About 9 p.m., two men were in the first block of east 118th Street when someone fired shots, striking them both, Chicago police said.

A man was killed and another wounded in a shooting Tuesday in West Pullman on the Far South Side.

About 9 p.m., they were in the first block of east 118th Street when someone fired shots, striking them both, Chicago police said.

One man, 27, suffered a gunshot wound to the side of his body and was pronounced dead at Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, police said.

The other man, 50, was shot in the arm and taken to Roseland Community Hospital, where his condition was stabilized, police said.

Area Two detectives are investigating.

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Bullpen gives up the lead after pinch hitter Yasmani Grandal’s three-run home run in the seventh inning against the Pirates.

PITTSBURGH — Maybe the White Sox will find out what they’re really made of now.

‘‘It’s kind of like a test right now,’’ right-hander Lucas Giolito said after the Sox’ 6-3 loss Tuesday to the Pirates that saw them go ahead on pinch hitter Yasmani Grandal’s uplifting three-run home run in the seventh, only to see the lead disappear quickly in the bottom of the inning. ‘‘Rough series [in Houston], and we drop this first game. Maybe a little wake-up call we need. We have to come ready to play from the beginning of the game.’’

The Sox had been mesmerized by funky left-hander Tyler Anderson before the switch-hitting Grandal, batting right-handed, gave the dugout a jolt with his first-pitch homer.

As invigorating as Grandal’s fourth career pinch homer was, a bullpen collapse and shaky defense moments later dragged the Sox back into the familiar, weary ways of this winless (to this point) road trip that began with a four-game sweep in Houston.

‘‘That little blow-up inning,’’ said Giolito, who allowed two runs and four hits, struck out seven and walked two in six innings and was in the line for the victory after Grandal came through batting for Zack Collins.

The meltdown involved reliever Garrett Crochet giving up singles to each of the four batters he faced, one of them on a bunt by Kevin Newman on which third baseman Yoan Moncada misfired to second baseman Danny Mendick covering first, allowing the tying run to score.

Crochet then left a breaking pitch up to pinch hitter Erik Gonzalez, who singled in two runs, before Bryan Reynolds capped the Pirates’ four-run seventh with an RBI single against reliever Aaron Bummer.

‘‘The word is ‘cruel,’ ’’ manager Tony La Russa said. ‘‘Because Yaz lit up the dugout, and we were looking at a one-run game.

‘‘When we hit the home run and got the lead, just try to hang in there. Cruel. You saw the way the inning played out. We’ll talk [about] what could have been done better to change the outcome, but probably the one thing that I’m sure Garrett regrets is he got the one breaking ball up to [Gonzalez].’’

The Sox have to find a way to beat the Pirates on Wednesday to avoid an 0-6 trip.

Giolito had the Sox’ first hit against the Pirates, one of five singles they had to go with Grandal’s homer.

‘‘We came out a little flat, which can be expected sometimes after a day off,’’ Grandal said. ‘‘[The homer] was the turning point of the game, and the dugout came alive. That’s what we need to get back to White Sox baseball. Go, go, go and high energy at all times.’’

Grandal said he knew he might pinch-hit in that situation if it came up. He is usually super-selective, but he was looking to drive in runs on the first pitch.

The Sox, who are hitting and walking less, no longer lead American League in on-base percentage, now ranking third.

‘‘It’s baseball,’’ hitting coach Frank Menechino said. ‘‘We’ve run into a little bit of a hard time, and we have to find our way out of it.

‘‘It’s hard to pick out one thing. Everybody is different, and everybody is pitched different. It’s basically about getting back on our approach. We’re not taking our walks as much. We’re kind of chasing and pushing the issue a little bit, trying to make stuff happen.’’

La Russa said he didn’t sense the Sox being flat. And his team is still in first place in the AL Central.

‘‘It was a very determined attitude today,’’ he said. ‘‘I could sense it. I could hear it in the clubhouse, in the hitter’s meeting, in the batting practice, in the dugout.

‘‘But what you learn sometimes [is that] just because you want something to happen, you don’t have a magic wand. Just got to keep that excitement for tomorrow, salvage something here.’’

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WASHINGTON – The U.S. Justice Department on Tuesday announced efforts to curb gun trafficking in Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay area and Washington, D.C., a day before President Joe Biden unveils a sweeping series of programs to deal with crime and violence.

Biden will deliver remarks on Wednesday, unveiling his comprehensive strategy to combat violent crime, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday.

Among those meeting with Biden and Attorney General Merrick Garland at the White House on Wednesday will be Eddie Bocanegra, senior director at READI Chicago – the Rapid Employment and Development Initiative – a group dealing with Chicago’s gun violence.

Biden’s plans comes as cities, including Chicago, struggle with violent crime and, on the political side, Republicans aim to hurt all Democrats by labeling them as supporters of efforts to “defund the police,” a phrase that gained traction in the wake of last year’s police killing of George Floyd.

Psaki said Biden on Wednesday will talk about supporting additional funding for community policing and helping local governments “keep cops on the beat. So yes, we believe that a central driver of violence is gun violence and is the use of guns.”

In April, Biden announced an initial series of actions to address gun violence.

Biden wades into the crime issue as Chicago’s chronic gun violence problem was dramatically underscored when 52 people were shot, seven fatally, over the last weekend.

The Justice Department on Tuesday announced the launch of “five cross-jurisdictional firearms trafficking strike forces within the next 30 days to help reduce violent crime by addressing illegal gun trafficking in significant firearms trafficking corridors.”

