Author Topic: Any fellow central Il. hardwater fanatics out there? (Read 22296 times)

HEADHUNTER · « **Reply #30 on:** Jan 02, 2004, 05:28 PM »

i'm online 24-7, that is, until we get ice :-)

P Gottshall · « **Reply #31 on:** Jan 02, 2004, 10:02 PM »

Kim,

I was ready to spend $269 on a Pro, & $399 on an FL18. - Found a 5yr old Scout for $75, & a 1yr-old FL8 for $160. Couldn't pass 'em up. What am I giong to do with all that unspent VISA credit?

The Pro is bigger, but the Scout is 10lb lighter. I also have a Voyager, which is over 80lbs, & know I can't handle it alone. A Pro is 1/2-that, & would probalby be OK, but I've been doing all I've been all I can to lighten up this year. I've been watching 4 web-sites, but haven't seen a single used Pro in the last month. I hope you find one.

Got the Vex today. My wife thinks I'm silly, holding the transducer at head-level, & running my foot back and forth like it's a fish. She has no imagination!

Headhunter - I'm on here pretty my 24-7 too. Kinda' sad, but THAT's ABOUT TO CHANGE! Ice is a-comin!

Paul

ps - how was I to know that Chubby Darter would get caught in the rug?

bucky93 · « **Reply #32 on:** Jan 09, 2004, 09:23 PM »

Hello everyone I'm from a spot in the road called Buda. bout 2 miles from mautinos. going out tommorrow to try my luck will post how I did when i get back

Heartland · « **Reply #33 on:** Jan 10, 2004, 07:44 AM »

I'm in NE Illinois, near the Indiana line, and we have 5 1/2 inches solid on a retention pond here.
Getting the gear ready now!

bluegill63 · « **Reply #34 on:** Jan 10, 2004, 09:55 AM »

Hey Bucky which lake do you fish on at Mautino's I live in Mendota and have fished them lakes from a boat the lake with the real steep launch but never thru the ice let me know how much ice you have there thanks

bucky93 · « **Reply #35 on:** Jan 10, 2004, 02:26 PM »

Hey bluegill i fished the one across the road from there today with no luck. there was about 3 1/2 to 4 inches on it today. I also went out to the Hennipen canal parkway, it had between 5 and 6 inches there but of everyone i talked to they weren't having anyluck so i left. went to farm pond, found them with a camera but couldn't get a bite

P Gottshall · « **Reply #36 on:** Jan 10, 2004, 03:53 PM »

Washington here.

Ice on Eureka lake was a good 3in today, and very clear.

I fished everything from 2ft to 12ft. Did get marks in 10ft or so, & caught about 10 fish (counting 4in Bluegills!). I kept going smaller & smaller on the jig size, & finally caught a few. I wish I had even smaller jigs; I saw many fish "sniffing" my bait, but few biters.

Paul

P Gottshall · « **Reply #37 on:** Jan 10, 2004, 03:57 PM »

Hey Pop,

The annual fishing show is in Peoria this weekend. Don't bother going, as this year they made it a "Gun, Knife, and Fishing" show. There were only a couple dozen fishing booths. $5 parking & $6 to get in to look at guns. . .

Anyway, I talked to a local guide, who fishes Lake Bloomington in open water. He had pictures & told me the Crappies there were good this year. He also had some Walleye pics, including an 8-pounder he caught there.

I also talked to folks from Mark Twain lake in Missouri. They told me almost all Crappies are over 10in, & often go 15in. I gotta' go there. . .

Paul

dusty t · « **Reply #38 on:** Jan 10, 2004, 09:52 PM »

in new here i fish lake storey alot along with a few local private lakes and pits

i met a guy from this site today and so i came to check it out

i fished lake storey with 2.5 to 3 inches of ice and caught 3 small crappie i fished from noonish till 5

drilled about 20 holes in the old segregated beach area

a bit of a warning the area where you get on the lake at the sunken bridge was still open water tuesday there is also open water at the swimming beach and west of the pistol range from the geese

dusty t

Randy B · « **Reply #39 on:** Jan 10, 2004, 10:53 PM »

Hey Dusty T,
Glad to see you found the site. We're you able to find those Demons. I'lll be keeping an eye open for some future reports from Storey. Thanks again for the info and visit today.
Randy B.

