Chicago fishing, Midwest Fishing Report: Kings, bluegill, catfish, bass, drum, hybrid stripers

As for fishing it’s been sort of a Teeter tototter up-and-down. I have a few guys that have been able to locate and catch perch last week but I haven’t heard anything thing in the last couple days..

Perch still slow water still on the warm side not much action.

Little Henry Palmisano unassisted gill

Hey Dale,

Here is a recap of this past weeks fishing.

Area lakes-bass have been good the last two hours of light. Focus on wind blown weed edges for the active biters. Best baits have been a baby 1-minus and swim jigs worked parallel along those weedlines.

Crappie and bluegill have been good early morning hours. Best bait has been an IJO Plastics nookie bug worked under a slip float in areas that have current.

Areas rivers received a much needed boost of rain over the weekend. This coming weekend should be excellent.

Here is the nature pic of the week. When nature comes to your doorstep. Photo courtesy of Vickie O’Malley

TTYL

—

Ken Husker O’Malley

Husker Outdoors Waterwerks fishing team

Hi Dale,

. . .

I checked out a few forest preserve lakes on Sunday after the rains finally ended. The fish sure seemed to like the influx of water: they wouldn’t leave a foam hopper alone. I didn’t hook every fish that hit of course, but it was a rare cast that didn’t draw a strike. It was a mix of small bass and some big bluegills and sunfish. One of the lakes I looked at but didn’t fish has an outflow into a short narrow stream. It varies from barely moving in low water to a strong current when the water is high (I stay away from that corner of the lake when ice fishing because of the possibility of the current weakening the ice). It was really flowing on Sunday. Right where the lake narrows and the current begins to accelerate, fish-carp, bluegills and a few big bass-were stacked up waiting for the conveyor belt to bring them a meal. it resembled the tail-out of a trout stream with browns and brookies waiting for floating insects to funnel to them.

Bass fishing is picking up at the river, caught the biggest on saturday, 1.25 pounds on a fathead minnow, and my second caught today on a gulp minnow on a white jig head, still trying to get on sum crappies down here but these bass were beautiful and healthy

Hi Dale,

Nothing to say about the Fox watershed: it was too high and muddy to fish after all the rain over the weekend. I didn’t even go to try and practice casting. Maybe the upstream portions of the tributaries have begun to drop and clear by now.

Fishing Report – 7/23/2022

Mike Norris

Big Green Lake – We are in our summer pattern on Gig Green and both largemouth bass and smallmouth bass our out on the deeper weed edges. A variety of techniques are working for catching bass. Fishing with tubes, drop shot rigs, shaky head rigs and umbrella rigs are all working. Try the deep cribs in 22 feet of water just outside Dartmouth Bay, the weed edge which parallels the north shore line, and both the Heidel Bar and Monument Shoal. Northern pike are active can be located near the thermocline in 30 to 35 feet of water. Dickenson and Blackbird Points are also holding both species of bass.

Fox Lake – Troll crankbaits through the basin of the lake for walleye. Fishing is best early and late in the day. Crappies also started to group up in the basin and anglers are catching them jigging vertically with jig and minnow combinations. Largemouth bass fishing is good one day, not so good the next.

Hi Dale - had a great night catching multi species on jig /trailer, Ned rig, slider worms and Rapala og slim Monday night with water up to 83 even 84 in some spots. Find open patches of weeds in rip rap and natural stuff and fish that area hard for best results

Hi Dale, got this19 on Friday before big weekend rain. KKK will be high for about a week now unless there is more mid week rain. Time to try local lakes. G. Peters

Early morning smallie report, Lake Michigan. Smallies are popping

Dale, hit the big lake Friday July 22. Took me a few hours to get somewhat dialed in on the smallies. Unlike years past at this time of year, the smallmouth were far off the rap. I managed about 15 with the largest only at 3.2lbs. Hmmmm, size was not there and one of my smallies was only 2.5lbs and almost 18 inches. Most were skinny guys and gals telling me, they came off spawn not long ago. Last year at this time, 18 inches were solid 3.5lbs or better. If my theory is true, the next few weeks should be real good as these bronze backs will certainly be on the feed. Water temps hovered around 72 and drop shots with a 4 inch senkos with green/purple was best bait but did manage 1 on a green tube. Here is a photo of the 2.5lb and it is long and skinny as shown. Lastly, I was sporting the Ken Husker O’Malley look!

Believe it or not, caught at Montrose with a Daredevil spoon and 18 inch wire leader. Was looking for Pike. Got 2 more. This one weighed 4 lbs. Gonna smoke em like Door County.

Sgt K

As for fishing it’s been sort of a Teeter tototter up-and-down. I have a few guys that have been able to locate and catch perch last week but I haven’t heard anything thing in the last couple days.. Few trout around, few small mouth and sheephead.

