|
Dave Stewart's Fishing Report
June 25th,
2009 - By Kentucky Lake/Lake Barkley Guide Dave Stewart
Kentucky Lake:
Water Level at Kentucky Dam - 359.83 Surface Temperature - 88
Lake Barkley: Water Level at Barkley Dam - 359.70 Surface Temperature -
88
Both lakes are about one half foot over summer pool. The heat wave
continues here in the lakes area with daytime highs in the 90's and heat
indexes over 100 every day this past week. The morning water
temperatures have risen 8 degrees since my report last week. This has
slowed the ledge fish down somewhat, but the ledge fish are still biting
pretty good. I recommend that anyone going out for some bass fishing on
the ledges take a look at the TVA website for the current flows if you
have a choice of going out early or late in the day. This past week on
some mornings, there has been a good current flow on Lake Barkley and
very little current on Kentucky Lake after about 5:00 a.m. The flow on
Kentucky is being cranked up around 4 or 5 p.m. and good current is
present through the evening and night hours. Although good current is
not essential to catch the bass on the ledges, it certainly increases
the bite activity when there is good current present. If you are going
out to the ledges on any given day, you might want to check the current
flow of both lakes and decide which lake has the best current flow
during the timeframe you are going to be on the water. Of course, the
current flow can be turned on at any given time or turned off as the
case may be, but if you monitor the flow history over the past couple of
days prior to your trip, you can at least get an idea of how the current
flow times have been and take a shot that they will remain the same on
the day you go out. All that being said, not everyone can pick and
choose which lake they are going to fish or what time frame they are
going to fish, so, if there is not much current out there when you go,
take a hint from me and slow your presentations down...when you think
you are fishing slow enough, slow down a little more. What I have
experienced this week on Kentucky Lake, having been out there every
morning with the exception of one day on Barkley, is that even with the
flat water, blue skies and no current, we are still catching the bass,
we just slow down the presentations. The forecast for Friday and the
weekend is for daytime highs in the mid to upper 90's for Friday and
Saturday and high heat indexes. The forecast for Sunday and early next
week is for a slight break in the daytime highs, with daytime highs in
the lower 90's. Not much of a break, but after more than a week of heat
indexes above 100, it will seem like a break for the better. Be sure to
take plenty of water and your favorite sports drinks with you and stay
hydrated.
Largemouth Bass: Largemouth are being taken on the old river and creek
channel ledges on the main lakes and around the mouths of the deeper
bays as well as on some main lake primary points. These fish are being
taken on deep diving crankbaits, Carolina rigged large worms and
creature baits, Texas rigged large worms, jigs and big shaky head worms.
Some Largemouth are also being taken in shallow water in the creeks and
bays near vegetation and wood cover. These shallow fish are being taken
on buzz frogs, soft jerkbaits and swim jigs fished around areas of
vegetation and Texas rigged creature baits and shaky head worms fished
around wood cover.
Smallmouth Bass: Smallmouth Bass are being taken early and late in the
day on primary and secondary points on the main lake on Carolina rigged
creature baits, tube jigs and jigs. Smallmouth are also being taken on
the old creek channel and river channel ledges during the day on
Carolina rigged creature baits and jigs. Smallmouth are being taken at
night on Kentucky Lake by fishing large dark colored spinnerbaits, tube
jigs and finesse jigs on primary and secondary main lake points and the
first secondary points in the bays.
Some of the productive lures reported this week are: Zoom horny toads in
green pumpkin swirl and white, Jack's bubber frog in watermelon/red,
Rapala DT 16's and DT20's in parrot, green shad and grey pearl shiner,
MOAB custom painted DT 16's painted in bluegill, Norman DD22's in
paradise shad, Charmer timber dawgs and timber pups in green pumpkin,
plum, and watermelon/purple, Charmer shaky head worms in
watermelon/purple and green pumpkin, Zoom trick worms on shaky head rigs
in green pumpkin, Charmer gator tail and ribbon tail 10.5 inch worms in
plum and green pumpkin fish on Texas rigs and Carolina rigs, Xcite
Maximus shaky head worms in plum, green pumpkin and green pumpkin/purple
fished on Xcite 5/8 ounce x-lock shaky head rigs, Jewel football head
jigs in gourd/craw, P.J.'s football head jigs in watermelon/candy, D&L
advantage jigs in black/blue and Cumberland craw, Zoom super flukes in
shad patterns, Booyah spinnerbaits in black/red and black/purple (night
fishing), Hook Some Bass tubes in chameleon craw and D&L baby advantage
jigs in black/blue.
