Fly-fisher tells of 'passion' for Illinois river

One US fishing enthusiast has described how he possesses an instinctive affinity with one river in Illinois.

Paul Shrader has described how he grew up fishing on and living near the Fox River in North Aurora, having started pursuing a passion for the sport when he was four years-old.

Some 42-years-later, the vice president of Friends of the Fox, a group designed to improve the quality of the river, still has the waterway close to his heart.

Speaking to the Courier News, Mr Shrader told how his lifelong interest in the river has been both self-motivated and magnanimous.

"I've always wanted to protect the river for my own selfish purposes - I like to fish - and for the rest of the community's enjoyment, of course," he told the paper.

Mr Shrader also told how the state of the river has fluctuated over time; having been in a poor quality state while he was a child, the river's health was improved significantly by the introduction of the Clean Water Act in 1972.

In recent years, the river's health has deteriorated as a result of urbanisation and population growth.