Hollow Body Frog Fishing on Lake Shafer
Lake Shafer · Indiana · Midwest
Lake Shafer sits just north of Monticello, Indiana, impounded by the Norway Dam on the Tippecanoe River and covering roughly 1,380 acres with a characteristically narrow, river-run shape. The fishery mixes flooded timber, dock-lined coves, scattered milfoil beds, and gradual sand-to-rock transitions that create a wider range of holding structure than the lake's modest size suggests. Water clarity trends stained to slightly murky through most of the season, which pushes bass into shallower ambush positions more reliably than on cleaner impoundments nearby.
A soft, hollow body with two upturned hooks that rides over surface vegetation completely weedless. Work it across mats, let it fall into pockets, and work it around pad edges. When a bass grabs it from below, the soft body collapses and the hooks drive home. Big-fish technique — frog fishing consistently produces 4+ pound fish.
Hollow Body Frog Setup for Lake Shafer
| Rod | 7'3"–7'6" heavy casting rod, fast action |
| Reel | 7.1:1–8.1:1 baitcaster |
| Line | 50–65 lb braid (no stretch, cuts through grass, positive hooksets) |
| Weight | 1/2–5/8 oz (BOOYAH Pad Crasher, Livetarget Frog, Spro Bronze Eye) |
Seasonal Tactics on Lake Shafer
Lake: Pre-spawn largemouth stack in 4–8 ft of water on the first hard wood and dock structure they can find once temps push past 52°F; north-end timber coves warm first and draw fish earliest. Flipping a 3/8 oz black/blue jig tight to flooded wood produces before the main-lake coves even warm up.
Hollow Body Frog: Fish the edges of sparse early grass and around pads as water warms above 60°F.
Lake: Milfoil and mixed submerged vegetation draws bass into 3–6 ft by mid-July; shallow dock skipping with a 5-inch Senko or hollow-body frog over matted weed edges accounts for most big-fish catches. Deep structure options are limited, so fish that would suspend on clearer reservoirs tend to stay compressed in the shallow canopy.
Hollow Body Frog: Prime season. Work across matted grass and punch into pockets. Midday bite can be excellent under mats.
Lake: Shad migrations pull schooling largemouth to channel swing points and the mouths of back-coves from late September through early November; a 3/8 oz War Eagle spinnerbait in a shad-matching white/chartreuse works well as fish chase bait in 5–10 ft before the cold sets in.
Hollow Body Frog: Fish open pockets in dying grass. Work slowly as fish become less aggressive.
Lake: Bass drop to the deepest available water, typically 12–16 ft near the old river channel, and go largely lethargic; a slow-dragged 1/2 oz football jig in green pumpkin or brown on 12 lb fluorocarbon is about as productive as anything once water temps dip below 45°F.
Hollow Body Frog: Not applicable — bass leave shallow vegetation in cold water.
Best Conditions
Thick grass mats, lily pads, surface vegetation, shallow water in summer, post-spawn through fall, morning and evening
Wait on the hookset. After the explosion, lower the rod tip slightly and wait until you feel pressure before sweeping hard. Premature hooksets cost half your fish.
More Techniques for Lake Shafer
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