The five strike forces will “focus on significant firearms trafficking corridors that channel guns into New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area and Washington, D.C.,” the Justice Department said, to be led by U.S. attorneys “who will coordinate with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and with state and local law enforcement partners in places where firearms originate and where they are used to commit crimes.”

While Chicago has long banned the sale of firearms, weapons from Indiana, other states and Chicago’s suburbs make the city’s ban ineffective in keeping guns out of the hands of criminals.

The concept of sending more resources to Chicago is not new. On July 22, 2020, John Lausch, Jr., the Chicago-based U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, joined then-Attorney General William Barr and then-President Donald Trump to announce the expansion of Operation Legend to Chicago.

Operation Legend was a consolidated push by local and federal law enforcement authorities “fight high levels of violent crime, particularly gun violence.”

Second Gentleman Emhoff in Chicago to push COVID vaccines

Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff – in his first official visit in Chicago – hits the city on Wednesday to push more people in Black and Brown communities to get the COVID vaccine. If plans don’t change, Emhoff will visit the It’s Official Barbershop on the South Side followed by a stop at the Esperanza Health Clinic on the Southwest Side.

Emhoff this month has been to Alabama, Florida and Tennessee as part of the administration’s drive to get more people vaccinated.

In April, Vice President Kamala Harris made her first visit to Chicago since her election, when she, among other activities, toured a mass vaccination site run by the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 399 hall at 2260 S. Grove St. She also made a stop at Brown Sugar Bakery at 328 E. 75th St. to highlight a Black, female-owned small business.

Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene headlining fundraiser for Illinois Rep. Mary Miller

U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, the Georgia Republican who compared pandemic mandates for masks and vaccinations to the Nazi genocide of the Jewish people, is headlining a fundraiser July 8 in Effingham for freshman Illinois GOP Rep. Mary Miller.

Democrats who control the House stripped Greene of committee assignments after the QAnon conspiracy booster and 9-11 denier threatened to execute Democrats, spread anti-Semitic tropes and pushed baseless claims about staged school shootings.

By throwing in with Greene, Miller, who represents a Downstate district, may create problems for other Illinois Republicans who would rather ignore Greene – while building up a base if she is thrown in a primary in 2022 with another incumbent GOP Illinois House member.

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Panic doesn’t seem to exist in the House of Karnisovas.

In the handful of Zoom meetings Bulls executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas has had with the media since his takeover of the new regime, that point has been made very clear in both the way he speaks and carries himself.

Setbacks are for other organizations to dwell on. With Karnisovas there’s always the next plan.

After Tuesday’s NBA Draft Lottery saw the Bulls come up dry, that next-plan-up mentality is about to be tested.

Not that Karnisovas & Co. were banking on help from the lottery. That dwindled back at the March trade deadline when the Bulls went big swing in acquiring All-Star center Nikola Vucevic and forward Al-Farouq Aminu from Orlando for Wendell Carter Jr., Otto Porter Jr., and more importantly, two first-round picks from both the upcoming 2021 draft and the 2023 draft.

The details of that ’21 pick were that the Bulls could still retain it because it was Top 4 protected, but in finishing the regular season in the eighth slot those chances were just 20.3%. Chances that ended with the bouncing of balls landing outside that protected area, officially awarding that No. 8 draft pick to the Magic.

A scenario that Karnisovas sounded very comfortable in dealing with last month.

“If we don’t get our pick we still have a second round pick,” Karnisovas said very matter-of-factly. “We have free agency and trades to get better. We have a lot of free agents this year and I think leading to Aug. 1 [the start of free agency] is going to be huge preparation for us.”

That’s all well and good, but in what was considered a very good ’21 draft class, especially in the lottery portion of it, Karnisovas’ preparation will need to lead to some real creativity.

The glass half-full approach is, yes, the Bulls can still try and hit on a second-round pick next month, but more importantly the deal with the Magic netted them a double-double machine in Vucevic, giving them a one-two punch with fellow All-Star Zach LaVine.

Teams with multiple foundation All-Stars – flawed or not – aren’t easy to find. As far as Karnisovas was concerned, that speaks louder to possible free-agent targets than a 19-year-old prospect who could reach an All-Star ceiling someday or have the ceiling crash around him by Year 3.

“I think when you have a foundation of let’s say two All-Stars in one place, I think it’s easier to add additional things that we need,” Karnisovas said. “So we’re going to discuss the needs of the team and we’ll attack it during free agency.”

As for the team the Bulls made that Vucevic deal with? Orlando not only landed the No. 8 from the Bulls, but also hit on No. 5 overall.

The two biggest winners on the evening, however, were Detroit, who landed the top overall pick and will likely select Oklahoma State point guard Cade Cunningham, and then Toronto, who pulled off what Karnisovas did last season, jumping from the No. 7 slot to the No. 4 pick.

There’s a good chance that Gonzaga point guard Jalen Suggs could be there for the Raptors, which is a real gut-punch for the Bulls.

The ultra-competitive Suggs would be the ideal point guard to play alongside LaVine, not only because of his defense and play-making, but how he has always displayed that “it” factor that impacts winning.

The heartache for the Bulls’ front office was that No. 7 spot seemed to be a lock with under two weeks left to go, but while Toronto basically folded up the tents and lost 10 of its last 11 games, the Bulls won five meaningless games in that time, including a May 13 win over the Raptors, moving to eighth.

