Illinois Power Plant Lakes
Updated October, 2005
To many Illinois fishermen, the best response to Mother Nature's cruel Midwestern winters is to
hunker down at home watching fishing show reruns. Occasionally, they may attend a sport show, but
basically their strategy is to wait it out.
Others refuse to accept the situation and head for the hot water in one of Illinois' power
plant lakes.
These lakes are scattered throughout Illinois and offer fishermen a variety of angling
opportunities from vast stretches of rip rap in some lakes to more traditional cover such as stumpy
points and fallen trees in others.
The regulations, daily fishing hours, and times these lakes are open to fishermen vary among
lakes. Most offer a good variety of species and access for bank and boat fishermen.
ILFishing.com has accumulated some basic information about Illinois power plant lakes, including
contact numbers, daily hours, lake opening and closing dates, and horsepower and speed limit
restrictions. This year we added new information, such as limited access to ramps at Sangchris Lake
and restrictions about dock fishing at Lake of Egypt.
We have included the name of a nearby city so that you can locate bait shops by using
our “Bait Shops by City” link on the Fishing Information page.
With one exception, we have not included phone numbers of the power plants. Most of the plants
do not wish to be bothered with phone calls requesting information about operating schedules or
water temperatures. We suggest that you contact a local bait shop for this information.
Nearly all the lakes are managed by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and have
web pages as part of the DNR web site. We provide a link to the web pages for those lakes. There
you will find additional information and an email link.
Some lakes are managed by municipalities ( Springfield Lake ) or the power companies
themselves ( Lake of Egypt ) and thus do not have web pages on the DNR web site. Heidecke Lake
has been deleted from the list because of the discontinuation of power generation at the lake.
Many of these lakes close, restrict hours, or close off specific areas of the lake to coincide
with either the waterfowl hunting season or deer hunting firearms dates. The specific dates of
these restrictions vary yearly, so be sure to get the current information before planning your trip.
The “Lake Areas Closed” category refers to areas that are closed only at specific times of
the year. Most lakes have areas buoyed off that remain closed at all times, such as near the hot
water intake and discharge areas and near dams and spillways.
For site specific fishing regulations for Illinois lakes, obtain a copy of the DNR Fishing
Information Digest or visit the following link on the DNR web site:
http://dnr.state.il.us/fish/digest/index.htm
Baldwin Lake
Site Phone Number: 618-785-2555
Location: two miles northwest of Baldwin
County: Randolph and St. Clair
Web Link:
http://dnr.state.il.us/lands/Landmgt/PARKS/R4/baldwin.htm
Dates Closed: Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, New Years Day
Lake Areas Closed: South 1/3 of lake is closed between Nov.1 and April 1
Daily Hours: Nov.1 through Feb. 15- 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Feb. 16 through April 15- 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.
April 16 through Oct. 31- 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.
H.P. or boat speed restrictions: 50 horsepower limit
Braidwood Lake (Mazonia Braidwood Fish and Wildlife Area)
Site Phone Number: 815-237-0063
Location: in city of Braidwood
County: Will
Web Link:
http://dnr.state.il.us/lands/landmgt/PARKS/R2/MAZONIA.HTM
Dates Closed: Closed yearly 10 days prior to the central area waterfowl season (mid October)
until March 1
Lake Areas Closed: none when lake reopens March 1
Daily Hours: 6 a.m. to sunset
H.P. or boat speed restrictions: 40 mph speed limit
Clinton Lake
Site Phone Number: 217-935-8722
Location: two miles east of Clinton
County: DeWitt
Web Link:
http://dnr.state.il.us/lands/landmgt/PARKS/R3/CLINTON.HTM
Dates Closed: Open year round.
Lake Areas Closed: The area in the East arm (hot arm) between the DeWitt bridge and the Route
48 bridge is closed until April 1
Daily Hours: Unrestricted
H.P. or boat speed restrictions: none
Coffeen Lake
Site Phone Number: 217-537-3351
Location: 6 miles southeast of Hillsboro
County: Montgomery
Web Link:
http://dnr.state.il.us/lands/landmgt/PARKS/R4/Coffeen.htm
Dates Closed: Lake closed entirely for deer firearms weekends. These dates are Nov. 18, 19, 20
and Dec. 1, 2, 3, 4, in 2005
Lake Areas Closed: The area north of the railroad tracks (north pool) is closed from sunrise
to 1 p.m. on Oct. 22 and 23 and from Oct. 29 to Feb. 1
Daily Hours: Unrestricted except as noted above
H.P. or boat speed restrictions: 25 horsepower maximum
Lake of Egypt
Site Phone Number: Call one of three marinas on the lake for information. Egyptian Hills
(618)996-3449, Lake of Egypt (618)964-1821, or Pyramid Acres (618)964-1184.
