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217-840-1221|fish@lakeshelbyvilleguide.com

About Steve Welch

Steve Welch has been fishing on Lake Shelbyville since its inception and guiding since 1994. He’s an accomplished writer and has written for Adventure Sports Outdoor, Heartland Magazine, the Decatur Herald & Review and Ilfishing.com. He’s been quoted and written about in the Bloomington Pantagraph, Peoria Journal Star, Effingham Daily News, Illinois Fish & Game Finder Magazine, North American Crappie, and Field & Stream’s ‘Best Fishing Spots in the Midwest’.

Fishing Trip Date Availability as of December 10, 2023

I am full for the remainder of 2023 unless December is warm enough to get in a couple of trips. I will be on Kentucky Lake most of November. Give me a call at 217-840-1221. These are my plans for 2024 since I am back guiding full-time. I will be in attendance at the Collinsville Show, Schaumburg Show, Tinley Park Show but I would nail these down beforehand as I book a bunch of trips with these shows. Ice-Out Deep Crappie Shelbyville March 17-29 Kentucky Lake Pre=spawn-spawn crappie April 1,2,3,4,7,8,9,10,11 Shelbyille Lake Pre-spawn-spawn crappie April 18-30, May 1,2,4,6-14 Shelbyville walleye/white [...]

By |2023-12-09T17:27:28-06:00May 28, 2021|Fishing Trips|
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Fishing Report: October 14-28, 2018

Best Bet...Crappie


Fall is quickly approaching and the water temps took a big nose dive this week and now our guides are seeing 63-66. This is moving crappie away from main lake areas and pushing them into coves and up feeder creeks in search of even cooler water temps and their food.
By |2021-06-04T12:59:15-05:00October 15, 2018|Fishing Report|
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Fishing Report: October 1-14, 2018

Best Bet...Crappie


Sorry the report sounds the same week after week but until this heat let’s up and we really get into fall the fish will remain in their same patterns. Soon very soon things will change up big time.

The lake is at summer pool and gin clear from one end to the other. Water temps are running mid-seventies on the main lake and low to mid-sixties up in the feeder creeks and very back of big coves.
By |2021-06-04T12:59:15-05:00October 1, 2018|Fishing Report|
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Fishing Report: September 16-30, 2018

Best Bet...Crappie


Sorry the report sounds the same week after week but until this heat let’s up and we really get into fall the fish will remain in their same patterns. Soon very soon things will change up big time.

The lake is at 600.1 at the time of this writing. That is only a couple inches over summer pool and gin clear from one end to the other. Water temps are running low eighties.
By |2021-06-04T12:59:15-05:00September 18, 2018|Fishing Report|
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Fishing Report: September 2-16, 2018

Best Bet...Crappie


The lake is about a foot over summer pool and gin clear from one end to the other. Water temps are running low eighties.

July, August and first half of September are about the same as far as fishing patterns go. Walleye and white bass become harder to locate from day to day, but the summer crappie bite is very good due to the sheer numbers and the depth and width of Lake Shelbyville.
By |2018-09-04T11:30:29-05:00September 4, 2018|Fishing Report|
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Fishing Report: August 19-September 2, 2018

Best Bet...Crappie


The lake is about a foot over summer pool and gin clear from one end to the other. Water temps are running low eighties.

August is about like July as far as fishing patterns go. Walleye and white bass become harder to locate from day to day but the summer crappie bite is very good due to the sheer numbers and the depth and width of Lake Shelbyville.
By |2018-08-19T23:13:36-05:00August 19, 2018|Fishing Report|
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Fishing Report: August 1-19, 2018

Best Bet...Crappie


The lake is about a foot over summer pool and gin clear from one end to the other. Water temps are running low eighties.

August is about like July as far as fishing patterns go. Walleye and white bass become harder to locate from day to day but the summer crappie bite is very good due to the sheer numbers and the depth and width of Lake Shelbyville.
By |2018-09-04T11:19:53-05:00August 2, 2018|Fishing Report|
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Fishing Report: July 15-29, 2018

Best Bet...Crappie


The lake is just a foot from being back to summer pool and water temps are in the low eighties and gin clear. Typical for this time of the year.

About the only fish that will bite consistently are the crappie. Yeah you can find a school of white bass and search the whole day for them and watch them not feed until almost dark. Or pick up a couple walleye trolling whereas you could get twenty or more a month ago. Such is summer these two species get particular about feeding times. Whites at dusk and walleye way after dusk.
By |2018-09-04T11:19:44-05:00July 16, 2018|Fishing Report|
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Fishing Report: July 1-15, 2018

Best Bet...Crappie


The lake is about two feet high and slowly falling back to summer pool. Water temps are running 81, and the water is gin-clear.

For the serious walleye fishermen, they are still picking up fish pulling bottom bouncers and spinner rigs, but not near the numbers they were a few weeks back. I believe every year about this time, the walleye start feeding at night due to extreme heat gin-clear water and ski boat pressure.
By |2018-07-01T16:56:30-05:00July 1, 2018|Fishing Report|
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