In preparation for our Hoosier National Forest paddling/camping trip, Mike wanted to load down his kayak with all of his gear to get a feel for how it would perform. I have been on a couple of multi-day trip, so I had a pretty good handle on how much crap I load my boat up with without tipping over. I know I won’t be taking a few items that I don’t really have in my possession in Illinois. That will reduce the weight down some or simply free up more space for additional water. I was just along on this trip to paddle
and fish with a new rod and reel purchased “for Rachael”, in case she ever wanted to fish.
The day started out pretty gloomy looking, cold and a bit windy. The forecast had told us it would clear up. I think we stalled a little bit getting our boats into the water, thinking, “It’s going to clear up - any minute now!” We chatted with a young man who was also kayak fishing. He said it was the only way to fish this lake. We understood what he meant later. We finally got our gear loaded up and hauled our boats, one person in front, one in back, a kayak handle in either hand. The walk from the parking lot, across the grass and down a small hill was a short one. It appeared as though putting in on a semi-steep shore might be tricky, but we were in the water in moments. Mother nature had the last laugh with the weather - shortly after putting in the sun began to shine.
We paddled toward a spot recommend by the other kayak fisherman, directly across parking lot on the southern section of the lake. We made it in good time. The wind picked occasionally but they were brief gusts. Mike’s kayak didn’t appear to be suffering at all from the gear he loaded onto it and he reported that he could hardly notice a difference. By the look of it, he probably could have doubled the amount of gear strapped to the deck.
We started fishing a bit and eventually drifted toward a cove. Not far from where the other guy went. Much of the lake is surrounded by reeds, so it feels pretty remote when your out there. As we fished the cove, we spotted a single painted turtle basking in the sun who, like us, was anxious for the sun to come out. Fifty or so yards down shore, what looked like a family of four had also taken up a log in the sun. These little guys have really interesting coloring - bright, neon red.
Nothing was biting and once we got some photos of the turtles, we headed out of the cove to follow shore north and up the west side. I stopped and fished near some overhanging trees and actually caught a small something. It fell off my line before I could him close him enough. I would continue convincing you, but he was so small, I don’t really care if you believe me. Mike later guessed it was a crappie.
We were getting hungry and we hadn’t paddled - really paddled - much, so we decided to paddle up and under the north bridge, circle the island. We some more - I got my line stuck in the reeds once - no fish. We sort of took our time, but we had succeeded in accomplishing our goals for the day. For Mike, testing his boat. For me, testing my new rod n reel. For both of us, getting outside and paddling.
(photos in this post were taken by Michael Beirbauer)
About 3 Miles
11:00am - 4:00pm
Breezy, Cloudy clearing to Sunny, 60-70
