Had a lot of fun shooting 7 gar and 10 asian carp on monday. Those carp really rocket off when you stick'em.

http://www.siloutdoors.com/imagehosting/337486ce6d45ec5a.jpg


http://www.siloutdoors.com/imagehosting/337486c0b54a742e.jpg

I'm glad to see those out of there. Saturday we saw a gar alive in a puddle by the sidewalk on the west side of the spillway.

Looks like a lot of fun! We've seen some big bigheads in there.

Hey! you were at My spot! :D

Nice shootin!

Went over there yesterday, fishing with the daughter. Seen some guys bowfishing in the original river path, then they went down river. Never saw them shoot any, but they sure were looking hard.

I thought bowfishing below the spillway was illegal now? Something about guys walking around on shore shooting bows and scared some families.

I thought bowfishing below the spillway was illegal now? Something about guys walking around on shore shooting bows and scared some families.

It is permitted from a boat June 15th-Sept 15th, according to a sign near the boat ramp. Which begs the question, why the date limitations?

Maybe they are implying ONLY boat shooting during these dates and bank & boat shooting is allowed all other times? This would seem like a better idea considering most families go fishing from the banks in the summer time.

It is permitted from a boat June 15th-Sept 15th, according to a sign near the boat ramp. Which begs the question, why the date limitations?

My guess is to keep people from bowhunting deer from the boat?
Since bow season starts Oct 1st.

That's probably it Bigduke.

They have dates for bowfishing at Pit #3 too.

Cody, I doubt they'd allow bowfishing from the bank at all in that stretch. It gets pretty crowded there pretty much year round.

I wouldn't want to bowfish near all the people around the dam anyway...

I thought bowfishing below the spillway was illegal now?

Is this in the site specifics? I cant find my copy, gonna have to pick up another from wally world this week.

I don't see anything about it there Ron.

I was really just askin because thats what Ive heard through the grapevine. It's closer for me to go to Alton, New Athens, or even the Meramec in Fenton, MO than out to Carlyle, so Ive never been out there bowfishing. Good to know about more legal, public spots to shoot.

Youve got about 30 miles to New Athens or 44 to Carlyle. About 1 gallon difference. I've seen a few large bigheads pulled out from the Carlyle spillway. In the evening it's like going to Seaworld without having to spend money on tickets from watching the Asian carp jumping.

From the 2008 Fishing digest:

SPEARING/BOW AND ARROW FISHING
Carp, carpsuckers, buffalo, sucker, gar
(except alligator gar), and bowfin may be
taken with spear or gig, pitchfork, underwater
spear gun, bow and arrow or archery device.
Spearing/bow and arrow fishing is not permitted
in waters listed in Site Specific
Regulations as “2 Pole and Line Fishing Only”
(except as listed by notation).

Carlyle Lake (20), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
(Clinton/Bond/Fayette Counties)
Recreational Use Restrictions . . . . .Waterfowl Refuge or Hunting Area (33)
Large or Smallmouth Bass. . . . . 14” Minimum Length Limit
White, Black, or Hybrid
Crappie (15) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Fish Daily Creel Limit
White, Black, or Hybrid
Crappie. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10” Minimum Length Limit

Carlyle only has the (20) site specific regulation:

(20) Carlyle Lake (including its tributary streams and those portions of
the Kaskaskia River and Hurricane Creek up to the U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers Carlyle Lake Project boundaries), U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers, Bond, Clinton, and Fayette Counties. Does
not include the tailwaters, except that sport fishermen may not use
a minnow seine, cast net, or shad scoop for bait collecting between
U.S. Route 50 and the Carlyle Lake dam and spillway.


Baldwin Lake:
Baldwin Lake, Baldwin Lake Conservation Area (Randolph County)
All Fish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Pole and Line Fishing Only (1) (5)
Large or Smallmouth Bass. . . . . 18” Minimum Length Limit
Striped, White or Hybrid
Striped Bass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17” Minimum Length Limit
Striped, White or Hybrid
Striped Bass (16) . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Fish Daily Creel Limit
White, Black, or Hybrid
Crappie (15) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Fish Daily Creel Limit
White, Black, or Hybrid
Crappie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9” Minimum Length Limit

5) Except that sport fishermen may take carp, carpsuckers, buffalo,
gar, bowfin and suckers by pitchfork, gigs, bow and arrow or bow
and arrow devices.

