Illinois River restrictions lifted (photo added)

Boating restrictions on the Illinois River were lifted at 10 a.m. this morning. I think I caught the first fish a few minutes after the restrictions were lifted. I was prefishing for the MWC tournament with Roy Vivian and we launched at 10 a.m. sharp.

OK, so it was a small sauger and my fingers look bigger than it, but it came within 50 yards on our first drift on the Peru flats. Vivian found fish upstream in the still flooded Illinois.

Below is the announcement from the IDNR.

Watercraft Restrictions Removed on Illinois River Public should always use caution when recreating on public waterways SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) at 10 a.m. today announced that it has removed the remaining recreational boating restrictions it authorized last week on the Illinois River. Rising water levels and swift currents led to the department restricting recreational boating on several rivers last week including the Illinois. IDNR has been monitoring the situation and believes conditions have improved to the point of being able to safely reopen these rivers to recreational watercraft. IDNR has authorization to designate restricted boating areas when navigation is deemed significantly hazardous. For more information about river restrictions, go to the IDNR website at www.dnr.state.il.us.

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