Kentucky Lake - 2/18/26
By Steve McCadams, Professional Guide/Outdoor Writer (
stevemc@charter.net)
One day it’s warm. Winds are calm. Fish are biting. A few days later ole’ man winter returns, reminding everyone what season is still on the calendar. That’s a snapshot of Kentucky Lake’s fishing scene lately. Nothing unusual as it’s still February. Lately anglers have had one or two days each week where light winds and mild temperatures provided abnormally nice fishing conditions.
Anglers who can pick their days have capitalized on those nice days too and managed to get out on the main lake and catch some pretty good stringers of crappie. They’ve been using both live minnows and jigs. Some credit their success to deep manmade fish attractors in the form of brush piles and stake beds. Depths of 14 to 18 feet have been mentioned but so have midrange areas of 9 to 12 feet at times.
Lake levels have risen slightly in the last few days in the aftermath of heavy rains last weekend. The reservoir crested around 355.7 for a few days but is now falling slowly. The elevation was 355.5 at midweek. TVA is pushing some 55,000 cfs (cubic feet per second) through Kentucky Dam. Watercolor is clear. Odds are anglers will continue to see a slow drawdown in the next few days as TVA attempts to pull the reservoir back down to the winter pool level (somewhere in the range of 354.5 most likely). More rain was in the long-range forecast but no heavy downpour were expected. However, that can change quickly, especially if rapid warmups arrive.
Cooler temperatures are expected this weekend and lasting into next week. Daytime highs will be in the low 50’s and upper 40’s. Nighttime lows will dip to the 20-degree range a few days then start to rebound early next week. Winter is still in charge. It plays games with fishermen, sometimes delivering a spring-like feel for a few short days only to show its ugly faces filled with gusty northwest winds delivering bone chilling conditions not favorable for fishing.
Late February and the first few weeks of March have a reputation for unstable conditions. Best to keep the coveralls and gloves handy. It’s always cooler out there on the water. Meanwhile, some good size crappie have been taken lately. Several fishermen were taking slabs that tipped the scales in the 1 ½ to 2-pound range. A lot of smaller fish were taken as well, which is a good sign for the overall fishery.
Watch for the deeper bite to hold up as the combination of cooler weather and falling lake levels will likely influence that around the Paris Landing sector. Sometimes anglers will find fish a bit shallower up Big Sandy and West Sandy areas as well as further South toward the New Johnsonville area.
Bass fishermen were out during the recent warm spells, soaking up sun and tossing crankbaits along gravel banks and out on some main lake humps hoping to encounter smallmouth. Lure selections have been favoring crawfish-colored crankbaits along with some chartreuse/black combos. Rattle Traps have been popular in black/chrome and other varieties. Some finesse baits are always tied on the end of spinning rods for those targeting smallmouth around rocky bluffs and points or even out on main lake spots.
It’s still late winter so hang in there when these cold fronts blow in. Weather changes upset the apple cart but not to worry; warm weather will bounce back soon. When rapid warmups descend it usually means windy days are part of the picture! It’s sometimes a tradeoff!
