6-26-08 Weekend Fox Prospects

[Ken G]

As of Thursday morning, the river was flowing at about 5200 cubic feet per second. They found the body of Robbie Funston on Wednesday not too far from where I live in Yorkville. That's almost 7 miles from where he went into the water in Oswego. This is why I harp on water levels and why I constantly warn people not to go in the water. This accident didn't need to happen. Either did the old guy dying up in McHenry when he fell out of his boat. Or the 2 year old that fell into the river in Elgin or South Elgin and almost go swept away, luckily he was saved by a 9 year old. That's enough for one month.

So when the water on the Fox is flowing at 5200 cfs, don't go in the water.

It's flooded.

With that being said, fishing on the Fox is actually pretty good right now. Walk the shores and fish behind anything that is breaking the current flow. I was recently vertical jigging in small dead spots the size of a bucket and getting hit.

The more adventurous should be out looking for the creeks that feed the Fox or the smaller rivers in the area. The Fox tributaries are all down to normal and clear. The DuPage when I drove over it this morning looked pretty much normal. Don't know about the Kankakee, but before it rained on Wednesday, Dale Bowman was telling me it looked about as good as it can get.

Of course, this could all change with these spotty storms coming through today and Friday.

In case you didn't notice, there is a Links to Info forum you'll find on the main Waterdog Journal page. In that forum is a post called Hopefully Something here for Everyone.

At the bottom of that post are links to the IDNR and a wide variety of Park and Forest Preserve Districts. If you start looking around, you'll find access spots not only to the Fox, but to the Dupe and practically all of the creeks in the area. There is so much accessible water out there, that you can never go on a river like the Fox or the Kankakee again and still fish for years on new water.

Plus, if you keep in touch with all these districts, there are new acquisitions happening all the time that don't really show up too many places. This year alone there are 3 miles of Fox shore line that have become accessible. Areas that could only be reached by canoe can now be hiked to. Creeks that have been inaccessible now have at least rough access to them.

For me, most of this is happening within a 15 minute drive from my house, maybe less.

Now I just need the time.

[Ken G]

Checked all the gauges of the rivers and creeks I talk about and in this section of the state everything is about is good as it gets. Drove over the DuPage and that looked normal. All the creeks are normal. The Kanks gauges show it perfect.

Except for the Fox, the one river I can walk to in under two minutes. It's still flooded, flowing at about 5200 cubic feet per second. Drove along and stopped at the gas station in Montgomery across from the crap plant. There's a wall that runs along it that can be seen from the opposite shore. About 6 inches of the wall is showing, which means the river is about three and a half feet, maybe a little more, above normal.

I won't walk around in that, but as mentioned above, fishing the shores is the way to go.

The Apple is absolutely perfect, flowing at about 350 cfs. Was out there once when it was like that and besides seeing hundreds of smallies swimming around, I caught just a hair over 100 of them.

If only it were closer.

[Dan]

Hey Ken


I notice this quote.

The Apple is absolutely perfect

I'm guessing this is Apple Creek?! Would you be so kind as 2 give me directions getting there plz:)




Thanks,

[Ken G]

Dan,
That would be the Apple River.
It's in the northwest section of Illinois, between Rockford and Galena.
The state owns chunks along the river.

If I was going to go, I would fish the Salem and Thompson Unit.
This link will take you to the hunter fact sheet.
http://www.dnr.state.il.us/lands/landmg ... ompson.htm

At the top of the fact sheet, you'll see a link that just says MAP.

That will get you started.

With the price of gas, I probably won't get out there this year.

I just wish the Fox would come down already. I don't want to do high water fishing and there are areas I've never been too that have access now. I like exploring new water, but not when it's high.

That would be a death wish.