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Keith from IN
Kentucky Lake Crappie Fishing
"1 pole jig fishing"
WINTER WEATHER ANYTHING BUT PREDICTABLE!
One day it’s warm. The next day it’s cold.
Some weeks have frigid temps with snow and ice. Then, a few days later
it seems spring is here with record high temps while birds sing
serenades as though April was on the doorstep.
Jane and Tom TN Crew
Kentucky Lake Crappie Fishing
"1 pole jig fishing"
Crappie Action
Guide Service
To say our winter weather has been unpredictable would be a gross
understatement. Fishermen and hunters don’t seem to know how to dress if
they’re going outside or know whether to go outside at all!
Added to the temperature roller coaster now comes more rain. Lots of it
too!
As this update was formulated heavy rains were pounding the Tennessee
Valley, drenching an already saturated region. Gloomy days with low
skies are sure to drop lots of water across the region so anglers can
expect lake levels on Kentucky Lake and elsewhere to start back up the
ladder.
Tom and "OC" from Chicago
Kentucky Lake Crappie Fishing
"1 pole jig fishing"
Crappie Action
Guide Service
TVA had been pushing a lot of water through Kentucky Dam this week and
had the reservoir down to a low ebb elevation of 354, which is about a
foot below normal winter pool. The low elevation was likely due to TVA’s
anticipation of heavy rains that will send runoff into the reservoir so
they dropped the lake down to create more storage capacity.
Winter crappie and bass anglers should anticipate rising lake levels in
the days ahead. Water color had been good for fishing and anglers can
anticipate additional stain entering the reservoir by this weekend but
it’s not likely interfere with main lake areas. No doubt the upper ends
of bays and the upper Big Sandy basin will see some muddy water coming
in.
Surface temps have been in the 46 degree range this week. Several mild
days have lingered, offering anglers a chance to get out and about and
address their cabin fever symptoms.
Roger Binkley and Chase Binkley
Kentucky Lake Crappie Fishing
"1 pole jig fishing"
Crappie Action
Guide Service
Last weekend’s unusually nice weather had boat ramps overflowing and
parking at a premium. A glance at such places as Port Road and Paris
Landing State Park boat ramps made it look like early April instead of
early February.
In fact, some anglers said it was downright crowded at times in the
mouth of Big Sandy in the Paris Landing State Park sector as most all
boats were targeting the main lake ledges and competing for spots.
Depths of 18 to 22 feet have been giving up some crappie and seems most
all anglers headed to the open water venues and avoiding fishing in bays
or shallow areas.
Some reports came in from anglers working the 25 to 30 foot depth range.
Although no big catches were reported several boats did manage to land 7
or 8 keeper size crappie, an indication fish were a bit scattered and
not in a winter schooling mode.
Dave and Jeff KY Crew
Kentucky Lake Crappie Fishing
"1 pole jig fishing"
Crappie Action
Guide Service
Most veteran crappie fishermen feel the overall numbers are just not out
there to consistently yield catchable limits. Even when the weather has
been perfect with warm temps and light winds the lion’s share of anglers
have struggle to catch a double-digit stringer.
There have been some exceptions as occasionally some individual slips up
on the right spot at the right time and manages to hook up with a few
fish relating to brushpiles or other submerged structure in a deep depth
zone. However, those landing limits of keeper crappie have been in the
minority this past fall and winter.
Successful anglers have reported using orange/chartreuse, chartreuse
with red glitter tube skirts and some blue/chartreuse with sparkle
skirts. When clear water was encountered dull colors such a motor oil
with gold sparkle type skirts have been popular.
Jig presentations are ranging from hollow body tube skirts to solid body
styles such as Bobby Garland type grubs. Others use a hair style or
feather body such as homemade hand tied jigs or store bought brands such
as the Popeye brand.
Some anglers are tipping jigs with minnows; other prefer jigs only.
Adding a scent such as Berkley Power Bait has it’s time and place too.
With rising lake levels likely in the days ahead, anglers should see a
few crappie following the rise and moving up toward more shallow areas
as they pursue schools of shad. Cooler weather will follow the rain now
underway and dip down a bit for the weekend but temps are expected to
moderate slightly by early next week.
The long range forecast appears to have normal winter temperatures
staying around for the next week to ten days. Odds of getting more
spring weather that spoiled fishermen these last two weeks are unlikely
in the immediate future.
Bass anglers have been out too slinging away at everything from gravel
banks and rock bluff to ledges where they hoped to encounter a
smallmouth or two.
Tossing hair jigs and a variety of twister tail grubs or perhaps
suspending jerk baits have been popular lure choices for winter bass
fishermen. Crankbaits have been popular too as they always seem to have
a place in the Kentucky Lake bass fishermen’s arsenal.
Veteran anglers can recall times when winter fishing on Kentucky Lake
was quite limited due to bitter weather and ice around boat ramps. In
fact, there have been weeks and months when very little fishing was done
as weather just didn’t allow it.
So, if you’ve had a few unfortunate days when rain or wind kept you off
the lake or perhaps your long range plans were put on hold, don’t
complain too much. There were times in winters past when anglers pretty
much hibernated around late November and didn’t come out of their caves
until mid-March!
Present day fishing doesn’t seem to battle the severe winters of
yesteryear. For bass and crappie anglers in the Kentucky Lake region it
has become a year round sport with short intervals of inclement weather.
This year has been exceptionally kind to anglers. Let’s hope the trend
continues all the way through spring!
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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