Top 5 Update

Posted on by Troy Jackson

In between the ongoing rains in the region, our Top 5 leader continues to reel in some quality bass. Read on for the details with a bonus look at a lure you should have tied on the end of a pole from now through summer.

Weight: 4-6
Angler: Jim Junk
Date: May 14
Location: Banner Marsh
Lure: Underspin
Structure: Point
Angler Comments: Steady retrieve parallel to a point

Weight: 3-15
Angler: Jim Junk
Date: May 17
Location: Banner Marsh
Lure: Underspin

Weight: 4-0
Angler: Jim Junk
Date: May 19
Location: Banner Marsh
Lure: Texas rigged Senko

Weight: 2-13
Angler: Jim Junk
Date: May 19
Location: Banner Marsh
Lure: Wacky rigged Senko (white and smoke)
Top 5 Weight: 21-2 (4-8,4-2,4-6,4-1,4-1) culls a 4-1

Senko style worm success has kicked into gear and quite effective in both weedless Texas rigged and wacky rigged presentations. Jim passed along several of his weekend winners below.

Two wacky rig looks that were successful this past weekend

A couple Texas rigged worms post catch, Jim notes that they are just as effective rigged from tail end to get extra use from damaged baits

Thanks to Jim for a quality update and the heads up that the Senko bite is off and running. Here’s hoping you have an opportunity to get out and enjoy it with a holiday weekend on the horizon (got my fingers crossed for a shot too). Talk to you later. Troy

Friday Flashback – May 12-18, 1989

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Quite the chronology from 30 years ago this week.

Dateline: May 12, 1989 – Ripon, WI

Came up short in 1989 but had to include the 1986 results for fun, another story for another day.

On May 12, 1989, I played my last ever baseball game, a 5-4 loss to Lawrence University during the Midwest Conference Championship. Remember how it all went down all these years later too, had a perfect view from my second base position. A bases loaded walk on a 3-2 pitch that was too close to take. Still ticked off at the batter for not taking a cut and more so at the ump for not having the guts to call a strike a strike. The 1989 MLB draft then came and went without a call (that’s a joke) so it was on to a number of years on the softball diamond which just didn’t compare.

So, how does a guy get his mind right after an irritating way to end a career?

Why, you go fishing, of course, as the “box score” and pics detail below.

Dateline: May 14, 1989 – Ponder’s Pond outside of Knoxville, IL

Dateline: May 16, 1989 – Ponder’s Pond outside of Knoxville, IL

Dateline: May 17, 1989 – Lake Storey near Galesburg, IL

Dateline: May 18, 1989 – Lake Storey near Galesburg, IL

Funny how some things change over the years…and some don’t.

Thirty years later I haven’t been bass fishing yet in the month of May, let alone four out of five days.

However, including this coming weekend I will have participated in four baseball games in the last eight days. Even spent much of the time near my old stomping grounds at the hot corner. Nowadays though, I am on the foul side of the line in the third base coach’s box helping to guide a squad of 7-9 year olds. And thirty years removed from my final inning between the lines, I find it is the right place to be as I ponder, “How did I use to do that?”

You know, things like bend over for a grounder, throw a ball across the diamond or sprint to my position (I still do my best 51 year-old jog though so as not to get in trouble with my dad). Fortunately, the other aspect of today’s flashback is still attainable as I continue to get around the fishing holes just fine.

Now, if I only had time.

Talk to you later. Troy

A Really Crappie Day

Posted on by Troy Jackson

                                                                         Mother’s Day weekend crappie chasing success

While there are no fish on hand for the Monday Top 5 Update, we do have a fishing report as a suitable substitute.

And it goes like this…

My boys and I were invited down to a “secret” destination by a noted local guide who goes by the name of “Papa” for our crew and several others. For decades he has had the crappie dialed in at this fishing hole during the Mother’s Day weekend. While the weather forecast left much to be desired with early rain, barely 50 degree high, gray skies and a stiff breeze, we confirmed our reservation around lunchtime and headed out for the late afternoon outing.

