Hooray for spring! Oh, wait a minute, it's the first few weeks of winter, but you wouldn't know it if you looked outside of our house. The sump pump is working hard in the basement to keep up with the melting snow, and heavy rain, that fell last night over Chicagoland. It's hard to believe that just three days ago my son, nephew and I were sitting on our buckets over ten inches of solid ice and complaining of freezing fingers (from catching a mess of bluegills).
How quickly the weather can change here in Illinois. The old saying goes something like this. If you don't like the weather here in Chicago...just wait two minutes. Without a doubt, the weather here is about as up and down as it gets. After forty-three years you would think I would be used to it.
The kids, Bryan and Tyler (son & nephew) made quick work of the bluegills on Tuesday as we caught 82 fish in 1 hr 45 min. Monday we had 51 fish in 2 hrs 15 min, 48 bluegill & 3 grass carp. Most of the fish were around 7 to 8 inches and taken over about 15 feet of water on wax worms. They both outfished me again, and I think that Bryan needs to start removing his own fish from the hook to slow him down a bit. However his hands would have been cold then (like mine) and he wouldn't have wanted to keep fishing. Get out this winter on some of your neighborhood ponds and experience this great angling action. The kids love it, and it can make them forget about video games for a few hours!
The break in the fantastic ice fishing we were experiencing gives me time to reflect on one of the best years of my life. I'm being really honest here, even while being unemployed for all of 2010, I have learned to enjoy the simple things in life more than I have ever before. The time that was available to me, made it easy to concentrate on my fishing, plan a few more days out on the water (& ice), and gave me moments to reflect on how special it is to spend our time outdoors.
What a fishing season we had in 2010! (see photo collages below) Ice fishing locally last winter for bluegills & bass. April gave us a beautiful a day on Lake Michigan searching for jumbo perch, although we never found them. May trips to St. Germain, WI (Little St Germain) for crappie, perch & pike, and Fremont, WI (Wolf River) for whitebass & catfish. June included our first trip to Whitewater Lake, in south central WI for largemouth. Don't forget the outstanding week we had in August at Pelican Lake in Orr, MN catching big smallmouth. The fall brought us back to the St. Germain area and Big Arbor Vitae, for muskie action. In between all of that fishing we found time to pond hop local hot spots and wade the Fox river. Now you know why I had the best year of my life!
I'm looking forward to 2011 and many new opportunities for Cappy's Pond! The Outdoor Blogger Network has made my blogging experience the best it could be, while also increasing the site views and following. Can't wait to see how many people come fishing with us in 2011!
Lastly I wanted to take a moment to thank all of you for the great comments you have added over the year to Cappy's Pond. Without you, the readers, this blog would be nothing! When I see a link from someones blog roll to Cappy's Pond I immediately think back to when this all started and what little if no future at all I thought this blog would ever have. Now I am thinking about taking Cappy's Pond to new waters in search of more than just a place to share a few thoughts about fishing.
Have a great start to 2011 and remember to take the pledge to introduce someone new to fishing this year!
Friday, December 31, 2010
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
The Gift of Family & Friends
I wanted to take the time today to wish you all A Very Merry & Blessed Christmas Season. No matter what religion or beliefs that you follow, we can probably all agree that there is no greater gift than the gift of family & friends. My hope is that all of you can share in that special gift with the ones you love!
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year from The Cahills & Cappy's Pond!
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year from The Cahills & Cappy's Pond!
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Ice Fishing Update From Labor & Delivery
Today started out with some excitement as I sat down with my laptop and a fresh cup of coffee. While reading the home page of the Outdoor Blogger Network I noticed I was selected by the random number generator for the Frabill Deadstick Rod/Reel Combo! What a way to start out your morning. I will put that combo to good use this winter across the frozen lakes and ponds of Chicagoland. Stay tuned for my upcoming review at the OBN!
Currently, Shirley & I are sitting in the "New" Sherman Hospital, Elgin, IL in Labor & Delivery waiting for the arrival of our new grandbaby. It's going to be a girl and I already know the name but just in case it is a boy or they change the name, I can't let the cat out of the bag too early. We are both so excited! Shirley is not quite as relaxed I am, which is why I brought along the laptop to do some blogging while she nervously paces the hospital waiting area. It's going to be a long (great) day!
Yesterday we managed to get out on the ice at Pickerel Lake in Dupage County for a great day of ice fishing. A perfect winters day for being on the hard water, we managed to catch an assortment of bluegill, crappie and bass while fishing in 12 to 15 feet of water, less than two feet off the bottom. The ticket was a wax worm tipped on a small blue ice fishing jig (see picture from my last post). The kids had a tough time getting the fish to take the bait, as it took some persistance and teasing to entice them. I caught the most fish (again) as I clued in on the trick. While leaving the rod in a deadstick position for a few minutes and then moving the jig upward quite slowly, the fish would be a little more aggressive. The bass however, were a little bit different as they slammed the bait and took off running... just like the Bears!
I was glad to see the boys having a good time as everyone caught a fish! We got them to put the video games down for a bit, and get them all outdoors. I think they had the most fun drilling the holes in the ice and now that I'm going to be a grandpa that's going to save a little wear and tear on old Cappy.
I don't think we could have enjoyed the day anymore than we did except that we forgot the portable grill and the Johnsonvilles! That will never happen again, while ice fishing.
So a few more hours from now I should be holding my new granddaughter and telling her how much fun she is going to have fishing with Grandpa Kirk & Uncle Bryan! I think we are all going to have a perfect Christmas together...I hope that you all do too!
Currently, Shirley & I are sitting in the "New" Sherman Hospital, Elgin, IL in Labor & Delivery waiting for the arrival of our new grandbaby. It's going to be a girl and I already know the name but just in case it is a boy or they change the name, I can't let the cat out of the bag too early. We are both so excited! Shirley is not quite as relaxed I am, which is why I brought along the laptop to do some blogging while she nervously paces the hospital waiting area. It's going to be a long (great) day!
Yesterday we managed to get out on the ice at Pickerel Lake in Dupage County for a great day of ice fishing. A perfect winters day for being on the hard water, we managed to catch an assortment of bluegill, crappie and bass while fishing in 12 to 15 feet of water, less than two feet off the bottom. The ticket was a wax worm tipped on a small blue ice fishing jig (see picture from my last post). The kids had a tough time getting the fish to take the bait, as it took some persistance and teasing to entice them. I caught the most fish (again) as I clued in on the trick. While leaving the rod in a deadstick position for a few minutes and then moving the jig upward quite slowly, the fish would be a little more aggressive. The bass however, were a little bit different as they slammed the bait and took off running... just like the Bears!
I was glad to see the boys having a good time as everyone caught a fish! We got them to put the video games down for a bit, and get them all outdoors. I think they had the most fun drilling the holes in the ice and now that I'm going to be a grandpa that's going to save a little wear and tear on old Cappy.
I don't think we could have enjoyed the day anymore than we did except that we forgot the portable grill and the Johnsonvilles! That will never happen again, while ice fishing.
So a few more hours from now I should be holding my new granddaughter and telling her how much fun she is going to have fishing with Grandpa Kirk & Uncle Bryan! I think we are all going to have a perfect Christmas together...I hope that you all do too!
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