Sportsman Fishing Club

Sportsman Fishing Club Enhancing the Environment and Fishing Experience at Shadow Lakes 20 Years May 2015 1994-2014 Officers President - Tom Lydon Cell (630) 776-1625 tlydon44@gmail.com Vice President - Fred Cowell Treasurer - Andy Kaminsky Secretary - Lisa Tullos IDNR - Fred Cowell Fund Raising - Betty Lydon The next meeting is Sunday May 17, 2015 17, 2013 Club meetings are held the third Sunday of each month at the Shadow Lakes Amenity Center. Meetings begin at 9:00 am Free coffee and donuts are provided. Newsletter Peg McQuarters/Tom Lydon Website/Sue Kielnik Visit Us On The Web At: www.sportsmanfishingclub.com Club Mailing Address: Sportsman Fishing Club Shadow Lakes II 24727 W. Amenity Ctr. Dr. Wilmington, IL 60481 APRIL 2015 FINANCIAL REPORT MARCH CLUB BALANCE $3,004.89 INCOME 589.00 SUB-TOTAL 3,593.89 EXPENSES 207.65* TOTAL 3,386.24** ASSOCIATION FUNDS 18,000.00 TOTAL 2015 FUNDS 21,386.24 *NET POSITIVE CASH 381.35 **$1,000 FISH STOCKING DEPOSIT UPCOMING EVENTS OUR MAY MEETING WILL FEATURE A LMBASS ROUNDTABLE JUNE 6TH ALL RESORT BASS TOURNAMENT THIS NEWSLETTER IS ISSUED EARLY DUE TO VACATION SKEDS PLEASE REMEMBER YOUR 2015 DUES, THANK YOU

FISHING ROUNDTABLE Late April and early May reports include: - Northern Lakes: Big gills up to 8 inches from shore, as waters warm. A 22 inch, 6+ lb LMBass was caught on May 1st, medium bass minnow. Healthy female returned alive to spawn. Awaiting a pic. - Hawk: Nice crappie and large gills. A reported 14 inch Crappie, no pictures. - Interior/cart trail lakes, Crappie being reported along with some perch and some very nice Gills. - A kayaker caught 10 LMBass Sunday 4/12, mostly on jerk baits. All were very healthy and several were in the 14 inch range. - A report of 2-3 LMBass in the 5 LB range were reported. We support "Catch Photo & Release" for future generations. Our channels and canals should be getting more action as these waters warm earlier than the main lakes. So get out on your dock or common areas for shoreline action. Let me know how you do. MARCH 15th, 2015 MONTHLY MEETING - 32 MEMBERS IN ATTENDENCE - BUSINESS: - TREASURER'S REPORT: See full report above. - BOARD: Next POAC Meeting will be May 16th at 9 AM in the Gate 1 Community Center. The last BOARD meeting reviewed finances to date, issues with aggressive dogs, the timetable on the new road work. Each Officer reviewed their area of responsibility. The POAC New Property Owner's orientation event. Details were discussed on the new Braidwood Administration. - DNR: We stocked forage, walleye, crappie, red-ear, perch and breeder bluegills. 1200 Red-ear were added to Hawk to help the Zebra Mussels. Buckets of forage were placed in the Cart Trail lakes. - OLD BUSINESS - Thanks to the Club members who helped with the Community Clean-up on May 2nd. Fred Cowell and Bill McGuire did the Northern Lakes as my motor is being rebuilt due to line under my prop. - Now that we have a new Braidwood Administration, we will be sending out the First Responders invitations to the Braidwood Police and Fire Departments for the August 1st Family picnic. - The Amenity Center Handi-capped pier contract has been awarded to J & K. Work should begin in the coming weeks. - 2015 ads and publicity signs have all been placed. NEW BUSINESS - A discussion was held on our Musky stockings over the past 3 years. Fish limits and regulations for the coming year. Our Tiger Muskies seem to be thriving and growing. - The fish limits gate boxes project was approved by the Club. We are obtaining carpenter costs.

- Wayne Walsh Scholarship was discussed, see article later in this issue. - We hope to have an in-depth Bass seminar at our May 17th meeting, in preparation for our June 6th Bass Tournament. - We will be setting a date to clean-up the pond and hook-up the waterfall and a solar light system. - The Club is having more Hawk Lake DVD's made this year. - New members, we have Club Hats, T-shirts, Lake maps and Northern Lakes DVD's available for sale at our meetings or you can contact any Club member if you want to order these items. - The Club thanks the many folks who donate gifts for special raffles, and a big thanks to ALL for supporting our Lakes and Fishery in 2015! Mark Pawelski donated a counter-top cooking system for our November Brunch meeting. BEST FISHING DAYS FROM "FEEDING TIMES" BY DAN BARNETT MAY: May 12, 13, 20, 21, 30 & 31st. FISH OF THE MONTH: APRIL 2015 Our April 2015 Fish of the Month is a healthy 28 Inch Tiger Musky caught on Hawk Lake by Mike Mueller. Mike was using a Shad Bomber crank bait on April 12th. This healthy specimen is one of the Tigers we stocked in recent years. The fish has grown at a very nice pace since stocked. Also, last year numerous sightings of Musky, approximately 2 foot sizes shows that our stocking has taken. Our winners thus far in 2015 include: Jan, a 20 inch Walleye through the ice. Feb, a nice Rainbow ice fishing. Mar, a 19 inch, 4+ pound LMBass. April, a 28 inch Musky. A great variety of popular fish species at Shadow Lakes...so go fishing! 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. WAYNE WALSH MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM This year's selectee is Haley Pierce, a senior graduating from Reed-Custer High. Haley plans on attending Eastern Illinois University, studying in a 5 year Special Education program. Haley has been involved in 4H and IASPA, an association of educational Human Resources and Personnel Managers. Haley enjoys camping, fishing and horseback riding, recently winning blue ribbons. She hopes to one day have a riding stable that helps special needs individuals. She will join us at our May 17th meeting. that is also her Graduation day. Please join us to wish her well in life!

2015 CLUB BASS TOURNAMENT: JUN 6TH, FISH 5 TO 11 AM, CK-IN & LITE LUNCH 11:30 AM Here are some pertinent articles for our June 6th Bass Tournament. Spawn baits (Return spawning bass quickly to the water) The Club does NOT encourage spawn fishing Fish spinner baits and soft plastic baits in reed beds. Top water baits work best on the outside edges of reed beds, secondary points, over cover and over beds. After a cold front moves through, bass will not seek deeper water, they move into heavy cover. Therefore flip the cover with jigs and worms. Post Spawn: by June 6th, we should be in a Post-spawn angling period for our Tourney If the beds are empty, fish points and drop-offs near flats and search for suspended bass. Post spawn bass typically are tough to catch. They spend the first two weeks after the spawn recuperating. After that, they start feeding again. Post spawn generally doesn't happen to an entire lake or at the same time due to differences in water temperature. Use a top water bait such as a Zara Spook, even if they're 20 feet deep. Bass will also suspend under floating docks just after the spawn. Use a jerk bait, then use a jig on the second pass. Summer As the water temperature climbs into the 80s or 90s, largemouths must conserve their metabolic energy, and will move around less. Look for them to associate strongly with cover in 1-20 feet of water, where they can hold and ambush prey. Lake bass move off-shore to deeper channel ledges, points, open water rock piles and drop-offs, where they await schools of baitfish and intercept them as they pass. Just how deep they go depends on particular factors of each lake: current, structure, temperature, oxygen, and availability of food. The larger fish tend to go into deeper waters, while the smaller fish may stay in relatively shallow areas. Even in the heat of midsummer, however, bass often return to shallow waters to feed in the early morning, evening, and late hours. Even so, they are rarely found in shallow waters in the middle of the day, especially when the sun is bright and the wind is calm. Schooling behavior begins to occur as bass feed heavily, then move back to their holding stations to conserve energy. Fall This is the time of year when a bass' attention is focused on feeding. Therefore stock your tackle box with crank baits, jigs, spinner baits, worms, spoons, top waters and finesse lures. Search for submerged weed lines with your depth finder and concentrate on the inside edges in the morning and outside edges in the afternoon - the more erratic the edge the better. Look for isolated patches of weeds and fish those first. Fish all types of weeds until a pattern is developed. Bass will be in an ambush mode, and won't chase your lures. Therefore fish parallel to the structure. Use a rattletrap over these areas in the morning, then switch to small worms as the day progresses. Top water baits can produce all day long, especially on overcast days. Lily pads, algae, matted weeds and other heavy cover are bass magnets. Fish these by either scooting a frog, rat or spoon over the top or punch through with a heavy jig or worm. If it's windy, focus on the windy side of structure. Plankton is blown there which attract the baitfish which in turn attract the bass.

WACKY WORMING: THE EASIEST WAY TO START CATCHING LMBASS Wacky Worm fishing is one of the great new ways to rig a soft plastic. Bass can be very spooky in shallow water, especially clear shallow water. When done properly, even a bass that has seen you WILL take a wacky worm rig. It is truly amazing. Ever take kids bass fishing? They usually do the fishing and you tend to their needs. This is a great confidence builder method for kids! They will catch fish and you will be able to fish too! A few simple tips like where to cast and how long to count before retrieving the worm will get them wanting more.

