Early in the month, the bass will hold to weedbeds and will take noisy crankbaits, spinnerbaits and jigs in water up to 8 feet deep. Fish the inside of the weedbeds, as the outside area will be in 20 feet of water.

As the water warms, try spinnerbaits, crankbaits and plastics. Most of the bigger bass are found in far reaches of lake. Try slow-rolling lures along brushpiles that are adjacent to weedbeds.

Be aware of weather conditions, as this part of the state is susceptible to passing fronts, and water conditions can vary quickly. No fishing is permitted within 100 yards of any shoreline with a residence present. Fines are imposed by the lake patrol.

APRIL
Crab Orchard Lake: Largemouths
Crab Orchard, a 7,000-acre lake in Williamson County, is well known as being a bass factory. Now the lake contains an unusual amount of wood, thanks to a 106-mph storm that blew through last spring. A normally shallow, featureless bottom now has many new fish attractors in the form of sunken trees and a shoreline of brush.

Largemouths are the key predator in the lake. Supplemental stocking of threadfin shad has increased the forage base. Growth rates are good and are attributed to lake productivity and the abundant forage base. Advance bass fingerlings are stocked into the lake each year.

During electroshocking efforts by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, 22 percent of the bass measured were over the 16-inch minimum size limit. Ten percent were over 18 inches in length.

The lake has a number of bank- fishing areas with the best-known being along the Wolf Creek Causeway, a road that divides the lake with a long dike and steep riprap banks. Fishing there is good all year. Another good area is along state Route 13 between Marion and Carbondale. There are a number of fish cribs to attract game fish. They attract the forage fish, which then attract the bass.

There is an access fee that can be paid at the Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge on state Route 148 about two miles south of Williamson County Airport.

MAY
Rend Lake: Channel Catfish
With 2,300 acres and an undeveloped shoreline, Rend Lake is loaded with channel catfish. There are some flatheads, too, but they are not usually taken by rod-and-reel anglers. During this month, the fish move into the rocks to spawn. Natural reproduction and recruitment is very strong. Catch rates remain well above the 10-year average.

Eating size fish of 1 to 2 pounds are numerous, with fish up to 7 pounds common as well. But there are even larger fish taken every day.

Although channel catfish can be found throughout the lake, the area to the north is usually most productive. This area contains a lot of buckbrush and the sub-impoundment part of the lake. If the lake is choppy, anglers move to the Gun Creek area, which is more sheltered from the wind. Other refuges from the wind are the lake's creeks and coves.

The ample access for shore-anglers along the lake and the creek is a plus for finding spawning cats. This month, the water is usually high and particularly productive because of the flooded shoreline brush.