It's time to start thinking about another great year of fishing! The excitement of the spring season is just ahead and most anglers are chomping at the bit to get out on the water and wet a line. Luckily, there are some fabulous fishing opportunities for Prairie State anglers and this year is full of promise.

Crappie enthusiasts know that the spring spawning season is one of the best times of the year to target these feisty and tasty panfish. When the papermouths move into the shallows to begin their annual spawning ritual, anglers are beside themselves with excitement. Casting a jig or minnow on light tackle into shallow-water woody structure is what a papermouth angler dreams about all winter. Well, now that the time is at hand, it is time to start thinking about where to go to chase that dream.

There are numerous great locations across the state and it's sometimes hard to narrow the search down to just a few top spots. From farm ponds to large reservoirs and rivers, Illinois has plenty of crappie waters from which to choose. However, crappie fisheries tend to be cyclical, which means an individual water can often go through up-and-down cycles, and just because the fishing was good at a particular location a season or so ago, doesn't mean it's great right now.

To help give some direction, we've talked with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources fisheries personnel, bait shop and marina owners and local anglers. Based on their knowledge and experience, we've picked one prime location in each of the state's five different regions. Does that mean these are the only good locations for crappies this year? Of course not, but it does give anglers a place to start and we've spread our picks around the state to give everyone a piece of the pie. With that in mind, let's take a look at some of the best of the best. (Continued)

REGION I

ARGYLE LAKE
Anglers can find some great crappie fishing only seven miles from Macomb and two miles from Colchester at the 95-acre Argyle Lake. Travel to Colchester in McDonough County and follow Coal Road two miles to the lake.

There are white and black crappies and hybrids present. Trap net data collected by the DNR over the past three years shows the fishery to be in good shape with plenty of numbers and varied size distribution. Fishing looks really good for 2009.

Crappies were really abundant when the surveys were performed. In one night with 13 trap nets out, the DNR collected 391 crappies, which equaled more than 30 fish per net, an excellent catch rate.

White crappies had two big year-class peaks during last year's surveys. One big group of fish was in the 8.5- to 9-inch range, with another group in the 10.5- to 11.5-inch range. There was a lower number of larger fish up to 13.8 inches long.

Black crappies had one big peak averaging about 8.8 inches or a third of a pound. There were fish up to 12.5 inches long, but numbers of larger fish dwindled.

If someone is looking for a real wallhanger crappie, it most likely will be a hybrid. There were some whoppers that measured up to 14.7 inches and weighed 2 1/4 pounds. There was a strong peak of hybrids at 9 inches and another at 11 to 11.5 inches.

Ken Russell, a fisheries biologist for Argyle Lake, said there are scattered numbers of big fish in the lake. "There are a few, but they're there," he said. "In a day of fishing, most fish will be in the 8- to 10-inch range, but an angler could come home with a lunker."