Beat the dog days by going nocturnal

Is there really such a thing as the Dog Days of Summer?

Maybe that's the case in the minds of some anglers, who use the weather as an excuse to find something else to do instead of throwing lures and bait to lethargic fish. But that's certainly not the case for Ralph G. from Crystal Lake.

Ralph is using his four-week vacation time to hunt muskies on the Fox Chain.

"I've had great success finding some legal fish on Channel Lake and Lake Catherine at night," he told me this week. "I know I had one fish that went over 50 inches."

Ralph contends he has the lakes to himself during both early morning and evening periods, when the bugs are dancing in the air and fish seem to be on feeding frenzies.

"I strongly believe some fishermen are just plain lazy and refuse to work hard to find fish," he noted.

Fishing report: The muskie talk seems to hold true for others on the Fox Chain. Channel Lake appears to be the hot spot now for muskies as well as largemouth bass in the weeds. Texas-rigged worms as well as Little Action Mac pre-rigged worms are catching decent numbers of fish, while bucktail spinners are managing to interest muskies.

Fox River: Current speed is medium and smallmouth appetites are constant. Check the deep holes near Batavia.

Lake Michigan: Lake trout action is very good straight out of Belmont. Coho and Chinook salmon holding shallow in 40 feet of water out of Waukegan. Don't forget, there's a perch fishing ban for anyone older than 15 on the big water.