Iceman Cometh · « **Reply #40 on:** Jan 11, 2004, 03:32 AM »

to P Gottshall-your name sounds familiar, any family from Yates City-my Dad taught at the high school for years-you got a heck of a deal on the new winter toys,I'm impressed! I love my trap 2 like I said, probably won't get the pro until some future season,been using my Mr. Buddy portable Heater for the first time this season, very impressed with the ease of use, heat output and ignition, but it does have one draw back, even a slight wind will snuff it out on low, so I have to keep the trap closed to save fuel, and it flared up on me once when it was on high and a breeze blew in under the hut, thought the trap was a goner!

To the guys who fish lake storey, I live in Yates City, like I said, and have always wanted to fish lake storey in the winter(I'm a Carl Sandburg College, EIU alum), but since I've only ice fished farm ponds around here locally and never had to worry about rangers and regulations, is there anything special I need in the way of safety gear that they might check for? I realize this might be a stupid question, but I've never had to worry about anyone ever ice fishing around me, literally! In the past 3-5 seasons since I've started doing this seriously, I've only seen one other guy on a lake! Pretty lucky,HUH!

Ok-Here's Sat.'s Report-went to private honey hole-it's lost nearly 4 ft. of water this summer,so my expectations were low, and after arriving at the lake and only getting one bite(and missing it!) after 4hrs., I figured that this might be the end of the honey hole.... until.... thanks to all the guys who post here and all the informative articles and tips I've read the past couple years.... I started thinking about tightlining, and since I'm just learning bloodknots, I decided instead to tie a 1/64 oz. marabou with a white head and yellow tail feathers(downsizing from the #10 and #12 genz worms and fatboys I'd been using). I tried it straight onto the main line(2lb. micro ice) and "swam" it horizontally to the surface, pausing every few inches, and WHAMO!- It was out producing my deadsticked waxie 2 to 1- what a fun way to fish-it really puts the sport back into it(plus it helps when the bluegill average over a pound in this lake-only a handful of the farmer's friends get to fish it-it's literally his front yard-and I'm exclusively catch and release on this lake) I really want to go out tom.(actually this morning, now) and try it on a lake that's almost fished out, just to test out my "technique", but I'm worried with the warming spell, and only 3-3 1/2" of ice on it, do you think it will get do dangerous to fish as the day progresses? Anyway, if I don't get to go- had a BLAST today and I'll be posting thicknesses and such, here after my next trip! Happy Harwatering Fellas!

Iceman Cometh · « **Reply #41 on:** Jan 11, 2004, 03:39 AM »

one thing about the marabou jig "techique" I forgot to post- like everyone says about this techique or about using plastics,it can be best at times to NOT use bait- with these small jigs it can severely hamper their performance to "swim" properly- That's what I did today, so that's what I meant when I said it really puts the sport back into icefishing this way!

bluegill63 · « **Reply #42 on:** Jan 11, 2004, 05:44 AM »

Hey Bucky went to Lake Kakusha in Mendota yesterday did real well on crappies never had that kind of luck on crappies like that before and caught some nice gills to. Boy was it fun took some beer and cooked some cheeseburgers out on the ice. How deep are them lakes in Mautino's it has been some years since I have been out there. I remember the one I have fished there is pretty deep do you think it is safe to go on that one? Well GOOD FISHING ALL!!!!!!

dusty t · « **Reply #43 on:** Jan 11, 2004, 06:06 AM »

i fish lake storey alot but i cant remember if you can use more then 2 rods when ice fishingid have to get out the state book to make sure

other then that i dont know if there are any other rules just be ready to be around alot of people when the bite is good or journey out and find new ice

im currently a csc student again ill be on the lake alot mon w and friday afternoons if home work allows

csc= lsu lake storey university makes it more appealing to me the fisherman

hey randy had a good time talking to you today yes i found them demons now i just got to order them and hope there still as good as they used to be

dusty t

bucky93 · « **Reply #44 on:** Jan 11, 2004, 08:53 PM »

hey blugill ihaven't seen anytracks on the lake you are talking about and i have not checked it yet. I have not had very much luck on the ice at the lake, but i have at the second pond in the park. you just have to find them in there though. i have caught crappie, bass and gills in it. Well i took my boys for the first time today, there mother finally let me. We had a ball on the hennipen canal at the parkway lagoon. There wasn't any real size to them but we did alot of them and i think i got the kids started on another type of fishing, though i will have to invest in a shanty now. Well i probabaly won't be able to get again till next weekend good luck to everyone.