First casts were made at roughly 3:35pm and in no time the bite was on. My brother, Brent, and his kids joined the fun a little after 4:00pm and our bunch hung in there until 5:15pm during a bite with barely a lull.

            Jayce called this contorted technique “Pretzel Fishing”, can’t argue with the results

All told we combined for somewhere in the neighborhood of fifty crappie and a few bluegill courtesy of waxworms on a jighead hung from a bobber. Location was key as the fish were flat out shallow and on the inside edge or first pockets in the abundant surface vegetation. Not uncommon for this fishing hole, been there done that before.

Weather was really pretty crappy for the second weekend in May but what was cool is that there were zero complaints from our young anglers. In fact, we grownups were the only ones who commented on sore and somewhat numb fingers and a chill that just kind of stuck. And mind you, those kids handled and released a bunch of fish.

                                                                                          Cousins conquering crappie

Post fishing fun included hot dogs over the much needed warmth of a campfire at the area campground along with some kid led hiking. Good stuff considering that Brent and I have been on the kid end of such adventures on those same trails dating back to the 1970s.

      Our guide led us to a sizeable earlier dead muskie discovery

All in all a great outdoor day in less than great conditions. Plenty of practice for the youngsters in terms of casting, catching and fish handling and always fun to watch their confidence grow in regards to each aspect. Also fun to teach in the same outdoor classroom with the guy who taught Brent and me the same lessons well over 40 years ago. Yet again proves that the best time to go fishing (or get outdoors) is anytime you can.

 

One other impressive observation was the fact that the only devices in use were in the hands of me and Brent as we preserved some quality memories for posterity (and a blog posting). Never heard a peep from the kids either as they were too busy having some old fashioned, low-tech fun, gotta love it.

And thus ends today’s fish “Storey.” Talk to you later. Troy

Friday Flashback – May 9, 1989

Posted on by Troy Jackson

It’s about 4:00am on May 9, 1989, you’re a couple college guys, you’ve been up all night for whatever reason and you’re not quite ready to call it a day.

So, what do you do?

Why, you go fishing, of course.

And that’s exactly what me and my buddy, Mark “Geek” Junk, did. Slipped over to my folks, grabbed the 8’ johnboat (yep, the same one I still fish out of today) without waking anybody up and headed for Henderson County.

The Mark Twain Refuge near Keithsburg, IL proved a bust due to shallow water so we opted for Plan B and headed for Gladstone Lake. Believe it or not there is no log entry from the day but I seem to recall a fair number of less than impressive bass.

#24 Mark Junk (far right), one of the top scorers in Galesburg Silver Streaks history in action back in November 1984 along with Tom Bates (far left), #40 John Junk and #13 Troy Jackson

However, the date is unfortunately more memorable for the news we heard on the radio thirty years ago yesterday.

Country music star, Keith Whitley, passed away at the age of 33 on that day right in the prime of his recording career. It was quite a shock as me and my buddies were fans of the genre back when it was in the midst of a sort of traditional revival. These days I’m out of the loop but from the stuff I hear on occasion it sure doesn’t seem like I’m missing much.

Maybe I’m just getting old but the latest batch of country stars don’t hold a candle to his voice. And while they croon about some hard living I sure doubt that they walk the walk. I suppose that’s for the best as that lifestyle ultimately laid Whitley to rest.

Keith Whitley (1955-1989)

I’ll wrap-up today’s Friday Flashback with my personal Top 10 Whitley favorites.

Top 10 Keith Whitley Tunes
1. I’m No Stranger to the Rain
2. I’m Over You
3. I Wonder Do You Think of Me
4. Don’t Close Your Eyes
5. When You Say Nothing At All
6. Hard Livin’
7. Some Old Side Road
8. Ten Feet Away
9. Somebody’s Doing Me Right
10. It Ain’t Nothin’

Happy Mother’s Day weekend and hope some can get out there and do some fishing as the crappie should be in full swing and the bass in the midst of heading for their beds. Talk to you later. Troy

Emiquon Pitfall #1 – Deception

Posted on by Troy Jackson

It was easy to pat yourself on the back on the way home from one of those early Emiquon trips.