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Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul is suing the owner of a closed downstate coal plant alleging the site polluted groundwater and is threatening to contaminate the state’s most scenic river with toxic waste.

Raoul is suing Dynegy Midwest Generation, now owned by Texas-based Vistra Corp., for violating multiple state pollution laws by allowing coal ash to leach from containment ponds into groundwater and endanger the Middle Fork of the Vermilion River, the state’s only federally designated National Scenic River.

The civil suit was filed Tuesday in circuit court in Vermilion County more than two years after state environmental officials referred the pollution case. It also seeks a judge’s order to make the company produce an emergency response plan. The plant has been closed for about a decade.

“Dynegy’s actions created a public health risk by contaminating the area’s groundwater and led to the pollution of Illinois’ only nationally recognized scenic river,” Raoul said in a statement.

Vistra, which acquired Dynegy in 2018, said it’s working with the state on a plan. “We have agreed to close all of the impoundments by removal,” the company said in a statement, referring to the containment ponds.

About 3.3 million cubic yards of coal ash, the byproduct of burning coal, was stored in three onsite ponds over the course of the Vermilion coal plant, the state EPA said in 2019 when it referred the case to the attorney general.

Coal ash can contain arsenic, boron, cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury and a number of other harmful metals, state officials said.

In addition to the state lawsuit, the company is also being sued by the conservation group Prairie Rivers Network in federal court. That group also filed a complaint with a state pollution board over the Vermillion ponds and asked the state to address clean up of ponds at four other coal power sites, including Waukegan and Will County.

The state is requiring coal plants, which are increasingly shutting down across Illinois, to clean up storage ponds for ash, though groups like Prairie Rivers called for state officials to act with greater urgency.

Prairie Rivers has shown photos and videos of suspected contamination in the Vermilion River for at least several years. In 2018, Illinois EPA “identified numerous seeps of heavily stained water emanating from the embankments adjacent to the Dynegy coal ash ponds and flowing into the river.”

In all, there are estimated to be more than 70 coal ash ponds across the state and many have yet to address cleanup, said Andrew Rehn, water resources engineer for Prairie Rivers.

“It’s going to be pretty busy the next few years as all these ponds close,” Rehn said.

Provided

Brett Chase’s reporting on the environment and public health is made possible by a grant from The Chicago Community Trust.

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A Naperville resident in Hedg Court had just finished reading his book and turned off his bedroom light at 11:01 p.m. when Sunday’s tornado hit at 11:03 p.m. He didn’t hear any warning sirens or receive any cellphone notifications about the storm.

“All of a sudden, I hear this high wind and then a loud roar,” said Michel Laurent, who has lived in Naperville 18 years. “The house was shaking. I knew right there that this was not your normal thunderstorm. I went to the window, which was not a wise thing to do, when I saw the tree and the lightning surge. It was almost like a black-and-white silver screen in my mind.”

That tree — an oak over 10,000 pounds — collapsed the structure of his neighbor’s home.

Debris and smaller trees lay in Laurent’s backyard, but his residence was not damaged. Tuesday afternoon, tree removal services were in Hedg Court, safely clearing the way.

Across the street, the roof of Naperville Fire Department Station #2 had partially collapsed. Some Fire Department personnel were posted up in a temporary shelter the neighbors had helped to build, while others assessed the significant water damage inside the station.

Naperville Fire Lt. Kevin Schuler was at home when the storm happened, but his fellow firefighters were at the station when a large pine tree pierced it.

“The picture — it didn’t do it justice,” Schuler said. “Seeing the big trees down was quite surprising, but the building was built in 1977, so it needed a remodel anyway.”

This station is Schuler’s second home, the place he came to for some peace and quiet after responding to emergency situations. On Tuesday, wood chippers blared. The scent of pine was impossible to miss. But Schuler soldiered on, allocating resources to the community while weathering the aftermath of this storm.

Rich Hein/Sun-Times

Sunday’s storm entered Woodridge after ripping through Naperville, coming from the west near Route 53, and traveled about 3 miles total, passing over Woodward Avenue before entering Darien, according to the GIS Consortium of local governments.

At the American Red Cross official shelter in Jefferson Junior High in Woodridge, Tuesday’s foot traffic of storm victims was slow but consistent. Families walked through the junior-high gym, tired but relieved to have space to rest and pick up food, water and hygiene essentials — the toothbrush was the most popular.

Rich Hein/Sun-Times

“A trickle of people came through today, as people realized that we’re here and that we’re offering food and shelter for those whose houses don’t have power yet,” the American Red Cross of Illinois communications manager Holly Baker said Tuesday afternoon. “People can come here if they need to take a little emotional break from what’s happening outside. Our volunteers are here with smiles and snacks, and they’re ready to help in any way that they can.”

Baker said most residents just want an escape from the reality of ruin. The shelter had one visitor stay with them Monday night and expects to receive more people this week. The Red Cross is also delivering meals, most vehicles returning to the shelter empty after completing rounds.

West Suburban Community Pantry executive director Laura Coyle also said she expects numbers to increase toward the end of this week and early next week, as residents take inventory of necessities. As someone who has worked five years in the community affected by the storm, Coyle teared up when describing the fear she felt Sunday night as the storm headed in the direction of some of her coworkers.

