Sportsman Fishing Club

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Sportsman Fishing Club Enhancing the Environment and Fishing Experience at Shadow Lakes February 2016 Officers President - Tom Lydon Cell (630) 776-1625 tlydon44@gmail.

1 Sportsman Fishing Club Enhancing the Environment and Fishing Experience at Shadow Lakes February 2016 Officers President - Tom Lydon Cell (630) tlydon44@gmail.com Vice President and IDNR Rep - Fred Cowell Treasurer - Jane Hill Secretary - Open Fund Raising - Betty Lydon The next meeting is Sunday February 21, SHING ROUNDTABLE Club meetings are - held ALWAYS the third BE Sunday CAREFUL of WHEN each GOING month at ICE the FISHING Shadow Lakes Amenity First ice Center. has presented some Meetings really begin great 9:00 angling. Reports am from 9 or Free 10 coffee anglers and donuts included: are provided. Newsletter Peg McQuarters/Tom Lydon Website/Sue Kielnik Visit Us On The Web At: Club Mailing Address: Sportsman Fishing Club Shadow Lakes II W. Amenity Ctr. Dr. Wilmington, IL JANUARY 2016 FINANCIAL REPORT CLUB BAL: 1/1/16 $ INCOME 3, EXPENSES TOTAL 4, ASSOC FUNDS 18, Cash positive month by $3, PLEASE DON T FORGET TO PAY YOUR 2016 DUES THANK YOU UPCOMING EVENTS FEBRUARY 21TH WILL BE OUR NEXT CLUB MEETING 2016 CLUB MEMBERSHIP APPLICATIONS INCLUDED WITH ASSOC DUES Almost 100 members have already paid their dues for THANK YOU!

2 THE CLUB WELCOMES NEW FAMILY MEMBERS in 2016 As we start the New Year, we already have about 100 members, including 7 new and returning members: Juan & Nichole Cortez, EV101, Raymond & Linda Kavois FV230, Billy & Tammi Tucker TMV145, Joseph Haxton EV22, Patricia & Sean Stack FC279, Shirley Moore FV201, Marianne Steurer FC258. We want to "THANK" everyone for their support of our Lakes & Fishery in 2016! FISHING ROUNDTABLE We have had marginal ice conditions most of this winter so far. We did see folks out on the ice on Dec 8th. The ice was about two inches thick. These folks stayed near shore. Most were in pairs and wearing life jackets near shore---- IT WAS STILL VERY DANGEROUS TO BE OUT ON THIS EARLY ICE! The following week the ice was about 4 inches with a large number of anglers out on all of the Lakes. A number of reports that weekend showed fishing was pretty good. One report said two anglers caught 47 fish in a few hours. Others reported a variety of catches that included Trout, LMBass, Crappie, very big gills and several Walleye, including one that was about 19 inches. That fish was returned to the water, unfortunately no picture was taken. It looks like the ice conditions will be improving in mid-february, based on the forecasts on the 10th.The weekend of our Ice Fishing Derby the ice was too marginal. We will cover the derby and Chili Mixer in a later article. ICE FISHING DERBY AND CHILI MIXER - JANUARY 30TH 2016 The warmer winter this year meant that we possibly had unsafe ice on the 30th. Since the forecasts are for periods of cold and or above average temps and we had a soft rain just before this event. I sent out an advising folks to fish at their own risk that day. We still had about a dozen folks venture out on different parts of the Lakes. None reported any fish caught. In the end, we felt that the thin, clear ice and lack of snow cover during the sunny day was not good for fishing. The weekend before most anglers reported good catches early and later in the day, as the sun was lower in the sky. We held our Chili Mixer at Noon and had about 50 folks for Chili and treats. While the Chili Mixer was free, a 50/50 raffle raised $160. Bill and Edie Vocelka won $80 and the Club made $80, which just about covered our costs for the day. A lot of laughs and good food broke up the cabin fever. Now it looks like we will have better ice conditions later into February...it never fails. JANUARY 20th, 2016 MEETING - 28 MEMBERS IN ATTENDANCE It is hard to believe that we have entered a New Year already, It seemed like we had just started 2015 and yet here we are in We hope and pray that it is a great year for all of our members, friends, families and our community. BUSINESS: Treasurer's report, see above end of year cash on hand was $994. POAC meeting discussed the possibility of a Clarke Industries chemical weed treatment for our lakes in the coming year(s). DNR update; 2016 bids went out in mid-february for our stocking program.

