Buckhorn Lake

Hi everyone! I'm Matt, coming in from Manchester, Kentucky (Clay County), and this is my first time posting here. So, I've read the latest issue of Kentucky Game & Fish magazine and they have given Buckhorn Lake in Leslie & Perry counties the title of "Best Early Season Crappie Lake." Anyone have any experience with fishing for crappie on Buckhorn? I only live about 45 minutes from there, so I will probably be giving it a shot whenever the first big warm front comes in. I'm a little skeptical, because all I've heard about Buckhorn is MUSKY MUSKY MUSKY. And oh, by the way, anyone have any insight on good crappie artificials for KY crappie?

Matt
Buckorn Lake has in the past produced good crappie. Rainfall can really effect this lake more than most lakes. Right now launching a boat may be difficult due to low winter pool level. Locating some brush on the lower lake area should be good but as the lake level rises I would move up into the mid/upper lake area.

Bill (Team Keelshield)

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Originally Posted by mattcombs

And oh, by the way, anyone have any insight on good crappie artificials for KY crappie?

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Here's a copy of a previous post of mine, that may get you started in the right direction:



open water casting - 1/32oz Roadrunner (1-6ft) 1/16oz Roadrunner (6-15ft)
wood cover casting - 1/32-1/16oz weedless jighead & 1.5" tube body or Panfish Assassin
dock shooting - 1/32-1/16oz weedless jighead & Panfish Assassin
vertical casting - 1/16oz marabou jig
vertical tightline - #4 Gremlin clamp-on sinker, #1 Eagle Claw light wire bronze hook, lively minnow - Shad - Brook Silverside

That's about all the methods I employ, on any routine basis

Colors change ... but, White - Pink - Chartreuse are hard to beat (and most any other color w/Chartreuse !!)

The great thing about Crappie, is they'll hit some of the most mundane baits ... and some of the "purtiest" baits ... and some of the most butt ugly baits ... big baits ... little tiny baits ... live bait ... recently deceased bait ... and so on .......... cp :cool:

I haven't fished Buckhorn but I know a few guys that do and they catch a few fish.I mainly fish Carr Creek lake. There are some pretty good fishin in the little ol lake !!! There are some monster walleye in this lake....

Hey Slabseeker...you have a PM

New to the board....how does this pm work

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Originally Posted by KY SLABSEEKER

New to the board....how does this pm work

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Look at the far right corner of this board - you should see "Welcome, Slabseeker" ... you last visited at xxxx - and Private Messages should be a blue lettered link. Right next to that is Unread x, Total xx ... If you have a PM that you have not read ... "Unread" should tell you how many you have. "Total" tells you how many you have read, that are still accessable and have not yet been deleted.
Click on the Private Messages link, and it will take you to your PM screen ... from there it's pretty much like Email. If you want to send a PM to another member ... click on their screen name in any post/thread. A drop down box should come out .. and you can choose to look at the members profile, send a PM, send a email, find all posts by that member, etc. If the member doesn't want PM's or Email ... it will alert you to that fact.

If you have an email account, and want to be notified there, when you have a PM on here ... go to your "User CP" (first option on the black line above this thread) -- click on the "User CP" and look on the left side bar, under Control Panel -- under settings & options, click on Edit options. On that page ... look for "Messaging & Notification" box - put check marks in all boxes in that catagory, that you want the site's system to do for you. It won't transfer the PM to your email page ... it will just tell you that you HAVE a PM from whomever. You can click on the link, in the notice, and it will bring you here (to your PM page). ............. cp :cool:

Thanks for all the info CP....

Does anyone on here live near Buckhorn Lake? I will probably be going to the Leatherwood dock as soon as we get a good warm front through SE KY. Would love to find out some information about the current water level of the lake.

I fish Buckhorn all the time when I go back to ky to visit. I'm a santee guy now. kenfolk live just a few miles from the dam.

I would be focusing on the area down by the dam, thats where the wood and junk gather up and should be holding the crappie this early. I don't know what the current lake level is but it should be (as always this time of year) at winter pool. This is a good lake and its worth going, even if you can't find the fish you get to see what it looks like at the winter pool because in the spring when the water comes back up, you'll be fishing what now should be dry. Buckhorns a good lake for bass, crappie, bluegill and them teethy fish. I always fish around the dam area, I think it produces more fish than any other area on the lake. specially Bass and they love PB&J senko's.

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Originally Posted by santee crappie chaser

I fish Buckhorn all the time when I go back to ky to visit. I'm a santee guy now. kenfolk live just a few miles from the damn.

I would be focusing on the area down by the damn, thats where the wood and junk gather up and should be holding the crappie this early. I don't know what the current lake level is but it should be (as always this time of year) at winter pool. This is a good lake and its worth going, even if you can't find the fish you get to see what it looks like at the winter pool because in the spring when the water comes back up, you'll be fishing what now should be dry. Buckhorns a good lake for bass, crappie, bluegill and them teethy fish. I always fish around the damn area, I think it produces more fish than any other area on the lake. specially Bass and they love PB&J senko's.