“We’re mostly volunteer run,” Coyle said. “And we had a couple of volunteers who were trapped in their home from trees that had fallen in front of their doors, and things like that. And then, knowing that if we had damage here at the pantry, then we wouldn’t be able to be here to support the community; I mean, my mind was just racing.”

The pantry was untouched by the tornado’s wrath and is operating normally, but Coyle asks that people donate diapers, pet food and shelf stable food items. Normal business hours have been extended and a hotline has been set up for emergency services by pressing zero when you call their phone number.

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Pitchers across baseball have been adjusting to life under MLB’s new foreign substance guidelines. Last week, the league sent out a memo to all 30 teams that they would be cracking down on the use of a variety of substances including products like Spider Tack, Pelican Grip and different combinations of pine tar, sunscreen and rosin.

The rules change took effect on Monday and as each pitcher entered the game or finished an inning, they were met by the umpires before entering the dugout

“We’ve got all the protocols and things we’ve got to go through to be prepared for the new kind of protocols that are in place,” manager David Ross said. “I think it’s a big wait and see for a lot of us. Guys are going to get checked. Guys are all aware of how it’s going to be done. We’ve passed out the memos, we’ve had the discussions. And now it’s just kind of in the umpire’s hands and we’ll see how it all goes down.”

Under the league’s new guidelines, players who are caught using foreign substances will be suspended for 10 games. Right-hander Adbert Alzolay, who pitched 4 2/3 innings on Monday, was the first Cubs pitcher to be checked under the league’s new rules and didn’t have any issues with the new process..

“It was pretty normal,” Alzolay said. “I guess that’s what MLB wants to do, so they just checked my hat, checked my glove and made sure everything was okay. But I feel it was normal. It was easy.

“[The umpires] are out there doing their job too, you know. They gotta make sure to follow the protocol, so I thought that they were fine with that too.”

As expected, the change has already been followed by a drop in spin rates around the game and as pitchers have to adjust, hitters will likely continue to see an increase in production, which had taken a dip this season.

“The information so far in the last 10 days, batting average has gone up, on base has gone up, slug has gone up,” Ross said. “Spin rates are down on fastballs and breaking balls and hit by pitches are exactly the same. So you draw your own conclusions.”

Rizzo gets the night off

First baseman Anthony Rizzo didn’t start the final game of the Cubs’ two-game set with the Indians on Tuesday. Ross has attempted to get players multiple days off on the back end of a series into a scheduled off day to get players an extra day’s rest. Rizzo is slashing .252/.347/.443 with nine home runs and 31 RBIs this season.

“He’s been going pretty hard,” Ross said. “I pencil him in pretty regularly and was trying to find him an off-day at some point and earmarked today if it looked like everybody else was healthy and we could have a pretty good lineup, it made sense to give him a day.”

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Big Chinook starting to show up lead this sprawling raw-file Midwest Fishing Report, but there’s also the usual summer inland fishing for bluegill, catfish and largemouth bass.

Capt. Scott Wolfe emailed the photo at the top and this:

Hi Dale. Some big kings are showing up in Waukegan. Here is long time customer Troy Lund of Schaumburg with a 26 pounder caught Saturday afternoon. Sorry about the Twins hat. Nothing I can do about that.

Capt. Scott Wolfe

Could this be the year when one of the longest standing records in Illinois fishing falls?

As to the Twins hat, I can think of some worse hats to wear.

For an even bigger king, check out the FOTW.

LAKEFRONT PERCH

The season reopened Wednesday and was very slow with the wind and waves; since then there have only been a few sporadic reports of catches.

On Friday, Matt Klein messaged:

Caught 3 at the lighthouse at Montrose. 1 about 13, 2 about 8 inches. Next guy had 2 at about 9 inches.

For perspective, that is one of the better reports.

Steve Palmisano at Henry’s Sports and Bait texted:

No perch reports at all.

Stacey Greene at Park Bait at Montrose Harbor texted:

Good morning Dale,It is a shame the weather keeps swinging those winds out of the North and Northeast because up until the opening of perch sesso there was some nice perch being caught but as of the opening day the weather has been so inconsistent, winds and storms that the perch have been few and far in between there have been a couple but not many to speak of. The guys that are catching a few are using minnows and soft shells.

It is a shame what the weather and wind are doing.

Lori Ralph at the Salmon Stop in Waukegan texted:

No boat reports for perch, guys are getting some off the pier. Shrimp and minnows.

Staff at Tackle Haven in Benton Harbor, Mich. said not much in recent days, but before the blow, perch were in 25 feet, “They’re coming.”

ILLINOIS FROG SEASON

Illinois’ bullfrog (only) season runs through Oct. 15.

Here is the word from the Illinois Department of Illinois:

FROGS (Bullfrogs Only) Methods of Taking and Capture A sport fishing license is required to harvest bullfrogs. Bullfrogs may be taken by hook and line, gig, pitchfork, spear, bow and arrow, hand, or landing net.

No person shall harvest bullfrogs or any other reptile or amphibian by commercial fishing devices, including, hoop nets, traps or seines or by the use of firearms, air guns or gas guns or during bowfishing tournaments.

All other species of unprotected reptiles and amphibians (excluding common snapping turtles and bullfrogs) may only be taken by hand. This shall not restrict the use of legally taken reptiles or amphibians as bait by sport fishermen.

