I have been fishing The Fox River ever since I was a little kid. My Dad used to take me below the dam in Algonquin, Illinois, then further down river by the Montgomery dam when I got older. In my late twenties I'd travel to Carpentersville to fish the old power plant - boy did we ever have some good times back then.
Backwater eddies on The Fox (particularly those situated below a dam) have always been a great place to catch catfish, smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, northern pike, walleye, crappie, and carp. If you use chicken liver for bait in the summertime, you're sure to catch a snapping turtle as big as a dinner plate too. They are nasty buggers!
If you use a live chicken for bait, you're bound to catch a big muskie. The Fox River gives-up some pretty big toothy critters these days. Uh, just kidding about the "live chicken" bait. Really!
On this particular winter day, New Year's Eve 2007, we didn't exactly knock the fish dead, but we had a whole bunch of fun in the snow. We wanted safe ice and got open water - on December 31st - go figure?
It all made for a nice setting though. And as usual we gave it our best shot.
