Lost Lake in Perry County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Within Perry County, Illinois, you have Lost Lake. Everything around it is open valley. Small at around 11 acres: two anglers spread out cover most of it. 3.9 miles away sits Pinckneyville, the nearest town. St. Louis is the closest city, 60 miles away. In the same area: Beehive Lake at about 0.2 miles, Hidden Lake 0.3 miles, Plum Lake at about 0.4 miles, Blackberry Lake 0.4 miles and Cottonwood Lake at about 0.5 miles. It sits near the edge of the county, so check which rules apply.

• Where to Fish on Lost Lake

  Depth is not on record here, which means reading the ground instead. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Reported across Perry County: bluegill, johnny darter and slough darter. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. Take Lost Lake a stretch at a time.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Seasonal averages run from 30°F in January up to 78°F in July. The calendar is generous: something works in nearly every month. In a normal year the cover is thin and short-lived. The cooler months are the comfortable ones to fish here. That is the shape of the year on Lost Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  We have no record of the rules that apply on this bank. There is a slipway at Lost Lake, roughly half a mile off. A parking area is marked roughly half a mile out. Public data records a pier about 0.9 miles out. A picnic area is mapped about half a mile away. A toilet block sits half a mile away. Check locally before you travel, because a wasted drive is a long one. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. Should this one be busy, Beehive Lake is 0.2 miles off. Signs at Lost Lake carry more weight than any list.