Any captured reptiles or amphibians which are not to be retained in the possession of the captor shall be immediately released at the site of capture, unless taken with a lethal method (such as bow and arrow, gig, spear, pitchfork) which does not permit “release with no harm”. All such taken common snapping turtles and bullfrogs must be kept and counted in the daily harvest. No culling of such taken species is permitted. No person shall harvest or possess any species of reptile or amphibian listed as endangered or threatened in Illinois (17 Ill. Adm. Code 1010 except as provided by 17 Ill. Adm. Code 1070).

Season Bullfrogs may be taken only between June 15 and October 15, both dates inclusive. 6 7

Daily Harvest and Possession Limits The daily Harvest limit for bullfrogs is 8 with a possession limit of 16. For indigenous amphibian and reptile taxon, which may only be taken by hand, (excluding common snapping turtles and bullfrogs) the possession limit is 8 collectively with no more than 4 per taxa

LAKEFRONT PARKING

Chicago Park District’s parking passes for the fisherman’s parking lots at DuSable and Burnham harbors are on sale at Henry’s Sports and Bait in Bridgeport and Park Bait at Montrose Harbor.

Readers suggest SpotHero app downtown. Otherwise, here are some basics: Foster (free street parking or pay lot); Montrose (now a mix of metered and free street parking); Belmont (pay lots on north and south sides); Diversey (pay lot or street parking); DuSable Harbor (pay lot or fisherman’s lot); Northerly Island/Burnham Harbor (meters, pay lot or fisherman’s lot); 31st/Burnham (meter parking between McCormick Place and 31st Street Harbor); Oakwood/39th (meters); 63rd Street/Casino Pier (pay lot); Steelworkers Park (free street parking at east end of 87th); Cal Park (free parking).

AREA LAKES

Fishing on area lakes and ponds has picked for largemouth and bluegill in particular, especially topwaters for largemouth.

Provided by Bob France

Bob France messaged the photo above and this:

My neighbor Kristina R. Was fishing up at Fish Lake in Volo on Father’s Day with her husband and family. She caught a small perch and when she went to lift it out of the water the bass went for the perch! She was able to reel them both in as the bass got hooked and the perch was pushed up the line! Both were released.

The best part is that she reeled both in, it usually doesn’t work that way.

Provided

Scot Sinclair emailed the photo above and this:

My Father’s Day fishing story from Third Lake. Started the day as usual looking for largemouth with a plastic worm, and getting no strikes in a half hour other than the little nibblers yanking on my worm, I decided to go buy some worms and do a little micro fishing, after reading your piece about that earlier.

in 90 minutes, on five worms, I caught 12 perch, nine bluegill, six stripers, landed one large mouth of 2 pounds, and had one out of the water when the line broke that was easily 5 inches longer than the one I pulled in.

but the biggest thrill was when I was reeling in one of the bluegill, a largemouth actually hit it, it may have even been a northern for all I know, but I saw the fish come up and grab the bluegill from behind and I had it for about three seconds on the line before he let go.

Scot Sinclair

That’s a Father’s Day fish story worth remembering.

BRAIDWOOD LAKE

Open daily 6 a.m. to sunset. Click here for the preview.

CHAIN O’LAKES AREA

Staff at Triangle Sports and Marine in Antioch said rain brought the water, so current increased with walleye and smallmouth staging; with the current, white bass are schooling near bridges and similar current areas; bluegill are nearing tailend of the spawn; some crappie are being caught on main lake.

NOTE: Check updates on water conditions at foxwaterway.com or (847) 587-8540.

NOTE 2: The Stratton Lock and Dam is open 8 a.m. to midnight through Sept. 30.

DELAVAN LAKE, WISCONSIN

Dave Duwe emailed:

Delavan Lake 6/21/21 through 6/28/21

With the stable weather the fishing has been great. I’ve been catching anything that swims in the lake this past week. It’s a great time to take a first time angler out on the water.

Northern Pike have finally started to bite on the outside weed edge. I’ve been catching my fish on lindy rigged suckers. The best depth for me has been 20-26 ft of water. I’ve been fishing from the Village Supper Club point to the Oriental boathouse. The size is still a bit small, the biggest fish last week was 30 inches.

Walleye fishing has been good. The fish I’ve been catching have been caught on nightcrawlers either on a lindy rig or a split shot rig right off the weedline in 21-24 ft of water. Look for the fish by Browns Channel or by the Village Supper club point. I caught several legals last week and some right at 17 3/4 inches. The best time to fish for them has been at first light.

Crappies can still be caught. They are right in the shallow weeds in 12 ft of water. I have exclusively been using purple plastics and they are working very well. The plastic is tipped on a 1/32 oz Arkie Jig. Good fishing has been found by Willow Point.

Largemouth bass can be caught on the deep weedlines. Concentrating on main lake points or fishing them in ultra shallow slop are both good choices. The slop fish are biting on snag proof frogs or All Terrain Stiks. The best location is under the bridge on the inlet. For the deep weedline fish, try casting nightcrawlers fished on a split shot rig. Some of the bass I caught last week were 17-18 inches. Good locations are by the Oriental boathouse or on the west end by the island.

Bluegill fishing remains awesome. There are a lot of fish still in the 3-4 ft range. Also, there has been good success in the 20-22 ft range. The best bait has been leaf worms or wax worms. Slip bobbers remain the best presentation.

Good luck and I hope to see you on the water. For guide parties, please call Dave Duwe at 608-883-2050

DOWNSTATE

POWERTON: Hours are 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. through Sept. 30.

