Site Information
Water Name: |
Clinton Lake |
Water Type: |
Inland Lake |
Water Size: |
5000 acres |
Location: |
3 mi. East of Clinton |
County: |
DeWitt |
Fishing Regulations: |
MAPS
TO PRINT
Contour
Habitat
Details
Tackle-smashing tiger muskies and exciting hybrid striped bass had
east-central Illinois fishermen talking not long after Clinton Lake
opened to the public for fishing in August of 1979.
The 5,000-acre reservoir, located in DeWitt County near Clinton, was created by Illinois Power Company to serve as a cooling lake for their power generating unit that is scheduled to open in the near future.
It also has evolved into an excellent fishery that provides good, largemouth bass, walleye, crappie, and channel cat fishing. An occasional smallmouth bass and bluegill also are taken there.
More hybrid stripers have been stocked since the original release of 200,000 fish in 1978, and anglers have caught them both in the main lake and in the tailwaters below the spillway. These fish should reach 10 pounds or better at maturity.
Both artificial lures and crawdads have been good in catching these hard-fighting fish that run like a truck after being hooked. Three areas at the lake generally produce these fish; stretches near the dam, an underwater hump close to the West Side Access area, and breaklines near what formerly was an old, gravel pit or quarry.
Bucktail spinners are good for tiger muskies, some of which approach 20 pounds. Weedbeds and underwater bars are good spots to probe for this great predatory fish. Occasionally a relaxing, crappie fisherman receives a thrill of a lifetime when a muskiefish grabs a minnow. Anglers casting for bass also have a chance of hooking one of these fish, a cross between a northern pike and a genuine muskellunge.
Largemouth bass fishing has steadily improved at the lake since it opened with many of the fish coming on spinner and crank baits or plastic worms from points, coves, shoreline cover and areas of rip rap.
Excellent catches of channel cat also have been made since the lake opened, but this fishery often is overlooked by many anglers. The North Fork arm channels, and flooded timber areas, have been good spots for this fish. A variety of baits have been successful.
Like elsewhere, spring and fall produce the best crappie action, especially during April and May when the fish generally spawn at the lake. Areas of flooded brush and timber are good for this popular panfish.
Flats, shoreline, rocky shelves, points and areas of rip rap have
yielded most of the walleys at the lake. Jigs, minnows and other
artificial lures have produced. Periodic releases of these fish
have been made since the original stocking. Occasionally they provide
good action for fishermen in the tailwaters below the dam.
Clinton Lake contains 130 miles of shoreline and averages about 15 feet in depth. The lake has two arms created by the North Fork on the west and Salt Creek from the east.
The lake provides a fish-holding underwater structure similar to many man-made lakes, including rock rip rap areas, flooded timber, submerged fence rows and old road beds and inundated, old, gravel pits. There is an underwater dam not far from the visitor’s center which produces good fishing at times.
Because it is new, facilities are not yet complete. Campgrounds were open in the summer of 1983 and an excellent, full-service marina, one of the finest operations in Illinois, is found on the Salt Creek arm of the dam on the east side of the lake.
Since it is located near large population centers of Illinois, Clinton Lake has had heavy use since it opened. In addition to the fishermen, the lake and recreation area around it also attracts boaters, water skiers, pleasure boaters, hunters, campers and swimmers.
Public Recreational Facilities
|
Boat Fishing |
yes |
Boat Rental |
yes |
Ramps |
yes |
Water Skiing |
unrestricted |
Motors |
yes |
Swimming |
yes |
yes |
