Cappy's Blog Joins The Outdoor Blogger Network!

About a week ago I received a Facebook invitation to join the Outdoor Blogger Network. I hit the like button, just as I do for any group that pertains to fishing and the outdoors. I read the description, clicked over to their web page and browsed around a bit, stopping abruptly when I saw "Submit Your Blog For The Directory Today". Within a few minutes I had done just that and my blog has now found a permanent home.

Within the last year I have worked very hard at getting Cappy's Blog to a prominent position within the blogosphere. I have published posts on two separate locations to try and drum up a few more readers. Most of you have been following the blog from this location, but I have also posted the blog on WordPress at Cappy's Pond. I will continue to do this for some time because I feel it will extend my readership to different demographics throughout the web. However, I have already noticed a spike in page views since joining the Outdoor Blogger Network, a place where people will go to read blogs about fishing and the outdoors, instead of stumbling upon my blog while searching for other interests and never staying to read a full post.

So it is with great appreciation for what is being started here at the OBN that I invite you to take a look for yourself at the Outdoor Blogger Network!

Please join our Facebook group at Cappy's Pond, and thank you, as always, for stopping by and sharing a few minutes of your day with us.

Remember, you can't catch any fish if your line isn't in the water.

River Woes

Tuesday, after Bryan went off to school and Shirley had gone to work, I decided to hit the river for a few hours of fishing. I tried a section of the Fox that I hadn't fished for quite some time, hoping to find a few white bass and smallies to do battle. Reports from around town had told me to try an area a little further down river than I normally fish and that the white bass were schooling down there.

I parked the car, got in my waders, tied on a new spinner and hit the water. With the air temps in the upper 70's the water felt cool on the legs but not like it should for the middle of October. I made a few casts, snagged a few floating leaves and had a small (and I mean small) white bass hit the spinner right at the end of my fourth cast. OK! So far so good. After another 50 casts I realized this wasn't going to be as easy as I thought.

Wading down river for the next two hours I managed to catch two smallies and two largemouth none of which had exceeded 8 inches in length. I circled up the other side of the river and saw nothing other than a few carp swimming carelessly over the shallow rocks. Where have all of the fish gone? A good question is sometimes followed up by a good answer.

For the last sixteen years I have been chasing smallies, walleye, white bass and crappie in the Fox river from Elgin to Montgomery, IL. There have been numerous days in those sixteen years of twenty-five plus smallmouth bass on spinners and small twisty tail jigs. I remember a June evening where I caught six good walleye casting from shore to the middle of the river with a plain Fuzzy Grub jig. Catfish would always hit my spinners and jigs, and I snagged a carp almost every time I would wade. Freshwater drum, an occasional muskie or northern pike would always join in on the action.

In the last five years the fishing on the Fox has steadily declined, and I'm betting that I know the reason why. The reconstruction of bridges, parks, and buildings have taken it's toll along the river. Some of these changes were needed and the cities have done a great job to limit the destruction of natural habitat, by replacing rocks after construction, adding wing dams and returning native plants along the edges of the river. But with everything in nature it takes time to re-create what has been lost.

A reconstruction project such as the one at Elgin's Walton Island took a few years to be completed and the long term effect on the fishery may be just starting to show up now. The riverbed, banks, rock walls, pilings etc. were all changed and the larvae and small insects that lived beneath them were disturbed to say the least. The replaced structures take years before all the algae growth returns. Algae that is needed to sustain life along the river. One or two years of disturbed spawning habitat near bridges or dams could cause a long term effect on the numbers and size of fish.

The Stearns road project that is nearing its two year completion, consisted of building a new four lane bridge over the river about a mile and a half south of the existing South Elgin dam. With about six more miles of river below the construction site, until the Saint Charles dam, it is potentially blocking the migration of fish northward into South Elgin. Fish that would travel north during normal to high water stages have been turned away by the constant noise of construction and the changes to their natural habitat.

In spring of 2010 illegal dumping of toxic chemicals was reported in South Elgin, IL. Fish were found dead along a creek that flows into the Fox just north of the town dam. There is no doubt that many fish were lost during this illegal dumping, and who knows just how long it was going on.

Catch and release has always been a priority amongst the many local fisherman who wade the Fox river. These anglers have witnessed time and time again, the removal of undersized fish, and catch and release only species that were taken illegally from the river. State of Illinois cutbacks from the Department of Natural Resources in recent years have limited both the manpower that patrols the Fox, and the funds for additional signs, education, and public awareness. These cutbacks are also having a negative impact on the river.