And don’t get me wrong, you deserved it.

But you were also wise to engage in a little reality check on the drive as well.

Originally Posted 8-29-10

Things have definitely gotten tougher for bass fisherman this year at Emiquon but you’ve still got to be mindful that the place has the potential to spoil you. In my eight trips to the area my fishing partners and I have hauled in hundreds of bass despite being sent packing twice by the wind and once by illness. Even a trip shortened by a frustrating replacement trolling motor wild goose chase resulted in 98 bass for me and Dad. My best outing was a combined 154 bass day with my brother, Brent. The smallest bass I’ve recorded from Emiquon was seven inches while the largest tipped the scales at just over seven pounds. However, those bookends were the exception as the vast majority of bass were in the twelve to fifteen inch range.

But even those results paled in comparison to other anglers who’d reported one hundred bass days for each angler in the boat. Another instance had a lone angler sitting in one spot for seven hours and reeling in 160 bass. Dad stopped at the ramp last year while in the neighborhood for the Fulton County Fair and immediately observed an angler nail bass on four consecutive casts. I’ve seen pictures of two bass on one lure and saw Dad duplicate the feat with a Rat-L-Trap. Anglers also reported eight to ten bass following a hooked fish to the boat as they attempted to get a piece of a perceived meal.

The seemingly tall tales go on and on with a frequency unheard of at other fishing holes. Such occurrences may have diminished this year but if you are in the right spot when the fish turn on, Emiquon can still live up to the initial hype.

And therein lays the final pitfall.

I’ve found myself telling Emiquon stories using the word “only”, as in “we only caught fifty bass.” It might take me several good days on some of my other fishing holes to log fifty bass. So I must bear in mind that my Emiquon results likely say more about the fishery than the fisherman. A 150 bass day is a remarkable thing to behold but I actually felt more of a sense of accomplishment when Dad and I hauled in fifteen at Lake Storey a couple weeks prior.

If you haven’t paid a visit to Emiquon, I would encourage you to give it a shot this fall. Just be very careful. I can’t speak for anyone else but I know that during several rides home I’ve had to decompress a bit and remind myself that I’m really not that smart.

Much has changed over the years at the unique fishing hole. Water levels have risen, fallen and risen again, visible structural landmarks have succumbed to the elements over time, exotics have found a home and the bass have gotten smarter or scarcer.

Oh, but there was a time…

Talk to you later. Troy

Emiquon Pitfall #2 – Facilities

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Tough call on whether this one should be ranked #1 or #2. Not entirely my call though I guess, more of nature’s call as they say. Anyway, Pitfall #1 provided a better overall summary for our series which wraps up tomorrow.

Originally posted 8-27-10

Not so coincidentally, facilities happen to be Pitfall #2.

While Emiquon offers up plenty in the way of fish and water, angler comforts leave something to be desired. But don’t get the wrong impression, I’m not complaining. I’ll take whatever I can get when a new fishing hole is offered up, especially one stuffed with uneducated bass. In addition, the lack of facilities (combined with no gas motors on boats) has also likely kept the crowds down which is fine with me in a selfish sort of way.

I haven’t been down to Emiquon since June but I understand that work is underway on improving access and making the site more user friendly. However, during my last trip it was still a shallow muddy ramp, a lone rutted dirt, grass and rock lot and the nearest public restrooms were at Dickson Mounds, Havana or Lewistown.

Even so it is still a great fishing opportunity and that’s truly what it is all about for me. Besides, with some planning, a manageable carry in boat, a little muscle and a coffee can you are ready to go.

Strictly BYOTP back in the day at Emiquon

Having been away from the site for nearly six years I have no idea if anything has improved in regards to the amenities. I don’t believe I will be checking anytime soon either as I just learned that the stretch of US 136 that runs past Emiquon has been closed due to flooding.

One more Pitfall to go during the yearlong celebration of The Emiquon Preserve turning 10 years old. Talk to you later. Troy

Top 5 Update

Posted on by Troy Jackson

A good showing this week as more of our Warren County contingent is back on board for another year. After an up and down start to spring it was great to see an outstanding weather weekend in the area and glad that this pair of anglers were able to take advantage.