White Bass: White Bass are being taken on the old river and creek
channel ledges on the main lakes by vertically fishing with inline
spinner, small spoons and tight lining minnows. White Bass are also
being taken by trolling inline spinners and small spoons on leaders
attached to deep diving crankbaits along the river ledges. Some jumps
are being reported on the flats near the channel ledges during periods
of current but these jumps are not lasting very long.
Catfish: Catfish are being taken on the old river channels by fishing
with large minnows and cut baits in bottom rigs as well as by fishing
with leaches and shrimp combinations on bottom bouncing rigs.
Bluegill: Bluegill are being taken around mayfly hatches early and late
in the day. These hatches are present around overhanging trees,
especially willow trees in the creeks and bays. These Bluegill are being
taken by fishing with crickets and worms fished under bobbers. Bluegill
are also being taken around deeper docks with wood cover by fishing with
worms and crickets under bobbers.
The summer fishing season is in full swing now. If you are coming to the
lakes area to enjoy some of our great warm weather fishing, I recommend
that you visit both The Fisherman's Headquarters located at the
intersection of U.S. 68 and U.S. 641 in Draffenville and The Cabin Bait
and Tackle located on U.S. 62 just west of Kuttawa. Both these tackle
shops stock everything you need for a great fishing trip, from the
latest in bass fishing rods, reels and lures for the bass anglers as
well as all the tackle and live bait you need to catch those white bass,
catfish and bluegills. You will find the folks at both these tackle
shops friendly and helpful as well as having the latest in lake fishing
information.
If you are here at the lakes and find yourself in need of some service
on your boat, I recommend that you visit the folks at Jet-A-Marina
located on U.S. 62 in Calvert City just a couple of miles west of Ky
Dam. The service folks there are second to none when it comes to
servicing your boat and they always try to get you back on the water as
soon as possible. The Jet-A-Marina store and showroom also stocks a
great line of boating accessories as well as the latest model Rangers
and Stratos bass boats. You will also be pleased to find that you can
save a lot of money by visiting the showroom store for your favorite
engine oil which they sell in bulk jugs.
If you are in need of a bass guide for some fun catch and release bass
fishing, tournament preparation, lake familiarization or technique
instruction, don't hesitate to give me a call or drop me an email to
make a reservation for one of my open dates. Now is the time to take
that instructional bass fishing trip to learn how to find and fish the
best ledges. This trip is designed to teach you how to eliminate water
(including ledges) to find the highest percentage spots to hold bass and
to learn how to set up on the ledges as well as the techniques used to
catch the ledge fish. My goal in this type trip is to teach you what you
need to know so that you can go back out and find and fish the ledges on
your own. I have the following dates available for booking in June, July
and August:
June: Sorry, I am booked up.
July: 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31
August: I have plenty of dates available in August...give me a call.
Now is the time to book your fall fishing trips, especially those of you
that are tournament anglers that are going to be here for the fall
classics. If you wait too long you may not be able to get the date(s)
you want or need. When you book with my service, you get me, not someone
else, so I only have so many dates available.
Capt Dave Stewart
Bass Buster Guide Service
dave@kentuckylakeguide.com
www.kentuckylakeguide.com
"Fish With a Professional"
Post Questions/Comments on Dave Stewart's Report
 Captain Kirk's Fishing Report
June 25th, 2009
- By Captain Kirk's
Guide Service - Kentucky Lake
Air Temp Low 75°
/ High 93°
Water Temp Low 86° / High 89°
Water Elevation 359.5 (354 Summer Pool)
Water Clarity Clear (4’ to 5’ visibility)
Which is the COOLEST?
