Building early ice, seeking perch: Chicago fishing, Midwest Fishing Report

Perch action good for guys going up towards 100 th street and father all in boats action for shore guys 92 to 95 hit or miss should get good again this week light winds water will clear up

Hey Dale, Here’s a recap of this past week’s fishing.Area lakes- waiting. Southern waters have about an inch of ice. Western lakes have about an inch and a half. Ice continues to build but the forecast for later in the week of warmer temps and rain will put a hault to that.TTYL—Ken Husker O’Malley Husker Outdoors Waterwerks fishing team

Chicago River and Lake Report, Well the Perch still haven’t come back to Navy Pier. Water is clearing a bit but still murky. Did hear of a few Perch being taken in the harbors but no numbers, there are also a few being taken on the River. If the wind lets up this coming week and we get a break from the wind they should start showing up. My buddy Oscar puts in a lot of time Perch fishing he gets his share for sure but he has even taken a few days off. Now onto to the Ice FIRST OFF Safety should be your NUMBER ONE thought. I know everyone gets excited for First Ice but there is a difference between first ice and safe ice. I know there are guys getting out on the back channels and bays on the Chain and getting some fish most of those areas are 4’ or less so guys get out thinking its shallow enough to get it. I myself don’t ice fish a ton because I still fish open water all winter. I have spent time on the ice with Tod Todd, Tony Boshold, Brent Beckwith and a few other well know ice anglers and I can tell you Safety is always on their mind. Some of the gear I for Safety on ice. Early season spud bar All Season ice cleats, safety spikes, throw able flotation device with a 50’ rope attached, spare gloves, a couple large black trash bags they make good wind breakers and help to remove trash if you have any. If you carry your keys out on the ice with you a key float is a good idea if there dropped on the ice it’s easier to see if they slip in a hole they float. In the truck change of clothes ,blanket, hat, gloves. I’m sure everyone can add to this it’s just my outline of what I bring. My ice gear is all set out in the basement ready to go just have to decide when and were. Not sure about this coming week with temps going back up to about 40 degrees. The boat is ready to go just have to hook up and take the tarp off it so I may be on the river this week if you see me say hi. Have a Great Week catch some fish. Capt. Pat

Lake Delavan The last couple weeks have been a transitional phase for Lke Delavan as the hard water season begins to settle in. The main lake is not yet fishable but anglers are getting out in some of the back bays. Reports of crappie, gills being caught with jigging techniques with a few pike and walleye being mixed in usually caught on tip-ups. Warm temperatures are expected for the upcoming week so, unfortunately, not much ice will be made. If you decide to go out, please use extreme caution. Fish with a friend and always bring your spud bar to measure thickness as you venture out. Good luck, stay dry!

Des Plaines River I did not make it out on the Dirty D this weekend but I’ve heard of recent success from anglers getting out on the water. Pike has been the target species and they seem to be biting. One thing to keep in mind is the size and speed of your presentation. Big baits catch big fish and this is especially true later into the season. Fish are cold-blooded meaning their metabolism will slow down greatly in the winter months causing them to feed less often and cover less water while in pursuit of their next meal. Knowing this, try throwing bigger, slower moving baits to catch late season pike. You may not get as many bites this way but when you do, they’re usually good ones.

