Another change for Rosemont show
It appears that industry ramrod Keith Ogulnick will be riding range again when the National Marine Manufacturers Association kicks in to high gear as the owner of the 2012 Rosemont Sportfishing, Travel and Outdoors Show.
Jim Sugarman, former owner of the Rosemont show, was the the man who rode in to the Chicago market on a white stallion to save this traditional, annual event, and he did in fact finally put on a good show this year. But despite producing a very attractive event, he was faced with overwhelming costs and huge debt.
The NMMA is scheduled to run the new show Jan. 25-29.
About trout:
Make sure you have an inland trout stamp if you plan to fish the various ponds and lakes around the areas this weekend. The annual inland trout season starts Saturday.
Ray day:
A reminder that one never knows what can or will happen when venturing out on to the ocean, as a Crystal Lake woman found out the hard way when she encountered a huge sea ray in the Florida Keys.
Jenny Hausch narrowly escaped injury when a spotted eagle ray leapt from the water and slammed into her chest near Islamorada in a heart-pumping close encounter. Hausch, her husband, David, and their three children were watching multiple rays in Whale Harbor Channel with Capt. Kelly Klein of Two Chicks Charters when the 5-foot-long ray, weighing between 150 and 200 pounds, soared into the boat and knocked her down.
“The last thing I remember is taking pictures, and then this thing is on top of me and I'm trying to push it off,” Hausch said.
Smelt fluctuation?
Message to the fishing honchos who have the ultimate say-so in the city of Chicago: Perhaps next year you should talk to the weather forecasters, and then set the smelt seasons according to what the weather gurus predict in the way of warmer temperatures. Both science and angler testimony show that whatever smelt are left in the big lake only come close to shore to spawn when the water temperatures are much warmer than they have been for the last 10 or 20 years during the period smelt season has actually been open.
Flies corner the market
In its first-ever comprehensive survey on fly fishing, the outdoors research firm Southwick Associates found 59.3 percent of anglers report they bought fly fishing tackle in 2010, an increase of 4.1 percent from 2009. The 2010 Fly Fishing Market Survey found flies were the most-purchased type of fly-fishing gear, Temple Fork Outfitters the most-purchased fly rod, Orvis the most-purchased reel, and trout the most-popular fish.
Fishing report:
Fox Chain: Crappie action has begun in earnest on the channels around the Chain. Look to Lake Marie, Petite, and Channel Lake.
Fox River: Water is high and caution needs to be exercised, but walleye can be caught below the McHenry Dam.
Lake Michigan: Good spring coho action on the lakefront at Montrose, Belmont and Fullerton. Smelt fishing starts Friday.