Before I got my boat in the water this morning, I could see a school
of fish in a surface feeding frenzy not far from the ramp. I got my
boat off the trailer, dropped the trolling motor, grabbed a rod with
an inline spinner on it and cast into the boiling fish. BAM! I was
rewarded with a 12” Largemouth. I unhooked and released the fish and
cast again. BAM! Another, BAM! Another, BAM! Another. After 7 or 8
fish in quick succession I thought to myself, Man this is COOL! I
pulled up my trolling motor, started the big engine and headed
upstream along the mainlake shoreline. I noticed there had been a
large Mayfly hatch the night before. There were Mayflies hanging
heavy in several trees that hung out over the water. This reminded
me of a “COOL” trick an old timer taught me years ago. Get yourself
a can of pebbles and anchor a good cast from one of these trees,
then cast a cricket, small popper, worm, or small jig under the tree
and you’ll catch nice Bluegill and an occasional Bass. When the
action slows, throw a few pebbles into the tree, which will knock
some Mayflies into the water and the action will start all over
again. COOL!
Where was I? Oh yeah, as I cruised up the mainlake bank I saw that
each shallow gravel bar at the mouth of a bay had surface feeding
schools of fish on them. I passed several schools up and then
stopped on one I knew was an extra good one. Here I again caught
small bass but also some White and Yellow Bass. I noticed the fish
weren’t eating Mayflies, they were eating this year’s fry (baby
fish) which are just getting big enough for a little larger fish to
eat. Also, many of the fish that were feeding on them were Skipjack,
and bigger fish eat Skipjack! COOL! By the way, I also noticed lots
of surface feeding fish in the back of small bays. The sun was now
getting higher and I knew the surface action would soon “COOL” off,
so I motored out to one of the off-shore humps I’d been catching
quality bass on for the past few weeks. As I motored over the rise
that topped out at 20’ I saw a small group of larger arches (fish)
on my graph and pitched a marker buoy nearby, but off to the side. I
cast a Texas rigged whacky stick worm to where I’d saw the arches,
hopped it a couple times and felt a strong heavy bite. After setting
the hook and getting a pretty strong tussle, I brought a fat,
healthy, solid 3.5 Lb bass to the boat. And guess what? Swimming
right behind and beside him were 3 or 4 more just like him! Now
that’s really COOL! I quickly released the fish and cast several
more times but no more bites. That’s ok though, because I had their
address and today I’m just scouting. I then fished several more
humps and caught 4 or 5 nice fish on one, none on a couple spots 1
or 2 on a couple and called is a day before noon. The deep bite was
slower action but larger fish, and I knew the best deep bite was
afternoon when there was more current.
Last Sunday I had two 14 yr olds in my boat and Mom & Dad followed
in a pontoon boat. We went to a deep ledge on the main river channel
and cast 3/8 oz white inline spinners into 30ft of water and reeled
them quickly uphill into 18ft of water and then to the boat. It took
the boys just a little while to get the knack of it but once they
did, we were catching White Bass 1Lb to 1.5 Lb nearly every cast.
Mom and Dad weren’t catching as well, but once we caught our limit
we gave Mom & Dad our spot and with a little instruction, they
caught them pretty good also. At the end of 5 hours we had 53 White
Bass, plus caught and released several Largemouth, and kept one 3 Lb
Striper. Lots of fun and Mom & Dad and the kids have several good
fish dinners ahead of them. COOL!
This past Monday I fished with Bret (Dad) and Brandon (son). Brandon
is going to be in a high school bass fishing class! COOL! Some high
schools in Illinois are offering a bass fishing class with credit
towards graduating. Super COOL! We had a good day fishing ledges and
off-shore humps. Brandon said he thought he caught 18 bass
(tournament quality), Dad held his own, and so did I. Brandon is
well on his way to becoming an avid fisherman. The day was warm but
we drank plenty of liquids, put on our sunscreen and moved
frequently to get some air flow. One particular ledge I came across
had an unusually large amount of fish showing on the graph. I hadn’t
fished this ledge (hump) this year so I wasn’t sure if we’d catch
bass or not. After repeated casts to the area and no bites I was
wondering what all those fish were, when out of the water came about
50 big shad. Something big was trying to eat them. COOL! We all got
excited and cast where the fish came out of the water. I even
switched to a big spoon and still no takers. I was a little
perplexed at this point. Then several big splashes came in the area
and I saw the tail of a big catfish. That explained why they refused
our bass baits. A school of big cats were feeding on these large
threadfin shad. Upon further investigation, I realized that a large
tree had drifted into and hung on this main river ledge and a school
of cats had made it home. I bet if a guy vertically fished some
large minnows or leaches around this tree in 25ft of water, he’d
probably hang into some behemoth catfish. COOL! Also, if a guy
vertically fished smaller minnows around this tree, he’d probably
catch some nice Crappie. COOL!
