Illinois fishing noob

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BIGgourami

Polypterus
MFK Member
Jan 31, 2007
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Chicago, IL
just rekindled my enjoyment of fishing (haven't gone since i was little)

me and a couple of friends have set up a little outing later this week

wondering if any Illinois fisherman can render some tips?


the lake we're fishing in has channel cats, LMB, crappie and sunfish, walleye, pike, and muskie (all supposedly, all i've actually seen are sunfish and bass)

jut wondering if i would get any suggestion as to general locations to look, bait/lures to use, how to properly set up the bait, weight, bobber, etc


basically it's been a while, run me through the basics :D


much ablidged
 
what lake are u gonna b fishing and depending on wat you r fishing for theres is things that would work and wont. for channel cats the best luck i had was using fat night crawlers on a small to medium size circle hood and then a decent size weight about a foot or 2 above the hook so that the worms kinda still stay up cuz channels tend to feed a lil bit higher off the bottom. for walleye rapalas work good and i have been told by my buddy that leaches work good for walleyes.
 
it's going to be busse lake

i was told to use a minnow on a jig head for walleye, but i'll keep leeches in mind
 
hmm a few good all around baits are minnow style crank baits and spinner baits. both of these two lure types should help you catch a lot of the fish species you listed Except the bluegill and others that are to small for these baits. good spots for these baits is over weedy flats or just flats in general. for walleye look for humps away from shore.
 
copper plated gurgling spinner bait is my favorite.

oh, and the fat money minnow in foxy shad color. for bass btw.
 
ok i checked out a bass pro shop near me and the guy there set me up with a rod and reel, an 8 pound line, "taught" me how to jig

since the water is fairly cloudy, i'd want to use a brightly colored bait right? like rosy minnows that are sold as feeders? and yellow, orange, chartreuse etc colored lure right? or is all that just gimmicks?

any particular technique for catching bass or pike? just throw the bait to em and hope they bite?

for catfish i could just throw smelly bait on a hook and sink it to the bottom and they'd be all over it right?
 
bump

anyone?
 
well, we went out for about 4 hours and caught nothing but a bad sunburn, a couple of lure went MIA, bait was stolen, swears were uttered
 
BIGgourami;3067048; said:
ok i checked out a bass pro shop near me and the guy there set me up with a rod and reel, an 8 pound line, "taught" me how to jig

since the water is fairly cloudy, i'd want to use a brightly colored bait right? like rosy minnows that are sold as feeders? and yellow, orange, chartreuse etc colored lure right? or is all that just gimmicks?

any particular technique for catching bass or pike? just throw the bait to em and hope they bite?

for catfish i could just throw smelly bait on a hook and sink it to the bottom and they'd be all over it right?
Click to expand...
dark baits are better in murky water such as black and purple. There is many ways to catch catfish the best is live or dead bait. take a bunch of night crawlers and put them on a hook with a big weight make the line tight and wait for it to start moving. Also a good bait is fresh cut up bluegills cut them down to small chunks and put a nice big hook through it and let it sit on the bottom. Also catfish tend to be evening time feeders. userly after the sun sets is prime time.
 
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