WARMER DAYS/HIGH WINDS GREET ANGLERS

Kentucky Lake 3/13/25
Report Contributor, Steve McCadams, Professional Guide/Outdoor Writer stevemc@charter.net


Rising temperatures as mid-March rolled around have stimulated the interest level of both the fish and fishermen. Spring fever has been running high among the ranks of anglers anxious for the seasonal transition. Spring officially arrives Thursday, March 20th but recently it felt like it came in early and daytime temps jumped to the upper 70’s, stimulating the both the bass and crappie bite on Kentucky Lake this past week.

Above average daytime temperatures often come with a trade off in early March, that being gusty winds and a threat of thunderstorms. That’s in the forecast for the weekend with slightly cooler temps on the backside of an approaching front. Watch for some stability to return early next week once the disturbance passes through the region. Kentucky Lake water levels have fallen to the low ebb of winter pool this week. Readings across the reservoir are 354.4. Surface temperatures have risen in response to the recent warm spell and were around the 53-degree range, even warm in some places.

Water color had cleared in the main lake areas but still a slight stain lingers in some bays and up Big Sandy areas. However, it’s a good color for crappie fishing. Some good stringers of slabs have been coming in from anglers taking advantage of the nice days. At times the wind has dictated the routes of fishermen hoping to stalk the open water areas of Big Sandy and elsewhere on the lake.

Depths of 7 to 12 feet have produced good numbers of big prespawn slab crappie which were moving up in preparation for the annual ritual. As surface temps climb to the mid-50’s crappie begin stair-stepping their way toward spawning territory but not before staging in mid-range depths for a short period.

Female crappie are sporting a hefty profile at present, bulging with eggs and weighing heavy. Several crappie eclipsing the 2-pound range have been taken lately.Mid-range structure in the form of shallow stumps and various man made fish attractors are appealing to crappie as they hang out just off the banks and await warmer surface temps to pull them shallow.

Crappie will begin spawning phases once water temps reach the 62 to 66 degree range. That’s usually the first week or two of April but sometimes, if warmer weather descends, spawning can begin in late March. The prespawn phases now underway it’s a great time to catch big slabs as the females are bloated and soon males will begin to transition to a deeper purple color as their hormonal changes see a darkening of their pigment. Anglers just have to tolerate the unstable moods of March weather. Nice one day; windy the next. Warm a few days; cold and brutal in the aftermath. It’s March Madness!

Bass fishermen are seeing more big fish move up to shallow gravel and rocky points in response to the rising surface temps. It’s crank bait heaven across Kentucky Lake this time of year. Lots of other lures produce too but a variety of colors in shallow and deep running crank baits are the cat’s meow this time of year. Big sow bass are already moving up back into bays and pockets, staging in the warmer water and just waiting for the right time to start fanning the shallow shorelines for spawning beds. Soon slightly higher lake levels will arrive, inundating grass beds and for bass it will begin.

Low lake levels will hang around until April 1 as that’s TVA’s curve schedule to begin reservoir filling toward summer pool. The normal schedule has a target date of May 1 for summer pool (359) so a gradual rise in lake levels will soon begin.

They're Movin' In

 Tim Cole, a frequent guest at Paris Landing Motel

Caught this morning 2lb. 4 oz.

Get Ready For Earth Hour

 

Monthly Meeting

The monthly meeting of the Paris Landing Tourism League (PLTL) will be held Tuesday, March 11th, at 6 pm at the Senior Center inside the Paris Landing Emergency Complex.

Hope to see you there!

FISHING SCENE IMPROVES…TEMPS RISE AS LAKE LEVELS FALL

Kentucky Lake 2/26/25
Report Contributor, Steve McCadams, Professional Guide/Outdoor Writer stevemc@charter.net

The roller coaster for Kentucky Lake anglers has been a wild ride recently but it’s calming down. Both temperatures and lake levels have fluctuated the last week or two, keeping fishermen off balance. Things are improving as rising temperatures greeted falling lake levels recently. That’s improved the overall fishing scene. Stability was long overdue.

Fishermen have rapidly bounced back to active duty, returning in force to their favorite fishing holes. Boat ramps were filled recently with anxious anglers yearning for a return to normalcy. Lake levels are back down near normal winter pool levels. TVA really pulled the plug last week after the rapid rise in elevation in the aftermath of flooding conditions over a week ago. Elevation at midweek was 354.7, which is about normal for late February and early March.

