Thursday, July 9, 2009 5:08 PM CDT
Sam Parr Lake: area's hidden jewel
By Dave Shadow, Hunting and Fishing Coloumnist
Who cares if it’s sprinkling a bit of rain, right? Rosalie, that’s who! She loves to fish as long as it’s dry and sunny and the wind isn’t blowing and the fish are biting and the birds are chirping and there are a few snakes for her to aggravate or at least some turtles to watch.
That means we have one day like that per year, except in 2009, when there have been none.
Early Saturday morning I convinced her the rain was almost over and probably the sun would be shining by the time we reached Sam Parr Lake, near Newton. The key word in that sentence is “probably.” She agreed to don her raingear, temporarily, since I seemed sure that the rain was about to quit. I’ve been wrong before!
It was perfect conditions for some topwater fishing. Overcast, low-light conditions, coupled with a light rain, are perfect. The lack of light means the fish are feeding shallower, and the rain breaks up the surface of the water, making the bait less obvious to the attacking fish. We boated several nice, fat bass, and I was in fish heaven or something, but to my amazement, this fishing bonanza wasn’t enough of a benefit in Rosie’s eyes to offset the rain that was getting steadily harder.
Buzzbaits and Jitterbugs were coaxing fish to strike regularly, but that growling sound that I was hearing from the back of the boat wasn’t the engine running. It was my sweetie, grumbling that her “Frog-toggs” were leaking and the rain was getting heavier. She was right on both counts.
As the rain increased and the wind picked up, the bite slowed considerably due to the inability of the fish to see the bait in the increased turbulence. We switched to spinnerbaits and sub-surface baits and continued to catch some nice bass most all morning, but the grumblings from the back of the boat continued. Finally, conceding that I was happily wrong, we headed into Newton for some lunch and dry clothes.
Sam Parr Lake was built in 1971 and has long been one of my favorite small central Illinois lakes. In years past the smaller bass clubs would gather there, and it was usually the producer of the greatest number of fish in quantity if not in size. There are nice, big fish there, however. It has a maximum depth of 28 feet and a shoreline of nine miles. Most all game-fish species abound there in a rolling timbered setting. There are two boat ramps and lots of camping and other facilities. Boating its restricted to a maximum of 10 hp, but electric-powered motors are all that’s really needed.
Bank fishing is accessible at many locations, and row-boats and canoes enjoy this quiet atmosphere. Four picnic areas are available for day use with shelters, and there are more than two miles of foot trails for the hikers.
For the horse lovers, 13 miles of trails exist for their enjoyment. Class B/E, C and D and youth camping are available.
Hunting opportunities abound, but you should check with the site manager for regulations and hunter facts. This lake lies just northeast of Newton on Illinois Route 33 and just a short and worthwhile drive from wherever you are.
Put this location on your “must visit” list regardless of your favorite outdoor activities.
Tournament results
- Lake Mattoon, July 1 — First place went to the team of Bruce and Derrek Hoene with a five fish limit weighing in at 8.75 pounds. Second place went to Gene Compton with four fish weighing 6.40 pounds, and the “big bass’ award went to Gruen VonBehrn and Mike Jansen at 4.25 pounds.
-Lake Mattoon, July 4 — Since the paper got wet and dissolved, Mike Black revived this account from memory. (Blame Mike if it’s not correct.) Besides, I probably won’t tell anyone about him falling out of the boat since it’s about a 30-minute story (but he got the fish). Just ask him! First place went to Chad and Gruen VonBehrn with five fish at 12.132 pounds. Second place went to Dave and Dale Trigg with three fish weighing in at 11.732 pounds. In third place was Harold Willenborg and Gene Thoele having five fish and 11.016 pounds. The Trigg boys had the big bass at 4.872 pounds.
- Parting thought: The real art of conversation is not only to say the right thing at the right time but to also leave unsaid the wrong thing at the “tempting moment.”
It’s faith, family and fishin’.
Dave Shadow is the Journal Gazette/Times-Courier’s hunting and fishing columnist.
Add your comments
Not already registered?
Then click Here.
Comment policy:
JG-TC.com encourages readers to engage in civil conversation with their neighbors. Comments that are submitted are not posted to the site immediately. They go into a queue to be moderated and may take several hours to be reviewed. Comments posted on Saturday may not be reviewed until Sunday afternoon.
In order to keep the page a set width, long lines (mostly long links) will be chopped. Try putting spaces in your links or consider using tinyurl.com to make a smaller link that you can include.
We will never edit or alter your comments, but we do reserve the right to remove comments that violate our code of conduct.
No comment may contain:
* Potentially libelous statements; such as accusing somebody of a crime, defamation of character, or statements that can harm somebody's reputation.
* Obscene, explicit, or racist language.
* Personal attacks, insults, threats, harassment or inciting violence.
* Commercial product promotions.
If you have any questions, please contact our moderator.
|
|
|
|
|
