Monsters are swimming in Chicago's Marquette Park lagoon. Not the Loch Ness variety, just state record-sized grass carp. South Sider James Cobbins can testify to that. He caught a 61 ¼ lb. grass carp Sunday afternoon from the lagoon on Chicago's Southwest Side. It is the biggest legal fish verified in modern times in the Chicago area. 

``It is unbelievable this came from Marquette Park,'' said Henry Palmisano, proprietor of Henry's Sports and Bait/Marina where the fish was weighed on a certified scale. ``When I got the fish to shore, he broke the line,'' said Cobbins, a 46-year-old construction worker. ``I got it under the gills and it started flopping and nearly threw me in the lake.''

Cobbins caught his lunker on basic equipment, including his Mitchell graphite rod that recently had its tip repaired at Henry's. Cobbins said he has constantly adjusted the drag on his Zebco RX20 reel as the huge fish stormed toward brush and other hiding places. The fish took a nightcrawler on a No. 6 Eagle Claw hook fished on the bottom. It was his last cast of the day. He missed setting the Illinois State record by a little over a month. Mark S. Metzger caught a 66 ½ lb. grass carp from Lake Petersburg in Downstate Illinois on July 8. The old record was 58 pounds, also from Lake Petersburg. 

Palmisano had scales of Cobbin's fish on his desk and was marveling at them Tuesday morning. ``They are wider than my thumb. They are like tarpon scales.'' 

Dale Bowman, Chicago Sun-Times Outdoors Columnist, special to the GLSFC

It was not generally known that a new Illinois state record for carp had been caught earlier this summer, primarily because the Illinois Dept. of Natural Resources is one of several states that maintains a policy of not issuing news releases about new state record fish. When asked why, DNR Director Brent Manning, himself considered an avid angler, was at a loss to explain the policy. ed 

Support us....
Enjoy the benifits of membership, why not join today?
 
 
 

OMNR Enhances Fishing Opportunities on Lake Ontario Court Order restricting Tribal "assessment" continued

A stretch of the Baraboo River in South Central Wisconsin runs free for the first time in 140 years, following removal of the old Waterworks Dam. The structure was removed recently, following years of controversy.

The dam's removal saves local taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars, permanently removes a public safety hazard, improves water quality, and helps restore a healthier fishery.

Freshwater fish-including back bass, bluegill and crappy-have wonderful flavor when taken from clean water, but often taste like the lake bottom when caught from less than pristine habitats.

You can cure all these problems by soaking your pan-dressed fish or fillets overnight in a simple salt-and-soda solution. Many of the best restaurant and hotel chefs have been "sweetening" fish this way for decades, but few sportsmen seem to know the trade secret.

Measure 3 tablespoons of table salt and 2 teaspoons of baking soda into 1 gallon of cold water and stir until thoroughly dissolved.

When the soaking is completed, you'll find that the brine is covered with a floating layer of oil and gelatinous slime. Since these are the substances that transmit most of the "off" flavors found in the fish, their removal will make almost any variety of gamefish taste sweeter and fresher, but not at all bland.

Discard the used saltwater and rinse the fish under cold tap water. Let them drip dry on paper towels, and then cook according to your favorite recipe, or freeze them for alter use.

When family members who "don't like fish" begin asking for seconds, you'll become a permanent convert to the salt-and-soda method.

(Courtesy: S.O.N.S. of Lake Erie)