Bass Fishing at Kentucky Lake

I recently wrote about Crappie fishing at Kentucky Lake and now it's the Bass's turn. I just got off the phone with a good friend, Dave Schultnicht of Louisville, who fished Kentucky Lake all of last week. In Dave's words "Fantastic". He and his partner boated over seventy Largemouth Bass, ten of which weighed over seven pounds each. I guess I'd call that "fantastic" as well. According to Schultnicht, "The bass are really fired up now. They are getting ready to spawn and are positioned on the point banks."

My own experience at Kentucky Lake has been that the bass fishing will stay hot at this time of the year until the TVA releases large amounts of water. The normal summer pool water level is 359 feet. At this level the water is up in the button brush where the bass like to spawn. When the TVA draws the water down to 354 feet or lower the fish will become spooky and back off to the first drop off. When they move out to those drop offs they get a lot harder to catch. At the time of this writing the lake level is 356 feet, which is just about ideal.

Kentucky Lake has a reputation in bass fishing circles as being one of the top ten fisheries in the United States. This vast watershed is the result of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) building a hydroelectric dam on the Tennessee River at it's confluence with the Ohio River. The western shore, from the dam all the way upstream into Tennessee, is highly developed with resorts, marinas, cabins and homes. The eastern shore known as the Land between the Lakes (LBL) is not developed at all. The LBL is a story in itself and will be saved for another article, but it has tremendous natural estuaries favored by bass fishermen at this time of the year.

The best way to plan a fishing excursion to Kentucky Lake is to buy a good map. These may be obtained at most local bait and tackle shops in this area. The map will reveal the many coves where the button brush is to be found and the point drop offs as well. It is believed that the fishing is better on the LBL side. The big problem in fishing the LBL is the wind. Kentucky Lake takes a real whippin' from the prevailing westerly winds and can be so rough that getting back across to the western shore can get scary.

The hot lures at this time of year are spinnerbaits in bright colors, crank baits in crawfish colors, and jig/pig combos fished right up in the button brush. My favorite spots are the back portions of Duncan, Smith and Pisgah bays on the LBL side and Blood River on the western side. The town of Aurora on highway 68 is pretty central to most of the good bass spots and features Kenlake State park and marina. In addition to Kenlake there are several good places to stay as well as some very nice restaurants. Up to the minute information on the bass fishing is willingly given at all the bait and tackle shops in the area. You can get lake water level info. ahead of time by calling 800-261-5036.

Now is the time for your trophy bass....have a great trip and watch the wind. God Bless.