I didn’t originally have plans to get on the water on this evening but some incentive from a co-worker got me moving. Read to see how it went on this national “holiday.”

Stats
Date: June 18 (National Go Fishing Day)
Location: Hennepin Canal
Time: 6:45pm-9:00pm
Totals: 5 bass
Weather: Sunny/calm
Water temperature: Not available
Lures: Spro Flappin Frog 65 (nasty shad) – 2 bass, 5” Yamamoto Senko wacky rig (smoke shad) – 2 bass, Z-Man Chatterbait (sexy shad) with BPS Speed Shad trailer (sight shad) – 1 bass
Top Bass: 2-4 Frog
Top 2 Weight (only 2 bass at 12” or better): 3-14 (2-4,1-10)

Notes and Nonsense

National Go Fishing Day – The previous day a co-worker brought it to my attention that it was “National Go Fishing Day” per her every day is a holiday or observance calendar. When she asked if I was going fishing to celebrate, I had to admit that I was unaware of the designation. Of course, being in the know meant that I could not pass up a reason to make more fish stories.

Winning lures

Presentations – My summer visits to this stretch of The Canal consist of a three-pronged approach in the weedy waters. My number one presentation is a topwater frog rapidly twitched over, through and around areas with significant surface vegetation. Next is a chatterbait for open water expanses or channels in the weed growth. Finally, I always have a Senko wacky rig ready when topwater fishing as a follow-up to missed topwater strikes if there is enough open water for a pitch to the resultant surface boil. On this trip, I had no such occasions, but the Senko came through in the lone area with deeper water and sparse vegetation. While I did not load up the logbook, each of the choices caught fish for a successful evening.

8:24am – Top Bass Runner-Up weighing 1-10 (15″) on a frog

Dogs, Cats, and Daughters – A few hundred yards from my truck in the growing darkness, I spotted a shadowy figure and what looked to be glowing red eyes prowling the path between me and my destination. It took me aback as darkness still does weird things even to an old guy, but it turned out to be a black dog with a lit-up collar. The owner was fishing nearby and instructed the dog to leave me alone as I strolled up. I said that I lived in a cat household and the dog must be curious. I added that once upon a time, my girls convinced me to get a pair of cats. And now, one of my girls is married, the other away at college, and guess who has the cats. This produced a response from the fellow that perhaps I came out ahead in the end. Not true, of course, but I will admit that the comment made me laugh.

8:40pm – Top Bass weighing 2-4 (17″) on a frog

In the end, the suggestion of a co-worker got me on the water to see what this fishing thing was all about. I am happy to report that it is still an enjoyable past time and hope that others were able to take a shot as it preceded Illinois Free Fishing Days from June 19-June 22. I made some more casts during that period but those are fish stories for another day. Talk to you later. Troy

Keeping up with my plan to fish Lake Storey once a month, I got my June trip completed early. While the lake is on the rise from the prolonged drawdown, it still has a ways to go before it reaches full pool again. The bass seemed confused by the extended drawdown period as they were rather elusive. At least that’s my excuse for only boating a half dozen along with a pair of “accidental” catches.

Winning lures

Stats
Date: June 7
Location: Lake Storey, Knox County, IL
Time: 6:35am-12:50pm
Totals: 6 bass, 1 muskie, 1 bluegill
Weather: Partly cloudy/calm to windy
Water temperature: Not available
Lures: Z-Man Chatterbait (sexy shad) with BPS Speed Shad (sight fish) – 5 bass, Zoom Baby Brush Hog (watermelon seed) – 1 bass, Strike King Red Eye Shad (sexy shad) – 1 muskie, 1 bluegill
Top Bass: 2-0 Chatterbait
Top 5 Weight: 8-10 (2-0,1-15,1-10,1-9,1-8)

Notes and Nonsense

7:09am – An “accidental” toothy catch

Accidents – My focus on this trip was the largemouth bass like normal. However, anytime that you have a lure in the water, anything can happen. Over the years, I have hooked many other species, including some that weren’t fish. Such catches are what I term “accidents” as they were not the intended target although they all count. My first accident on this trip was a small muskie and I followed that up by hooking a bluegill with both hitting a lipless crankbait. The muskie was the first that I had caught on Lake Storey since 2017. The lake is home to some quality specimens and while my catch was not one of them, it was still pretty cool.

7:38am – First bass of the day weighing 1-9 (14″) on a chatterbait

Back to Bass – Just over an hour into my outing, my third fish of the day was one that I was targeting. The solid fourteen-inch fish came on a chatterbait and tipped the scales at 1-9. Over the next three hours, I would land five more bass that were all “keepers” (12” or better) before ending my day in a two-hour slump without a fish. During the drought, I did have a fish in the two-pound range hooked but after a brief fight it came loose.

8:41am – Top Bass weighing 2-0 (16″) on a chatterbait

9:53am – Top Bass Runner-Up weighing 1-15 (15.5″) on a chatterbait

Gnat Nuisance – As has been the case on a few recent trips, the gnats were terrible. Inside my glasses, up my nose, in my ears, under my hat band, and a couple for a snack tested my tolerance level. I had forgotten my dipnet and Mom and Dad saved the day by bringing it to me when they helped with vehicle relocation a couple hours into my morning. Dad commented that my face and neck showed the effects of the biting little pests and offered up bug spray. I was tempted but declined as I dislike the smell and feel of that stuff. Inevitably, it also gets on my hands which I hate when fishing. All told, I’d rather put up with the bugs and the resultant itchy red spots on my neck, ears, bald head, and various other areas of my body. I must say that there is a sadistic sort of glee when a slap hits its mark with a little crunch. But the gnats win in the end as they have me vastly outnumbered and it’s hard to slap and reel at the same time.