Weight: 2-4
Angler: Chris Schwarz
Date: May 4
Location: Warren County private pond
Lure: Spinnerbait (bluegill)

Weight: 2-7
Angler: Chris Schwarz
Date: May 4
Location: Warren County private pond
Lure: Spinnerbait (bluegill)

Weight: 2-10
Angler: Chris Schwarz
Date: May 4
Location: Warren County private pond
Lure: Spinnerbait (bluegill)

Weight: 3-2
Angler: Chris Schwarz
Date: May 4
Location: Warren County private pond
Lure: Spinnerbait (bluegill)

Weight: 3-10
Angler: Chris Schwarz
Date: May 4
Location: Warren County private pond
Lure: Spinnerbait (bluegill)
Angler Comments: Bass were tight to the bank and getting ready to spawn; I’m sure the weather has wreaked havoc on their internal spawning clocks.
Top 5 Weight: 14-1 (3-10,3-2,2-10,2-7,2-4)

Weight: 1-2
Angler: Landon Hannam
Date: May 5
Location: Private Pond
Lure: Wacky worm
Angler Comments: I was fishing in our school’s tournament and caught another 1-0 bass on a Z-Man chatterbait.
Top 5 Weight: 1-2

Well done guys and happy to have you back in the mix. Keep ‘em coming when you catch ‘em and that goes for anybody else out there as well. Talk to you later. Troy

Emiquon Pitfall #3 – Expectations

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Quite a show when Emiquon lived up to “Expectations” but pre-trip visions can be a funny thing.

Most times when something sounds too good to be true, it is. In the case of those early Emiquon days, however, you really had to see it to believe it. And we were lucky enough on more than a few occasions to see Emiquon live up to those lofty expectations.

Originally posted 8-26-10

“Take nothing on its looks; take everything on evidence. There’s no better rule.” – Charles Dickens from Great Expectations

Isn’t the internet great? With a few clicks I can come up with an applicable quote from something I’ve never read, making me sound smarter than I truly am.

Prior to my maiden voyage on Emiquon in April of 2009 I’d seen the pictures, looked at the lake and read the reports. While Pitfall #6 sent me packing after about an hour of whitecaps, overconfidence also caused me some distress. I launched with visions of the initial fishing reports proclaiming “100 bass days”, “ten straight casts with a bass” and “several times we caught two on one crankbait” dancing in my head. While I don’t discount these claims, expectations led me to think I could fill the log book with my eyes closed.

Another 2009 outing also taught me something about expectations. Last August I fished McDonough County’s Spring Lake on the day after Dad and Brent had a tough morning, only fooling a handful of short fish. Therefore, as Brent and I launched the next morning I was doing more hoping for bites than expecting them. A half hour later I had three bass totaling 7-12. An hour into the trip we’d combined for 12-10 and both had yet to land our heaviest fish of the day. In the end, six hours of casting gave up a five fish limit of 16-8, exceeding all expectations on a lake I’d never fished before. At Emiquon on the other hand, I’d simply expected that bass after bass would slam my lure as soon as it hit the water. I was wrong, until I came back in the fall.

This brings me to 2010 on Emiquon. By most accounts things aren’t so easy in year two of public access. My experience has been in tune with these reports during the pair of trips I’ve taken (19 bass in four hours for Julie and I combined in May and 44 bass during a ten hour solo trip in June).

Even last year as we kept casting towards the century mark I couldn’t help but wonder how long it could last. Yes, pessimism sometimes has a way of creeping in even during the best of times. However, I’ve learned my lesson and will reserve judgment until after September and October have passed. I always look forward to fall fishing and I plan on hitting Emiquon a time or two depending on the wind. The bass are still there, maybe just a bit more wary or educated, who knows? I’m no better fisherman than anyone else and certainly less talented than many. Being a creature of habit I’m too set in my ways, often reluctant to experiment, largely content to beat the bank and generally out of practice to name a few traits that could use some help. But I won’t be convinced of a decline until I get a chance to follow Mr. Dickens’ advice and collect some evidence in the best way I know how, personally.

