Late on a Friday, we were wondering what to do over the weekend. We were looking for an outdoor adventure where dogs can have as much fun as we can. After bouncing a few ideas off of each other and checking the weather, we exclaimed – Kinkaid Lake! It was going to be a cooler than normal day, so we could bring the dogs along too and enjoy some fishing time.
For those not familiar with this fun spot in southwestern Illinois, Kinkaid Lake is 2,750 acres of fishing, boating, and camping fun. Getting to the lake is pretty easy as it is only 100 miles south east of St. Louis and you might get to pass through Chester, IL, home to Popeye -but that is another story! The Lake was constructed in 1968 and is owned by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Whether you want to cast a line, have a picnic, or play in the great outdoors, Kinkaid is a must day trip or weekend getaway.
The lake is home to several species of fish including bass (largemouth and smallmouth), sunfish, crappie, catfish, walleye, and muskie. As you know, Wade is an avid fisherman. There are several habitats for these fish including submergent grass, standing timber, and submerged manmade structures. The banks of the lake include bluff walls, grassy points, and riprap rock. Whether you throw a crankbait, jig, or frog, you are bound to catch fish.
The weather was cool in the morning and slowly warmed up. We were on the lake bright and early – about 6:00am. It was definitely a bit chilly for the last weekend in May! Wade was eager to do battle with his underwater competitors – large and smallmouth bass! Remember, Kinkaid does have a fairly large minimum size limit. While we always practice catch and release, only fish above 16″ can be kept.
We launched the boat, and, with our lifejackets on, we idled out of the no wake area of the marina. Wade pushed down on the T-H Marine Hot Foot accelerator pedal and the boat came up on plane quickly. We ran a short distance to a cove and the boat came down off of plane. The manmade structure in this part of the lake that Wade was planning to fish around was a little more submerged than usual. The submergent grass beds were not matted up due to the water being higher than what is normal for the lake. Wade began wondering how the fishing was going to turn out with the abnormality and how he would adapt to the changes.
Wade started off the day casting and retrieving a weedless frog over the weedy area. With no interest from the fish, he moved on to make precision casts towards the manmade structure with a Tokyo Rig technique using a soft plastic creature bait. He was beginning to feel stumped after not having any signs of the fish wanting to eat his offerings and decided to head over to a main-lake point that was covered in weeds and seemed to have some fish activity. With a feeling of optimism, Wade turned back to casting the frog over the weeds…NO takers. Wade needed to rethink his strategy if he wanted to catch a fish!
After the slow start, Wade decided to make a slight adjustment using his Tokyo Rig – making casts to the edges of the weeds and not in or over the weeds. A few casts later, this adjustment paid off with a catch! While it was not a “keeper” fish, it was a good sign that he made the right adjustment.
Wade idled over to another main lake point that had weeds growing on it, but also led to a couple of coves that looked good to try to find some more hungry fish. Wade fished the edge of the grass and noticed a breeze had started blowing on the main lake edge of the point that led to another cove. With the slight change in the weather, he started throwing a spinnerbait to the edge of the weeds and along the deep slope of the point. And then – BOOM!!…he boats another solid bass. It is slightly short of the minimum length limit, and he releases the fish. Wanting to try another technique, Wade puts the spinnerbait rod down and picks up another rod rigged with a jig. The deeper bank lacks the weeds but has a few logs near the bank that he makes precision casts to with the jig. Within minutes, Wade sets the hook on a 12’’ and then a short time later a 16’’ bass and brings them into the boat. The 16’’ bass would be a keeper if he was in a tournament, but the bass was released today as Wade was just fishing for fun. Wade rarely fishes the jig on Kinkaid, but his recent success has given him confidence in this technique! He will surely use it again in his MO’ Bass Club Tournament in July!
Wade picks up another rod with a Texas Rig with a crawfish imitator and pitches it to the edge of some more weeds. After a few casts, a little bass eats it, and he lands it in the boat. He quickly unhooks it and releases it into the water. After a few more casts and no bites on the crawfish. He puts it down.
The next rod he picks up has the spinnerbait again, and he casts it to the edge of the weeds. We get to the back of the cove where there is some standing timber. He makes a cast with the spinnerbait next to a rotting tree and sees a large shadow follow the bait. Then he sees a big mouth full of teeth open up to try to taste his spinnerbait! He excitedly pulls the spinnerbait away and watches a very large muskie swim away. He starts to fish his way out of the cove while allowing his heart rate to recover.
We take a break to eat lunch. Even when taking a break, Wade is like a focused hunter looking for prey and is still looking around at the water and contemplating what to use next to get a bass to bite.
He pulls another rod out of the rod locker that has a crankbait tied on. He begins casting it near the weeds but tries desperately not to get it hung in the grass. Suddenly a big bass grabs the lure after it ticked a grass stalk. The fight is on as the big bass struggles to get loose from a mouth full of treble hooks. The bass tries to jump out of the water and then the line goes limp. Wade is disappointed that the fish did not stayed hooked. The fish was definitely over the 16’’ minimum and may have been 3-4lbs., but we will never know for sure. Feeling deflated, Wade continues on trying to get another bite.
As we make our way to other areas of the lake, Wade is still casting, winding, flipping, and pitching numerous baits hoping to finally feel the pull back of a fish. We see a splash in a nearby weed mat. Wade spots sunfish swimming around a possible spawning bed and assumes the bass was trying to feed on them. He puts a creature bait on a Texas Rig and flips it into where the splash occurred a few moments ago. The bait falls through the matted vegetation as Wade, full of anticipation, yoyos it up and down. All of a sudden, he sets the hook good into a strong, fighting fish. After the battle between fish and fisherman, Wade swings in a hefty and healthy bass. We hear another splash in another weed bed a little further into the cove. Wade said “there is another one up there that is hungry too”. Wade pitches the bait in the weeds, and he feels a tap on his line and sets the hook hard. He fights the fish out of the grass and swings in another hefty and healthy bass. Wade fishes around the cove a little more but does not get anymore bites.
After five hours of playing cat and mouse with the fish, we feel like we had enough of enjoying the nature and the beautiful day. The sun is high and warm even though the high temperature for the day is only in the mid 70s which is cool for late May. We head back to the boat ramp and put the boat back on the trailer and secure everything. As we start to head home, we are both thinking that we sure could use a nap, but that would have to wait until our 1.5 hour ride home was over. During the ride home, Wade is recollecting on the day and the where, how, and when he caught his fish and is already looking forward to the next visit to Kinkaid Lake. We are both thankful for the wonderful day that nature provided for us to enjoy. We were able to see and hear multiple beautiful birds in the trees and flying over while enjoying nature at its finest on this beautiful day.
All fish were immediately released to grow and be caught again another day.
