Eastern Kentucky Fishing Report

This fishing report was compiled for the week of June 24, 2014

Editor’s note: The summer has started and the fishing is beginning to reflect traditional summer patterns. While on the water this week, it was clear the larger fish have moved to deeper water. This is a time of year when your electronics can pay big dividends. If you get a chance to catch some fish, send your pictures to: trimmer308@windstream.net. We will try to use as many as we can in print and online.

Cave Run Lake: The lake is stable about .4 feet over summer pool. The water temperature is 78-80 degrees and the bass are moving to summer locations. The river is very clear in both Northfork and the Licking River. A word of caution: With the water levels up nearly a half-foot, the river can be dangerous if you don’t know it. Slow down and be safe. Musky: fair. Tubs, gliders, lipless crankbaits have all produced results. The heads of creeks are cooler than the main lake right now and some muskie have been active all the way to heads of the creeks. Largemouth Bass: slow. Small fish are dominating the banks right now and the larger fish seem to be staging in the tree lines and off the banks near the first break. Some topwater lures have caught fish in the low-light periods. Crankbaits, spinnerbaits and creature baits have all produced. Smallmouth: Slow to fair. The smallmouth should be finished nesting but reports have remained slow. Crappie: Good to excellent. These fish continue to hit small 1/32 oz. jigs dressed with a char/white twister tails. The fish are still positioned at the end of laydown trees on flats where the water is about eight to 10 feet deep. Most reported catches were of black crappie, with two to four on each tree. Catfish: Good, fishing near spawning beds and creek heads with live bait. Bluegill: Good. The bluegills have returned to shallow water to spawn for the second time this year. They went on the nest around Friday the 13th. Bluegill will spawn each month until September when the water begins to cool. Worms, crickets and 1/64 oz. jigs have all produced.

Scott Doan continues to catch good fish on Cave Run Lake. He caught this fish on the main lake. (photo submitted)
Scott Doan continues to catch good fish on Cave Run Lake. He caught this fish on the main lake. (photo submitted)

Grayson Lake: The lake has returned to near normal levels, up slightly at .2 foot above summer pool. Some areas of the upper regions of the river are heavily stained while the main lake remains clear. The water is 78-80 degrees. Bass: Slow, but as the bass begins to relate to shad we expect to see more activity. Use topwater, crankbaits and spinnerbaits. Plastic worms continued to catch fish this week. Crappie: Good, fishing down timber and brush in eight to 10 feet of water. Jigs, live bait and small crankbaits have been successful this week. Catfish: Good, fishing live bait from the heads of coves near discharge areas. Bluegill: Good. The bluegills have been nesting again due to the second full moon of the season. Spawning beds in shallow water and near the old roadbeds are good places to look for these spawning bluegill. Reports suggest crickets, worms and small jigs have all caught fish this past week.

Greenbo Lake: The water temperature is 78-82 degrees and the water level has been stable. Bass: Fair, reports are that the fish have been recovering from their annual nesting cycle. We expect to see the fishing improve quickly as these they begin to feed. Minnow-type baits should become productive as these fish become active. Trout: Fair to good using Berkley Powerbait and small spinners or blade baits like the Sliver Buddy. Catfish: good. Catfish have moved to the shallows to feed on nesting bluegill. Bluegill: Good, as they spawn for the second time this year look for depressions where the bluegills are nesting. Hard bottom areas and old roadbeds are a good place to start. Worms, crickets and small jigs are your best bet to find fish.

Ohio River: The Ohio River has been good shape but as I write this weather forecast for the area suggests the river is going to get yet another influx of water. Largemouth Bass: Fair and improving. Crankbaits, jigs and small spinnerbaits have produced this week fishing points and areas that hold weeds. Some bass have also been caught near discharge areas fishing blade baits. White Bass: Some white bass above the dam have been hitting blade baits and inline spinnerbaits. Look for schooling fish.

Below the dam: Twin tail grubs on ¼ oz. ball jigs are the best producers of Sauger and Walleye using slow bump-the-bottom retrieves. Running a two-jig setup produces better strikes. One of the two baits needs to be a little off of the bottom. White Bass: Slow with few reported catches. Bass: We are looking for some new reports on the bass fishing below the dam. If you get on the water help us out! Catfish: Good. Fishing has been good using live bait near nesting sites. Minnows, cut-bait and worms fishing on the bottom have all been successful.

Yatesville Lake: Yatesville water temperature has been in the 80 degree range and the fishing has been slow as the bass recover from spawning. Bass: Fair to good fishing creek heads, timbered coves and roadbeds. Baits that continued to see action this week were crankbaits, jigs with watermelon-colored skirts and black creature-bait kickers. Crappie: Good, fish the edges of flats in channel bends and old fish attractors using 1/32 oz. white crappie jigs or live bait. We have seen some anglers improving their odds drifting across fish attractors using both live bait and jigs. Catfish: Good, fishing spawning beds and creek heads using live bait and worms. Bluegill: Good, bluegills continue to be active fishing deeper humps and roadbeds. Worms, crickets, and small hair jigs have all been producing good results.

Southside Auto Trim

About mudfoot1 246 Articles
Carrie "Mudfoot" Stambaugh is the managing editor of KentuckyAngling.com. Carrie is an outdoor adventurer! She's an avid hiker and a burgeoning angler. Carrie and her husband, Carl, also enjoy canoeing eastern Kentucky lakes and rivers with their dog Cooper. The couple live in Ashland.

Be the first to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.


*


This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.