262 bass in 2019 represented an increase from 216 in 2018. Nearly all came from the regular regional haunts with the exception of a pair that took a nine hour drive to hook. Today’s post takes a general look at where those fish call home. Lots of potholes that lie off the beaten path are involved so I don’t mind revealing that many bass were caught in places like 2×4 Lake, Bearclaw Lake, Hopper Lake, Dark Lake or Turkey Lake. A couple of those are public knowledge, another pair I named myself and one is on private ground. More power to you if you can recognize them, find them or even get to them. Indeed, a little mystery is all part of the fun of fishing.

Grand Totals
Bass = 262
Bodies of water = 30
Comments: Once again a big batch of little waters produced the vast majority of my bass. Those small waters consisted of the standard collection of public and private Knox County strip mine waters, many that I have been fishing since the 1980s. The largest lake I fished was Lost Grove Lake in Scott County, Iowa which comes in at about 400 acres and I also put in quite a few hours on good old Lake Storey just north of Galesburg, Illinois which comes in at 133 acres.

Access
Bank Bass (Northerner boots, biking and hiking) = 92 bass
Little Boat Bass (near 40 year old 8’ johnboat) = 113 bass
Big Boat Bass (1987 Bass Tracker Pro 17) = 57 bass
Comments: I have put far more miles on pairs of boots and sets of oars than I have ever racked up on trolling motors or outboards. 2019 was no exception although I took advantage of the “big boat” for several outings. Hauling the little boat off the beaten path boosted the boat totals but both approaches were quite successful. 

The Waters (from least to most caught)

Lake George – a scenic shutout

Lake George – Rock Island County (1 visit on 8/4)
0 bass
1.50 hours
Comments: I’d fished Lake George back in 1997 and 2000, making the roughly one hour drive from my then residence in Galesburg, IL. Nowadays, in the Quad Cities I can cover the route in about half the time so I decided to check it out again. The brief visit resulted in a dog day shutout but looked appealing. If I elect to try it again, I will likely borrow Dad’s boat for better maneuverability and a depthfinder.

Lost Grove lone catch

Lost Grove Lake – Scott County, IA (1 visit on 6/2)
1 bass
2.25 hours
0.44 bass/hour

Top 5 Weight: no qualifying bass at 12” or better
Comments: A regular stomping ground over the river fell by the wayside this year. Too much rain in the spring really muddied things up in the area that I target, making it not worth my while. I did venture to a clearer area but like Lake George, a bigger boat with a depthfinder would be the ticket.

Sunflower State Bass

Sedgwick County Park – Wichita, KS (2 visits, 2 lakes, 11/19 & 11/21)
2 bass
2.50 hours
0.80 bass/hour
Top Bass: 1-9 (15”) Spinnerbait
Top 5 Weight (only 2 at 12” or >): 2-11 (1-9,1-2)
Comments: A couple work trip bonus bass allowed me to achieve the annual goal of a November catch after I’d abandoned the local pursuit due to weather and schedule conflicts. Felt pretty proud of myself in landing a pair of decent bass with only internet research used to select a destination.

First cast pond bass

Henry County Private Pond (1 visit on 4/19)
5 bass
1.25 hours
4.00 bass/hour
Top Bass: 0-14 (12.5”) Chatterbait
Top 5 Weight (only 2 at 12” or >): 1-10 (0-14,0-12)
Comments: Desperate to get in some casts with a limited April evening window I turned to a nearby pothole and got my fix. Nothing big here but hits the spot for an annual spring visit when pressed for time.

Lake Storey catch

Lake Storey – Knox County, IL (5 visits – 7/26 through 10/19)
32 bass
24.00 hours
1.33 bass/hour
Top Bass: 2-2 (16.5”) Zoom Baby Brush Hog
Top 5 Weight: 9-0 (2-2,1-3,1-12,1-11,1-10)
Comments: Still enjoy getting on my “home’ water especially since I’m no longer a local. I can’t just hop out there for a visit, takes a little more time and work. Five visits with three different partners and got outfished by my brother and one of my boys along the way. Overall, a good bass/hour rate for me on a tough lake and while no trophies, those bass continue to be fit and feisty.

Little John Conservation Club catch

Knox County, IL Private Strip Mines (9 visits, 5 lakes, 1/5 through 10/14)
85 bass
33.75 hours
2.52 bass/hour
Top Bass: 3-14 (20”) Senko wacky rig
Top 5 Weight: 13-9 (3-14,2-11,2-9,2-4,2-3)
Comments: Several old fishing holes continue to produce bites and one of them gave up my Top Bass for the year. However, other quality bites just never materialized. Still exciting to fish these spots over 30 years after making my first casts as the big fish potential remains. Just couldn’t get any of them to make a mistake in 2019.

Knox County, IL public strip pit bass

Knox County, IL Public Strip Mines (7 visits, 19 lakes, 4/1 through 10/14)
137 bass
27.75 hours
4.94 bass/hour
Top Bass: 2-10 (16.5”) Jig
Top 5 Weight: 11-10 (2-10,2-8,2-4,2-3,2-0)
Comments: While I admit that my walk-in strip mine areas do wear me out a bit more these days, I’m not ready to give up quite yet. Sounds like a broken record as I couldn’t fool anything real big did witness my brother nabbing a good one. I know that they are there and I am looking forward to tromping around again in 2020 to try and find them.