Example of a lake you cannot Bowfish:

Bakers Lake, City of Peru (LaSalle County)
All Fish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Pole and Line Fishing Only (1)
Channel Catfish . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Fish Daily Creel Limit
Large or Smallmouth Bass. . . . . 14” Minimum Length limit
Large or Smallmouth Bass (14) . 1 Fish Daily Creel Limit


1) Anglers must not use more than 2 poles and each pole must not
have more than 2 hooks or lures attached while fishing, except that
legal size cast nets, (in accordance with subsection 810.50(a)(1))
shad scoops, and minnow seines may be used to obtain shad,
minnows, and crayfish to use as bait, provided that they are not
sold, and except that bullfrogs may be taken by hand, gig, pitchfork,
spear, landing net, and hook and line during bullfrog season.

I am not sure how close one can bowfish to the dam. All of these fish were shot a mile or more south of Hwy 50

I am not sure how close one can bowfish to the dam. All of these fish were shot a mile or more south of Hwy 50

Ah I see. I was wondering about that when this thread started. Some Illinois Bowfishers members have been chased off by a COE employee even though we read the regs as legal to bowfish, he does not. We're working on getting it cleared up...stay tuned.

Some Illinois Bowfishers members have been chased off by a COE employee even though we read the regs as legal to bowfish, he does not. We're working on getting it cleared up...stay tuned.

There are many things that they get wrong. My father in law worked at HMG in Carlyle. He had to straighten up all sorts of their surveying mess ups!

Thought about this thread on my way home today. Stopped down at the boat ramp by the suspension bridge and took this pic..........

http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn101/Ron-inSI/f4f75eb2.jpg

Did anyone ever get any clarification on this? I went bowfishing at the Ohio River last night and am looking for somewhere MUCH closer to home to start going more regular. Carlyle looks like a good option.

BigPappa, get my PM?

BigPappa, get my PM?

Yes I did! Thanks!!!

I'm about an hr from carlyle but looking for somewhere to be able to bowfish at night in the future.

Some of friends made one last trip down to the spillway...
http://www.illinoisbowfishers.com/ClickGallery/users/45/cliff789.jpg

http://www.illinoisbowfishers.com/ClickGallery/users/45/cliffnsnuffy724.jpg

http://www.illinoisbowfishers.com/ClickGallery/users/45/gar231.jpg

The fish went to good use as well.
http://www.illinoisbowfishers.com/ClickGallery/users/45/fishgiveaway158.jpg

Making friends, providing food for people, and cleaning out all those bigheads and that gar. Three pluses right there.

Making friends, providing food for people, and cleaning out all those bigheads and that gar. Three pluses right there.

I wonder who the yahoos were that complained and got the dates and rules in place?

I don't think it was complaints that got the dates in place. Rather, the Corps weren't allowing bowfishing there the past two years due to a mis-interpretation of their own rules.

After some discussion between the Corps and bowfishers (big thanks to Robin Parks of Aim Low Productions... our 'go to guy' within the Corps) they started to allow it.

I guess they didn't realize we'd want to bowfish it all year.

I also heard that the Sept 15th closure was to give room/access to the sauger fishermen during the sauger run. ???

Anyhow, we'll see if we can get a more generous season in place now.

awesome! those asian carp sure are ugly

awesome! those asian carp sure are ugly
Yeah but they sure are tasty though.

Pappa, Christine's right. They didn't want any bowfishing. But they're willing to have commercial fishermen take out tons of bigheads and silvers to make the angling better. Go figure?
They could be promoting it as a Bowfishing destination and making some tourism dollars. :confused:

A couple of you should contact the Corp about changing the rules to Bowfishing being allowed year round. I can understand snagging and fishing to be set times during the year but with bowfishing it is pretty obvious that you know what your shooting at. The Asian Carp need to be controlled and it needs to happen before they ruin the other fishing.

The Asian Carp need to be controlled and it needs to happen before they ruin the other fishing.

It's almost too late to prevent it ruining other fishing Debunk. I'd love to see more of them cleaned out from the spillway area. It's almost like going to Sea World watching all the bigheads jumping out of the water, but it has had a detrimental affect on the fishing.

bunk, Robin Parks of Aim Low Bowfishing is an Engineer for the Corps. (his day job) He's been working on it for us. He's also a member of the Illinois Bowfishers club. So we've been trying to work through him as much as possible.