Iceman Cometh · « **Reply #45 on:** Jan 12, 2004, 03:22 AM »

Thanks dusty for the info-
Thanks also to HeadHUNTER, I'll go and check it out- yea, I'm a huge fan of the fishtrap and their lures, but the site sucks in some major areas when compared the ice shanty! They both have their pros and cons- and I'm loyal to genz and the boys because one of the first posts I ever put on their site was for a fistrap and they liked my signiture line at the bottom of the post so well(at least that's what the guy on the phone said)- they posted a thing to call them and long story short, I got a demo for $150.00 off retail at that time-thing was brand new-just had to put it together- and best of all-I lived in a small apt., so they shipped to the loading dock of where I worked!

fooman · « **Reply #46 on:** Jan 13, 2004, 07:59 PM »

Anyone have decent ice? I just got laid off and need to get some fishing in. I live in Streator (LaSalle County) Anyone have any suggestions where I might have some luck.

P Gottshall · « **Reply #47 on:** Jan 13, 2004, 09:52 PM »

Kim, No family near Yates City. Interesting though; Gottshall is pretty unusual in IL. Extended family is in NY. My dad taught at Illinois Central College. Maybe that's where you've heard the name, or at Caterpillar where I am.

I've been having a great time updating my $75 Scout. It's old enough it has a bench seat, which got pretty uncomfortable on the ice Sat. I had an old folding chair, cut the back off, and attached. Comfy!

I also picked up a couple of $0.79 hooks at Farm & Fleet, and attached to the metal brackets. Now I have somewhere to hang the auger. The sled's just too small otherwise.

Another excellent piece of advice I picked up here was to put a 1"x2" in the pockets along the bottom of the loose flap hanging along the ground. I got quite a bit of wind blowing through, & this should help a ton.

I'm pretty much set now. My only equipment-confusion is my heater. I bought a $45 Mr Heater, which puts out 8000 - 12,000 BTU's. I tried it in my garage, & am afraid 8000 BTU's will cook me alive.

Sat was the first time I've ever used a Vex (FL8). It was OK, but honestly I wasn't more impressed than with the single-color Humminbird flasher I used last year. I'll keep using it, & maybe I'll fall in love with it. It didn't pickup my small jig as well as I hoped. I had to turn the sensitivity way up, & then you see all kinds of garbage.

Weather is calling for 30's for the next week. I guess I'll keep playing with my Scout. . . and my Vex in the kitchen. . .

Paul

P Gottshall · « **Reply #48 on:** Jan 13, 2004, 10:04 PM »

Dusty - FYI: http://dnr.state.il.us/fish/Digest04/digest.pdf

"The ice angler may use a maximum of three poles or tip-ups with no more than two hooks on each line."

Iceman Cometh · « **Reply #49 on:** Jan 14, 2004, 04:47 AM »

to p gottshall-kim here- your father might know my aunt-Carol May- she's taught sociology at ICC for years.
I did the same setup for my trap2- it also has the bench seats, so I put in boat seats- my Mr. buddy heater is the new model, with the CO2 shutoff- you're right on high, it'll cook ya! wish i had a flasher! though the farm ponds i fish are all small, i think it would save time to find fish occasionally. I'm waiting to get my high velocity hand auger i ordered- been a month now!- it's a Nils-master in the 4.5" size-have you seen these?-later on I'm gonna buy the powerhead to make it a power auger also.

dusty t · « **Reply #50 on:** Jan 14, 2004, 04:04 PM »

lake storey opperates under site specific rule #1 2 pole line fishing only with no more then 2 hooks

so id need to talk to the local doc guy to see if you can use 3 poles im not sure you can since it is listed under site specific thats the way i read it any way

P Gottshall · « **Reply #51 on:** Jan 15, 2004, 08:43 PM »

Kim,

No way! I had Carol May for Soc 110 back in '79 or '80!

I have a 6in Nils Master. Cost me about $80 at Presley's South Side Worm Ranch. Worth every penny. It stays sharp & cuts fast! You'll love it!

Well I put a spring bobber on my UL tonight. Used a match to shrink the heat-shrink, & burned the fiberlass to smitherines. Lucky it was an $8 pole I guess!

ps - I got a "B".