3 OLD BUSINESS: EV boat ramp area work was started this past Fall. The other side will be fixed this year. The weed boats should be on the water early to work on the weed issues in that area this year Brunch highlights, 58 members attended, great food and prizes to end a great Club year. NEW BUSINESS: Ice Fishing/Chili Mixer details, see earlier article. Gate fish boxes, rebuilding. We are getting price quotes on this project in the coming weeks. Family pan-fish derby: we are replacing our Bass Tourney with a family event that we hope will be great fun for many of our new younger residents with children. Details will be covered in another article. New Walleye limit for 2016: the Club voted to allow a daily one slot fish limit for our Walleye in That slot size is 15 to 18 inches. Details are spelled out in a later article. All Resort Fish Fry: August 13th is the tentative date for the Fish Fry. Folks have been asking to have this event returned. We plan on holding this event and have a 50/50 raffle. More details in a later article. Chemical Weed Control: a recap of a Clarke Inc. presentation was discussed. The members felt that if the Assoc. elected to try using chemicals, Clarke offered the most thorough and detailed program, with a great deal of research on our waters and weed populations. There is still some concern about chemical use by some of our veteran members. NEW WALLEYE LIMIT FOR 2016 The Club set a new Walleye, one keeper fish limit, with a 15 to 18 inch slot limit. We realize that our limits are voluntary and not really enforceable. This is something we may want to discuss in the coming year. We settled one a slot concept, as most Midwest states use this formula. The rationale used by our IDNR and other states was that the under 15 inch population should not be open as it is the future pool of fish. Over 18 inch fish lay about 500,000 eggs per spawn. We settled on one fish to see how we do in New signs will be going up before April 1st, start of the new fishing season. FAMILY PAN-FISH DERBY JUNE 25TH Club members suggested a "FAMILY EVENT" instead of a Bass Tourney, which has been less popular in recent years. Plans are to have families sign up for the contest. They will track the numbers of fish caught and measure their largest fish. Trophies will be awarded and a Hot Dog lunch will be served at Noon in the Pavilion. More details will be announced in the coming months. GOLF CART FISH SCAVENGER HUNT JULY 9TH A fun hunt, following clues to find and "LAND" fish with point values; detours, roadblocks, prizes, raffles and lunch in the Pavilion will round out this fun event.

FISH OF THE MONTH: JANUARY 2016 Jane Hill's first ice fishing venture off her dock turned up a four pack of beautiful Gills. We waived the return alive for pan-fish in this case.

4 FISH OF THE MONTH: JANUARY 2016 Jane Hill's first ice fishing venture off her dock turned up a four pack of beautiful Gills. We waived the return alive for pan-fish in this case. Jane had a great meal of really fresh very cold water filets. Our big winners in 2015 featured: Jan, a 20 inch Walleye through the ice. May a 23 inch, 7 lb+ Bass and then an 11 pound 3 ounce Striper. These were three of our best fish of 2015! Fish of the Month winners get their pictures on our bulletin board, in our newsletters and on our website. They also get a Fishing Club Hat if they are a Club member. Non-members win a Bass-Pro fishing Cap. This contest, along with EVERY event we sponsor, is open to ALL Shadow Lakes residents and their family members, whether they are a Club member or not. The Fishing Club is a Shadow Lakes community social organization. ALL-RESORT FISH FRY AUGUST 13TH Plans are being made to bring back this very popular event. We are running a 50/50 raffle to cover the costs of the fish fry and add the additional funds to our stocking in hope of having a record fish stocking year in The tickets will be sold from February to August 13th. Our last 50/50 raised $2,080. A happy resident in Fisherman s Village won $1,040 and the Club raised that same amount. The cost of the Fish Fry is a passing family dish or treat. More details will be announced this Summer. Two tickets are enclosed in this newsletter. TARGETING PANFISH RIGHT AFTER ICE OUT The safe ice may be going. As ice fishing panfish action ends when the ice is unsafe. you get that first sniff of early spring fishing and the arrival of open water season in northern Illinois. Do you believe that we had 50 degree temps the first week in February. Avid panfish anglers start pursuing bluegill, crappie and the rest of the sunfish family early and often once Nature has lifted the ice cap from their waters. The successful ones stick with the same type of baits and vertical presentations they used on the ice. Action can be fast, but the challenges of finding fish, staying with them, and finding their bait preferences does not requires much experience. Worms, waxworms and minnows are all good live baits to use. Small spinners and tiny tipped jigs below a slip bobber always seems to work. The slip bobber allows you to easily test a variety of depths. Think small. don t stash those ice fishing lures yet! Water temperatures won t be dramatically different at ice out from what they were below the ice the week before. Besides, the same baits that served you during the late ice bite will work just as well at ice out and for much of the open water season, for that matter. Tipped black or orange 1/64- or 1/32-ounce jigs are good and often seem to be the best for bluegill and crappie. Small supple plastics almost like miniature bass baits that deliver subtle action when nearly motionless and also emit scent are good baits primarily fished alone on a jig, though sometimes you can try adding a wax worm for added flavor.

