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ADVENTURE SPORTS OUTDOORS “THE VOICE OF THE AMERICAN SPORTSMAN”
May 2004
White Bass Action on the Illnois By Jay Angel White bass action is really hot on the Illinois River around the Starved Rock area. This is a great way to capture and keep a young child’s interest because if you find a big school of “whites”, you will catch one fish after another for hours! These scrappy fighters will smash a bait and fight you all the way back to the boat. Locations: The first spot you should target is Plum Island. Plum Island is located in the middle of the river next to Starved Rock State Park. Most if the island is lined by a rocky shoreline. These rocks extend out into the river and act a magnet for whites. I like to begin targeting this area by jigging the eddy at the downstream end of the island. I will jig with a small glitter tube and my partner will cast Zip blades. We cast all of the current breaks, eddies, drop offs and rocky shorelines. I continue my way up the north side of the island concentrating on the rocky shorelines and points. The eddy at top of the island is a hotspot. Continuing around the island; there is another eddy on the south side. This is another hot spot that has saved many fishing trips from being fishless. The next spot is the Vermilion River. I could write a book about the great white bass spots on the Vermilion but I will try to cover the high points for you. One of the most important points to remember about the Vermilion is rocks. If you find shoreline rocks that extend out into the water you will find whites.
There are lots of spots that you will find rocks. Look for bass on them. If you don’t find whites move to the next spot after you are certain that you have worked the spot thoroughly. Whites will sometimes bunch into tight schools. If you can maneuver your boat all the way up to the first rapids there is a great spot. Please be sure that you are careful when you are driving upstream because the water is very shallow and fast moving. The pool underneath the rapids is very deep. On the edges of the deep water you will find many eddies and rocks. Large schools of white bass inhabit the edges of this pool. These are just a few of my favorite spots. The Illinois River is full of whites, therefore there are lots of places to fish for them. Experiment with places and find your favorite. Baits: White bass will hit on small, flashy jigs. You do not want to use the large jigs that you use for saugers while fishing for white bass. A one-eight ounce jig tipped with a silver glitter tube is my favorite bait. When fishing is slow, you should tip the jigs with a small river shiner. Jigs are certainly the most popular method used to catch white bass. River shiners are flashier than fathead minnows and they tend to catch more fish. White bass are also more than willing to hit just about any small, noisy crankbait. Many anglers like to use small Rattle Traps or small Shad Raps. The key is to use the flashiest lure you can find. I also like to use blade baits. Lots of companies make blade baits and they are not all created equal. I like to use small Zip blades. On bright sunny days I will use either gold or silver and when it is overcast I like to use blue or pink. What I like about blade baits is that white bass really smash them. One of the best methods used to locate white bass is to drive your boat down the river and look for schools of minnows hitting the surface. White bass are voracious feeders and they travel in large schools. You will see minnows jumping out of the water in an attempt to elude the white bass. This means that you have found a school of hungry whites and it is time to fish for them. Remember that you are attempting to imitate an injured minnow when you are selecting baits. The white bass run is going to continue through the first couple of weeks of May. This is the best times of the year to get out and catch hundreds of fish. White bass can really make an anglers day.
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