MODOC, Ill. – The annual Kaskaskia River Rough Fish Round Up is returning to Randolph County for 2022!
The annual Bowfishing tournament will be held on Saturday July 16, 2022, at the Jerry F. Costello (Kaskaskia) Lock and Dam in Modoc, IL.
All bowfishing enthusiasts are encouraged to make plans now for the annual Kaskaskia River Rough Fish Roundup bowfishing tournament. The tournament is open to anyone who fishes with a bow. The tournament is hosted by the Lower Kaskaskia Stakeholders Incorporated in cooperation with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
The tournament is a daytime event taking place from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. and will consist of both a Boat and a Walking/Shore division. The Boat division will feature a Big 10 fish format, and the Walking/Shore division will feature a Big 3 fish format. Side pots for the total number of fish, big fish, and small fish will also be held.
This year participants will be required to check in, register, and will receive the pretournament speech at the Lock and Dam upstream boat ramp. At that point Tournament anglers will be able to travel to any waters located within the Kaskaskia River State Fish and Wildlife Area, with the exception of Baldwin Lake and the tailwaters below Jerry F. Costello Lock and Dam. This translates into 36 river miles of the lower Kaskaskia River and connected backwaters from Fayetteville south to the Lock and Dam.
As always, the community is invited to the take off and weigh-in to learn more about Invasive Carp, view the weigh in festivities, taste-test various river fish species, and look at the variety of bowfishing boats and equipment. Fish will be given to anyone who brings a container and requests if for fishing bait, fertilizer, etc.
This opportunity is great tournament for all anglers and will offer all enthusiasts a chance to help remove Invasive Carp from the lower Kaskaskia River.
Boat division entry fees are $100.00 per boat and teams may be comprised of one to four members. The Walking/Shore division entry fee will be $25.00 per participant. Both divisions will be 100% payback. Payback amounts and the number of places paid will be based on the number of entries, with payout guaranteed for the top three places in both divisions.
Please note that no catfish or gar will be weighed in at the tournament as fishing areas are an Alligator Gar reintroduction site.
Take off will be in order of registration, and participants may pre-register by emailing John.L.Hartleb@usace.army.mil. Participants may also register on-site the morning of the event. The tournament will be limited to a total of 40 boats so pre-registration is strongly encouraged.
Participants are reminded that camping is available on site at the Lock and Dam and fifteen sites are potentially available. These sites are $20/night and include amenities such as electric, picnic tables, grills, asphalt pads, trash pickup, a shower house, and comfort stations. Campsites are booked on a first come first serve basis. Campers must pay fees before camp setup and the fee station is open 24 hours. Check out time is 4 p.m. The maximum number of campers per site is eight.
For more information, please contact John Hartleb at Kaskaskia River Project, 4800 Lock and Dam Road, Modoc, IL 62261 phone number 618-284-7160. Hope to see you all there!