09-27-2008, 11:10 AM
KENTUCKY AFIELD OUTDOORS: FINDING THE BIG TROUT IN A LOW CUMBERLAND RIVER
Frankfort, Kentucky - Saplings now grow where big brown trout once lurked and fed on the crayfish scurrying about a gravel bar. Shoals once only fishable in the early morning hours before electrical generation began now lie exposed and open to angler's black woolly buggers, Trout Magnets, Pin's Minnows and Chicago flies.
The Cumberland River below Wolf Creek Dam is as low as it's been since the lake filled in 1952. The summer's drought and ongoing repair work on the dam created a situation where trickles now flow where torrents of water once swamped gravel bars. The daily water conditions of slack water in the morning rising to flood levels by afternoon common during electrical generation at Wolf Creek Dam are no more.
The low water compresses fish into predictable spots and makes for good fishing for stocker-sized trout, but larger fish are hard to entice right now.
For anglers who want a limit to eat or just enjoy catching fish regardless of size, an in-line spinner, a small Rapala-style floating minnow, a small gold spoon, redworm or night crawler will catch trout, mostly rainbows. Fly anglers will score with olive, black, brown or gray woolly buggers, streamers in white, chartreuse and gray, crawfish patterns heavy on orange and ant patterns fished in riffles. The Chicago fly, a generalist pattern popular on the Cumberland that looks like a black mohair leech with less marabou dressing, also works well.
However, many of these trout will be just a little longer than your hand. The Cumberland River is a world class fishery and a 9-inch recently stocked trout doesn't satisfy when trophy fish abound. Picking the right weather conditions and water type should put you on some of those 18-inch and larger fish.
"I think the bigger fish are holding in deeper water," said Dave Dreves, fisheries research biologist for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. "There is a lack of intermediate depth at this time, whereas there is a lot of this habitat at higher water. The water in the prime fishing shoals is now too shallow."
Avoid fishing on clear days that come with high pressure weather systems. "There is a major difference in the fishing between a bluebird, bright day and an overcast day," Dreves said. "You'll catch nothing but stockers on bright days. The bigger fish are going to leave the 2 to 3 feet of water for deeper water on those days. A dark, cloudy day or even a light rain would be the best time to fish."
The deeper, outside bends are productive spots for larger fish during the unusually low water. "The outer bends help with current," said Jeff Ross, assistant director of fisheries for Kentucky Fish and Wildlife, who formerly helped manage the trout fishery in the Cumberland River. "Those boulder-strewn outer bends below Big Willis Creek and Whetstone Creek hold big browns. I saw a 9- and a 12-pounder come up in the fall while electrofishing the river along those banks. We always see big browns there. The rocky outside bend below the Rockhouse is also good."
Fishing deeper than normal for trout also helps in these conditions. "The trout may not be willing to come up 8 or 9 feet to strike a lure right now," Ross said. "Most trout anglers are not going to fish that deep. Fish something you can get down. We once got a 9-pounder from the end of Rainbow Run in deep water in fall. It was holding deeper than our long dip nets we use."
Fly anglers should use a sinking line and heavier streamers or woolly buggers to fish behind large boulders and in woody cover in these deeper areas. Anglers using spinning gear should try a 1/16- or 1/8-ounce marabou jig in orange, brown, olive or black fished in the same spots. Deep-running crankbaits such as the Shad Rap in crawfish colors also tempt trout. Drifting a live shad, shiner or crappie minnow in these areas also draws strikes.
Fishing at dusk, in the pre-dawn hours and even night may be the solution to better fish. "They come up on shoals and feed in really low light conditions when the water is this low," Ross said. "It may be the only time you can get a large fish to hit a lure."
Watch the weather, pick the right spots and get on a world class trout fishery this fall. Wet a line in the Cumberland River.
Author Lee McClellan is an award-winning associate editor for Kentucky Afield magazine, the official publication of the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. He is a life-long hunter and angler, with a passion for smallmouth bass fishing.
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The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources manages, regulates, enforces and promotes responsible use of all fish and wildlife species, their habitats, public wildlife areas and waterways for the benefit of those resources and for public enjoyment. Kentucky Fish and Wildlife, an agency of the Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet, has an economic impact to the state of $4.5 billion annually. For more information on the department, visit our web site at fw.ky.gov.
