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SPRINGFIELD, ILL. - The 2001 spring trout fishing season in Illinois will begin on Saturday, April 7 at 5 a.m., Department of Natural Resources Director Brent Manning announced today.
"Each spring, the opening day of trout season is a fun day for families to go fishing," Manning said. "There will be more than 60,000 catchable-size trout stocked in ponds and streams at 40 locations throughout the state, providing a great opportunity for youngsters and adults to enjoy some time outdoors."
The trout stocking program is supported by funds generated from the sale of inland trout stamps. The stamps are available for $6.50 each at IDNR offices in Springfield, Chicago, Alton, Benton, Champaign, Spring Grove and Sterling, at many municipal, township and county clerks^ offices, and at many sporting goods stores and bait shops. Inland trout stamps, as well as fishing licenses, also may be purchased with a credit card through the IDNR web site at http://dnr.state.il.us.
To legally participate in the catchable trout fishing program, anglers must have a valid Illinois fishing license and an inland trout stamp, or a 24-hour fishing license, which includes trout fishing privileges. A license is required unless the angler is under age 16, blind or disabled, or an Illinois serviceman or servicewoman home on leave. Annual fishing licenses now being sold for the 2001 season expire on March 31, 2002.
Anglers are prohibited from taking trout from any of the stocked sites from March 15 to April 7 at 5 a.m. Anyone attempting to take trout before the legal opening will be issued citations. The daily possession limit for the spring trout season is five fish.
The IDNR^s Disabled Outdoor Opportunities Program will host an accessible fishing area for physically challenged anglers on the opening day of the spring trout season on April 7 at
Waddams Creek at Lake Le-Aqua-Na State Park in Stephenson County.
For more information about the trout stocking program, contact the IDNR Division of Fisheries at 217/782-6424, Ameritech Relay 800/526-0844, TDD 217/782-9175; or, IDNR regional offices at Sterling, 815/625-2968; Yorkville, 630/553-9164; Champaign, 217/278-5773; Alton, 618/462-1181; Benton, 618/435-8138; or by calling 1-800/ASK-FISH.
Stocking sites (by county) for the spring catchable trout program:
•Adams County: Siloam Springs State Park Lake.
•Boone County: Mill Race Ponds in Belvidere.
•Bureau County: Hennepin Canal Parkway.
•Cass County: Gurney Road Pond at Jim Edgar Panther Creek State Fish and Wildlife Area.
•Champaign County: Lake of the Woods.
•Cook County: Axehead Lake, Cook County Forest Preserve District.
•Cook County: Belleau Lake, Cook County Forest Preserve District.
•Coles County: Eastern Illinois University Campus Pond in Charleston.
•DuPage County: Silver Lake, DuPage County Forest Preserve District.
•Grundy County: Gebhard Woods State Park Pond.
•Jefferson County: Mount Vernon Game Farm Pond.
•Jo Daviess County: Apple River Canyon State Park.
•Johnson County: Ferne Clyffe State Park Lake.
•Kankakee County: Bird Park Quarry in Kankakee.
•Kankakee County: Rock Creek in Kankakee River State Park.
•Kendall County: Big Lake at Silver Springs State Park.
•Lake County: Banana Lake, Lake County Forest Preserve District.
•LaSalle County: Illinois and Michigan Canal at Uttica
•Lake County: Sand Lake at Illinois Beach State Park.
•Macon County: Rock Springs Pond, Macon County Conservation District.
•Marion County: Boston Pond at Stephen A. Forbes State Park.
•Massac County: Fairgrounds Pond in Fort Massac State Park, Metropolis.
•McLean County: Miller Park Lake in Bloomington.
•McHenry County: Lake Atwood, Hollows Conservation Area, McHenry County Conservation District.
•McHenry County: Piscasaw Creek.
•Moultrie County: Wyman Lake in Sullivan.
•Ogle County: Pine Creek in White Pines state Forest.
•St. Clair County: Frank Holten State Park main lake.
•St. Clair County: Jones Park Lake in East St. Louis.
•Sangamon County: Illinois Department of Transportation Lake in Springfield.
•Sangamon County: Washington Park Pond in Springfield.
•Shelby County: Forest Park Lagoon in Shelbyville.
•Stephenson County: Waddams Creek at Lake Le-Aqua-Na State Park
•Stephenson County: Yellow Creek in Krape Park, Freeport.
•Vermilion County: Clear Lake at Kickapoo State Park.
•Wabash County: Beall Woods Lake, Beall Woods State Park
•Wayne County: Sam Dale Lake Conservation Area Trout Pond.
•Whiteside County: Coleta Trout Ponds.
•Will County: Lake Milliken at Des Plaines Conservation Area.
•Winnebago County: Kent Creek in Page Park, Rockford.
Uploaded: 3/14/2001
Uploaded: 3/14/2001