Paul

Iceman Cometh · « **Reply #52 on:** Jan 16, 2004, 06:24 AM »

to p gottshall-small world, huh!- I could believe you got a "B"-I never had carol as a teacher, but I'd imagine she's a hell of a stickler! I like her a lot, but she can seem precise and distant at times-kind of a family trait-my whole family's filled with teachers or professors(I wanted to get my doctorate in philosophy, but ended up in the "blue collar factory lifestyle" and one thing that taught me that college couldn't was to be more realistic, grounded, and most of all-just lighten up and tighten a line!) Too bad about the pole- one good thing though, looks like thw weather's gonna give you another week to replace it-I was gonna go out this morning(fri.)- but don't know if the ice is safe-if you get out,let me know! P.S. still waiting on the damn nils-it was a great deal at $59.99, but I've waited close to a month and a 1/2 now for spectacular sports to send it!

P Gottshall · « **Reply #53 on:** Jan 17, 2004, 05:23 PM »

Went to Eureka lake today. The outer 3ft is open water. People had been on the ice today, so I went out anyway. I could see the ice cracking as I walked on it, & my spud bar went easliy through the 3" of mushy ice. I'm not totally stupid - I only went out 20-30ft, over 3ft of water.

I want to get out again badly, but are people nuts? I'm confident that I could have gone through if I walked too heavily. The holes I saw were over 12ft of water. With nobody else at the lake to pull me out, I sadly went home, and got on here. . .

Cold weather next week should improve conditions.

Sad sad times in central IL. . .

Paul

HEADHUNTER · « **Reply #54 on:** Jan 17, 2004, 05:28 PM »

Very depressing Paul.

Kougarsbaseball · « **Reply #55 on:** Jan 17, 2004, 08:52 PM »

I am from Farmington and I ice fish every chance I get. I went out today and caught some gills and crappie. Ice is not very good but in a couple of days is should be safe. The person from Yates City should contact me and we can go fishing sometime. I fish alot of tournments in the north maybe sometime you could with me, always looking for a parnter from around here. I also have alot of property around middlegrove and fairview, if you would want to get on some other ponds in the area. If you want to go fishing, write me at [email protected] Be safe and I will try to check this more often since there are some flatlanders that like to ice fish. (lol)

toph2o · « **Reply #56 on:** Jan 17, 2004, 08:57 PM »

Same here, Wanted to go but heard the ice was iffy because of the warm winds we have had. So I went to south sideworm ranch and bought new coveralls and new adjustable seats for my boat. May be useing them before we know it. He wasnt selling any bait so I made his day toph2o

Iceman Cometh · « **Reply #57 on:** Jan 19, 2004, 12:38 AM »

to nick stevens(from farmington)- Kim here(the hardwater fanatic from yates city)-just wanted to know if you wanted to hook up next weekend?- also, did you go to farmington high-if you did you might know my mother mabel tanner. my father fishes the "fin and feather" outside of fairview- I went spoon river valley high school and had a lot of partying buddies in the old days from farmington, fairview, middlegrove, ect. I also used to fish the mine ground around middlegrove when I was a kid, some really good lakes!

Pop · « **Reply #58 on:** Jan 20, 2004, 11:46 AM »

Kim, have you been to Gander Mountain lately? They were expecting another shipment of ice fishing supplies and I was wondering if it had come in. I called but the lady I spoke with didn't seem to know anything about ice fishing anything.

Pop

Iceman Cometh · « **Reply #59 on:** Jan 21, 2004, 03:17 AM »

Nope -POP- haven't been to the ol' gander mountain lately- took too many days off fishing (3), so I 've been working-but I hope to get there maybe this weekend- the store's still 25 miles away for me, even though I work in peoria-so I usually have to hit it before work(4p.m.- 2 a.m.-horrible hours to work, believe me!) I'll let you know if I see anything new- what are you looking for?- if I remember right they were pretty well stocked 2-3 weeks ago when I was in there, but that was before this last freeze.

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Author Topic: Any fellow central Il. hardwater fanatics out there? (Read 22296 times)

P Gottshall

P Gottshall

P Gottshall

dusty t

Randy B

dusty t

P Gottshall

P Gottshall

dusty t

P Gottshall

P Gottshall

Kougarsbaseball