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I am looking for the best lake in the Northern kentucky area for size and numbers. I can catch a 100 crappie in Kincaid, but there is no size 5-7" to them. Same at Bullock Pen lake. Anyone have any other lakes out there that have some bigger crappie?
Thanks,
Bassky :confused:
You're pretty much resigned to a few small lakes, in the Northern portion of the state - Besides Bullock Pen & Kincaid ... there's Boltz & Williamstown lakes (off I75 at Dry Ridge) - Corinth Lake, Elmer Davis, and a few other small waters around La Grange. Chances are, though, that being so small - they're not going to produce much in the way of size.
Have you tried Guist Creek (East of Shelbyville) ...... Taylorsville (South of Shelbyville & East of Louisville) - I don't know about Guist Creek, but Taylorsville has some decent Crappie.
Or, over to the East of Lexington .... there's Cave Run, Grayson, Yatesville, & Paintsville lakes. I can only vouch for Cave Run - I've never fished the others.
Have you tried fishing the KY River ? Or any of the larger creeks coming off of the Ohio River ? .............. luck2ya ........cp :cool:
I have tried all of the smaller lakes in No Ky. Williamstown probably has the biggest crappie of the lakes, maybe 7-8" avg. The biggest crappie I have caught have come from creeks running into the Ohio River. There you can expect 8-11", but fewer numbers, harder to find. I have fished Taylorsville and Cave Run. Bigger fish at Taylorsville. I was just looking to see if there was anything else closer to home. How is Grayson?Quote:
Originally Posted by crappiepappy
Thanks,
Bassky
I have never fished Grayson.
I know what you mean by trying to find waters a little closer to home .... I live in Lexington - so Taylorsville is a 1.5hr trip - Cave Run is a 1.5hr trip - Cedar Creek is a 1hr trip - Herrington is a 1hr trip - Cumberland is a 1.5hr trip (to Somerset area) or 2.5hr trip (to Jamestown area) - Green River lake is a 2hr trip .......... and that's just to get "to" those lakes. :eek: (it's one reason I've been going the 3.5hr trip to Watts Bar, rather than the 5hr trip to KY/Barkley, for my "vacation fishing trips")
I think the problem with small Crappie, in those smaller lakes, is a result of poor harvest. People don't want to keep and clean a bunch of small Crappie, so they either don't fish for them or turn them back. This keeps the overall numbers, of small fish, high ... and, in turn, they don't grow very big in size - and keep reproducing in numbers. It's a vicious cycle, that's only made worse by poor angler predation. ...........cp :cool:
Crappiepappy,
There are 2 other lakes about an hour from me that produce good crappie, East Fork Lake in Ohio and Brookville Lake in Indiana. Both have good crappie populations and good size avg 9-12", but they are not in KY.
Do you know a good worm color for daytime fishing on Herrington Lake?
I have a tournament there on the 21st. Never fished there before.
Thanks,
Bassky :)
about fishing out-of-state ... I hold a yearly non-res license for Tn - plus my hunting/fishing license for KY ... ;)
Herrington - May 21st - daytime tourney ..... and you want to know what color WORM ? :confused: About the only time I've used worms at Herrington ... is at night :rolleyes: .
When I fished during the day - I cranked !! If the water is stable, and the spawn is still on .... jerkbaits (char back-silver sides). If they're post spawn .... cranks in red, baby bass, firetiger, or shad. If there's a lot of "players" on the water (which there's likely to be) .... I'd get back in a creek, or in a "no wake" zone on the main lake. If you really think worms are the thing .... pumpkinseed, watermelon seed, motoroil, or blue are good "body" colors - chartreuse or solid red are good "tail" colors. If you'd prefer to use plastic craws or creature baits .... watermelon/orange claws for craws - junebug or green for creature baits. I've never used tubes for Bass ... but, I know the "Roadkill Camo" is very popular - as well as the "Sweet Beaver" (creature) baits, in several colors.
I know that all that info is pretty standard, almost generic .... but, I haven't fished Herrington more than a handful of times over the last few years ... and mostly at night (Summertime), so I don't know how much my info will help ... luck2ya ...cp :cool:
Crappiepappy,
Thanks for the info,
I too have heard early morning buzzbait or crankbait bite. But I heard that once the sun starts getting high to pitch a worm or jig on the ledges. This is why I asked what color is good on herrington. Thanks for the info on the colors. Any info is appreciated.
How is the crappie on Taylorsville, have you been there lately?