Last Saturday there was a BFL Tournament on the lake ,so to stay out
of their way, my friend and sometimes client, Jeff, decided he
wanted to go bass fishing below the KY Dam in the TN River. We had a
very enjoyable learning experience. We caught quite a few small
Largemouths, one nearly 5 Lbs, one Smallmouth nearly 4 Lbs, one
Striper about 10 Lbs and I hung into probably a big Striper that
burnt my thumbs as I tried to slow his run, but he won! COOL! We
caught fish on a shaky head worm, a green pumpkin jig, and a
crankbait. There’s lots of fish in that river! COOL!
The only other thing I can think of that may be as COOL or COOLER
than these other forms of summer fishing would be catching a big
Smallmouth on a spinnerbait in the COOL of the night under the
millions of stars in the sky. Maybe I’ll do that this next week!
So, if you’ve read all of this you now know there are lots of COOL
ways to spend your time on KY Lake. Which is the COOLEST? You
decide.
If you’d like to verify the authenticity of this report, please
check my COOL photos at
www.captainkirksguideservice.com They say a picture is worth a
thousand words.
If you’d like to do some COOL summertime fishing, you can call me at
877-54-6017 or e-mail me at
info@captainkirksguideservice.com
Capt Kirk, out!
Captain Kirk's Guide Service
270-354-6017
1-877-354-6017
Captkirk@mchsi.com
www.captainkirksguideservice.com
Post Questions/Comments on
Captain Kirk's Report
Lyndon Wicker's Fishing Report
June
8th,
2009 - By Kentucky Lake Guide Lyndon Wicker
I am guessing that many of you
followed the Bassmaster tournament this past weekend. It was the
Tennessee Triumph held out of Paris Landing on June 3-6, 2009. Some very
impressive weights were brought to the scale. Going into this tournament
many felt that last year’s winner and Toyota angler of the year, Kevin
Van Dam, was in the running for another win. However, as it can often
happen another less known angler stepped up and kept the remainder of
the pack at bay and playing catch-up all week.
Bobby Lane of Lakeland, Florida
came forward and with little experience fishing ledges showed why
Kentucky Lake is one of if not the best ledge fishing lake in the
country. He targeted one of the lakes many drops to his success. His
first day total was an impressive 29 lb 14 oz. Hot on his heels, a
little over a pound away at 28-11, was last year’s winner Kevin Van Dam.
Both anglers were fishing similar patterns. They were fishing ledges and
in particular ledges with shell beds along them. The beds were holding
baitfish, which the bass were targeting.
Lane held the lead the remaining
three days however his weight did drop off as did many. The first
anglers were fishing pre-front conditions with some wind, humidity, and
temperatures in the mid and upper 80’s. That evening we saw a frontal
passage and brought clouds and cooler weather for the second day. That
tended to scatter more of the ledge fish. However many people reported
catching totals each of the four days over 100 fish. Some reported over
200 but it took going through 20 short fish to get a keeper. It was also
reported that the fish tended to group by size. If you got into a school
of three pounders, it was hard to get the kicker fish of 5 to 7 pounds
that everyone needed.
From observing the decks of the
boats at the weigh-in’s it appeared most of the standard deep water
tactics were being used. Heavy weight spinner baits, 10 to 12 inch
Carolina rigged worms, deep diving crankbaits in a few colors to include
sexy shad and chartreuse w/ a blue back, and jiggin spoons. Just about
anything that will mimic a basses pray and reach the depths needed. One
bait that many reported using was Berkley Power Worms. Berkley really
has it cornered when it comes to attractants. I have grown to love
Berkley Gulp baits. They are more expensive but the bass really love em!
I have had them hit and hang onto the bait for 20 to 60 seconds before
setting the hook.
Overall, it was a great tournament
and proved why Kentucky and Barkley Lakes are two of the country’s
premier bass lakes in the country. Not only do we have some huge
largemouth and great number of smaller fish but also some very
impressive smallmouth. Few lakes can boast that fact! Lane ended up with
a total of 97 lb 9 oz. A couple pounds from the 100 lb mark. Kevin Van
Dam ended up the week in 2nd place with 92 lb. 1 oz. Great job guys!
