It’s that time of year once again, where most of the gray ghost hunters are packing up their gear till next October. For some it’s a depressing 8 months to wait till they can go out in the woods once again and take on these elusive animals. So what does the whitetail hunter do in the off-season?

Some keep their rifles warmed up with some all year round varmint hunting, while others take out the tackle boxes and bass boats and hit the water for their chance at the sport fish of their choice. But, what about the sport that is turning so many heads in the outdoors world these days? The one where the rigs that are used are not at all big shiny bass boats, but big river Jons and airboats. Rigs all decked out with enough lights to bring daylight to water after the sun goes down.

That’s right its time for BOWFISHING.

Along with many other bowfishers, I will be getting my bow tuned in for trips to the waters in search of our finny prey. For many it’s common carp, grassies or buffs. There are some of us that go after the biggest bowfishing trophies of all, such as the giant alligator gar of the southern states, huge snapping turtles, stingrays and Bull sharks of the southern coast. Can't forget the gator hunts.

Here in Southern Illinois we have commons, grassies, buffs and the infamous flying carp of the Illinois River. I personally think bowfishing is a big help to all other anglers, Carp have been taking over the waterways for years and what better way to help keep them in check than to bowfish.

For many years Bowfishing has been looked down upon by others as an inhumane way of taking fish, the biggest reason people think this way is because of the way a small percentage of people dispose of their fish.

We have quite a few uses for the fish harvested. We take the fish to wildlife rehabilitation centers (where they will use the fish to feed wildlife that are recovering), we also give the fish to local farmers to use as fertilizer, and local restaurants have been known to want the fish we shoot. But most of all we eat a large percentage of our catch at fish fries and get-togethers.

We hold many shoots and tourneys here in Southern Illinois that are held through the spring, summer and fall, so if you're in the area look us up. We would be glad to have you shoot with us.

Eric Giles

Red Ash Outdoors

And The Southern Chapter of Bowfishing Association of Illinois

“Taking our Waters Back One Carp at a Time”