Fishing was really great this week. Lots of kings, steelhead and lake trout. An occasional coho and pink salmon were also taken. The West winds brought in cold water. Kings were taken as shallow as 40 feet with 50 to 130 being generally the best area for all species. With East or North winds, the fish generally push deeper and West and South winds, the fish will come in with the cold water. I have personally stayed to the deeper side and had the best steelhead fishing I’ve seen in years.

It’s been a spoon bite with spoons taking the vast majority of the fish on a faster than normal troll. Warrior Lures on leadcores, coppers and mid-range downriggers are taking most fish with patterns varying each day. For salmon and lake trout, the white-base patterns of Bloody Nose, Psycho Spoiler, Two Face and Blueberry Muffin were best. For steelhead, those same presentations with orange Warrior spoons in Steelhead Candy, Court Jester and Riverside Striper were dynamite. Anglers running Musselhead meat rigs trolled slower seemed to be getting the biggest kings. So if someone is just looking for a trophy and not concerned with numbers of fish, that may be a good choice.

Capt. Scott Wolfe

schooloffishcharters.com

630-341-0550

Thick into the middle of summer! Patterns have stabilized (for better or worse, depending on your target species) and anglers should have several weeds of similar situations to choose from.

Smallmouth Bass: Very Good – Outside weed edges of 12-14’ and off shore gravel humps of 18-24’ have been tops. For weed edges, work drop-shot rigs of 3 Wacky Worms or 3 Gulp Minnows. Ned rigs and tubes have also been hot! On rock humps drop-shot again have been best, use small plastic craws or football jigs tipped with creature baits. Very nice fish up to 21 this past week with lots of 15-18 ers common!

**One trip of note, those battling Smallmouth this week led to an unforgettable quote from one young angler fighting his 4th Smallie in as many casts I can’t do it, I only weigh 92 pounds! Oh yeah, I won’t let him forget that line!**

Largemouth Bass: Very Good – (Toss up, but I like Smallies better!) Seems any heavy cabbage beds are packed with green Bass. Square billed cranks, swim jigs, pre-rigged plastics, swim jigs. Calm evenings open for fun top-water action using Whopper Ploppers and spooks along inside (shallow) weedlines.

Bluegill: Very Good – Scho0ls of Gills roaming the tops of tall, narrow leaf cabbage and suspending just outside these same beds. Small leeches, worms and waxies presented on tiny jigs, as well as casting small spinners, beetle spins and tubes.

Crappie: Good – Best found suspended 2-4’ off bottom along deep coontail edges or in the vicinity of drowned wood in 10-14’ of water. Medium fathead minnows or dressed jigs (hair, tinsel) suspended just a foot above marks on your locator best.

Yellow Perch: Good – Some jumbos coming from broadleaf cabbage beds on ½ crawlers or medium leeches fished on 1/16 oz Invasion Weedless jigs. Very scattered and other species need to be dealt with here. Other reports of nice eaters over sandgrass flats dragging Lindy crawler harnesses in 14-18’ of water.

Musky: Fair-Good – Best reports towards evenings when clouds build. Mornings – Flat or very clear have been tough. Evening bites on top-water or speed bulging Colorado bladed bucktails over weed tops and along weed edges.

Walleye: Fair – High pressure days making for tougher bite. Work windward weed edges of 10-14’ using full crawlers or the largest leeches available or weedless jigs. Deep gravel humps on the larger lakes producing in 22-28’. Flowage fish relating to wood in 10-14’.

Northern Pike: Fair-Poor – Poor results (in my boat) on artificials. Better reports from anglers using chubs or suckers under floats or jigging in heavy weeds.

A cool week with highs in the 70’s till the weekend (80’s Sat/Sun), AM temps in the 50’s. Bass should be the highlight still, though clouds and some mid-week rain may help out the Walleye and Musky crews. Lake surface temps averaging 73-76 degrees.

Kurt Justice

Kurt’s Island Sport Shop - Like us on Facebook

Over the weekend not much fishing offshore for salmon and trout storms and offshore winds kept most at the dock

Perch still slow water still on the warm side not much action.

Steelhead in trail creek and salt creek

Lots of catfish being caught in burns ditch at night using triple s stinkbait and cut bait

Wolf lake still giving up a mix bag of fish both Indiana and Illinois side.

Hi, Dale. Here comes a bit of cooler weather-certainly hope you’re taking full advantage.. . Here’s what’s been going on in the local fishing world:

Fishing on Lake Michigan has been steady with some big Kings being caught, but anglers are having to fish in-between storms. Rivers have gotten a little dirty due to all the rains.

Bluegill fishing remains good on the inland lakes

Catfishing still excellent in local rivers & lakes.

Wolf lake still giving up a mix bag of fish both Indiana and Illinois side.

Walleye action continues good up river. Gills and some crappie in the wood along the shoreline, although bluegill are biting better in the bayous. The perch bite on Winnebago is picking up.