EMIQUON: Access permits and liability waivers are again required. They are available Tuesday to Saturday at Dickson Mounts Museum, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

HENNEPIN-HOPPER: Reopens May 15. Open through Sept. 6. Closed Mondays (except Labor Day). Check regulations at http://www.wetlands-initiative.org/dixon-paddling-fishing.

SHELBYVILLE: Check with Ken Wilson of Lithia Guide Service. SOUTHERN ILLINOIS: Check with Jason Johns of Boneyard Fishing.

FOX RIVER

Dicky’s Bait Shop in Montgomery reported slow fishing coming with hot weather, but rains helped bring the water level and improved the bite; catfish are still good, but smallmouth are hit and miss though the rain definitely helped.

GENEVA LAKE, WISCONSIN

Arden Katz said rock bass “are insane, couldn’t keep them off the hook.” He said bass are done spawning and good smallmouth to 22 inches were caught in 13 to 17 feet on the points and secondary points, with drop-shotting the best.

Dave Duwe emailed:

Lake Geneva 6/21/21 through 6/28/21

Fishing is excellent on Lake Geneva. There are literally fish to be caught almost anywhere on the lake, which makes it very nice when the winds are strong because you still have choices. The water temp has finally warmed up to about 75-76 degrees. With the warmer water, the pleasure boat traffic is increasing.

Smallmouth bass can be caught in the 20-22 ft depth range. The best bait has been either drop shotting small 4 inch worms in green pumpkin color or drifting nightcrawlers. Some of the best locations have been by Knollwood or by Belvidere Park in Fontana. The warmer weather will continue to make the fish go deeper.

Largemouth bass are now being caught on the weed flats. Try by Trinkes or in Williams Bay. Most Success is coming by drop shotting 4 inch worms or drifting nightcrawlers. With the warmer temperatures you can once again catch fish on the top water. Chrome/Blue or Chrome/Black Chug bugs are my favorite choices. have also been some reports of success while fishing around docks. Most people are casting spider grubs on a jig. A good choice of spider grub is the Arkie Crawlin Grub.

Rock bass have slowed a little but are still plentiful pretty much any place you fish. They seem to still be in the 6-8 ft depth range. The best choice of bait remains the nightcrawlers.

Yellow Perch have also slowed a bit. Last week I didn’t catch any of the real big ones like I did the prior week. The little ones that I did catch were on pieces of nightcrawlers. The best locations are by Colemans Point or Knollwood.

Lake Trout are still being caught in the main lake basin. Some success is coming on large chrome/blue Rapalas or chrome/black Rapalas fished on a down rigger. The best success has been coming on the suspended fish, 80 ft down in 110 ft of water.

Good luck and I hope to see you on the water. For guide parties, please call Dave Duwe at 608-883-2050

GREEN LAKE AREA, WISCONSIN

Provided

Guide Mike Norris texted the photo above and emailed this:

Fishing Report 6/18/2021

Mike Norris

Big Green Lake – Smallmouth bass are active in 10 to 12 feet of water. Try Ned Rigs along rocky bottom areas and cast drop shot rigs parallel to the outside edge of weed lines. Walleyes can be caught in 10 feet of water trolling with crawler harnesses. Bluegills are spawning under and around numerous piers along the south side of the lake.

Little Green Lake – Fishing is good for muskie with one angler reporting a 48-incher caught casting a large bucktail spinner just outside the weed line. Walleyes are also active along the weed lines and can be caught with a leech hung beneath a slip bobber in 11 feet of water.

Fox Lake – The water temperature has cooled down to 75 degrees and bass and pike are active around Brushwood and Elmwood Islands. Senko’s fished wacky style and swim jigs are accounting for most of the catches but homeowners fishing off their piers with medium sized shiners beneath a slip bobber are also catching bass and pike.

To book a guide trip reach out to me via my Facebook page at mike.norris.7773 or email me through my website at www.comecatchsmallmouth.com

GREEN/STURGEON BAYS, WISCONSIN

Click here for the Wisconsin DNR weekly report.

HEIDECKE LAKE

Open 6 a.m. (6:30 bank fishing) to sunset. Click here for the promising preview.

LAKE ERIE

Click here for the Ohio DNR Report.

LAKEFRONT

See perch report at the top, such as it is.

Steve Palmisano at Henry’s Sports and Bait texted:

No perch reports at all.

Stacey Greene at Park Bait at Montrose Harbor texted:

Good morning Dale,It is a shame the weather keeps swinging those winds out of the North and Northeast because up until the opening of perch sesso there was some nice perch being caught but as of the opening day the weather has been so inconsistent, winds and storms that the perch have been few and far in between there have been a couple but not many to speak of. The guys that are catching a few are using minnows and soft shells. Small mouth seem to be getting more active again in the harbor. And with the North and Northeast winds the sheephead hitting out on the horseshoe.

Well, the blows do help with the drum for some reason.

Capt. Bob Poteshman of Confusion Charters said that Chicago is good now with coho, steelhead and lakers in 75-150 feet; R-4 has good coho, too. Out of North Point, fish are located in 90-150, some deeper past 200; it’s a mixed bag of steelhead, coho, lakers and a couple kings.

Lori Ralph at the Salmon Stop in Waukegan texted:

No boat reports for perch, guys are getting some off the pier. Shrimp and minnows.Boat fishing for salmon and trout are good, anywhere from 40 to 150 feet, depends on the day

Capt. Scott Wolfe emailed:

Waukegan fishing continues to be outstanding. There is an occasional trip where the fish turn off, but most are big boxes of coho with steelhead and kings coming regularly. Today, Monday 6/21, despite the storms overnight we had a limit in under 3 hours using a 6 rod spread.

