Best Bet…Crappie/Walleye

The lake is still three-feet low and very clear except way up near the mouth of both rivers where it is pretty stained. Water temps are running 75-80.

The crappie have spawned and moved out to the deep basins all over the lake. Just off ledges or over deep brush. They are bunched up and hungry trying to recover from the spawn.

Our guides are both spider rigging and slip bobber fishing with live bait and boy oh boy are they catching them. I talk with John and Brian about every day and they are getting days in the hundred fish or more.

Spider rigging on Lake Shelbyville allows three rods per angler so my guides have their clients setting up on the nose running six rods and they tell me it is nothing to see all six go down at the same time with both crappie and white bass hooked up.
Electronics is a must as you are looking for huge schools suspended out in twenty-feet or more. Keep looking you will hit the motherlode.

As for the walleye they are being caught very shallow. One to four-feet on flats with wind on them or shallow sand bars. Casting 1/4oz. Big Dudes is the ticket you need to cover water and don’t be afraid to re visit the same spot many times a day. These fish just pull up when there is bait in the area. The problem is the lake is so low a lot of the shallow flats areas are a lot smaller so anglers know all the spots and are staked out on them. Right now a good day is about six keepers and twice that many shorts and about all are walleye. The sauger haven’t shown up yet.

Pulling bouncers and spinners are getting a few but for the most part the crappie won’t leave them alone. We need water to get the first drop in a little deeper water.

Our guides are really and I mean really on the crappie and this year the lake is giving up nice fish so give us a call at 217-840-1221 or send us an email.

Steve Welch
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