Steve
Welch Fishing Report for May
1-15, 2008
Lake
Shelbyville - Best Bet
Crappie/White Bass
The Corp has changed to the new summer
pool curve of 599.9 ft. above sea level so that means the
lake will start to re-fill again. It has been a real Yo-Yo
this past month with first it going to 603 and now it is
at 597.7. Last week they were dropping it 6 inches a day.
That makes for tough fishing.
The best news is the water temperatures. It is bouncing
around the 63-65 range and this has gotten the male crappie
all ready for the spawn. They are as black as coal and
shallow. Once the water fluctuation slows it will get very
hot very quick.
On the main lake we are catching fish anywhere from six
foot to fifteen foot. This is typical since not all the
crappie spawn at the same time. The river is different.
We are fishing corks set at a foot or so. The fishing was
incredible the last couple of weeks for me and my clients
and it will continue to be so for about a month as we follow
the spawn.
Best colors for me has been brown and chartreuse, but
I have also been using red and chartreuse. Not really been
needing any live bait but that will change as the water
warms.
The white bass are spawning up in the upper reaches of
the Kaskaskia and the fishing is very good. We did a half
day on them Monday and must of caught two hundred. Look
for bends in the river with slack water or smaller feeder
creeks. Just about anything will work, jig and twister,
Mepps spinner, but I like the Gayblade. You can throw it
a mile and it doesn’t take much speed on the retrieve
to get a ton of vibration and the whites just eat it up.
This is one of the best periods to get a real wall hanger
as our lake record is over four pounds.
Clinton
Lake - Best Bet Walleye/White Bass
This spring anglers have really caught
the walleye at Clinton. Problem is that you need to catch
a ton of them to get any legal sized fish. There are some
fish in the discharge area but most have made there way
down towards the gravel pits since water temps in the discharge
is in the 90 range. We have been using light jigs tipped
with a half a crawler and of course the gayblade.
Windswept points and rip rap gets the nod
for the whites. A gayblade or step up to a half-ounce rattletrap
just in case any of those hard pulling hybrids are in the
area. Fishing
Calendar
|
Crappie |
Walleye |
White
Bass |
Muskie |
| January |
• |
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| February |
• |
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| March |
• |
|
|
• |
| April |
• |
• |
• |
• |
| May |
• |
• |
• |
• |
| June |
• |
• |
• |
• |
| July |
|
• |
• |
• |
| August |
|
|
• |
• |
| September |
• |
|
• |
• |
| October |
• |
|
• |
• |
| November |
• |
|
• |
• |
| December |
• |
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Lake
Shelbyville Fishing Guide