There are kings around with our boat taking several in the low teens and a 26 pounder last week. That was not even the biggest taken this week. There were also many steelhead. Most trips had 2 or 3 to go with the salmon.

Coho are mainly being taken on Dodger/Fly combos from just under the surface to 40 feet down. Red dodgers with Jimmy Fly Blue Liz, Purple Liz and Aqua worked for us. The kings and steelhead have mostly been on Warrior Spoons off leadcore with Green Menace, Two Face and Lance’s Two Face being best. XL, standard and magnum Warriors all worked and that’s probably because there are different sized alewife in the fishes’ bellies. All fish were stuffed with bait fish and some had shiners in addition to the alewife.

In the harbor we continue to see lots of largemouth and pike moving. They appear active but I didn’t see any caught this week.

Capt. Scott Wolfe

schooloffishcharters.com
630-341-0550

LaSALLE LAKE

Open daily 6 a.m. to sunset. Click here for the preview of prospects.

MADISON LAKES, WISCONSIN

Click here for the update from D&S Bait.

MAZONIA

Both units are open for fishing.

MILLE LACS LAKE, MINNESOTA

Provided by McQuoid’s Inn

Justin Lederer emailed the photo above and this from McQuoids Inn in Isle, Minn.:

Justin Lederer checking in from McQuoids Inn Lake Mille Lacs. The walleye bite is still amazing they are still on the deep reefs and gravel beds 28-32 feet of water. Slip bobber and a leech a foot off the bottom is still the best producing way to catch them. Smallmouth are in post spawn patterns they have dropped off into the 20′ range lindy rigs drifting with leech’s and crawlers are producing the best. Still some being caught on Ned rigs and drop shots. Stay safe on the water everyone.

NORTHERN WISCONSIN

Provided

Ken “Husker” O’Malley emailed the photo above and below and this:

Hey Dale,

Here is a recap of this past weeks fishing.

Northern Wisconsin-with more normal temps and cooler evenings, water temps have come down some with main lake temps being 70-72 and bays at 75.

Smallmouth are past post spawn and have been excellent on topwater during early morning and late evening hours. There’s nothing better than watching a top water bait get destroyed by a brown middle flying out of the water. Focus on rock humps, points, and flats adjacent to deep water. Best bait has been a Strike King sexy dawg.

Here is the nature pic of the week. Two pair of loons.

TTYL

—

Ken “Husker” O’Malley

Husker Outdoors
Waterwerks fishing team

Provided by Ken “Husker” O’Malley

Kurt Justice at Kurt’s Island Sport Shop in Minocqua emailed:

Some cool weather moved into the Lakeland area this past week bringing rain and wind and dropping lake surface temps 3-5 degrees and more in some cases. Surface temps as low as 67 degrees on some lakes, a drop of 7 degrees. With the temperature drop so did fish activity. Mornings (with air temps in the low 40’s) were the worse, with afternoon/evenings being the best time to fish.

Northern Pike: Good – These fish seem to not mind the cooler temps. Mornings best on live chubs or suckers and better on 4″ swim baits, spinners and spinner baits in the afternoon.

Musky: Good – Some shallower water action using smaller twitch baits (Cranes, Shallow Raiders) and smaller bucktails. The top-water bite slowed with the temperature drop, should improve some as the week progresses, but will want some hot weather to amp up the top bite.

Bluegills: Good – As with the big fish, top-water popper bites slowed, but Gills actively taking small jigs tipped with waxies or small leeches.

Smallmouth Bass: Good – Tube jigs and creature baits on jigs along deeper weed edges. The cool seems to have moved fish off rocks and up to deep weeds.

Largemouth Bass: Good – Holding in deeper weeds. Jig and creature or wacky worming best. Need to get into the thick stuff to coax them out.

Crappies: Good – Very scattered. Cover lots of water to find small pods of fish. Gapen Freshwater Shrimp, Mini Mites and tiny 1 1/2 ” tubes best.

Yellow Perch: Fair – Heat would help. Fish scattered and hard to pick up more than 1-2 here and there in 8-12′ weeds using thunderbugs or small leeches.

Walleye: Fair – Really needed to work in thick weeds using redtails or XL leeches on invasion jigs. Some nice fish, included a 29 3/4 ” over the weekend. But lots of moving and searching for a decent catch.

Despite the slowdown, temps look to slowly warm into the upper 70’s by week’s end and should bring some normalcy back to the area fishing. Still a few larger lakes yet to experience the big Hex hatch, the cool down will extend the wait a bit, but most lakes are done with that.

Kurt Justice

Kurt’s Island Sport Shop
Like us on FaceBook

NORTHWEST INDIANA

Provided

Capt. Rich Sleziak at Slez’s Bait in Lake Station texted:

Fishing still good straight out of portage 3 corners area dodgers and Flys and spoons best

Bluegills good on pine and stone lake in Laporte crickets and jumbo redworms best bait

Crappie on minnows on lake George in Hobart in the evening and into the night fishing around the bridges

Catfish at night on triple s stinkbait at portage river walk

Lots of groups fishing Dale. Rain or shine people are fishing

Christina Petrites at Stan’s Bait & Tackle Center in Hammond emailed:

Hi, Dale. Great weather & great wishing yo go along with it! We’re finally getting very positive reports on Perch recently.