Thanks,
bassky :)
so far this year. Weather, work, and the Fling have kept me away. No worries, though ... they'll still be there, when I get there :D
Hope you have a partner that knows where the ledges are, when the water is at the level it will be on tourney day ... I've fished the lake for 30 some years, and still don't know ...LOL!!
Hey - if the ledges fail you ... shoot a tube or trick worm up under some docks, or boat slips. They sometimes suspend in the shade of the docks. Just be sure and have some stout line ... most of those docks have cables or metal crossmembers, that a fish can get wrapped on. ..... luck2ya ..cp
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bassky
hey ever heard of doe -run lake?i know that people have said that there are no fish in there ,but they are very wrong.me and my girl went there a few times and tore them up,we caught like 37 crappie,all of them between 8 - 11 inches long.fish with minnows on jigs around usual crappie hang-outs.bushes ,fallen trees,ect.also fish around the concrete wall in the middle of the lake about 18 feet deep.we caught a load of them.hope this helps,good luck. jim
Yes, I have fished there but it has been at least 7 or 8 years since I have been there. I will have to give it a try. Thanks for the info.
Bassky from Alexandria, KY :p
ney no problem on the info,let me know how you do. jimQuote:
Originally Posted by Bassky
hey! i've just joined the forum and found this thread. dh and i own a little campsite on Kincaid and are learning to fish the waters there. Like you, we can catch all the small crappie that we want at times..but we want some slabs! they are there. i met a man last october fishing the spot behind the boat dock store. he had a line FULL of 14 inch or larger slabs! ARGH!!!
we just had a weekend at the lake and was able to get in a little fishing. no luck.
but the slabs are there. i 've seen the proof. i'm thinking of fishing deep with a "kentucky set up" on my line. what you do you think?
First off - Welcome to Crappie.com !! Do come and join us on the Main Message Board, anytime.
Now, about Kincaid - I've never been there, but I hear it's a pretty good Bass lake, but the Crappie fishing is rated poor. It's probably underfished for Crappie, and many of the year classes that had a good spawn (numbers) are overcrowding the lake and not getting very big. The 14" fish you saw in Oct - probably the "oldest year class" that are still alive. And, yes - Oct is a great time to catch bigger fish (since they come shallower, then, to feed up for the Winter).
If the lake is fairly clear water (you can see bottom in 3ft depth or more) ... then fishing deep (>10ft), even in the Spring, would be a good bet. If the water is dingy, or has a green look to it - Spring would be the time to fish around the shallow wood (in 10ft of water or less). Fallen trees are a great place to look .. but don't pass up "any" wood cover along the Northern shoreline. I'd start in March, during warm spells of two or more days ... and work on them until mid May. Fall fishing would be similar ... but, possibly in a little deeper water.
During the Summer - drift fishing with minnows, slow trolling with jigs, or even fishing at night are good methods ... just fish any dropoffs, humps with stumps, deep brush piles, deep weed lines, or standing timber that's in water of 20ft deep or more. Using a "KY Lake Rig" is a good way to find submerged brush piles, stumps, or even weed beds ... but, it's only useful if you can control the boat and move very, very slow. If it gets windy and you're having to constantly correct the boat with the trolling motor - you'd probably be better served by tying off to standing timber, anchoring, or drifting ... and using a single hook/sinker setup.
In order to use the "Ky Lake Rig" with any effectiveness, or get any enjoyment out of them - you'd have to have line that was >15lb test, and a rod/reel that could handle that size line & weight. Catching dinks on that heavy of an outfit isn't much fun ...LOL!!
One thing you can do to up your potential for catching bigger Crappie - learn what type baitfish is in the lake, and find out where they are during any given time. Your Slabs won't be far away from them ... and probably just a foot or two deeper than the baitfish school, max.
If there are a lot of stationary docks, with deep water under them (>10ft), or floating docks with boat slips built into them ... learn to "shoot docks" !! The shade these docks offer = cooler water temps, cover, baitfish attractors (algae on the posts or floats). It's not hard to learn how to shoot a dock ... just takes a little practice and the right equipment.
When/if you find that the Crappie are hiding in standing or fallen timber - and they are down in the thickest, heaviest cover ... you might read my article about "Vertical Casting", and give that a shot!! (it's on the Articles, Tips & Techinques page - just click on "articles" link, at the top of any forum page) ... and there are some other good articles there that you might find interesting, too. ............. luck2ya ...........cp :cool: