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Lake Shelbyville Guide

Crappie, Walleye & White Bass Guided Fishing Trips at Lake Shelbyville with Steve Welch

Lake Shelbyville Guide

Crappie, Walleye & White Bass Guided Fishing Trips at Lake Shelbyville with Steve Welch

Take a Guided Fishing Trip on Lake Shelbyville with Steve Welch

Come fish with Steve as he’s been guiding on Lake Shelbyville since 1994 and fished it for over forty years. He’s gotten 27 tournament wins and won several Crappie U.S.A. and Crappie Masters tourneys, both locally and regionally, finishing in the top ten against the top pros in the country. He was the Region Three thirteen-state champion in 2006 and placed in the top 15 in 3 of the 9 National Championships. He was picked by In-Fisherman magazine as one of the top guides in the entire Midwest.

Steve Welch’s writing has been featured in several national magazines including In-Fisherman, Walleye In-Sider & Field & Stream, as well as local publications such as Illinois Fish & Game, Heartland Outdoors and Adventure Sports Outdoors to name a few. He’s written hundreds of articles over the years and currently writes a monthly column in Adventure Sports Outdoors. He’s done seminar speaking at just about every in-state fishing show during the winter months, drawing huge crowds.

Since retiring from the tourney fishing, gone is the 70mph bass boat. Steve wanted a better boat suited for guiding and multi-specie fishing. In 2013 Bass Cat purchased a company in Minnesota called Yar-Craft, a walleye boat with a stellar reputation. They heard he was looking for a walleye boat and they reached out. He ended up with their first-ever 2095BTX tiller boat. It was in several magazines with pros demonstrating its’ usefulness. When he heard that it only had three hours on it, he jumped at the chance and has had it ever since. It has a Mercury four-stroke Verado that just purrs like a kitten and runs flawlessly. It’s a great boat with lots of room and you don’t see many 200hp tillers on the lake.

This year the boat has gone through an entire facelift. New carpet, all the pedestals bases painted, and most importantly a total transformation on the electronics. It’s been totally brought up to speed. Five new Garmin depth finders, all networked to talk to each other. Livescope that can now be seen at any depth finder in the boat. The latest and greatest side imaging–all in full color–as is the down imaging and regular sonar with the industry’s best mapping. We’ll be able to search new areas much more efficiently and see the Livescope and side imaging working side by side from either the front or rear of the boat.

This boat is like no other. Bass Cat asked to see it back at the factory so they could see all the improvements. Air lines have been run up inside the gunnel and quick-disconnect ports were installed to plug in your bait tank anywhere you want to sit. Two twelve-volt giant air pumps provide more air than any d-cell battery could. That way we can run three separate bait tanks so you don’t have to leave your seat. There is also a huge bait tank that both aerates and recirculates every five minutes through several filters and charcoal to ensure we have the best bait that can last for days.

Pedestals have been rigged up on the front so three of us can sit on the nose when we are vertical jig fishing. Nobody has to crowd on the front deck and stand all day. That way we can all fish the same brush pile–no advantage for the guide. Then once slip bobber season hits, about late April on through the summer and early fall, we turn the boat to the side and cast at structure. You are still in a nice sit-down seat that only a big wide-open tiller boat can provide.

Steve is a multi-species guide so we do a lot of walleye and white bass fishing as well as the crappie by pulling bouncers and spinners or casting jigs with crawlers along sheer drops or points. We try and give you a day on the water like no other. Crappie are easy to catch in great numbers so once we get our limit rather than go in we just switch it up and go catch another species. Clients love this.

Go to our Book a Trip section and pick out an open date shoot us an email. Don’t wait as they won’t last long!!

Availability for 2025

Ice out Crappie on Lake Shelbyville
March 28,29,30…had last minute cancellation call me 217-840-1221

Kentucky Lake – Big Sandy
March and April – No Availability

Lake Shelbyville
Pre-Spawn-Spawn Crappie
April and May – No Availability

Walleye/Crappie/White Bass – Pulling Spinners
May and June – No Availability

Crappie/White Bass on slip bobbers
June 26

Crappie/White Bass Combo Trips – Slip Bobbers for crappie. Jigging Spoons for White Bass.
July 2,6-25,27-31
August 1-14,16-22,24-29
September 2-5,7-30
October 1,2,3,5-15

Back to strictly Crappie
October 16-25,27,28,29,31
November 1-7

Back To Kentucky Lake – Big Sandy
November 10-13,17,20,23-30

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Had another good day 72 in last two days bouncing around everywhere from 8-27ft. Water temps jumped up to 60 today but my Deep fish seam more consistent. Fishing my 1/4oz. Deep Ledge Jig with a Green Goblin or Peppercorn Pearl Brushpile plastic. They about knock the rod out of your hand. Even caught a yellow perch today. Pretty rare down here. Anyway I had a last minute cancelation for March 28,29,30. Calling for chances of rain but near 80 degrees. Big fish down here got a few over two last two days. Give me a call and we will go hog hunting. 217-840-1221. I am on Kentucky Lake by the way. ... See MoreSee Less

21 hours ago

First day on Kentucky Lake. Fish are staged up on drops 8-12ft. No signs of males darkening yet. Water temps 53 but 70-80's in ten day forecast. Two right at two pounds 42 total. ... See MoreSee Less

1 day ago
First day on Kentucky Lake.  Fish are staged up on drops 8-12ft. No signs of males darkening yet. Water temps 53 but 70-80s in ten day forecast. Two right at two pounds 42 total.Image attachment

Gave a seminar at the monthly meeting of the Arlington Anglers last night. Huge turnout and plenty of questions. Many have seen and talked to me at Chip's. The club is coming down late April, hopefully I helped them. The room was full of anglers my age and older so I will see many of them in boat eventually. Many thanked me and told Tina I was the best speaker they have hosted in a long time. Nothing but good words on my end. Great club ... See MoreSee Less

6 days ago
Gave a seminar at the monthly meeting of the Arlington Anglers last night. Huge turnout and plenty of questions. Many have seen and talked to me at Chips. The club is coming down late April, hopefully I helped them. The room was full of anglers my age and older so I will see many of them in boat eventually. Many thanked me and told Tina I was the best speaker they have hosted in a long time. Nothing but good words on my end. Great club

3 CommentsComment on Facebook

Thank you was an awsome seminar i enjoyed it

Thanks for making the long drive. Lots of good info, and entertaining too!

What a great seminar

For all my northern followers I am the featured speaker this evening at the Arlington Anglers. Starts at 7pm. At the Popular Creek bowling alley in Hoffman Estates. I will be giving a PowerPoint presentation and bringing lots of tackle and rods I use at Shelbyville, plus tons of info on fishing this big reservoir. I am speaking at the Riverside Fishing Club August 14th. Open to doing these engagements more but needs to be during my slow guiding periods. I leave for Kentucky Lake Friday through April 17th. I take many of my clients down there to get in on the crappie spawn then come home to get in on the spawn here as well. ... See MoreSee Less

1 week ago

I have June 26th. This is a very good post spawn crappie trip. We catch everything on these trips with minnows under a slip bobber. Plenty in July for crappie/white bass combo trips. My phone is 217-840-1221 or go to my website at Lake Shelbyville Guide. Com and check availability ... See MoreSee Less

1 week ago

Trying something new tomorrow. Since I have a big tiller boat I have a Minn Kota Vantage trolling motor on my transom. They have a retractable shaft so Ryan is putting a Livescope transducer on it. This way I can look at brush piles from my captain's seat. This will allow customers to watch their own baits when we set off to the side and use slip bobbers.I can watch crankbaits or spinner rigs while trolling. As far as I know the only boat with front and rear Livescope that work independently. Plus we put a stomp switch up front for the Vantage to use for brakes. I leave for Kentucky Lake on Friday. Lot's of stakebeds down there and with the brakes that will help me from over running them. Hope to get screenshot on Wednesday ... See MoreSee Less

1 week ago
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Guided Fishing Trips depart from the boat ramp at Forest Bo-Woods in Shelbyville, IL.

GPS N 39′ 33.058′ W 088′ 37.498′ or 39.550111, -88.624861

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