Dialing In On The Kish

  This past Sunday I was able to get out exploring on the Kish again. This time I had the Fly Rod in hand with a Minnow Streamer tied to the end of my tippet. I started off my search this time in the Rockford area.

  First stop was the Espenscheid Memorial Forest Preserve. Upon arrival I quickly scouted out a couple of bends. They looked fishy, but where empty. With the drought going on the river is about 3 feet low. This has certainly driven fish into deeper pools in which there where none on this stretch of river.

 Next stop was Blackhawk Springs Forest Preserve. This was looking way better than stop one right off the bat. This section was loaded with shade and some deeper pools. I headed toward the bridge to start off. I started swinging my minnow streamer along the bridge piers and stripping 2-3 inches at a time. Second retrieve I felt a tug. Fish on! I knew it wasn't a monster, but it felt great bringing him in on the flyrod.

  It was a nice sized smallie that ran about 13inches. Back to swinging I went, and just couldn't seal the deal. I missed 3 more fish over the course of an hour, with one that was 16+ inches. All in all I call this trip a success due to the fact I found some fish, explored a new stretch, and have a nice new smallie spot to frequent. The exploration will continue, and I feel the success rate should climb from here on out.