Emiquon did churn out a few more impressive outings for me in 2011 and 2012 but only one of those lived up to the craziness of 2009. Six years have passed since my final visit and the site seems to have fallen of the radar in terms of coverage and reports beyond debate over site management. Then again, maybe those who still have the lake dialed in have elected to keep things under wraps. Talk to you later. Troy

Emiquon Pitfall #4 – Bass Thumb

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Anybody who says that fishing doesn’t give you a workout is somebody who never experienced an Emiquon feeding frenzy.

Originally posted 8-25-10

Potential Pitfall #5 wrapped up with the observation that “the chipped paint and scarred lips are simply the hard earned battle scars of success” in regards to crankbaits. Well, another tangible sign of success on the lake is something we’ve always referred to as “bass thumb.” If you run into a few of the periodic feeding frenzies that can occur at Emiquon, it can leave you with a pretty good (or bad) case of this malady. Similar to slime, it falls under the category of a “good problem to have.”

The sand paper like patches of teeth on a largemouth bass don’t seem like much at first glance but handle enough of these fish and they begin to leave their mark. At Emiquon we’re talking a multitude of 12-15” bass that are rather feisty and often still a bit active when hoisted into the boat. After a while the scrapes start to add up.

Not uncommon to be lipping a “double” when the bite kicked in.

To combat this issue I have taken to bringing along a Boga Grip style tool that I originally purchased to help out with the occasional walleye or muskie that wind up on the end of my line. In comparison these species have “real” teeth, as in puncture your skin, draw blood and inflict pain sort of thing. Anyway, the Boga grip also comes in quite handy as I’m partial to crankbait fishing. Call me a wimp if you’d like but a mouthful of treble hooks isn’t particularly appealing when trying to lip a bass, I got lucky for a long time so now I frequently take the easy way out. Besides, I prefer wimp over wounded, the latter of which can ruin your fishing trip. Once I get a handle on the fish and use my pliers to dislodge the hooks I lip them anyway as I can’t let them go without collecting some length and weight data. By this point the bass are usually a bit more subdued and seem to relax when I tell them that I’m strictly catch and release on their kind. And in the interest of showing at least some remaining bravado, I do land them the old fashioned way when throwing single hook stuff like spinnerbaits or soft plastics.

Of course, the human body and its remarkable opposable thumbs are quite resilient so those shredded badges of courage don’t last forever (a scar from a treble hook can however). Some of Potential Pitfall #3 also takes a look at how long things can last.

Hands down the old Emiquon Preserve deserved a well-earned thumbs up. Talk to you later. Troy

Friday Flashback – April 29, 2009

Posted on by Troy Jackson

4-29-09 these two seem impressed by Dad’s meager morel haul

As a mushroom hunter I’m not what one would term a success. A couple noteworthy finds over the years but generally speaking if I can hit double digits I’m lucky. Today’s flashback got it all done at once as noted below in a morel wrap-up from 10 years ago this week.

Originally posted 4-29-09

While approaching the entrance to Banner Marsh we spied a pair of mushroom hunters. From the looks of their grocery sacks (should use mesh bags by the way) it appeared that they were enjoying some success. A co-worker also reported finding around five pounds in the Wataga area this past weekend.

As for myself, I actually found a couple dozen during a few hours roaming Little John on 4/29. Fifteen good sized ones came from one spot including ten that were growing together in a clump. I’d never seen that many clustered so close together and considered leaving them so someone else might also enjoy the spectacle. Okay, maybe not. I did take a photo to share the find with others and then picked them so I could also share them with my family. Considering my past morel history, I guess it’s already a banner year.

Even I couldn’t miss this clump of ten morels 

Well, that’s probably as close as I’ll get to mushroom hunting this year as just too much other stuff going on. Definitely enjoyable roaming the woods but going to be spending time instead prowling the ball diamond as an assistant coach and if I do find free time I am one to choose fish over fungus. Talk to you later. Troy