Lake Conditions:  Fair - 46° / Lake Temperature  57° - 356.53'
Cadiz, Kentucky
Cadiz, Kentucky
Cadiz, Kentucky
Closer Than You Think

Mayfly Hatches Begin; Summer Patterns In Play for Anglers

Written by Steve McCadams - Published on June 10, 2020

Nothing says more about seasonal transition than the start of mayfly hatches across Kentucky Lake. The first one showed up late last weekend and although it wasn’t massive like those of yesteryear it still signaled the start of summer fishing patterns.

Anglers this week had to battle a few days of high winds and some thunderstorms as the backwash of tropical storm Cristobal passed through the region on Tuesday. Whitecaps were still present on the lake Wednesday as strong breezes lingered.

Although June has a reputation of stable warm weather that wasn’t the case this week; temps were stable but the winds and storms were not.

Lake levels returned to normal summer pool this week. TVA projected stability for the next several days as the reservoir is expected to rest at an elevation of 359 throughout the weekend.

Water color has been clear. Surface temperatures are starting out at 78 degree range in the mornings and rising to the 80 to 81 degree range at midday.

Crappie fishing showed some improvement lately, especially on days when cloud cover filtered out the warm sun and light winds kept things tolerable out there on the big water.

When light winds allowed anglers to move about a few decent stringers were taken from the 11 to 14 foot depth ranges. Some fish were taken in 9 to 11 feet in a few areas while other boats found some fish moving out to 18 to 24 foot cover.

It’s fair to say the fish are a bit scattered but by making several stops anglers are able to accumulate a decent box of fish. That’s why the winds are such a factor. When high winds descend it limits where anglers can go.

Still producing have been live minnows or jigs tipped with minnows. Jigs tipped with Berkley Power Bait nibble in the white and chartreuse colors have also worked at times.

Popular jig colors in the clear water have ranged from grape/chartreuse with glitter to motor oil or some smoke blue with sparkle. Unpainted leadheads have been productive on jig skirts over the loud colors.

Some boats are still trolling crankbaits or pulling long lines with Roadrunners out over main lake ledges with fair results. Vertical presentations of jigs and minnows seems to be the most productive method as the fish are relating to structure and want the bait presented on their terms and at their depth range.

Bass fishing has been ho-hum as most anglers are having a challenge when trying to find decent numbers of larger fish. Several boats have backed away from the banks in an attempt to establish a summer pattern as warmer surface temps push a few fish back out to ledges and humps.

There are still some smaller fish around buck bushes and shallow weeds as a few schools of shad fry are beginning to show up. The small schools of pin minnows usually attract bass.

Soon schools of shad fry should begin showing up on outside island rims and blow downs where logs and treetops with deeper water will produce bass.

Still, bass anglers are voicing a tough challenge from out there in the trenches and the bite has been off compared to past years. June has a reputation as being productive for bass fishermen on Kentucky Lake who have usually found a consistent pattern in both shallow and deeper water at times.

Most anglers report schooling bass are nonexistent at present. And, larger fish are hard to come by.

A recent buddy bass tournament out of Paris Landing State Park saw the winning stringer tip the scales at only 16 pounds. There was not a single bass weighed in that eclipsed the 5-pound mark as it took less than 10-pounds to make the top five!

That pretty much sums up the present day bass bite. However, anglers are hoping things improve but some veteran bass tournament fishermen are in agreement that numbers are down and the numbers of big fish are just not out there.

Back when aquatic vegetation was abundant across the reservoir and before Asian carp descended in massive numbers it took a 25-pound stringer to win a lot of June tournaments. Not so nowadays!

Catfish are still hitting good as some hefty stringers have been taken lately. There are still a few fish lingering around shorelines but fishermen backing out to the deeper areas on the river channel banks are starting to see numbers increase.

Depths of 25 to 35 feet have produced and some fish are even deeper. Nightcrawlers are accounting for most of the fish taken.

With the lake stabilizing current may diminish in the coming days and that could slow the bite for boaters working bridge piers and channel breaks.

Some bluegill are still hanging around buck bushes and edges of deeper weedbeds. Casting to those areas with light tackle, slip bobbers and crickets is still paying dividends but the fish don’t appear to be bedding. Scattered best describe the bluegill bite with a few decent size fish mixed in with a lot of smaller ones.

Finding a few mayflies beneath a low overhanging tree or along a steep shoreline could be productive in the days and week ahead. Plus, mayflies seem to attract bass and catfish too.

Summer weather is here but the season doesn’t officially arrive until June 20th. Keep the sunscreen on and the cold drinks close at hand.



< Return to the Archives
< Return to Fishing Reports
< Return to Fishing Overview