Hey Gary and Casey; Are you guys shooting the Bigheads on the River or in some backwater ponds? From your boat or bank shooting? Any size?

Thanks
Bowfisher

all bank shooting at this time, we concentrate on waterfowl impoundments and stop log structures on us fish and wildlife areas. waterfowl areas around here all have whistles in their levy's that allow idoc to regulate lake levels for waterfowl hunters. anytime we can find water moving through these whistles we have good shooting. were catching the bigheads lying on the side of the lake the water is flowing into (always!) holding in the current feeding, after a couple of shots they dissapear for awhile so we have to make the first few count. we typically hit 5-6 levees a day shooting. my boy's love it !!! nothing like shooting bigheads, and fantastic eating by the way! I've learned a way to clean them and get away from all the small bones. we like them just as well as crappie fillets! i just turned my best friend onto them, he shot his first bighead this saturday. it was 28 lbs. he's hooked! and filling out a new membership as we speak. im happy to share a fishin hole with any of the members, just contact me. but the next couple of weekends im kinda booked up on my buddies new house.

Where are you at Carpoon?

east alton, il. do most of our bowfishing a little north in jersey and calhoun co.

I was hoping you could make it over to Rend for some nite time Bowfishing

Bowfisher

i have a boat with a deck and rails but haven't rigged it with lights yet, was hoping to hook up with some of the members and get some ideas. i would like to see some rigs before spending a ton of $. would like to use a battery systembut don't know if it would meet the need. casey and i would love to tag along with somebody for a night, we've never tried it at night. 2 extra people in a boat is a tough order though. was hoping to rig the boat and then tag along behind someone to get the feel of it.

Carpoon, I started out with a battery set up. I used 5 -12 volt lights that I got a walmart. Don't remember the wattage that they put out. I had two large marine batteries in Parellel. It worked ok. Was great as being quite, but just did not have enough power in murkey water. Plus about 4 hours and the batteries were dead. They do work good down in ky after big heads. The water is clear there and you do not have the lights on much. You just turn them on and off as you need to to shoot fish. After a year I bit the bullet and got a genny and halegon lights. but it is a nice cheap way to get your feet wet.

bigheads are our target, but a lot of the areas that we shoot are fish and wildlife areas that are daylight use only. i've heard that generators scare the bigheads away. is this true? has anyone tried any l.e.d. light set-ups? i know the current draw is drastically reduced, but don't know if they would be bright enough.

Gary and Casey, there's room on the Central Illinois Rough Fish Control Unit for you two.