Steve McCadams

Catfish are on the prowl. Just this week several success stories are coming in from anglers tying into some hefty stringers as the fish head shallow to rocky banks for spawning.

After some cool snaps recently that sort of paused the active spawning spree of bluegill and catfish the game is back on in full force.

Early May’s full moon sort of triggered the spawning phases of bluegill, shellcracker and catfish along the shallow areas of Kentucky Lake. Another full moon returns at the end of the month.

Surface temperatures are in the 69 degree range in early morning hours and warming to 72 degree range at midday. Those temps could jump a few degrees whenever back to back warm days return. Water color is clear.

Lake level is 358.8 as of this report and still a few inches shy of normal summer pool elevation, which is 359.

It’s a great time to be a fishermen here on Kentucky Lake as several different species of fish are biting. And, for the most part the weather has stabilized, offering better fishing conditions for all sorts of anglers.

Lake levels were still a few inches below the summer pool level of 359 as the week got under way. TVA’s normal curve for reservoir filling targets May 1 as the arrival of summer pool yet the reservoir is still a few inches shy of TVA’s prediction.

Anglers are hoping the reservoir climbs to normal level soon. That works better for scores of bass, catfish and bluegill anglers at this stage of the spring spawns.

Just a few inches of water makes a significant impact here in early May. Buck bushes and weedbeds need just a little more water. Bass fishermen love the shoreline habitat once it’s inundated with enough water to cover grass and the variety of structure.

Another important factor about summer pool level is the abundant shoreline habitat inundated once higher levels arrive. That’s plays a vital role in the survival rate for young of the year, known as fry.

Once these massive schools of tiny fry hatch out they’re vulnerable to larger predator fish. That’s part of the biological chain and good for the lake but the fry need cover to hide in once they hatch. That’s why a little more water in the shallow shoreline structure is important for more reasons than one.

Lately bass anglers have yearned for more water around buck bushes so they can pitch and flip Texas rigged craws and lizards or perhaps spinnberbaits and assorted topwater presentations.

Some nice stringers of bass are showing up despite below normal lake levels but that’s about to change. A few cool snaps and very windy days have played havoc with fishermen at times, altering their planned route out on the lake.

To say it has been a windy spring is an understatement!

It’s high time more stability returned to the fishing scene. May is usually a predictable month so perhaps normalcy will return soon and aid anglers.

Meanwhile, in addition to the catfish spawning phases now underway are aggressive bluegill jerking bobbers out of sight. Bluegill are bedding and the bite has been good.

A few cool days and chilly winds curtailed the bite as even these feisty panfish are sensitive to slight drops in surface temps. Their bite diminishes when nasty northwest winds blow in but it will rebound quickly once gently southwest breezes return and daytime highs climb into the upper 70’s and low 80’s.

Anglers are backing up and casting to bedding areas as water color has been clear. Shallow bluegill and redear are shy and can spook easily in clear water. Producing well have been crickets, red worms, nightcrawlers, wax and meal worms. Artificial hair jigs and grubs have worked too.

Depths of 2 to 4 feet are producing good numbers of both bluegill and a few shellcracker have been mixed in. Several fish are bedding out in 4 to 7 foot depth ranges away from shorelines.

Casting ultralight tackle with a 1/16 to 1/32-ounce hair jig has been deadly on the gills and crackers. They love that slow moving bait as it drags across the bottom. A lot of fishermen are just tightlining their presentation, choosing to forgo use of a bobber as they fan cast open water shallow sandbars and beds discovered on sidescan sonar units.

The next few weeks should produce some good bluegill fishing but shellcrackers will become more finicky as May matures. Shellcracker are known to begin spawning ahead of bluegill and this year they got underway in mid-April due to the warmer weather.

A few crappie are still showing up in the creels of anglers but the fish are now in a post-spawn phase. They will still bite but habits have changed a bit as the fish are more scattered compared to a few weeks ago.

Their thin physiology shows the post-spawn phase is here and the fish, while relating to midrange structure in depths of 5 to 12 feet, are not as congregated or as aggressive as they were two weeks ago.

Live minnows are working well for crappie anglers right now. Some are tipping jigs with minnows too in hopes of enticing stubborn crappie to respond.

Right now is a good time to be on Kentucky Lake. Always take the raingear and sunscreen. You’ll need one or the other on any given day.

From catfish to crappie and bluegill to bass, fishermen can pursue their favorite fish right now and have a pretty good chance of catching decent stringers.