KY Lake fall crappie advice

Hey guys i just joined this forum today and wanted to see if i could get a few pointers from you guys. I am headed down there this friday the 14th to fish for a few days. I normally fish below the dam for blue cats. This trip I am bringing my wifes grandfather with me for his 80th bday and he is wanting to catch crappie! We are staying at KY Dam Village. Fishing for crappie this time of year is not something that i am very knowledgable on so i was hoping to get some advice. From what i have gathered online it seems like they come back to the mid depth water this time of year, 8-20ft range and hang tight to wood. I figure i will start out fishing the stake beds and brush piles and if they dont bite i will keep working deeper til i find them. Do they like live minnows this time of year? any advice will help! Thanks guys!

:welcome and I don't know much about KY lake, but I've found over the years that Crappie almost always like minnows

Welcome. It would help if we knew how you was set up to fish.

Sorry I didn't think to mention my setup. I will be fishing from a boat. I am setup for catfish with the rod rack across the back and I have rod holders around the side and front of boat for drifting and trolling. I have a t bar for the front so that I can do a small spread spider rig if needed.

Having trouble figuring out how to post a pic of my boat.

We fought the winds this weekend that were brutal on Saturday. We trolled crankbaits in the areas we could Sat and the areas we wanted to Sunday. We took 12 keeper crappie Sat and 25 today. Trolling crankbaits for crappie isn't for everybody but I've had several folks in my boat over the age of 80 and each and every one had a great time trolling for crappie.

Fish seem to be scattered right now. One day you can catch them shallow rigging minnows then the next they will be back out a little deeper. The crank baits are a good way to catch scattered fish.

Friday the fish were extremely scattered so I would employ a technique you're comfortable with that would allow you to cover a lot of water (either trolling crankbaits, long lining jigs or casting the woody banks with roadrunners.)

You can put Kentucky lake in the search feature and scroll through a few of them. One or two will have info. you will probably find useful. I do not think you will catch much very far away from the main lake body or channels. If you don't spider rig or pull cranks you can vertical fish minnows by drift fishing or try to set up on brush or other. I have not fished Kentucky this year....but it has been pretty much the same story on all the other impoundments I have fished this fall. Most fish caught are near main lake body. Not much very far back in creek arms or coves.

Cranks.....or minnows over brush either drifting or vertically....check your pm's.

Thanks guys!

Any more KY lake fishing reports? I'm headed down tomorrow evening and I'm getting excited! Can't wait!!

I can always scratch out a good dinner with a pink Zebco 33 using a slip cork and a minner tossed around stakebeds. The key to this I believe is not throwing into the stake bed, but throwing past the stake bed and letting the wind push the minner into the bed or slowly reeling it into the stakebed.