Knowing where to find some bass is only part of the equation. It is also necessary to find out what can fool ‘em. That aspect comes up in the next post. Talk to you later. Troy

Last December I submitted a post entitled “West Lake Complex – Secrets” that took a look at some of the structure that I had observed through late November. Those observations had primarily taken place from a distance as I had not come prepared to hike the muddy lake bottom. However, during a pair of December visits on the heels of the “Secrets”, I came ready to get down and dirty in an effort to get some up close insights on the scenery. I was sure glad that I did wander nearly the entire lake bottom as today’s post and the upcoming series finale will detail.

Structure is a key component in the fish finding equation as it can hold fish and provide a highway for fish movement. Some folks delineate “cover” from “structure” but I’m keeping it less complicated. Essentially, a combination of some of the components to follow is typically better than a lone item. For example, a roadbed or a point has potential but combine those bottom contours with a brushpile or a group of tires and it heightens the appeal.

Bass Fishing 101 continues via video with a closer look at some of the stuff revealed in the draining of Lake of the Hills. Below is a series of clips exploring several general types of structure (Note: not all examples are included in videos and some items could fit a couple categories).

Contours (points, channels, roads, humps…)

Wood (stumps, laydowns, standing timber, brushpiles, beaver lodges…)

Rock (riprap, gravel, rockpiles…)

Manmade (tires, docks, pallets, artificial fish attractors…)

Of course, weeds also play a key role as structure (or cover) in a lake but as a seasonal aspect those are out of the picture at present. In addition, it may be a while until the lake is allowed to fill again and promote the return of aquatic vegetation. I suspect that pending structure additions and restorations will result in the valve being left open for the foreseeable future. Time will tell and your dedicated West Lake Restoration reporter will be on the case as 2020 moves forward.

One final post to get caught up on the 2019 visits comes your way next. Talk to you later. Troy

Whenever I pay a visit to a fishing hole, you get a fishing report, complete with most all of the details. Right down to the lures that fooled the fish.

Well, my visits to West Lake Park were more than a little different. After all, I was taking a trip to a handful of lakes that no longer had any fish in them at all. In fact, several of them didn’t even have any water.

You know, now that I think about it, is that still a lake?

But, I digress.

Even though there was no fish catching to report, there was plenty to pass along in regards to lures. Just take a look at the clips below detailing a batch of lost tackle treasures.

Certainly nothing salvageable in the collection as I was a little late to the scavenger hunt, but fun nevertheless. Quite entertaining in wandering around the lakebed mentally writing blog posts only to have a flash of metal or a colorful clue catch my eye. The finds also brought a grin from this fisherman who has “donated” a few lures to a number of local fishing holes. Perhaps some dedicated Lake of the Hills anglers also got a kick out of finally discovering just what mysterious object had been the end of the line for what was on the end of their line.

Oh yes, we’re not done with the West Lake stuff quite yet so come on back again. Talk to you later. Troy

The bottom of West Lake Park’s Lake of the Hills produced an interesting collection of stuff during my 2019 lakebed wanderings. Some of the discoveries were placed there intentionally while others, I assume, were more of the accidental sort.

Today’s pics and video take a look at both varieties beginning with some clothing and accessories. Pretty much everything you need beyond a nice pair of slacks. Oh yeah, no shoes in the clip below but trust me, I’ve got those covered in just a bit…

Next up is some of the West Lake Park tire collection. Sinking such items has long been practiced to add fish holding structure to a body of water. While opinions and regulations vary, Lake of the Hills and neighboring Railroad Lake certainly contain quite a batch of these durable discards.

The final items for today also feature tread. But unlike the tires, I suspect that most were not intended to finish their days at the bottom of a lake. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the “West Lake Top 10 Shoes.”

Certainly some diverse footwear to be found. And while I may be a bit biased, I find that the proper way to end such a list is with the boots of a dedicated observer/explorer/blogger.

Hope you enjoyed today’s featured finds. While some are a bit unusual, you ain’t seen nothing yet. Plenty more secrets to come, both standard and strange. Talk to you later. Troy

During the implementation of the 2019 drawdowns, I made visits to West Lake Park on August 4 and September 29. Once the process had completed, I made a visit on November 29 to have another look at the largest lake on the site, Lake of the Hills. Each of the visits found me confined to the bank in my running shoes, not the proper gear needed for more in depth wandering.

The completely exposed lakebed, however, sure begged for a closer look. Come December, my curiosity got the best of me so I packed up my boots and headed back. A December 7 hike covered a great deal of the lake and a return trip on December 29 allowed me to explore the rest.

Today’s post features a collection of pictures and video showcasing several sections of the scenery from both afar and down and dirty.

First up, is a look at the northeast arm of Lake of the Hills.

Moving southward we encounter one of several roadbeds that cross stretches of the lake bottom.

Plenty more to come as we take a look at more areas of the lakebed as well as some of what that lakebed has accumulated through the years. Folks, I’ve only scratched the surface…or would that be scratched the bottom? Anyway, stay tuned and talk to you later. Troy