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Thanks for the info santee crappie chaser! It's really cold down here right now, so I probably won't be going fishing in the near future. They are giving snow tonight (it has only snowed like 3 times this year). It figures that it starts snowing when I start o think about fishing :(. Where exactly is the dam located? I've been to the state park one time (it's been years ago, and I was staying in the lodge over there for a camp thing. Didn't get out on the lake or anything. That was in winter, and I can remember the lake being REALLY low). As I said in my last post, I've tracked down the easiest route to Leatherwood, now I just need to figure a little more out about the lake before I actually go there. Homework, I guess you could call it. I'd like to figure out as much as I can so I'll have more fishing time and less exploring! :)

Thanks again, and I'd appreciate anything else you could provide. Who knows, maybe if I do well there I'll see you over there sometime? :)

I'll check into those PB&J Senko's you mentioned, as well. I'm not a big on bass fishing, but I'll fish for anything that bites (which is crappie, most of the time, but you never know).

Edit: Oh, and by the way, which size of those Senko's do you usually do best with?

The dam is located behind buckhorn high school theirs a ramp their but I'm sure its dry right now more than likely. You could take squabble creek road straight up to the dam if you knew the way. Then again that little crooked road probabley isn't safe to drive pulling a boat.

I like the 6 inch PB&J yamamoto senko's up their. Man when they bite they really nail it. I have also had good luck on black lizards with a chartreuse tail.

from the Lodge, just hang it RIGHT, you'll get to the dam area and you'll see the drift wood piles. I know its cold out and it is down my way this week as well. I'd wait a while too. The cross ties are up and you can't get directly at the dam, you'll see what I'm talking about but from the bend to the dam is good fishing. I don't fish it in extremely cold weather though, The deep south has got me spoiled. lol

Well, I think I have figured out what you are talking about. I won't be able to go to the state park (on land, anyway) because I'd have to go to Hazard, then toward Buckhorn, etc, etc. That would probably add about an hour to my drive time. From the looks of the lake, it would probably be a lot easier just to drive the boat from Leatherwood to the dam (my little Tracker is pretty fast :D). Are you familiar with where I live? If you come into Hyden from London on the Hal Rogers Parkway, you come right through Manchester on your way. I live in the eastern portion of Clay County, close to the Big Creek area. It seems the fastest way for me to get to Buckhorn Lake is to take US 421 into Leslie Co, then turn on KY 1482, then KY 484 dead-ends at the Leatherwood Ramp and Picnic area. On that route, I'd be going through the Sizerock and Panco communities.

So the dam is at the northern end of the lake, right? Looks like it would be about 4-5 miles from the Leatherwood ramp. Pretty long way to go on water, but if the fishing is that good up there, I guess it would be worth it. :)

I've located those Senko's you're talking about. Might have to get some of those on my next Basspro order. :)

Oh, and you'd be glad to know that Buckhorn is getting good reviews from the Fish & Wildlife Dept, too. In the newest fishing forecast, they say there are "MANY Largemouths over 15". Looks like I just might have to get the ol' bass lures out when I head over there, too. :D

I'm from Berea originally and I know where London, Manchester, and Hazard is. Even some old backroads through booneville and out through Jackson county. Then I've been some places I couldn't even begin to tell ya where they was lol. My father in law works for the parks dept on Buckhorn lake, He can take some roads gravel and blacktop, to trace branch, leatherwood, and a couple other sites around the lake, and be to them all within a few minutes of each other where I would have to take the long way around and still probabley get lost. The wifes parents live their in Buckhorn and I fish the lake and middle fork river every chance I get. Me and my brother in law caught a big ole teethy fish as long as my leg in the river a couple years ago behind the lake. We was in one of them plastic bass hunter midget boats. Man oh man now that was fun, it pulled us around pretty good, better than a trolling motor. lol

theirs a giant rock down by the dam, when its mostly under the water in the spring/summer/fall theirs bass all around that area above and below it. I just Texas rig the senko's and lizards. Theirs also a crop of christmas trees in a slew about 3/4 of a mile up from the dam that holds bass pretty good. The corp of engineers put them in their a few years back and I'd say their probabley visible right now.

I know you can find crappie on the depth finder, just drive above the ledges/drop offs and you'll find the fish I'm sure. Thats one thing about mountain lakes, theirs always ledges holding fish, and when you think you found a good ledge, just idle on out towards the middle and their will be another one just deeper. lol

Yeah, I'd say a big muskie in a john boat would be a wild ride. I'm not in to fishing for those things... teeth disturb me. If the snow isn't incredibly deep tomorrow, I might take a ride over to Leatherwood to check the lake out. See if I can get some evidence to make my Dad go fishing over there with me (even though it's freezing). I just don't know if I can hold out for the warm fronts. Fishing fever is hitting me... BAD.

Thanks again for all the tips and replies. Hopefully I'll be able to make good use of them.