It wasn’t for lack of presentations as I threw a variety of baits

I enjoy any day on the water but there are days when I leave less than satisfied with my results. Chalk it up as a win for the bass as this day is an example of why it is called “fishing”, instead of “catching.” Talk to you later. Troy

I had only been on The Canal once since April and that last outing I had focused more on playing fishing guide to my family rather than fishing. But I have had my sights on this June 5 trip for a while now as my work week got shifted to have the day off. The goal on this trip was to land a bass in the same area that I caught my first ever Canal bass back on June 5, 2021. Read on for the rest of the story.

Stats
Date: June 5
Location: Hennepin Canal
Time: 7:20pm-8:50pm (2 pools)
Totals: 5 bass
Weather: Sunny/breezy
Water temperature: Not available
Lures: Spro Flappin Frog 65 (nasty shad) – 4 bass, 5” Yamamoto Senko wacky rig (smoke shad) – 1 bass
Top Bass: 2-0 Frog
Top 4 Weight (only 4 bass at 12” or better): 6-6 (2-0,1-11,1-9,1-2)

Winning Lures

Notes and Nonsense

Anniversary Bass – On June 5, 2021, I landed my first ever Canal bass. It came on a Senko wacky rig from the stretch of The Canal near the Geneseo Campground. To celebrate the date, I decided to revisit the spot and see if I could recreate the catch. Luck was on my side as roughly ten minutes into casting, I had another wacky rig bass posing for a pic. It wasn’t big but that didn’t bother me a bit as it was all about achieving the goal.

June 5, 2021 – first ever Hennepin Canal bass

June 5, 2026 – Fifth anniversary catch at the same spot on the same presentation, a Senko wacky rig

Froggy Water – Once I had the anniversary bass in hand, I made a few more casts on the area but just wasn’t feeling overly optimistic in my gut. And several other anglers lining the shore also convinced me to relocate a few miles downstream. I had not seen this water since April, but it was right on the money for my intended approach, topwater frog fishing. A mix of solid shoreline mats, scattered weed clumps, and clear water was just what the doctor ordered. Roughly an hour of casting produced four “keepers” along with three other missed strikes. The missed strikes are part of the game when fishing a frog in the slop, but I also made an error on adjusting my drag that may have cost me my fifth keeper. A novice mistake upon getting in a hurry and overlooking an important detail for this type of presentation.

Frog bass often come with a side salad as shown below

8:05pm – Top Bass weighing 2-0 (16″) on a topwater frog

8:34pm – Top Bass Runner-Up weighing 1-11 (15.5″) on a topwater frog

The Canal has been good to me over the last five years. It’s also been weird and difficult, but the five bass landed on this trip push me closer to a pre-season goal of landing Canal Bass #1000. Currently, I sit at 965 bass, and I hope to get it done this year. However, some transportation issues have complicated matters. But that is another story. In the meantime, I am hoping to get in some more casts elsewhere over the weekend. Stay tuned and talk to you later. Troy

One more May report to get caught up and this outing was another shot at Lake Storey. It marked my fifth trip to the old fishing hole as part of my commitment to fishing the extended drawdown. The bite was tougher, but I still landed five keepers to complete my Top 5 for the day. However, it was my lowest Lake Storey Top 5 of the month. Read on for the results.

7:46am – Top Bass #3 at 1-7 (14.5″) on a chatterbait

7:51am – Top Bass #5 at 1-2 (12.5″) on a chatterbait

Stats
Date: May 26
Location: Lake Storey, Knox County, IL
Time: 7:40am-2:55pm
Totals: 10 bass
Weather: Partly cloudy/calm to windy,
Water temperature: Not available
Lures: Z-Man Chatterbait (sexy shad) with BPS Speed Shad (sight fish) – 5 bass, 5” Yamasenko wacky rig (watermelon/black flake) – 3 bass, Strike King KVD 2.5 Squarebill Crankbait (natural pumpkinseed) – 2 bass
Top Bass: 1-10 Chatterbait
Top 5 Weight: 7-2 (1-10,1-8,1-7,1-7,1-2)

Starting lineup

8:36am – Top Bass at 1-10 (14.5″) on a chatterbait

Notes and Nonsense

Path construction is progressing and the lake is on the rise

Rising Water – Lake Storey’s annual fall drawdown has reached a record duration as the typical routine involves the lake refilling from winter and spring runoff. For 2026, construction on extending a walking path around the lake has resulted in the lake remaining lowered. Recently, I’d read that the target date for putting the plug back in was June 1. Apparently construction is ahead of schedule, as the lake has been on the rise since late May.

1:14pm – Top Bass #4 at 1-7 (14″) on a crankbait

Bank Bound Boon – Nearly the entire shoreline of the lake has been accessible due to the prolonged drawdown. Bank anglers have certainly taken advantage of the additional spring access. On many of my Lake Storey outings this year, I have had to skip over several of my target areas that were occupied by folks on the shore. As a result, I have also invested additional time on less visited spots and they have paid off this year.

Winning lures

Variety – The crazy chatterbait bite streak that began the year has tapered off as other lures have come into play as conditions change. The chatterbait did lead the way on this day with half of my catches but I also had success with a crankbait when targeting some deeper water. In addition, I gave the Senko wacky rig a shot which is a presentation that I rarely use on Lake Storey. It rewarded me with three catches and will likely get more casting time on the lake as we head into summer.

1:28pm – Top Bass #5 at 1-8 (14″) on a chatterbait

It is now June as I am making this post which means that I need to get back on the water to meet my goal of a monthly Lake Storey trip from March through November. Plenty of month remains but I also would like to hit the lake at least one more time before the water reaches full pool. Stay tuned and talk to you later. Troy