by Chris McKinley

Summertime in Southern Illinois means going to the lakes. Lakes of all shapes and sizes dot the Southern Illinois landscape, offering magnificent scenery, wildlife habitat, and opportunities for water sports.

Little Egypt is a mecca for fishermen. Few places on earth are as conducive to fishing as Southern Illinois. Rivers, streams, lakes, and ponds abound, offering an array of casting possibilities.

Fishin' at Campus Lake, no more than a fifteen-minue walk
from downtown Carbondale.

The most prevalent game species caught in the area include largemouth bass, bluegill, crappie, and catfish.

An immediate warning-- before heading out with rod and reel, get a fishing license. Fishing without a license brings down severe fines.

High heat and humidity dictate an occasional dip in a cool lake. Public beaches are located at Cedar Lake, Lake of Egypt, Lake Glendale, Pounds Hollow, Rend Lake, Kinkaid Lake, and Crab Orchard Lake.

Some lakes have motor-size limits, creel limits, and other restrictions. Acquire this information before venturing out to spend a day at the lake.

Part of the Crab Orchard Wildlife Refuge, Bum's Beach at Little Grassy Lake is a popular
place to fish, swim, sun, and soak.

The refuge landscape ranges from fields and low wetlands to rolling hills. The main objectives of the refuge are to restore native fish, wetlands, and other aquatic habitats, manage the wildlife population, and to educate people about fish and wildlife resources and ecosystems.

The refuge contains three lakes-- Crab Orchard, Devils Kitchen, and Little Grassy. Crab Orchard Lake is huge, totalling seven-thousand acres with a 127-mile shoreline. Crab Orchard Lake has no motor-size limits, attracting motorboaters, sailors, waterskiers, swimmers, and fishers.

Crab Orchard is renowned for its superior stock of largemouth and white bass. The lake also contains the standard fare for the region-- crappie, flathead and channel catfish, and bluegill. A marina is located on Crab Orchard at Spillway Road and Old 13.

With its wooded shoreline and crystal-clear water, Devils Kitchen Lake, boasting some of the highest water quality in Illinois, is one of the state’s most pristine natural areas. The lake has a maximum depth of ninety feet, and on a clear day, one can see clearly to twenty feet. The lake receives little runoff and sedimentation from agriculture, industry, or residential activities on its shoreline, which accounts for its exceptional water quality. About seventy-five percent of the land surrounding the lake is protected and managed by the soil and water conservation efforts of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Because the water of Devils Kitchen is so clean and clear, sunlight is able to penetrate to the cooler depths of the lake, providing adequate oxygen levels for rainbow trout. This is one of few Illinois lakes able to sustain a population of rainbow trout, because they require cool, deep water during summer months.

Three boat launches are available at Devils Kitchen, and a marina at the lake’s north end provides boat rental and full-service concessions. A picnic area and campground are also located on the lake.

Swimming is prohibited at Devil’s Kitchen Lake. The lake was created by flooding a valley, and many of the trees are still standing in the water. Jumping into the lake is extremely dangerous and is further discouraged by hefty fines.

Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge visitors are required to purchase a duck stamp from the Refuge Visitor Center. Annual single-vehicle passes ($15) five-day passes ($5) and and one-day passes ($2) are inexpensive; single-vehicle passes allow users to visit all open areas of the refuge year-round. Proceeds from duck stamps go toward fish and wildlife conservation efforts on the refuge. Trout fishermen also need to acquire a trout-stamp in order to keep their catches. Contacted the refuge at (618) 997-3344 for more information.

The Crisenberry Dam, aka the Lake Kinkaid Spillway.

Kinkaid Lake is managed jointly by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, the Kinkaid-Reed’s Creek Conservancy District, and the U.S. Forest Service.

Kinkaid Lake offers 2,750 acres of water with eighty-two miles of shoreline. Two marinas offer docks, launches, slips, boat rentals, tackle, and other supplies.

Kinkaid Lake has no motor-size limits and many summertime visitors enjoy boating, swimming, and waterskiing in the wider parts of the lake. Anglers may find more than one-hundred coves suitable for a peaceful day of casting.

Common game species at Kinkaid include bluegill, largemouth bass, crappie, channel catfish, walleye, and white bass. Additionally, with a depth of eighty feet, its water is cool, clear, and deep enough to sustain the region’s only muskie population. Muskie as large as twenty-five pounds have been pulled from Kinkaid’s clear waters.

One of the more popular places to spend time in the sun is the lake’s dam. The Crisenberry Dam picnic area is widely referred to as "The Spillway." When the lake level is high, water spills over the dam, cutting through sandstone rock and creating falls of rushing water. At times of plentiful rain, the spillway rages with fierceness and can be somewhat dangerous, but is still extremely captivating. One can sit in the falls or climb the rocks to the top, where floating and swimming in the lake takes precedence. The bottom of the Spillway has picnic tables, grills, and privies.

The bald cybresses of Horseshoe Lake.

Another noteworthy lake in Southern Illinois is Horseshoe Lake, so named because of its shape. It is an ancient meander of the Mississippi River-- as the Mississippi’s route gradually shifted over time, the water of Horseshoe Lake became a separate body of water.

Bald cypress and tupelo trees crowd the shoreline of this extremely shallow lake, creating a swamp or bayou-like atmosphere. These trees are southern species, reaching their northernmost range in Southern Illinois. Floating amongst them feels like being in the Deep South.

Horseshoe Lake hosts 150,000 Canada geese each winter, providing game for both human hunters and one of the most precise hunters in nature, the bald eagle.

Although many bald eagles winter in other Southern Illinois locations, Horseshoe Lake is a favorite nesting site and a wonderful spot to view them.

About fifteen bald eagles take winter residence at Horseshoe Lake. They build nests in tall trees along the lakeshore. In addition to their enormous size (a mature female may have a wingspan of eight feet), the mature eagles’ distinct white heads and tailfeathers make them easy to spot in leafless winter treetops.

Fishing is, of course, a popular activity at Horseshoe as well. A marina rents motor boats and paddle boats and provides other services for sportsmen.