Person fishing from a boat on a calm lake surrounded by greenery under a clear blue sky.

Tight Lines Guide Service

Full Service Fishing Guide

Lake Decatur

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Lake Shelbyville

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Clinton Lake

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Lake Decatur - Lake Shelbyville - Clinton Lake -

Welcome to tight lines guide service.

We are a year-round crappie fishing guide service on Lake Shelbyville and Clinton Lake.  We will provide everything you need to enjoy a day of crappie fishing. All you need to bring is a valid Illinois fishing license, appropriate clothing for the weather we are expecting that day i.e. rain gear, sunscreen, hat, sunglasses, and whatever food you would like for the day.  We will provide a cooler with ice and water for the day.

Lake Shelbyville is located across both Shelby and Moultrie counties in central Illinois.  It is an 11,000 acre Army Corps of Engineers flood control reservoir.  Clinton Lake is located in DeWitt county approximately 10 miles east of Clinton IL.  Clinton is a power plant lake and is used as a cooling water source for Clinton Power Station which makes the water warmer and can be an oasis in the middle of winter when all the other lakes are frozen solid.  Both lakes offer excellent crappie populations.

“My fishing memories are many. But treasured most of all are those fishing trips when all appeared hopeless, and then crappie came to the rescue.” – Dan Gapen

Fish with Captain Dan
Man with beard wearing sunglasses and a hat holding a small fish while fishing on a lake with greenery in the background.

  • "Had a great time. Dan has the knowledge and experience needed to bring in your limit of fish. We'll see him again for sure."

    —B.N

  • "Tight Lines Guide Service is amazing. We had such a great time and we made a new friend. If you are looking for a great guide service look no further. Dan is the man. Very knowledgeable and answered all our questions."

    —C.H

  • "Had a blast fishing with Dan. Not only did he get us on fish, and get us our limit, the conversation was great. Well worth the money and would highly recommend."

    —E.R

  • "Spent the day on boat with Dan. We had a great day. We relaxed, after our family had a couple of tough months. We caught good quality crappies, few white bass. Great fun good conversation! Great day Dan truly enjoyed it!"

    —J.K

  • "I've used guides from quite a few areas.Rend Lake, Kentucky Lakes, Lake Erie etc. Dan is the best by far! We went out on Lake Shelbyville on 4/21 and thanks to Dan, we had our limit of crappies by 2pm. He put us on fish and kept us on fish! I highly recommend Tight Lines! He knows the fish patterns and is extremely knowledgeable of the latest state of the art fishing technology and techniques. I will definitely book with him again!

    - R.P

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An elderly man wearing sunglasses and an orange cap holding a fish on a boat near a river with trees in the background.
A man with sunglasses and gray hair holding a large fish on a boat during a sunny day.
A young girl is smiling and holding up a large fish she caught while fishing on a boat at a lake on a sunny day. She's wearing a gray cap, glasses, a pink life jacket, a blue shirt, and denim shorts. There are fishing rods laid on the boat's floor and other fishing equipment in the background.
A man and a woman holding fish in each hand standing behind a table filled with fish on a parking lot. The man is wearing a green hoodie, sunglasses, and jeans, while the woman is wearing a gray beanie, a blue and yellow jacket, and tan overalls. In the background, there are leafless trees and a grassy area.
A man and woman standing next to a table with freshly caught fish on display, under a wooden shelter in an outdoor setting surrounded by green trees.