July 01, 2025
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Mother-son team enjoy fishing as annual derby continues

By Jeff Bonty and Tiffany Blanchette
Kolton Baker, 7, of Bourbonnais, casts his line into the Kankakee River at Fisherman Park in Kankakee on Saturday, June 28, 2025, as he participates in the NIAA Kankakee River Fishing Derby with his mother, Chris Gankel, for the third year. Baker, who learned to fish through the Kankakee County State's Attorney's Office's Reel Justice Fishing Club, said he hopes to make the Big Board this year.

Kolton Baker, 7, of Bourbonnais, casts his line into the Kankakee River at Fisherman Park in Kankakee on Saturday, June 28, 2025, as he participates in the NIAA Kankakee River Fishing Derby with his mother, Chris Gankel, for the third year. Baker, who learned to fish through the Kankakee County State's Attorney's Office's Reel Justice Fishing Club, said he hopes to make the Big Board this year. (Tiffany Blanchette)

KANKAKEE – As the sun glared off the Kankakee River on Saturday, 7-year-old Kolton Baker and his mother, Chris Gankel, both of Bourbonnais, were casting out lines at Fisherman Park in Kankakee for their third year participating in the Kankakee River Fishing Derby.

The pair also were practicing their patience with what they thought to be a large catfish on the line. The line had snapped twice so far, the hook baited three times.

Baker, who learned to fish through the Reel Justice Fishing Club, a community initiative started by the Kankakee County State’s Attorney’s Office, said he hopes to make the Big Board this year.

He has learned a lot in the past two derbies, he said.

“He would stay out here morning, noon and night if he could,” Gankel said. “He loves this.”

The pair arrived around 5 p.m. with no set end time, and planned to be back out many days of the derby, which runs through Sunday, July 6.

Big Board leaders

As of Monday morning:

Channel Catfish: Joshua Kurcer, of Buckingham, 10 pounds, 13 ounces

Crappie: Jeff Dummer, of Kankakee, 1 pound

Flathead catfish: James Swisher, of Kankakee, 40 pounds, 11 ounces

Northern Pike: Lucas Andersdon, of Chebanse, 5 pound 12 ounces

Rock Bass: Bret Cavanaugh, of Braidwood, 11 ounces; Jerome Phillip, of Bourbonnais, 11 ounces

Rough Fish: Fernando Barrera III, of Kankakee, 17 pounds, 3 ounces

Small Mouth Bass: Darrell Benoit, of Bourbonnais, 3 pounds, 12 ounces

Walleye: Darrell Benoit, of Bourbonnais, 6 pounds, 15 ounces