OUTDOORS January 23, 2011 1:04AM
Dale’s mailbag
A: Both those lakes in southern Cook County started doing well for pike early in the ice-fishing season. But I would suggest the best shot at a big pike through the ice is farther south, just across the state line at Willow Slough in Indiana. But Saavedra touched on one of the stories this winter: good ice fishing for pike across the area, north to south.
Updated: September 24, 2012 6:25AM
BUCK OF the WEEK: UNPLUGGED
Mike Skwira of Burbank sent this photo of two bucks “sauntering around in Resurrection Cemetery last fall.’’ That might be the first from Resurrection for BOTW: Unplugged, the weekly celebration of live big bucks around Chicago outdoors. Send nominations to straycasts@sbcglobal.net.
ILLINOIS DEER TOTALS
Illinois deer hunters bagged a preliminary total of 181,936 deer during the 2010-11 seasons. That is down more than 10 percent from the record 201,301 in 2005-06 and down from 189,277 in 2009-10. The gender split (doe/buck) was 50-50.
Hunters harvested 98,700 deer during the seven days of the split 2010 Illinois firearm deer season. During the archery season, which began Oct. 1 and ended last Sunday, hunters bagged 63,584 deer, down from 64,864 in 2009-10. The combined preliminary harvest for the late-winter antlerless-only and the special CWD deer seasons was 14,843, down from 17,826 last season. The muzzleloader-only season dropped to 3,276 deer. The youth season had a harvest of 1,533.
WILD TIMES
SHOWTIME
Today: Final day, Hammond Outdoor Sports Show, Jean Shepherd Community Center, Hammond, Ind., sportsshow.gohammond.com.
Wednesday-next Sunday: America’s Outdoor Show, Stephens Convention Center, Rosemont, americasoutdoorshow.com.
Thursday-next Sunday: Strictly Sail Chicago, Navy Pier, strictlysailchicago.com,
Friday-next Sunday: Illinois Fish & Feather Expo, Interstate Center, Bloomington, illinoisfishandfeather.com.DALE’S MAILBAG
