Slab crappies are meat eaters—sure enough minnow munchers. They take artificials well at times, especially jigs—but big crappie will turn their noses at even the best of the best crappie lures.

Nestled along the shores of Melvern Lake, Eisenhower State Park offers that rare combination of accessibility and wilderness that makes it perfect for both the “my idea of camping is a hotel without ...