Watercolor continues to clear and is in good shape for winter crappie and bass anglers. Surface temps were rising at midweek when daytime high reached 75-degree range. Since then, slightly cooler conditions have returned. Water temps were in the low 40s but rising.

Both the bass and crappie bite has bounced back as surface temps warmed and stability in lake levels returned. Tossing crawfish variations of crankbaits have been productive as have shad variations too. Anglers are targeting gravel banks and big rock points, especially in the bays off the main lake. Watercolor in the main river channel area had some dingy color but elsewhere it’s clearing rapidly.

Crappie fishermen are stalking some deep main lake ledges and focusing their efforts on the 16-to-20-foot depth range and finding action there. No doubt the fish fell back to some deeper water when lake levels fell drastically during the cold spell. Look for that to change daily as fish respond to not only slightly warmer surface temps but stability in lake levels. That should see more fish enter mid-range depths of 9 to 14 feet. Brush piles and stake beds in that depth range should be holding decent numbers of crappie.

A few days crappie were scattered and suspended and not relating to structure. Sometimes the fish are roaming when lake levels are changing but will return to cover quickly when stability returns. As the schools of bait fish move up so will the crappie. Shad will respond quickly to the warming trend and likely continue moving toward shallow to mid-range areas.

The long-range weather forecast indicates mild to moderate weather so watch for crappie to respond favorably for fishermen if the wind will cooperate. This time of year the sudden warm-ups are often accompanied by strong southerly winds so it’s a trade-off sometimes. March is here with all its different faces. Anglers know they will have some nice days but the month has a reputation for unstable weather and wind.

Fishing Report

Kentucky Lake 2/19/25
Report Contributor, Steve McCadams, Professional Guide/Outdoor Writer stevemc@charter.net

Unstable conditions have dominated the fishing scene since last week's flooding roared down the Tennessee River. A rapid rise sent the lake's elevation jumping above summer pool (359) but already the reservoir has crested and began its descent. TVA has been pushing a large volume of water through Kentucky Dam again this week. Strong current has been present in main channel areas and even behind islands. Added to the mess came a dramatic temp change and snow flurries. While warmer days are in next week's forecast anglers are dealing with instability as the region mops up from the mess and struggles to dry out. Crappie are likely to rebound soon as temps rise amid falling lake levels.

RISING LAKE LEVELS AHEAD FOR ANGLERS

Kentucky Lake 2/12/25
Report Contributor, Steve McCadams, Professional Guide/Outdoor Writer stevemc@charter.net


Inclement weather continues to dominate the Kentucky Lake fishing scene this week. Nasty winds and several days of downpours have dampened the spirits of most of the winter crappie fishermen this past week. According to the long range forecast it appears cold weather will linger into next week as below average temperatures are the story for next week’s weather too. Fishermen haven’t gotten much cooperation from the weatherman lately, but they really can’t complain as they’ve had several nice days mixed in this winter that allowed some nice stringers of crappie to be taken.

No doubt scores of fishermen are now suffering from cabin fever as a week or two of bad weather has kept most at bay, dodging the rain or huddled around the fire waiting on the return of favorable conditions. Not to worry; pleasant weather is on the horizon.

Meanwhile, prior to the recent weather dilemma a few winter crappie fishermen were scoring decent stringers while fishing both minnows and jigs around manmade fish attractors located in the 9-to-14-foot depth range. Some credited their catches to even deeper structure located out on the main lake area in 16 to 20 feet.

Kentucky Lake is rising slowly and a lot of runoff has entered the system this past week. TVA has done a good job of keeping lake levels normal as of late but watch for an increase in elevation to occur in the days ahead. Lake levels as of this posting were in the 354.7 range. Upstream at Pickwick TVA was discharging a large volume of water so Kentucky Lake will be rising some in the days ahead.

Current is now a factor in the main river channel as TVA has increased discharge rates at Kentucky Dam the last few days to 248,000 cfs (cubic feet per second). That’s pushing a large volume of water through the system at the present time.

Anglers will be addressing rising lake stages for the next week or so. It will be interesting to see how much the crappie scatter during the rising lake situation. The fishing scene will rebound quickly once nice weather returns and stability returns to the lake’s elevation.