My fishing obsession is a year-round addiction, but some months are more addictive than others. April being one of them.
The reason: water temperature.
Winter can produce some memorable fishing and some memorably big fish. But as winter melts into spring, water temperatures across the Commonwealth from Rock Creek to Kentucky Lake and beyond climb into the 50s, 60s and 70s. Fish respond by shaking off their winter lethargy and rebound with increased appetites and the urge to spawn. It is the hat trick for good fishing.
Unfortunately, it is hardly an exact science. Fish are cold-blooded critters, which essentially means they are close to the same temperature as their liquid surroundings. Fish can be caught in cold conditions, of course. Rising water temperature puts them on the move and has a direct effect on fish behavior. But a sudden or sharp drop in temperature—even by a few degrees—can have an equally chilling effect.
So, it pays to keep an eye on the water temperature. Many anglers use the spring warmup to target spawning activity, which is hinged to water temperature. While there is no magic formula for when a spawn will occur, generally, crappie will begin move toward shallow water (1 to 5 feet, typically) to spawn when waters temps reach the mid- to upper 50s. Expect this to continue for across about a 10- to 15-degree range. By the time water temps reach the mid- to high 60s or touch 70, the crappie spring spawn likely will have peaked.
(Black crappie, found in several Kentucky waters including Kentucky Lake—which harbors a strong and expanding population—generally spawn earlier than their white crappie counterparts.)
Bluegill and their slightly chunkier cousins, red ear sunfish (or shellcracker), generally make their shallow-water spawning move when waters warm into the 65- to 75-degree range, although these feisty, hard-fighting, fun-to-catch panfish periodically will spawn throughout the summer.
Bass (largemouth and smallmouth) enjoy a slighter wider spawning temperature window than their panfish relatives, generally ranging from the mid-50s to the mid-70s, and warmer in some circumstances. While some of the heaviest bass of the year are landed during the pre-spawn, when water temperatures are barely in the 50s, bass become more aggressive and more angler-friendly when temperatures inch into the 60s. Go catch some.
A useful information tool for Kentucky anglers is the annual fishing forecast, compiled and produced by the folks at the Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. The forecast lists more than 60 of Kentucky’s public waters, including state-stocked and -managed Fishing in Neighborhoods (FINs) lakes and the fish found in them. It rates fishing activity by species using a star system (5 stars garnering the highest rating). At Lincoln County’s 784-acre Cedar Creek Lake, for example, state fishery officials give channel catfish, crappie and redear better-than-average marks (3, 3 and 3½ stars, respectively). Largemouth bass get a 4½ rating.
Anglers headed to Elkhorn Creek (the main stem and North Fork) can look forward to a 4-star rating for rock bass, largemouth bass and catfish. Smallmouth bass get a 5-star nod with this promising note: “Very good numbers of smallmouth bass, especially on the main stem. Also, good numbers of fish greater than 15 inches.”
The forecast isn’t a crystal ball but is based on the previous year’s fishing surveys, creel surveys, stocking rates and historic knowledge and production of the various fisheries. The information provided is accurate and dependable, although it hardly guarantees success. Access a copy of the 2023 fishing forecast online at https://fw.ky.gov/Fish/Documents/CurrentFishingForecast.pdf or contact Fish and Wildlife at 1.800.858.1549 for a printed copy.
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Book review: Trout
The editorial fishing landscape is littered with overheated stories of landing the fish of a lifetime and tales of the one that got away. Both can be entertaining, but you’ll find neither in Trout, written by Tom Rosenbauer, with photography by Brian Grossenbacher.
The images in Trout are exquisite. Grossenbacher’s photos range from New York to Tennessee, Patagonia to Alaska, and Saskatchewan to Montana. The photos alone (151 by my count) are worth the cover price.
But it’s Rosenbauer’s prose that brings Trout to life. He writes with a calm gentleness occasionally punctuated by the jolt of a striking trout that is simply a delight to read.
Rosenbauer probably knows more about trout and fly fishing than anyone alive, but he isn’t showy with his expertise or particularly snobbish with his fishing technique or fishing destinations. From the section titled “The Places You Go”: “In my neighborhood, one of the best places to fish during the winter is in a small run we call the Poo Pipe. Just below a municipal sewage-treatment plant, the warm water allows fish a level of thermal comfort, as well as abundant midge larvae that grow in the enrichment from a slug of organic matter 24 hours a day, 12 months a year. It’s a relatively modern plant and not perfumed with the aroma of sewage, but it does emanate a scent of gray water, that unmistakable used-up-laundry-detergent smell. You wouldn’t hike down there on a romantic date.”
A globetrotting angler, Rosenbauer has yet to visit Kentucky on his fishing travels, an omission he would like to rectify. “I have never fished in Kentucky, but I have heard great stories of catching smallmouth bass on cicada imitations,” he said.
Trout is available from most booksellers and Amazon.
Readers may contact Gary Garth at editor@kentuckymonthly.com