r/ChicagoFishing

An Independence Day tub on the Fox was sitting in a pool near rip-rap and whapped the Rebel Craw just after sunrise this morning on a northern stretch in Aurora. Guessing 3 feet of water 3-5 yards off the bank, tucked in a nook. Total ambush. These storms really jacked the river level, which gets the bigger ones out to play. Stay safe in and outta the water 🎣 🇺🇸

Shout out to John from Lees Bait and Tackle. He’s been keeping me ahead of the curve for 20 yrs. Support your local bait shops

The mulberry bite is still going strong through the spawn and heat.

Not everybody got the storms last night, but sections of Aurora did and it was enough to goose water levels in the Fox. Wasn’t the case at my start in Batavia above the dam where the water seemed a foot lower than Sunday. Pulled 3 from under a boat launch a bit south and finished at a new-ish spot in Aurora where a couple more smallies grabbed the Rebel Craw, including an acrobatic 18/2.95. The elevated water made for a slightly deeper shoreline which is loaded with coveted structure (fallen trees, boulders, rando slabs of concrete, etc.) — and every fish came off or out from under something.

There seems to be an uptick of Fox-related Qs around here. As a Fox lifer, my biggest piece of broken-record advice is to find all that concrete and debris, especially in lower areas, and get shallow-diving cranks into the middle of it all. It’s often a pleasant result. Tight lines 🎣 Happy Fourth 🇺🇸

Moving to the Roscoe Village part of the river next month and looking for any advice anyone has. Any good spots in particular? Any idea of what I can catch from August onward?

What would y’all fish for here ? Got some leches minnows and grubs

I never get a chance to get on the morning bite. But in between storms was impossible not to. I was still late (around 7 AM).

My last trip ended with a bit of frustration so I threw a big rooster tail at the end just to see if ANYTHING would bite (caught a crappie). It was still tied on this morning, so I figured why not.

Caught one on the third cast. Did 5 more casts and switched to top water. Nothing. Fish jumping all around and just nothing. Buzz bait, floating rapala, even a frog without the structure to justify its use. That’s what I get for sleeping in.

Finally switched back to the rooster tail when nothing else worked. They’re not huge but I ended up with five of these all safely returned to the water.

There’s something so damn cool about catching fish on lures that we often forget work so damn well. The childlike joy of “this is what grandad used to catch them on” is drastically underrated.

Also, watching theory turn into real life. I was casting along the shore right by the edge of the vegetation. One of these fish I visually watched pop his head out to attack the lure. It’s rare to get to see it.

Fox River in Sheridan, got a few before the rain. River is way up and rising but ole whiskers are still active.

Caught these fattties Sunday evening before the heat wave rolled in.