5 Fishing them below a stationary or slip bobber, not only helps maintain depth control but also mimics the very slow vertical presentation of the ice angler. And slow is what it s all about. Fish are still lethargic at ice out, panfish experts say, You still want something small, using the 1/64- down to as small as a 1/100-ounce teardrop jigs with tiny plastics that worked through the ice. If you get your boat out early have boat access, that is often the best fishing of the year. The old north side of the lake principle, applies, too, on each water as sunlight and southerly winds tend to warm that area first. During the late ice period, bluegill and crappie are near the weeds. Transition fish: Warming water is the key to panfish location in spring. The key in early spring is location, always pay attention to temperature more at this time of year. Even a couple degrees in water temperature can make a difference. The location of deep water panfish during late ice, combined early spring feeding and spawning areas from prior seasons after ice out offers. Many anglers fail to piece together the puzzle on panfish location. They know where they caught them on ice, and they know where they will be when they spawn. But they fail to anticipate fish movement during the migration. The transition movement is the same every year. You can intercept these fish as they move from the deep water to the shallows to spawn. Find them at the first break. Sometimes you can draw a line from where you know the fish are right now on the ice and where they will be later in the spring. Just look for them between those two spots. We support "Catch Photo & Release" for future generations. BEST FISHING DAYS FROM ILLINOIS GAME & FISH SOLUNAR TABLES FEBRUARY 18, 19 and 28th. March 15,16,17, 25 and 26. April 4. SPRING SPAWNING FACTS Fish spawning behavior is dictated by photoperiod (length of daylight) and water temperature. A warmer than normal winter may mean earlier spawns in Listed below are spawning facts for common fish species. Crappie: Spawn in late spring or early summer. Males establish territories and nest sites near vegetation, often on soft bottom. Males exhibit parental care. Water temperatures around the upper-50 F to 60 F range begin to bring crappies shallow into spawning areas. Peak spawning activity generally occurs at water temps of 68 F to 72 F for both black and white Crappie. Bluegill: Males establish territories, build nests and tend eggs and young. Spawn in late spring and summer. Bluegills begin spawning when the water temperature approaches 67 degrees. Just prior to that time the males move to shallow water. Gills may spawn several times over the Summer months.

6 Channel catfish: Spawn in late spring or summer when water temperature rises above 75 degrees. The male makes a nest, often in undercut banks, beneath tree roots or in cave-like openings and waits for a female to deposit eggs. The male guards the eggs and fry. The Club has installed spawning tubs. Largemouth bass: Males are territorial and aggressive. Spawning occurs in late spring or summer over a nest 2 to 3 feet in diameter prepared and defended by the male in warm, shallow water. Nest sites are chosen when the water reaches 60 degrees and eggs are laid when the temperature is 62 to 65 degrees. Young may be guarded by the male for as long as one month. Walleye: Migrate to spawning habitat along shorelines; no nests are built. Spawning groups typically include one or two large females and several males. Spawning takes place at night in water temperatures of 38 to 44 degrees. There is no parental care for the eggs or young, resulting in very low survival rates. Yellow perch: Spawn in spring at water temperatures of about 44 to 66. No nest is built, and eggs are not guarded. Eggs are expelled by females in one or several long strands, sometimes as long as 7 feet. The male fertilizes the eggs as they are expelled. Early Spring represents one of the best fishing periods of the year. The fish go on a feeding spree before spawning. The female LMBass will be on the nest laying eggs, We do not encourage taking spawning Bass off the nests. If you catch one, handle her carefully and return her to the nest as soon as possible. The males will then be very aggressive guarding the nest. Redear sunfish: Begin spawning in the spring when water temperatures warm to between 68 and 75 F. They may spawn repeatedly through early fall. Males build saucer-shaped nests in soft mud, silt or sand. The nests are built in colonies near the shore in shallow, protected locations, preferably under Lily Pads. They attract females to the nest with a popping sound produced in the throat. Females deposit between 15,000 and 30,000 eggs, often in several different nests. Eggs hatch in 2 to 4 days and are guarded by males for several days. EARLY SPRING BASS TACTICS As the water warms the bass tend to start moving to shallower staging areas. Remember a bass is a member of the sunfish family. The reason we point this out is that the other various members of the sunfish family also start moving shallower with the impending spring. Again you have to remember that you are working fish that have recently been in the coldest water of the year, so their strike zone is usually smaller than it will be in warmer water conditions. So when working, whether using a crankbait or a spinner, use a deliberately slow retrieve. If the conditions of visibility are poor use a larger size crank, or slow roll a chartreuse spinner with oversized blades. Pre-spawn bass shifting from deeper to shallower water are catchable fish while those that are dropping back to deeper holding areas are much harder to catch. In fact to actually force a strike it may be necessary to let the jig and pig, or lizard stay in one position on the bottom for a considerable period of time before slightly working it forward. This type of approach works best any time the bass have a very restricted strike zone and really have to be forced to hit. The bass may not have really moved very far from a staging area, or even may still be on the spot, but their feeding activity has shut down. Even if you can force a hit under these adverse conditions, it may be a totally different feel that you would encounter from a more aggressive fish. Be very sensitive to

