Thread: Kentucky Lake Rookie

Heading to Kentucky Lake in April after the crappie. Any advice on places to stay, put in a boat and maybe Kentucky Lake fishing advice? Thanks in advance.

Do you have an area of the lake in mind? Camping, motel room, cabin? What kind of boat do you have? Dates for your trip?

If you plan to be there more than a couple of days, you might consider hiring a guide for a day. Some members here are pretty good at it. You can find them listed in this thread I've personally met Rich and Terry and they are just as good of folks in person as they are on the forum. Doug is about the most helpful member on the Kentucky page so I've no doubt he's a good'n too!

Get a paper map and study to get an idea of how big the lake really is. Study the depths on the west side of the lake and at the entrances of bays on the east side. Subtract 5 feet from those readings because it could be that much lower in early April. There are places far from shore that can cost you a lower unit if you don't know where you are going. Just because you see people run through a spot, don't assume it is safe. I've had people fly by me while I was in 2ft of water with stumps visible.

Use your head on the main lake. It's not some horrible monster, but the lake can get rough enough that even a 20ft boat can't be driven without considering which way the waves are moving. I've run 20 miles on the lake in 25 minutes on smooth water only to have the wind kick up and it took me 2 hours to get back to my truck.

Electronics is an important tool on Kentucky. It helps you navigate a big lake where many bays look the same from outside for a new guy, helps you find the channel and helps you find brush, creek channels and bait.

April can be about any fishing conditions. Weather is unpredictable and the fish can be pre-spawn, spawn or post-spawn. Don't try to run around half the lake; pick a bay or two and get your bearings. If you want to travel, it's often smarter to put it on the trailer and drive.

There are some good tackle shops near the lake. Fishermans Headquarters in Draffenville, Fast Eddie's south of there and Ken's in Lake City come to mind on Kentucky. Hitec Outdoors has some bait and tackle but their big game is electronics.