Revisiting Origins Park

On the way home from checking out the just opened small-boat launch on the Sanitary and Ship Canal Sunday afternoon, I stopped at the mouth of Bubbly Creek to fish a bit.

It’d been years. Man, has it changed.

It’s all guzzied up (and renamed Canal Origins Park) from the first time I fished it more than a decade ago when there was still rubble scattered about from the burnt out Anderson Fish House.

But neighborhood people were still fishing it. (And neighborhood people are putting their stamp on the launch too, but more on that another day.)

In a perverse way, I truly admired that the neighborhood people (there were dozens of people fishing, nearly all parts of families) forced their will to fish on the park planners.

The planners seemed more intent on doing a static piece of history. (The park is neat enough and has plenty of what has become a clich in new parks: prairie grasses.) The neighborhood people reclaimed the park and found their way to the water’s edge to fish.

I will say this again and again: Fishermen don’t want, don’t need, and, frankly, generally despise, fancy rod holders and fishing piers.

All fishermen want is the ability to get to the water’s edge. They will take it from there.

Most of the fishermen were fishing out deep for carp and catfish. I fished tight to shore pilings and popped bluegill, small largemouth bass and bluegill.

Origins Park is at 2701 South Ashland on the east side of Ashland, across from the Sun-Times printing plant. There is street parking.

Here’s the Chicago Park District description of the park and contact info: