Notes come from around Chicago outdoors and beyond.
DALE’S MAILBAG
“(Re: Jump from Big Manitou Falls) Here’s a falls you can jump from, Illgen falls, 40 feet, Superior north shore. Not me though, I was up there last week.” Peter Starshak
A: Love that Starshak took the Sept. 28 Stray Cast (Tom Brady, Green Bay, Big Manitou Falls) to heart and gave me another place to visit. Illgen Falls is in Minnesota near the Lake Superior Circle Tour.
WILD OF THE WEEK
Dale Wians photographed deer and sandhill cranes “just hanging out having lunch together near Bode Lake” in northern Cook County.
WOTW, the celebration of wild stories and photos around Chicago outdoors, runs most weeks in the special two-page outdoors section in the Sun-Times Sports Saturday. To make submissions, email BowmanOutside@gmail.com or contact me on Facebook (Dale Bowman), Twitter (@BowmanOutside) or Instagram (@BowmanOutside).
BIG NUMBER
2,069: Sandhill cranes at Jasper-Pulaski Fish and Wildlife Area in Indiana on Tuesday during the first fall count. Click here for the weekly counts.
LAST WORD
“The male bowfin exhibits extensive parental care. The male clears an area in the mud for the female to lay her eggs and then fertilizes them. He hovers nearby and aggressively protects the eggs and the fry after they emerge.”
Bowfin (dogfish) page on ifishillinois.org
WILD TIMES
HUNTER SAFETY
Oct. 15 and 22: Tinley Park, (708) 342-4200
Oct. 22-23: Palos Hills, (708) 601-4712
U.S. COAST GUARD AUXILIARY
Next Saturday, Oct. 15: Boat America, Chicago, Dan O’Connell, cgaux.doc@gmail.com
LAKE CLOSURES
Tuesday, Oct. 12: Final day of fishing, Heidecke Lake
Next Saturday, Oct. 15: Final day of fishing, LaSalle Lake
FISH GATHERINGS
Tuesday, Oct. 11: Capt. Doug Kloet, Chicagoland Muskie Hunters chapter of Muskies, Inc., North Branch Pizza & Burger Co., Glenview, 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday, Oct. 11: Top three tournament boats, Salmon Unlimited, Thornwood Restaurant & Lounge, Wood Dale, 7 p.m.
Wednesday, Oct. 12: Keith Cortopassi on fishing Indiana muskie waters, Fox River Valley chapter of Muskies, Inc., Schaumburg Golf Club, 7 p.m.
Wednesday, Oct. 12: Erik Lennartz, “Hunting Southeast Wisconsin Muskies,” Lake Geneva Fishing Club, Poplar Creek Bowl, Hoffman Estates, 6 p.m.
Thursday, Oct. 13: Jim Crowley, Riverside Fishing Club, LaGrange American Legion, 6:30 p.m.
BIRDING FILM
Thursday, Oct. 13: Showing of the Magic Stump, DuPage Birding Club, click here for details
ILLINOIS SEASONS
Next Saturday, Oct. 15: Woodcock season opens
Next Saturday, Oct. 15: Final day, frog season
Next weekend, Oct. 15-16: Youth waterfowl season, north zone