Media Contact<br />
Lee McClellan (800) 859-1549 ext. 4443
Frankfort, Kentucky - Saplings now grow where big brown trout once lurked and fed on the crayfish scurrying about a gravel bar. Shoals once only fishable in the early morning hours before electrical generation began now lie exposed and open to angler's black woolly buggers, Trout Magnets, Pin's Minnows and Chicago flies.
The Cumberland River below Wolf Creek Dam is as low as it's been since the lake filled in 1952. The summer's drought and ongoing repair work on the dam created a situation where trickles now flow where torrents of water once swamped gravel bars. The daily water conditions of slack water in the morning rising to flood levels by afternoon common during electrical generation at Wolf Creek Dam are no more.
The low water compresses fish into predictable spots and makes for good fishing for stocker-sized trout, but larger fish are hard to entice right now.
For anglers who want a limit to eat or just enjoy catching fish regardless of size, an in-line spinner, a small Rapala-style floating minnow, a small gold spoon, redworm or night crawler will catch trout, mostly rainbows. Fly anglers will score with olive, black, brown or gray woolly buggers, streamers in white, chartreuse and gray, crawfish patterns heavy on orange and ant patterns fished in riffles. The Chicago fly, a generalist pattern popular on the Cumberland that looks like a black mohair leech with less marabou dressing, also works well.
However, many of these trout will be just a little longer than your hand. The Cumberland River is a world class fishery and a 9-inch recently stocked trout doesn't satisfy when trophy fish abound. Picking the right weather conditions and water type should put you on some of those 18-inch and larger fish.
"I think the bigger fish are holding in deeper water," said Dave Dreves, fisheries research biologist for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. "There is a lack of intermediate depth at this time, whereas there is a lot of this habitat at higher water. The water in the prime fishing shoals is now too shallow."
Avoid fishing on clear days that come with high pressure weather systems. "There is a major difference in the fishing between a bluebird, bright day and an overcast day," Dreves said. "You'll catch nothing but stockers on bright days. The bigger fish are going to leave the 2 to 3 feet of water for deeper water on those days. A dark, cloudy day or even a light rain would be the best time to fish."
The deeper, outside bends are productive spots for larger fish during the unusually low water. "The outer bends help with current," said Jeff Ross, assistant director of fisheries for Kentucky Fish and Wildlife, who formerly helped manage the trout fishery in the Cumberland River. "Those boulder-strewn outer bends below Big Willis Creek and Whetstone Creek hold big browns. I saw a 9- and a 12-pounder come up in the fall while electrofishing the river along those banks. We always see big browns there. The rocky outside bend below the Rockhouse is also good."
Fishing deeper than normal for trout also helps in these conditions. "The trout may not be willing to come up 8 or 9 feet to strike a lure right now," Ross said. "Most trout anglers are not going to fish that deep. Fish something you can get down. We once got a 9-pounder from the end of Rainbow Run in deep water in fall. It was holding deeper than our long dip nets we use."
Fly anglers should use a sinking line and heavier streamers or woolly buggers to fish behind large boulders and in woody cover in these deeper areas. Anglers using spinning gear should try a 1/16- or 1/8-ounce marabou jig in orange, brown, olive or black fished in the same spots. Deep-running crankbaits such as the Shad Rap in crawfish colors also tempt trout. Drifting a live shad, shiner or crappie minnow in these areas also draws strikes.
Fishing at dusk, in the pre-dawn hours and even night may be the solution to better fish. "They come up on shoals and feed in really low light conditions when the water is this low," Ross said. "It may be the only time you can get a large fish to hit a lure."
Watch the weather, pick the right spots and get on a world class trout fishery this fall. Wet a line in the Cumberland River.
Author Lee McClellan is an award-winning associate editor for Kentucky Afield magazine, the official publication of the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. He is a life-long hunter and angler, with a passion for smallmouth bass fishing.
-30-
The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources manages, regulates, enforces and promotes responsible use of all fish and wildlife species, their habitats, public wildlife areas and waterways for the benefit of those resources and for public enjoyment. Kentucky Fish and Wildlife, an agency of the Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet, has an economic impact to the state of $4.5 billion annually. For more information on the department, visit our web site at fw.ky.gov.
Media Contact<br />
Lee McClellan (800) 859-1549 ext. 4443