Des Plaines River

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Des Plaines River

©Illinois State Water Survey

Location: The Des Plaines River, the longest stream within the Chicago region, flows southward for 133 miles (105 miles in Illinois) through southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois. It eventually meets the Kankakee River southwest of Joliet to form the Illinois River, a significant tributary of the Mississippi River.

Description: At its widest point, the Des Plaines River is approximately 180 feet wide. The narrower sections are closer to 30 feet wide. The average width of the river is between 40 and 100 feet. Depth varies from location to location, but the average depth of the Des Plaines River is 3 feet during normal water levels.

The Des Plaines River is easily fished from shore, canoe/kayak or by wading. Much of the bottom is a combination of rock and silt, so care should be taken when wading.

Fisheries Fact Sheet

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Basin Report:

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Species	Rank	Fish Status
BLUEGILL	Good
CARP	Good
CRAPPIE	Good
LARGEMOUTH BASS	Good	Largemouth bass are taken most frequently in the main channel border and lake habitats.
NORTHERN PIKE	Excellent	Northern Pike are the primary sport fish in the upper Des Plaines River, commonly caught on spinnerbaits. Concentrate on fallen timber, eddies, current breaks and drop-offs.
ROCK BASS	Good
SMALLMOUTH BASS	Fair	Smallies are present, but not common
WALLEYE	Fair	Walleye are present, but not common and are more prominent in the lower Des Plaines River.

Note: The upper Des Plaines River runs primarily through forest preserve property of Cook County, IL and Lake County, IL. Much of the shoreline is on property owned by the Cook County Forest Preserve District and the Lake County Forest Preserve District. Some portions do run through land that is not publicly owned so please be aware of signs indicating private property. There are many access points on the river, as well as Kayak/Canoe launch points:

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River Access Areas

Van Patton Woods (near Wadsworth, IL)
Independence Grove (near Libertyville, IL)
Adler Memorial Park (near Libertyville, IL)
Riverside Park (near Libertyville, IL)
Red Top Park (near Libertyville, IL)
Half Day Forest Preserve (near Vernon Hills, IL)
Spring Lake Park (near Lincolnshire, IL)
Potawatomi Wood s(near Wheeling and Northbrook, IL)
Dam #1 Woods (near Wheeling, IL)
Allison Woods (Northbrook, IL)
Lake Avenue Woods – East (near Glenview and Mt. Prospect, IL)
Dam #2 Woods (near Mt. Prospect, IL)
Big Bend Lake (near Des Plaines, IL)
Northwestern Woods (near Des Plaines, IL)
Campground Road Woods (Des Plaines, IL)
Iroquois Woods/Touhy Dam (Park Ridge, IL)
Dam #4 Woods East (Park Ridge, IL)
Robinson Woods (Near Chicago, Rosemont, and Schiller Park, IL)
Schiller Woods (near Chicago and Schiller, Park, IL)
Thatcher Woods (near River Forest, IL)

Canoe/Kayak launch areas

Van Patton Woods Canoe Launch
Wadsworth Road Canoe Launch
Independence Grove Canoe Launch
Oak Spring Canoe Launch
Rt. 60 Canoe Launch Launch
Dam #2 Canoe Launch
Irving Park Launch

Des Plaines Fish and Wildlife Area Information

There were 34 tournaments held on this waterbody in 2019.

Species	Total Fish Caught
Bowfin	4
Common Carp	133
Largemouth Bass	1196
Smallmouth Bass	74

Top 5 Largemouth Bass caught on this waterbody in 2019 tournaments:

1 4.31 lbs

2 4.11 lbs

3 3.94 lbs

4 3.94 lbs

5 3.84 lbs

Top 5 Bag Weights of Largemouth Bass caught on this waterbody in 2019 tournaments:

1	180.81 lbs
2	164.00 lbs
3	157.01 lbs
4	138.18 lbs
5	93.91 lbs

Multiple day tournaments are listed with * end date.

Interested in participating in one of these public tournaments? Contact us with tournament ID for more information.