BANNER MARSH: * THIS AREA Will CLOSE TO BOAT FISHING on Oct. 17th. With the Last Day to Boat Fish being Oct. 16th AND BANK FISHING ONLY ALLOWED AFTER 1PM but NO FISHING ALLOWED in EAST POINT ACCESS AREA, (lakes to the East) which is CLOSED TO ALL FISHING to provide a GOOSE REFUGE AREA during seasonCLINTON LAKE: An easterly area of Clinton Lake (The Waterfowl Refuge Area) between the DeWitt Bridge East (CH14) and the Rt. 48 Bridge . . . remains Closed typically until April 1st.COFFEEN LAKE: During the Central Zone waterfowl season: No fishing north of the railroad tracks (upper pool) until after 1pm daily through Jan. 31stDOUBLE T STATE FISH and WILDLIFE AREA:* THIS LAKE IS CLOSED TO FISHING – . . . till Feb. 1stEMIQUON PRESERVE: No boating, fishing or ice skating access before 12:00 pm during waterfowl hunting season. Oct. 27 – Jan. 31 Lake users should be aware that hunting might occur on the Preserve other times as well.EVERGREEN LAKE: – A SOUTHERN PART OF EVERGREEN LAKE – AROUND DEER ISLAND and ALL OF SIX-MILE CREEK BAY IS CLOSED TO GAS from Oct. 15th through JAN. 1st to allow resting areas for migratory waterfowl. YOU ARE ALLOWED TO STILL RUN A TROLLING MOTOR ONLY IN THESE AREAS.HENNEPIN-HOPPER LAKES: * Lakes are CLOSED for season.. And will be Open spring 2019.McMASTER LAKE at – SNAKEDEN HOLLOW: Lake will CLOSE TO FISHING on Oct 15th . . . Lake will Re-Open on February 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 for 2018: Nov. 10 – Jan. 31PRAIRIE LAKE in Jim Edgar/ Panther Creek State F&W Area: Lake Partial Closures during Waterfowl Season from Nov. 1st to Jan. 15th Lake access is CLOSED until after 12:01 PM on Wednesday & Saturday.POWERTON LAKE: *- Lake Will RE-OPEN to Shore Fishing on Dec. 24th – but – Will Remain CLOSED TO BOAT FISHING Until Feb. 15thRICE LAKE: Will Re-Open at end of Duck & Goose season.SANGCHRIS LAKE: * THE WEST & EAST ARMS OF LAKE and Small AREA NEAR DAM WILL CLOSE DURING WATERFOWL SEASON to boat traffic . . . through Jan. 31, 2018SPRING LAKE (South & North): Last Day of Boat Fishing in Hunting Areas is Oct. 19th As – THIS AREA will CLOSE TO BOAT FISHING in Hunting Area on Oct. 20th — with BANK FISHING ALLOWED ONLY AFTER 1pm– – AREAS THAT REMAIN OPEN TO BOATS ALL DAY 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.

Steelhead action decent lil cal salt creek on voodoo jigs tipped with butterworms or waxworms spawn saks too

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)

Madison Area Lakes I was able to get out on a small public lake near the Wisconsin Dells over the weekend for the first time this hard water season. While the main lake was covered in only a thin sheet of ice, the back bays had around 4 inches of solid ice. Anglers were catching gills and crappie on small tungsten jigs and plastics. Early ice is an exciting time of year for catching in the shallows, the best part is they always seem to fight a little harder compared to main lake fish caught later in the season.

Good ice conditions, NOT great, throughout the Lakeland area. Good because most lakes are reporting 6-8 of good solid ice. Not great because we don’t have 12-16 and because some larger lakes are still reporting only 3-6 mid-lake. Yet oddly, things are worse north of us where heavy snow has halted ice growth to the 3-5 range. Still, most lakes good for walking, ATV and some snowmobile use. A high-pressure system on Friday and Saturday was the biggest hurdle for anglers, fish just seemed to shut down everywhere – even the small panfish were hard to entice. In cases like this, shift to dark moving water to hopefully offset some of the high barometric effects. Those that did Sunday found some nice Walleyes taking small #3 : #4 tungsten jigs meant for panfish, just an example of how to go small on a tough bite works for even larger fish. Walleye: Poor – Fair – See above. With new, lower pressure system moving in, bite has already improved as of this writing. Live minnows for now, but jigging lures and spoons will be good as week progresses. Northern Pike: Poor – Fair – Same here. Downsize to medium shiners, suckers but supersize ‘em for warm weekend coming up. Bluegill, Crappie & Perch: Poor – Fair What can be said? But hey, its behind us and this system coming in should pick things back up to what it was before. It was an unfortunate blip on the early ice season. But the end of last week’s cold did add some ice and improve mobility on the lakes. Still, use precaution, but this coming week looks great. Kurt Justice – Kurt’s Island Sport Shop www.kurtsislandsports.com Like us on FaceBook

Steelhead action decent lil cal salt creek on voodoo jigs tipped with butterworms or waxworms spawn saks too Perch action good for guys going up towards 100 th street and father all in boats action for shore guys 92 to 95 hit or miss should get good again this week light winds water will clear upIce iffy not safe most places few going but I don’t promote to iffy

Just drove thru the park. Lake is 95 percent covered. The geese have open pockets of water in the deep trees and north of the roadbed. Did not drill any holes because it did not look very thick at all. As always no ice is safe ice.