The Worm The choices of worms that will work the best is very small. Basically it is a heavy bodied stick or straight worm. No curly tails or funny shapes here. Think of a big fat earthworm laying straight and you got the idea. The thick heavy body is a yummy profile to convince a bass to go get it. The mass also makes the worm sink very slowly. Probably the best known of these wacky worms is Gary Yamamoto's Senko. It is extremely soft and has lots of action when sinking. The bass swim away chewing it so you have time to set the hook. The problem with the super soft design is you loose the bait almost every time you make contact with a bass. That means just about a dollar whether you catch it or not. Ouch! The O-Wacky tool can save worms. Most any soft bait manufacturer makes a stick worm that is good for wacky worming' but one more stands out. Gander Mountain makes its Trick Stick and is an excellent value as you get over twice as many worms as Yamamoto gives. They have good action and come in several colors to match water conditions and forage. They are extremely durable and one pack could very well last you a season. I'm guessing they didn't do THAT on purpose! The colors should be chosen as with any worm. Generally, colors like pumpkin, watermelon and reds work best in water on the clearer side. More contrast works better in stained or dark water. This is where the white/pearls really shine. Bass fishing is an art without any absolute rules. Don't forget to experiment! The Technique Cast, wait, set the hook! Basically that is it. In the 0-5 foot depths, a stick work hooked right through the middle on a 1/0 or 2/0 worm hook is all you need. The wacky worm is the king of the spawn. Bass are up shallow, less than 8 feet generally. Contact with the biggest bass is much more common during this time of the year. The slow fall of an un-weighted worm is simply irresistible to them in such shallow water. You need to remain fairly still to see the strike though. Flor carbon line is a must to feel the light tick when a bass takes it. A spinning combo with 6-10 lbs line is all you need. Very often the bass will come up an take the wacky worm, so you will see momentary slack in the line as they actually pick it upwards a bit. If you are drifting and trying to cover more water, use an 1/8 ounce jig head to speed things up a tad. The jig head helps cover more of the water column in the 5-10 foot depth as well. A lot of the strikes come as the bass moves off its nest to move the worm away. A bedded bass won't tolerate intruders into its space, but it won't travel very far from it either. If you meet it half way with a faster sinking worm, you stand a better chance of a strike. Stay away from your target and cast in. Let the wacky rig sink on a semi-slack line and watch VERY carefully. If you see or feel anything different, SET THE HOOK! The strikes will be very light most of the time. If the weed cover allows, let the worm sink to the bottom and do nothing. If there is no hit, wiggle the rod tip gently a few times. This will bend the worm in half and it swims away. You'll get just as many strikes when you do this at times. Fish it all the way back. See page 5 for rigging examples, O-Wacky tool.

FUTURE WALLEYE SPECIES CATCH LIMITS DISCUSSION In the coming months, we will be discussing the regulations from neighboring states, and in lakes near us. Most all use the "SLOT" concept which allows some fish to be taken, while continuing to build the overall population. More to come over the summer... TIPS AND TIDBITS - Be sure to check under your propeller for fishing line. Having mine rebuilt due to ''Braid" wound around prop shaft. PLEASE DON'T THROW LINE IN THE WATER! - Please do NOT leave fishing lines unattended. They are dangerous. - The weed-boat is almost ready to begin working the lakes in early May. - Try not to use fertilizer too close to shorelines to hold down the weeds around your dock. - June 5-8th are "FREE FISHING" days in Illinois. No fishing licenses required. - 2015 Fishing license and trout (limit 2) stamps are required April 1st. - The inland Trout Stamp is required if you catch and KEEP Trout. - Fishing licenses can be bought online & multiple copies printed out at: www.dnr.illinois.gov Boat registrations must also be current. The State no longer sends out expiration notices. You can renew on-line at the IDNR web-site, or you may print out and mail-in an order form. Water usage stickers for canoes and paddle boats can be bought at local tackle shops. - Shadow Lakes boat stickers are due by July 1st. Cost in 2015 is $3.00 per set. - Our Smallmouth Bass and Walleye remain in a "CATCH & RELEASE" status for 2015. - CAUTION: Deer tick season has started. If you get sick after ANY tick exposure, see a Doctor ASAP. - AMERICAN FLAG HALF MAST CEREMONY ON MEMORIAL DAY. Join the services at the Memorial Garden at 5:22 AM Monday May 23rd for half mast lowering and 8:13 PM for the raising of the flag. - CHAIR EXERCISES are held in the Amenity Center on Mondays and Fridays at 1 pm. - "Grass Pickerel". You can tell this little species by the "black line" running down from the eye. See picture below. Return them alive to the water. They are a sign of healthy waters & vegetation.

Sportsman Fishing Club 24727 W. Amenity Center Drive Wilmington, IL 60481 Sportsman Fishing Club Membership Application for 2015 $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: ( ) E-Mail address (only needed if you wish to receive the Club Newsletter by e-mail) 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, 24727 W. Amenity Center Drive, Wilmington, IL 60481 Drop off the application and payment in the Association office