We are also looking forward to the
FLW’s return this weekend. They will be launching out of Kentucky Dam
Marina Thursday and Friday morning at 6:30 a.m. with the weigh-ins
starting at 2:30 p.m. On Saturday and Sunday, the weigh-ins will be
moved to the RSEC at Murray State University. There were will be a
family fun zone and outdoor show from noon on each day. You can register
to win a Ranger 177 TR powered by Yamaha courtesy the Paducah Sun.
I know I haven’t covered much on
how fishing is going, so here is a quick report. Fishing for just about
everything is good! Bass can be found from two feet of water to 32 feet
of water. Big females are grouping on ledges but if you just want some
fun fishing with the kids the shallows will work fine. I have had days
with remarkable numbers of fish. That is a good time to get a kid into
bass fishing. If bronze backs are your target, try some nighttime
fishing. A black spinner bait has always been a favorite of mine.
Crappie are mainly deeper but are catchable if you know where to look.
Concentrate your efforts in 10 to 25 feet of water. Of course, cover is
a must to locate the slabs. The bluegill and red ear spawns are about
over. However, WHAT A YEAR! It has been years since I have seen these
species caught in such numbers. Although the spawn is ending, you can
still catch good fish around grass and docks. Live bait or small jigs
tipped with Berkley maggots will work. That pattern will hold all
summer.
For the cat fishing fan know is a
good time to night fish. Avoid the heat and sun and set out a few jugs
tipped with cut bait, turn on Country Froggy 103.7, Classic Rock 94.7,
or Good Old Country at Willie 102.1, and kick back and relax with a cold
drink.
Be careful on the water. We are at
summer pool and should stay that way for the next month or so then we
will start to see a slow drawn down to winter pool. Keep and eye out for
storms and watch the sun. Keep drinks onboard that contain electrolytes
such as Gatorade. I learned the hard way a few years ago. I was in the
sun all day drinking nothing but water. While I laid in the ER that
evening, I found out that water could dilute your fluids causing
problems as it had done with me. Keep some type of sports drink on
board.
Take care, good luck, and God bless,
Lyndon
info@kylakefishtales.com
www.kylakefishtales.com
Post Questions/Comments on Lyndon Wicker's Report
John Morgan's Southern Ky Lake Fishing Report
March 20,
2009
- By Southern
Kentucky Lake Guide John Morgan
Crappie hit the bank
in Blood River big time yesterday. I mostly have been fishing ledges and
flats with spider rigs but yesterday I went to check the best bank I
know in Blood River. There wasn't much going on in the morning but at
12:30 we went back for a second try and finished our limit in about an
hour. The water is clear (2-4 feet visibility) so these fish don't seem
to want to get real shallow. Most were in 5 to 8 feet. We threw 1/16
ounce jigs under floats set about 2 1/2 feet down. Small jigs seem to
work best in this clear water. Black and white females were there
together and some male white crappie were mixed in. Seems like to me
that the black crappie are more eager after the sun gets up high than
the white crappie are to bite. Casting to these fish is the best method
because it's just too shallow to fish vertical, although the float will
give you the vertical presentation while keeping your boat back off the
spot.
If we don't get some
rain soon to dirty the water, you need to stick to small flourocarbon
line so the fish can't see it. One option to this is to use a swivel and
use the fluorocarbon line as a leader. This really helps if the sun is
out.
Good fishing,
John Morgan
Angling Adventures Guide Service
Murray, KY 270-436-2810
johndm@wk.net
Post Questions/Comments on John's Report
Hook, Line & Sinker Fishing Report
March 19th, 2009
- By Kentucky
Lake/Lake Barkley Guide Malcolm Lane
Fishing is finally in
full swing for the spring. Crappie are scattered but good catches are
being taken. Minnows under bobbers have been catching best around
shallow cover, Largemouth are along the gravel points inside the bays
and hitting a number of different baits. Bluegill, yellow bass and white
bass are also being caught along the gravel shorelines. The water temps
are in the low to mid fifties.
Post Questions/Comments on Malcolm's Report
Out On A Ledge: An article written by Dave Stewart
Kentucky Lake Water/Weather Conditions
Back to the top |
