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NICE CONDITIONS LURING ANGLERS TO AUTUMN OUTINGS
If you’ve been waiting for nice fall weather, cooler conditions and a
tint of fall colors in their early phase then wait no longer.
Kentucky Lake is a great place to be right now as autumn descends.
Stable weather should be in the forecast for the next few weeks as mild
temperatures greet fishermen, not to mention light winds.
Stability is the norm this time of year and while anglers have seen last
week’s cool fall weather lose its grip to some summer style days, it
appears a little cool snap this weekend will chase away the hot days
that lingered all week.
Anglers may to endure a windy day or two this weekend as a cool front
pushes through courtesy of brisk north breezes.
It has been a nice week overall with somewhat above average temperatures
dominating the fishing scene. Surface temperatures edged back up to 75
degrees at midweek but fell to the lower 70’s late last weekend. Watch
for surface temps to fall back a few degrees this weekend as cool nights
are fast approaching. Daytime highs are expected to be some 10 degrees
cooler by Saturday.
Lake levels are sleeping near the low ebb of winter pool. Elevation for
the weekend is forecast to be 354.9 at Kentucky Dam and a few inches
lower upstream at New Johnsonville where a reading of 354.8 is
projected.
Water color remains clear across the reservoir. Hardly any rain has
fallen this week across the TVA valley.
Low lake levels are dominating the conversation among the ranks of
recreational boaters and some fishermen too. It’s that time of year.
Actually, lake levels are normal as TVA lowers the reservoir to create
more storage capacity as late fall and winter approach. However, many
visitors to the lake area are somewhat intimidated by exposed mud flats
and sandbars.
Boaters are urged to use caution throughout the fall and winter months.
It’s imperative anyone on the lake pay close attention to channel
markers and resist the temptation to take those shortcuts across open
water sandbars.
Avoiding the buoy markers in late fall will run the risk of damaging
your boat and lower unit, not to mention your own safety.
From the fishing scene comes pretty good reports from crappie anglers
who are encountering large numbers of fish. Dominating the crappie scene
are big numbers of small fish. Expect to encounter a lot of crappie just
shy of the 10-inch minimum length limit.
Several boats reported landing up to 100 fish a day lately so you can
have a lot of fun catching even if you are culling several. There are a
few good ones mixed in however, so you will tie into a dandy now and
then.
The 2014 year class is dominating the population right now on Kentucky
Lake as it was a good spawn that year and there is an abundance of fish
in the 9 ¾-inch range out there right now. Before you complain too much
remember those fish indicate a strong rebound is on the way.
Most of the fish this week were taken in depths of 9 to 11 feet around
the Paris Landing area but the falling lake levels appear to have pulled
a lot of fish back to the deep sides of main lake ledges. Depths of 17
to 19 feet were giving up some fish too.
Although most boats were vertical fishing jigs or jigs tipped with
minnows over brushpiles and stakebeds, some deep water presentations by
anglers using straight minnows on bottom bumping rigs paid dividends.
Seems the combination of falling lake levels and warmer days sent
several fish back to the deep sides of drop-offs the last few days.
The shallow bite will improve as soon as cloudy, rainy days and cooler
surface temps return.
Bass fishermen have been beating the banks with shallow running
crankbaits and spinnerbaits around gravel shorelines, boathouses,
roadbeds and any visible crappie beds exposed in the low lake levels.
Not many decent size fish have been taken there however. Most of the
better stringers are coming from the mouths of big bays where long
sloping points or flats near deep water are beginning to attract a few
schooling bass at times.
Watch for gulls to help you locate schooling bait fish this time of
year. Tossing a variety of shad colored variations ranging from
crankbaits and swimbaits to suspending jerk baits can pay dividends if
you encounter the baitfish and feeding bass.
Ledge fishing continues to appeal to boaters too and some are fishing as
though it were mid-summer as to their approach. Texas rigged worms and
swim baits have worked well as have lure choices such as Strike King’s
Red-eyed shad series.
A lack of aquatic vegetation has altered the plans of most bass
fishermen on Kentucky Lake this fall but anglers are learning to adjust
and fall back to secondary drop-offs and main lake flats in search of
submerged structure or schooling bass in open water.
Not much topwater action has been reported lately but that can change
quickly should anglers encounter baitfish on gravel banks feeding on
midge hatches in the early morning or late afternoons.
Backing off the banks seems to be producing the best stringers as of
late.
Also check out our past:
Kentucky Lake Fishing Reports
Steve McCadams is one of the nation's best known Crappie Fishermen
and a full time resident of Paris, Tennessee. Steve is also a
professional hunting and fishing guide here in the Paris Landing area.
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