2020 Approved or Pending Tournaments
Start Date	ID	Approval	Ramp Location	Bank/Boat Hook/Bow	Max Boats	Species	Youth?	Open to Public?
February-29	15887	Approved	Billie Lemacher Park (bank fishing only)	bank hook	0	Common Carp	No	Yes
March-14	15888	Approved	Billie Lemacher Park (bank fishing only)	bank hook	0	Common Carp	No	Yes
March-21	15184	Pending	Big Basin	boat hook	20	Largemouth Bass	No	No
March-29	14015	Approved	Big Basin	boat hook	30	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass	No	Yes
April-04	13822	Approved	Big Basin	boat hook	75	Largemouth Bass	Yes	No
April-05	13877	Approved	Big Basin	boat hook	75	Largemouth Bass	Yes	No
April-18	15185	Approved	Big Basin	boat hook	20	Largemouth Bass	No	No
April-18	16094	Pending	Des Plaines SFWA	boat bow	25	Multiple Species	No	Yes
April-19	14395	Approved	Big Basin	boat hook	20	Largemouth Bass	No	No
April-25	13860	Approved	Big Basin	boat hook	75	Largemouth Bass	Yes	No
April-26	13898	Approved	Big Basin	boat hook	75	Largemouth Bass	Yes	No
May-02	15846	Approved	Big Basin	boat hook	15	Largemouth Bass	Yes	No
May-03	14397	Approved	Big Basin	boat hook	20	Largemouth Bass	No	No
May-03	14571	Approved	Des Plaines SFWA	boat hook	6	Largemouth Bass	No	No
May-06	14038	Approved	Des Plaines SFWA	boat hook	25	Largemouth Bass	No	Yes
May-17	14398	Approved	Big Basin	boat hook	20	Largemouth Bass	No	No
May-20	14043	Approved	Des Plaines SFWA	boat hook	25	Largemouth Bass	No	Yes
May-31	14399	Approved	Big Basin	boat hook	20	Largemouth Bass	No	No
June-03	14049	Approved	Des Plaines SFWA	boat hook	25	Largemouth Bass	No	Yes
June-07	14400	Approved	Big Basin	boat hook	20	Largemouth Bass	No	No
June-14	14437	Approved	Big Basin	boat hook	20	Largemouth Bass	No	No
June-17	14057	Approved	Des Plaines SFWA	boat hook	25	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass	No	Yes
June-28	15704	Approved	Big Basin	boat hook	20	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass Spotted Bass	No	Yes
July-01	14061	Approved	Des Plaines SFWA	boat hook	25	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass	No	Yes
July-15	14064	Approved	Des Plaines SFWA	boat hook	25	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass	No	Yes
July-19	14401	Approved	Big Basin	boat hook	20	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass	No	No
July-29	14066	Approved	Des Plaines SFWA	boat hook	25	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass	No	Yes
August-09	13801	Approved	Des Plaines SFWA	boat hook	30	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass	No	Yes
August-12	14072	Approved	Des Plaines SFWA	boat hook	25	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass	No	Yes
August-15	15552	Approved	Des Plaines SFWA	boat hook	10	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass	No	No
August-23	14403	Approved	Big Basin	boat hook	20	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass	No	No
August-26	14079	Approved	Des Plaines SFWA	boat hook	25	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass	No	Yes
September-13	13818	Approved	Des Plaines SFWA	boat hook	30	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass	No	Yes
September-13	13891	Pending	Harborside Marina	boat hook	30	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass	Yes	No
September-20	14406	Pending	Big Basin	boat hook	20	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass	No	No
September-20	14535	Approved	Harborside Marina	boat hook	30	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass	Yes	No
September-27	13827	Approved	Des Plaines SFWA	boat hook	30	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass	No	Yes
November-01	14021	Approved	Big Basin	boat hook	30	Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass	No	Yes
November-14	15889	Approved	Billie Lemacher Park (bank fishing only)	bank hook	0	Common Carp	No	Yes
November-28	15890	Approved	Billie Lemacher Park (bank fishing only)	bank hook	0	Common Carp	No	Yes
December-12	15891	Approved	Billie Lemacher Park (bank fishing only)	bank hook	0	Common Carp	No	Yes

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