Eastern Kentucky Fishing Report

This fishing report was compiled for the week of May 26, 2015.

Editor’s note: The Memorial Day week put record boats on the water, and most fishermen found the fish to be very good. It didn’t seem to matter what you used some fish were active. Cave Run is still falling and should make it to normal elevation in another week to 10 days. We want your fishing pictures and if your kids catch fish take a picture and send it to me. I will include as many as I can in the fishing reports each week. Please send us your pictures or story ideas to: trimmer308@windstream.net. We will try to use as many as we can in print and online.

Cave Run Lake: The lake level has continued to recede dropping from 745.5 ft. (elevation) last week to 740.5 as of press time. This makes it just less than nine feet over summer pool. Most ramps remain open at press time. However, some short ramps have been underwater and may still be hard to launch a boat. We will continue to check the lake levels. Water temperatures remain 75 to 80 degrees with some fluctuations according to daily weather pattern. Musky: Good. Fishing the heads of creeks where the water is changing colors. Hot baits have been lipless crankbaits, some jerkbaits and inline spinners. Square bill crankbaits have also been hot this past week producing some good fish. Largemouth Bass: good. Warming water temperatures have leapt from the 60s to the high 70s and in some places the low 80s. Some fish are nesting and falling water has put some nests in the position of being uncovered. Getting back in the flooded trees has produced this past week. Use weightless jerk-worms, AC Shiners and tube baits. Smallmouth: Good to fair. Smallmouth fish are always spotty on this lake; however, this week some good fish were reported caught near the dam area fishing spoons and lipless crankbaits. Crappie: Improving. These fish continue to hit small 1/32 oz. jigs dressed with twister tails or minnows along with roadrunner spinnerbaits. The fish staged in channel trees and near weed beds and starting to move up on points holding brush. Catfish: Fair, fishing backwater areas with live bait. White Bass: We did get a few reports that the white bass have been jumping off and on. This is good news since the white bass kill last year. We are interested in hearing more from anglers having success catching white bass. Bluegill: Some Bluegill spawned during this last full moon and we look for them to repeat that starting the first of June.

Grayson Lake: Summer pool for Grayson is 645 feet of elevation. At press time, it stood at 645.5 ft., which puts the lake near summer pool and stable. We reported catches last week in the main lake area. This lake along with Yatesville has been going up and down quickly. This has hurt the fishing some, however, this past week has produced some good catches as bass move into staging areas getting ready for spawning. The water is 75-78 degrees. Bass: Good and improving. Upper areas of the lake are clearing making the lake very fishable. A few fish continued to be caught fishing shakey-head jigs and chatter-type baits in deep water; however, jig & pig type baits and some jerk baits produced this week fishing creek heads and points. The bass are moving into more shallow areas getting ready to spawn. Crappie: Fair, fish downed timber and brush in 14 to 18 feet of water. Jigs, live bait and small crankbaits have been successful this week. Hybrids: We continue to have some reports that the hybrid bass are active on the main lake. Fishermen have been locating shad and then backing off and throwing swim-baits and big spoons. Fish have been in eight to 10 feet of water. Catfish: Good, fishing live bait from the heads of coves near discharge areas and backwater.

Greenbo Lake: Greenbo is unchanged and continues to be stained; it had a stocking of 5,500 rainbow trout on Jan. 29. The lake is near 80 degrees. The water level has been stable. Bass: fair. The bass have been nesting, which has slowed the fishing. However, jerk-worms proved to be the best bait this week producing fair numbers. Blade baits and crankbaits also produced using bright colors fishing points and flats. Trout: Good using Berkley sparkly orange Powerbait rigged using a small treble hook with a split shot about six to 12 inches up the line. Catfish: Fair fishing cut bait in the heads of coves and deep-water points. Bluegill: Improving, fishing live bait near underwater structure. The bluegills are moving into shallow water. Some have spawned but we expect the biggest spawn to be starting June 2, which is the next full moon.

Ohio River: At press time, the water levels of the Ohio River in both Greenup pools has been stable for the last week. If rains don’t move back in, the river should be producing. Below the dam, the lower pool was 15.86 feet while it was 12.96 on the upper side of the dam. The Ashland pool was 35.42 at mid-week. Largemouth Bass: Good and improving. 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. So far I haven’t received any reports of the bass spawning in the river but it should be underway any time. We also saw some smallmouth caught this week using jig & pig baits fishing rocky areas. White Bass: Some white bass above the dam have been hitting blade baits and inline spinnerbaits. Look for schooling fish.

Below the dam: We are continuing to wait on more reports from anglers fishing below the dam at press time. However, water levels have returned to productive elevations, and we expect to get good reports. The old standard method of twin tail grubs on ¼ oz. ball jigs is still the best producer of Sauger and Walleye using 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: Good, fishing inline spinners and blade baits. Look for breaking fish. We had no reports of Hybrid Striped Bass catches this week. Bass: Better than expected catches were reported this week fishing old spawning areas using jerkbaits and spinnerbaits. Catfish: Good, using live bait in backwater areas. Fishing minnows, cut-bait and worms on the bottom have all been successful.

Yatesville Lake: The lake is stable and just about summer pool. The water temperatures have been 75-80 degrees and is producing both bass and crappie. Bass: Good, some catches have been reported using jerk-worms, AC Shiners and other jerkbaits. Some fish have also been caught fishing ½ oz. jig and kickers in dark colors fishing points. We expect to see spawning reported this week. Crappie: Good, some success has been reported using Road Runner spinners fishing 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 backwater areas where flooding has created some warmer pools of water. Bluegill: Good, fishing old spawning beds using live bait and small 32 and 64 oz. jigs.