Fishing has been good on both Lake Michigan & local lakes. Remains really good numbers of Steelhead, Coho, & Lake Trout being caught; small spoons, spin doctors, & flies working great, with a few Kings in the catch. Perch fishing is starting to heat up with limits of nice perch in 40-43 FOW south of the piers. Smallmouth and Walleye fishing remains good. Inland lakes are still producing nice Bluegills mainly on Beemoths & Jumbo Reds.

ROOT RIVER, WISCONSIN

Click here for the Wisconsin DNR’s report, usually on Tuesday or Wednesday.

SOUTHWEST MICHIGAN

Staff at Tackle Haven in Benton Harbor said not much in recent days, but before the blow, a few skamania were being caught from the pier; boaters are in 120-160 feet for steelhead, coho, lake trout and a few kings; perch were in before the blow in 25 feet, “They’re coming;” in the river, there’s some smallmouth catfish, drum and occasionally a walleye.

Paddle and Pole hosts the Berrien Springs Fish Ladder Camera.

SHABBONA LAKE

Adam Honiotes at Boondocks reported that fishing has been rough with the storms, but Jim “The Crappie Professor” Kopjo is still catching crappie on the rock beds and cribs; otherwise, the topwater bite for bass has started; water is 76 degrees

All concessions are now open daily. Restaurant is open 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays and 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Boat rentals are up and going.

Site hours through Oct. 31 are 6 a.m.-10 p.m. daily

SOUTHEAST WISCONSIN LAKEFRONT

Click here for the southern Lake Michigan reports from the Wisconsin DNR.

WOLF RIVER, WISCONSIN

Guide Bill Stoeger in Fremont texted:

Water temp is 69.5 today. Walleye action continues to be good. Some crappie taken in the bayous. Northern are starting to bite on surface lures

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WASHINGTON – The U.S. Justice Department on Tuesday announced efforts to curb gun trafficking in Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay area and Washington, D.C., a day before President Joe Biden unveils a sweeping series of programs to deal with crime and violence.

Biden will deliver remarks on Wednesday, unveiling his comprehensive strategy to combat violent crime, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday.

Among those meeting with Biden and Attorney General Merrick Garland at the White House on Wednesday will be Eddie Bocanegra, senior director at READI Chicago – the Rapid Employment and Development Initiative – a group dealing with Chicago’s gun violence.

Biden’s plans comes as cities, including Chicago, struggle with violent crime and, on the political side, Republicans aim to hurt all Democrats by labeling them as supporters of efforts to “defund the police,” a phrase that gained traction in the wake of last year’s police killing of George Floyd.

Psaki said Biden on Wednesday will talk about supporting additional funding for community policing and helping local governments “keep cops on the beat. So yes, we believe that a central driver of violence is gun violence and is the use of guns.”

In April, Biden announced an initial series of actions to address gun violence.

Biden wades into the crime issue as Chicago’s chronic gun violence problem was dramatically underscored when 52 people were shot, seven fatally, over the last weekend.

The Justice Department on Tuesday announced the launch of “five cross-jurisdictional firearms trafficking strike forces within the next 30 days to help reduce violent crime by addressing illegal gun trafficking in significant firearms trafficking corridors.”

The five strike forces will “focus on significant firearms trafficking corridors that channel guns into New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area and Washington, D.C.,” the Justice Department said, to be led by U.S. attorneys “who will coordinate with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and with state and local law enforcement partners in places where firearms originate and where they are used to commit crimes.”

While Chicago has long banned the sale of firearms, weapons from Indiana, other states and Chicago’s suburbs make the city’s ban ineffective in keeping guns out of the hands of criminals.

The concept of sending more resources to Chicago is not new. On July 22, 2020, John Lausch, Jr., the Chicago-based U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, joined then-Attorney General William Barr and then-President Donald Trump to announce the expansion of Operation Legend to Chicago.

Operation Legend was a consolidated push by local and federal law enforcement authorities “fight high levels of violent crime, particularly gun violence.”

Second Gentleman Emhoff in Chicago to push COVID vaccines

Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff – in his first official visit in Chicago – hits the city on Wednesday to push more people to get the COVID vaccine. Emhoff this month has been to Alabama, Florida and Tennessee as part of the administration’s drive. Vaccine reluctance – especially among those between 18 and 26 – means Biden will not meet his self-imposed goal of getting 70 percent of adults at least partly vaccinated by July 4.

In April, Vice President Kamala Harris made her first visit to Chicago since her election, when she, among other activities, toured a mass vaccination site run by the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 399 hall at 2260 S. Grove St. She also made a stop at Brown Sugar Bakery at 328 E. 75th St. to highlight a Black, female-owned small business.

Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene headlining fundraiser for Illinois Rep. Mary Miller

U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, the Georgia Republican who compared pandemic mandates for masks and vaccinations to the Nazi genocide of the Jewish people, is headlining a fundraiser July 8 in Effingham for freshman Illinois GOP Rep. Mary Miller.

Democrats who control the House stripped Greene of committee assignments after the QAnon conspiracy booster and 9-11 denier threatened to execute Democrats, spread anti-Semitic tropes and pushed baseless claims about staged school shootings.

By throwing in with Greene, Miller, who represents a Downstate district, may create problems for other Illinois Republicans who would rather ignore Greene – while building up a base if she is thrown in a primary in 2022 with another incumbent Illinois House member.

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