Although there is great concern for the future of the fishery along the Fox, I believe that we will once again see the return of numbers of fish in Elgin and South Elgin. Once the reconstruction projects are complete and the State of Illinois budget is restored, the river will return to being one of the best places to fish in Northern Illinois. For now, I will continue to enjoy my time on the river, without the crowds, and prepare for the good ole days that lie ahead.

Please join my Facebook group at Cappy's Pond, or register to follow this blog on the right side of this page. I thank you as always for reading the posts and sharing it with friends and family. Remember, you can't catch any fish if your line isn't in the water. -Cappy-

Cold Front Muskies In the Fog

We arrived at the boat landing a little after 6:30 am on Saturday morning, dressed in multiple layers and a wind whipped drizzle. The outside air temperature was in the low to mid 30′s and our Evinrude 120 V4 took a little extra time before it was warmed up and ready to leave the launch. Our fishing team (we were # 99 “The Great One”) consisted of the Cahill brothers (Kevin, Keith, Kirk) and a good friend of Kevin, Walter Zimmerman. Four people in a boat can be tough when throwing large baits for muskie, but with years of practice we have become quite efficient at making the most of the tight quarters.

The first obstacle we had to overcome was the mildew smell that had permanently entrenched itself within my rain gear. The 17 foot Lowe boat that we own, was stored outside for a few weeks near Kevin’s cabin. Numerous days of rain had seeped into my gear and had created quite a stench. At least I didn’t have to take a shower for the rest of the weekend, I could just blame it on the rain suit.

We started to fish not far from the launch site and noticed that most of the weeds were still quite green. Knowing that muskie will be relating to these green weeds, we were quite positive that we would see some fish, and we did. A small fish under 30inches took a swipe at my Buchertail just after I completed my figure 8 and was removing the bait from the water. I missed him but it gave us the confidence that we were doing the right thing and that patience was going to be the key.

After a few drifts through the weeds with no takers we decided to move out to some mid lake points and deeper structure. The rain was spotty and the sun now made its way in and out of the showers for the better part of the morning. Our team continued to work the deeper weed line throwing Bull Dawgs or Curly Sue’s and our favorite, the Suick over and along the weed line. Occasionally we would work the inside edge of the weed beds looking for active fish, and again we found no muskie. Knowing that we had been fishing in prime muskie waters for the body of water we were fishing, we concluded that the fish were not aggressively feeding. It would be a difficult task to catch a fish under these cold front conditions.

The rain was gone now and the wind continued to blow. Air temperatures now were around 45 degrees with high pressure building in behind the front. Kevin said we should go back near the landing to the shallow weeds and give them another try. It was the only place we had seen any action at all, so we all agreed. Keith made a few casts again with a Suick and had a mid 40′s fish blow up on the bait just after he made his first jerk. The muskie missed the lure completely and the team was quite deflated, but had reason for hope, we again had sighted a muskie in the shallow water. We fished until the end of tournament hours (7:00 pm) returned to the cabin and regrouped for the next morning.

Sunday came and we awoke to a heavy fog that had settled in among the warm water lakes. The four of us have fished enough times for muskie to know that the low light conditions with the fog were optimal for any chance for success. We started casting again around the landing and the shallow cover. I was taking a few pictures of the sunrise over the top of the fog when a muskie slammed Kevin’s Suick and he belted out “Fish!” After a few good runs and a dive into the weeds the muskie made its way to our Beckman net. Now we had to find a boat to verify our catch. Walter had heard a boat about a hundred yards away from us and we headed in that direction until we came upon them. Kevin’s muskie was measured at 39 inches and released after a few quick pictures.

After the measurement and signature on our slip, we parted ways with the other boat and headed back towards where we had caught the fish. Within 15 minutes we heard the other boat yelling and slapping high fives over another muskie. We knew they were excited and with good cause, in fifteen years in the tournament they had never boated a legal muskie. This was a big moment for team #102 and muskie fisherman Todd Klingaman. They made their way over to us and we measured and verified the 40 inch muskie and watched its release back into Big Arb.

Our window of opportunity was now quickly fading away as the sun began to burn off the remaining fog. We tried a few different locations to give ourselves a lucky chance but the high pressure and clear blue sky would make our remaining hours quiet ones. After all the slips were tallied and the winners were awarded their trophies, only 4 fish had been caught on Big Arbor Vitae and we were witnesses to two of them. I guess we were doing something right. Weren’t we? Of the 250 fisherman spread across 10 lakes in the region, there were 21 muskie caught and released. I know the next time we encounter conditions similar to what we had last weekend I’ll be holding on a little tighter waiting for another cold front muskie in the fog.

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You can’t catch any fish if your line isn’t in the water!