Usually a great time, except for some below dam action, best reports by trollers pulling small flicker shads and Hot ‘N Tots on Flowages Rain and storms due in today (9/25) that look to bring temperatures back into upper 60’s/ low 70’s. Color at only 20% or so. Looks to be a drawn out fall, surface temps need to get into low 60’s, upper 50’s for Musky bite to heat up. Red tailed chubs and Musky suckers in short supply. Kurt Justice Kurt’s Island Sport Shop www.kurtsislandsports.com Like us on FaceBook

Fishing Report With days getting shorter and water temperatures dropping, shallow weeds will start dying, moving fish into deeper areas to follow the oxygen that is left in the water. As this turnover starts, it will reoxygenate water levels from top to bottom as the thermocline will disappear. Panfish: Perch are found around the deeper weeds. Using slip bobber rigs tipped with minnows or a piece of red worm should catch you a bunch. Crappies are in the deeper weeds and around lay downs, so a slip bobber rig tipped with small minnow or plastic will work on these. Bluegills are up in the shallows, so a slip bobber rig tipped with a small piece of worm or wax worm will work on these fish. Bass: Largemouth will be found around structures such as, laydowns and docks. Throwing spinnerbaits and plastic will work even near top water and around pads and reeds will spark action. Smallmouth are going to be in and around the rocks, so jigs tipped with live bait, plastics, and crankbaits will work here. Northern: You will find these fish in and around the deeper weeds as the shallow weeds are starting to die. Walleye anglers will catch these while jigging. You can use smaller spinnerbaits like #3 or #4 Mepps. Safety pin style spinnerbaits are an effective choice. Walleye: These fish will be found on the deepest weed edges and on the rock piles. Minnows are working better now and crawlers will still work until water gets colder. As the month goes on, these fish will start moving towards the deeper breaks. Early mornings and later evenings will be the best times to catch a few for a fish fry. Muskies: Every strategy is working for these beasts, As the water temperatures start to cool off, fish will start moving to the deeper weed edges. Bucktails, rubber baits and crank-baits will all work this month.

Water super hot so fish are turning really fast dark and are hard to eat to bite Best batch of fish we have had in years came in thru the ditch late last week. Still nothing like the old days but better than the last few years for sure Burns ditch on 29th street gave a bunch up over the weekend upper streathes of salt creek and lil cal has fish trail creek has plenty also but has a ton of fishing pressure on it Spinners skein and spawn saks are baits to use Lake fishing for casters and trollers really slow Tons of small 4 to 7 inch perch around since this warm spell getting some keeper perch was hard but fast action for most with all the heat From doughnut all the way to Michigan city perch wer pretty loaded in ther

Shabbona Lakeside is now OPEN for the SEASON Lakeside will be open everyday, 7 days a week, September 6th to September 30th 6 AM to 6:30 PM October 1st to October 10th 6:30 AM to 6 PM October 11th to October 31st 7 AM to 5PM