Mud Lake in Shelby County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Mud Lake is set in Shelby County, Tennessee. The water sits 187 feet up. At 340 acres this is proper open water rather than a pond. With 3.5 miles or so of shoreline, boat anglers cover ground the bank cannot. On our Shelby County list it sits near the top for size. Walls sits 3.9 miles from the bank. The big place round here is New South Memphis, 11 miles distant. Local rules may differ a few miles either side of here.

• Where to Fish on Mud Lake

  No depth figure has reached our records, which makes a plummet useful. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Shelby County records list bluegill, green sunfish and common carp among the fish reported. County data is a starting point rather than a guarantee. At Mud Lake light and wind decide more than tackle does.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warm month here averages 81°F; the cold one sits at 38°F. Temperatures stay workable through the cold season. Spring and autumn carry the fishing; summer squeezes it into the edges of the day. Autumn steadies things again once the heat lets go. Time your trip to Mud Lake by conditions rather than dates.

• Tackle & Baits

  We have no record of the rules that apply on this bank. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. It is recorded as an oxbow, which means still water with a river's shape. For the catfish, fish bottom baits into the deeper holes and let them sit. Check locally before you travel, because a wasted drive is a long one. Some water is controlled locally without a sign saying so. Cockleburr Lake sits 1.2 miles off and takes the overflow. Treat Mud Lake as unsettled until someone local tells you otherwise.