Lake Conditions:  Overcast - 50° / Lake Temperature  57° - 357.14'
Cadiz, Kentucky
Cadiz, Kentucky
Cadiz, Kentucky
Closer Than You Think

Crappie Bite Becomes Tougher Recently

Written by Josh Lovett - Published on November 11, 2019

Well folks its been a while since I have done a written fishing report.  I am sure some of you have seen some of the video fishing reports I have done on the Lynnhurst facebook page.  I'd like to thank you for watching and keeping up with things there and on any of my social media platforms. 

This year has been a year of blessing for me and my family.  I have had a lot of growth in my guide service and have experienced some great success with my clientele.  I thank you guys for the opportunity to work for you and am always appreciative of people coming and letting me share my passion with them. 

I have been fortunate enough to maintain catch rates in mid twenties to the mid thirties for most panfishing trips.  In tournaments I have not had a finish less than top 5, with the highlight being winning the Crappie USA Classic on Old Hickory Lake just a couple of weeks ago. 

I have a lot of people to thank for the past years success on both sides of things.  First of all my family, they have sacrificed and supported me through chasing my dream.  They have believed in me even when I didn't.  My friends John Morgan, and Captain Rich Bay,  thank you guys for the opportunity to work with you, and for advice from old salt fisherman which I hold in the highest regard.  \

The families at Lynnhurst resort for taking good care of our customers.  You won't find a better place to stay with a family atmosphere and wonderful hospitality.  The guys at Jenko Fishing, you guys make some great products and have given me great support over the past few years.  If you're looking for some winning gear check them out because they have it! 

The fellas at Legacy Marine for keeping my rig on the water and working properly,  great guys and great service.  If you need anything done to a boat make sure and give Chris Lasher and the fellas up there a yell, they will get you taken care of.  I couldn't have done what I did without this cast of people. 

Now on to the updated fishing report.

I returned from Old Hickory Lake to a much different bite the past couple of weeks.  Seems like the crappie fishing had become much tougher than it had been the past month or so.  I'm not really sure if it is due to the overabundance of bait in the system or the rapidly changing conditions.  The water temp had cooled very rapidly and the fish are much more lethargic than in past weeks. 

My best bites for crappie came in the 14-20' range in heavy brush single poling jigs.  I did not fish any minnows, however I believe that would have brought more success than the jigs given the toughness of the bite. 

Slow was the key... soaking the bait until you could trigger a fish to bite.  Water temps were in the high 50's and expected to drop much more over the coming weeks as we see some record lows in the forecast.

For the next couple weeks people will be focused on chasing deer in the woods so I feel like it would be a good time to get out and have the lake to yourself. 

I have not done any bluegill or bass fishing.  I have heard the bass fishing is still very tough right now and you have to run a lot of water to get five bites.  The jerk bait bite should be firing up shortly and I hope to get out and test the waters soon as it is my favorite technique for winter.  I suspect if you can fish at the end of a few days of stable weather for crappie you could have some really nice catches as the average size of our crappie continues to get larger and they are feeding up for the winter.

Winter time fishing can be fun and you can have some really great days in cold weather.  Always practice extra safety precautions this time of year as the water temp and all the extra clothing can be very dangerous.  I will be posting more updates as the winter moves on, if you'd like to read more follow me on Facebook, Instagram, or check my Website for updates.

Stay Safe and Tight Lines from "The Creek".



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