Thread: Best Crappie Lake in Northern Kentucky area?

Originally Posted by Bassky

Yes, I have fished there but it has been at least 7 or 8 years since I have been there. I will have to give it a try. Thanks for the info.
Bassky from Alexandria, KY :p

ney no problem on the info,let me know how you do. jim

First off - Welcome to Crappie.com !! Do come and join us on the Main Message Board, anytime.

Now, about Kincaid - I've never been there, but I hear it's a pretty good Bass lake, but the Crappie fishing is rated poor. It's probably underfished for Crappie, and many of the year classes that had a good spawn (numbers) are overcrowding the lake and not getting very big. The 14" fish you saw in Oct - probably the "oldest year class" that are still alive. And, yes - Oct is a great time to catch bigger fish (since they come shallower, then, to feed up for the Winter).

If the lake is fairly clear water (you can see bottom in 3ft depth or more) ... then fishing deep (>10ft), even in the Spring, would be a good bet. If the water is dingy, or has a green look to it - Spring would be the time to fish around the shallow wood (in 10ft of water or less). Fallen trees are a great place to look .. but don't pass up "any" wood cover along the Northern shoreline. I'd start in March, during warm spells of two or more days ... and work on them until mid May. Fall fishing would be similar ... but, possibly in a little deeper water.

During the Summer - drift fishing with minnows, slow trolling with jigs, or even fishing at night are good methods ... just fish any dropoffs, humps with stumps, deep brush piles, deep weed lines, or standing timber that's in water of 20ft deep or more. Using a "KY Lake Rig" is a good way to find submerged brush piles, stumps, or even weed beds ... but, it's only useful if you can control the boat and move very, very slow. If it gets windy and you're having to constantly correct the boat with the trolling motor - you'd probably be better served by tying off to standing timber, anchoring, or drifting ... and using a single hook/sinker setup.
In order to use the "Ky Lake Rig" with any effectiveness, or get any enjoyment out of them - you'd have to have line that was >15lb test, and a rod/reel that could handle that size line & weight. Catching dinks on that heavy of an outfit isn't much fun ...LOL!!

One thing you can do to up your potential for catching bigger Crappie - learn what type baitfish is in the lake, and find out where they are during any given time. Your Slabs won't be far away from them ... and probably just a foot or two deeper than the baitfish school, max.
If there are a lot of stationary docks, with deep water under them (>10ft), or floating docks with boat slips built into them ... learn to "shoot docks" !! The shade these docks offer = cooler water temps, cover, baitfish attractors (algae on the posts or floats). It's not hard to learn how to shoot a dock ... just takes a little practice and the right equipment.

When/if you find that the Crappie are hiding in standing or fallen timber - and they are down in the thickest, heaviest cover ... you might read my article about "Vertical Casting", and give that a shot!! (it's on the Articles, Tips & Techinques page - just click on "articles" link, at the top of any forum page) ... and there are some other good articles there that you might find interesting, too. ............. luck2ya ...........cp