Location: 10 miles south of Marion
County: Williamson and Johnson
Web Link: none available
Dates Closed: Open year round
Lake Areas Closed: No fishing allowed within 10 feet of any dock.
Daily Hours: unrestricted
H.P. or boat speed restrictions: 35 mph speed limit
LaSalle Lake
Site Phone Number: 815-357-1608. Call 815-795-2448 when lake is closed.
Location: 8 miles southeast of Marseilles
County: LaSalle
Web Link:
http://dnr.state.il.us/lands/landmgt/PARKS/R1/LASALLE.HTM
Dates Closed: Lake closes entirely in Oct. for waterfowl season and will reopen between
March 15 and April 1. Lake is closed Mondays and Tuesdays during Oct. and March, but is open 7
days/week from April 1 through Sept. 30.
Lake Areas Closed: none when lake reopens.
Daily Hours: 6 a.m. to sunset
H.P. or boat speed restrictions: none, but boats must have gas motors. No recreational
boating allowed (canoes, sailboats, skiing, etc.).
Newton Lake
Site Phone Number: 618-783-3478
Location: 15 miles southwest of Newton
County: Jasper
Web Link:
http://dnr.state.il.us/lands/landmgt/PARKS/R5/NEWTON.HTM
Dates Closed: Lake closed entirely for deer firearms weekends. These dates are Nov. 18, 19, 20
and Dec. 1, 2, 3, 4, in 2005
Lake Areas Closed: The East arm (cold arm) is closed at the beginning of the waterfowl season
(Nov. 24- Thanksgiving Day) until at least Feb. 1
Daily Hours: unrestricted
H.P. or boat speed restrictions: 25 horsepower maximum
Powerton Lake
Site Phone Number: 309-968-7135
Location: Southwest edge of Pekin
County: Tazewell
Web Link:
http://dnr.state.il.us/lands/landmgt/PARKS/R1/POWERTON.HTM
Dates Closed: Lake closed to boats from Oct. 21 until Feb. 15 and closed for bank fishing
from Oct. 29 until Dec. 27
Lake Areas Closed: none when lakes reopens
Daily Hours: Oct. 1 through April 30- 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
May 1 through Sept. 30- 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.
H.P. or boat speed restrictions: none, except a no wake zone along all banks.
Sangchris Lake
Site Phone Number: 217-498-9208
Power Plant Phone Number: 217-237-4311. Ask for the Control Room for water temperature
information only.
Location: 15 miles southeast of Springfield
County: Sangamon and Christian
Web Link:
http://dnr.state.il.us/lands/landmgt/PARKS/R4/SANGCH.HTM
Dates Closed: Lake closed entirely for deer firearms weekends. These dates are Nov. 18, 19, 20
and Dec. 1, 2, 3, 4, in 2005
Lake Areas Closed: The East and West arms are closed from 10 days prior to the beginning of
the waterfowl season (Oct. 19) until Feb. 1. The East ramp is currently closed for repairs so the
Strawkas Point Ramp located in the hot (middle arm) arm of the lake is the only ramp available to
fishermen. The East ramp may become available in January.
Daily Hours: unrestricted
H.P. or boat speed restrictions: 25 horsepower maximum
Springfield Lake
Site Phone Number: 217-757-8660 Ext. 1003
Location: Southeast edge of Springfield
County: Sangamon
Web Link:
http://www.cwlp.com/lake_springfield/lake.htm
Dates Closed: Open year round
Lake Areas Closed: none, but it may be necessary to launch boats at the Spalding Dam ramp
at the North end of the lake if ramps freeze elsewhere.
Daily Hours: unrestricted
H.P. or boat speed restrictions: 35 mph during day, 15 mph at night
Note: This lake is owned and managed by the city of Springfield and has special regulations
that include proof of boats being registered with the Illinois DNR and boating fees based on
residency and motor horsepower. Lakefront property owners can ask boat fishermen not to fish
within 100 feet of their property.
|