7 any slight variation in the way the line or bait feels. You have to set the hook when you feel the slightest pressure, or even the lack of pressure which may indicate that a bass has the bait in his mouth, and not doing much with his "captured" prey but holding it from escape. Stay alert to any change in your line or bait. TIPS AND TIDBITS ILLINOIS CAR & BOAT STICKERS: Due to budget cuts, reminders for both autos and boats will no longer be mailed out. You can get an . You can sign up to get an auto reminder at the following website: cyberdriveillinois.com PERSONAL NEWS: Ken McClory remains in rehab at a Manorcare Health Services facility at 7850 College Drive, Palos Hts, Il his cell number is (708) A call may help him in this time. Two representatives of Clarke (mosquito control company) made a presentation to Board members, POAC Reps and several Fishing Club members on December 8th. We plan to recap this presentation and hold a discussion on chemical weed control at our Jan 17th meeting. COOK BOOK: Some Shadow Lakes ladies have started to collect recipes to possibly publish a cookbook with our greatest cooks highlighted. Place your recipes in the box in the Office. Include your name, village and lot number. WE HAVE SOME GREAT COOKS - SHARE YOUR BEST KEPT SECRET RECIPES. TURN IN THOSE GREAT HOLIDAY DISHES YOU ENJOYED THIS YEAR! EROSION UPDATE: A vendor that specializes in installing rip-rap to address erosion visited SLKS and toured our lakes. He provided some great info on our problem areas. Stop in to our erosion group meeting after the Fishing Club to hear what he had to say. REARING POND: We still hope to draw down the pond this year and pump out the bottom. We will be looking for some of our younger members and their teens to help in this effort next Summer. If you like mudding, this is for you... LATE NEWS ON CHEMICAL WEED CONTROL: The Association is reviewing two recent proposals for chemical weed control in the coming years WEED OUTLOOK: With very thin ice this winter and with not much snow cover, the sun's rays are already penetrating to the bottom. This may mean a very early weed growth pattern this Spring. The parts for the weed boat are all here and work is being done. We hope to see the two weed boats on the water early this year. We have alerted the Association to the potential of early weed growth in COLD STORAGE FOR LINE: Expensive monofilament and flouocarbon bulk line spools should be stored in a freezer. Exposure to moisture, sunlight and temperature swings. The cold, dark, humidity-free environment provides a stable climate for bulk line spools. MEMORIAL GARDEN: the Club members who worked on the Flagpole Memorial Garden project will add two pine trees at the back of the garden. These trees will be decorated for CHRISTmas instead of putting up an artificial tree. A fund raising drive will hopefully fund the trees, to be installed late this Fall.

8 Sportsman Fishing Club W. Amenity Center Drive Wilmington IL /50 Raffle Tickets Enclosed Sportsman Fishing Club Membership Application for 2016 $35.00 for Individual or Family Household Please provide the following information for Club records and newsletter mailing purposes: Date: Renew: New Member : Name(s): Lot #:: Home Address: City: State: Zip: Home Phone: ( ) Shadow Lakes Phone: ( ) address (only needed if you wish to receive the Club Newsletter by ) I will view Newsletter on Web Site Please mail newsletter Membership dues cover the calendar year 2015 Bring this form to the next meeting and make check payable to: The Sportsman Fishing Club Mail to: Sportsman Fishing Club, W. Amenity Center Drive, Wilmington, IL Drop off the application and payment in the Association office

Sportsman Fishing Club

Sportsman Fishing Club Enhancing the Environment and Fishing Experience at Shadow Lakes 1984-2016 July 2016 24 Years Officers President - Tom Lydon Cell (630) 776-1625 tlydon44@gmail.com Vice President