Thread: Cave Run Lake

I'm thinking the crappie fishing will be better this year because of all the 8in crappie I caught last year. I wish they would spend as much money on helping the crappie as they do the darn muskie.

Thanks Caveman for the reply. Do you have any up to date info on the water conditions and temperature? Also when do you typically encounter the pre-spawn bite? I live about 65 miles east of the lake in Lawrence County and I know Grayson still has some ice in the creeks. I haven't had a chance to drive by Yatesville since this cold weather but I suspect it still has some ice as well.

Yesterday bangor was still frozen over.Went to blackwater and found only main channel was free of ice .Only caught 10.

The Dept. of Fish & Wildlife are rating crappie as good this year at the Cave. After last year it has to improve. Here's their quote on crappie at Cave Run.

"Spring fishing success should be similar to that found in 2006. Fair numbers of 10 to 12 inch fish caught in 2006, but size generally declined later in the year. During spring months look for black crappie in the shallows near shore and around milfoil later in the year. Good white crappie fishing can be found in the Licking River portion of the lake in the fall."

I'm going next week if I can get away. Hopefully I won't encounter any ice. I usually fish the Poppin Rock area. I'll try to post a report if I can get on the water.

Originally Posted by gopreach

It has been sometime since I have fished Cave Run for crappie. I know some years ago the crappie fishing was pretty good. Can anyone give me an idea of what it has been like the past couple of years and what the projections are for this year? Thanks in advance for any info you can provide.

It's been several years since I've been over to the Cave, Crappie fishing, but I used to make a mid to late April trip about every Spring. Most of my Crappie fishing, there, was minnow/float or casting jigs around standing timber. I usually launched at Twin Knobs, and headed up the lake towards Warix (left turn, out of the launch ramp bay). Used to do pretty good in Cassidy & Shrout Hollow (standing timber in back of these). Also did good along the rock cliff bank between them, out on the main lake, when the wind would allow me to fish it. There's an old roadbed that runs along that bank, and the Licking River channel comes right in on it at the mouth of Cassidy and the left point bank of the mouth of Shrout Hollow. Makes for a easy & short trip, for the Crappie, to come out of their Winter homes ... and ease on back into these two creeks.
I've also fished the timber in Caney Creek, but I think most of those trips were well after spawning time.
I didn't know much about the differences in habits, between the White Crappie and the Black Crappie, back then ... and best I can remember, most of what I caught was White Crappie. If the Black Crappie are there in any appreciable numbers, now .... one might consider going some weeks earlier than when I used to go
At any rate, whenever the water temps get 50deg and above, they should be on the move towards the banks (prespawn feeding). Keep an eye on the water temps & fishing reports, and go when you can. And, please do post reports on your trips !! ....... luck2ya ... cp

My dad and I fished Cave Run yesterday after Church. We did not get on the water until 2:30 pm or so. We put in at Bangor and tried to find some clear water. Most of the water was very dingy or stained at best. We had been on the main lake Friday and only found 42 degree water. We were able to find 49 degree water toward Poppin Rock on the Licking River (obviously the ice is gone now). This time of year the fish are still grouped up on brush around the main river channel. On warm sunny days like yesterday they tend to move up as shallow as 3 feet of water over 20-30 feet. You should be able to catch several by using a slip float and minnow around standing timber or brush. We caught 25-30 yesterday using this method. We kept just 8 fish as most were small, but we had 4 fish over 10.5 inches and one that measured 13 inches. Several already had eggs.

Crappie fishing was definitely tough on Cave Run last year. We rarely failed to catch a good mess, but often it took all day and a lot of gas to get them. I feel very hopeful, like Caveman, because we caught so many 8" fish last year. The best bite of the year comes in late April and early May during the spawn, but we catch our biggest crappie in the fall of the year in deep water around standing trees.

The Pre-Spawn is right upon us and some good Crappie will be caught between now and the end of the spawn. White Crappie are prevalent in Cave Run, but the lake also supports a large, and growing population of aggressive black crappie. Plenty of black Crappie will be caught in the next few weeks as they move toward the shallows to spawn.

The last time that I was on the beautiful Cave Run in the spring of 1992 my motor would not start so I had to pull start the 40 johnson for about 2 1/2 hours to get it running. My shoulder wouldn't hold up to much fishing then, but we managed to catch about 30 fine 4.5 inch fish. Some of them were even thick enough that you could not see through them. Pretty lake, not much for crappie. Save your time and drive to Reelfoot lake in nw tennessee.
rushcreekoutdoor