The key to fishing this lake is learning what season the crappie are living. The best time to fish is during spawning season. Kentucky Lake crappie typically spawn in early March but depending on weather conditions can start several weeks earlier or later.
During spawning season you typically find crappies near the shoreline in about four to seven foot water depths. This is where the fish will lay their eggs and spawn. You can often see the fish visually. You may notice changes in the top of the water or actually see the fish near the surface.
When fishing for Kentucky Lake crappie always remember one easy principle.
Crappie will be found near some form of wood structure. You will not find crappie in shallow water in the middle of summer, nor will you find them in thirty feet deep water during spawning season. You will however almost always find them near some kind of wood structure. Kentucky Lake is loaded with wooden cover. Some of it is natural in the form of standing trees or fallen timber. You will also notice many man made fish beds placed in the lake for the crappie to use as fish beds. These are the areas you want to fish.
There are many ways to fish for crappie on the fish beds. The most productive is the simple live minnow suspended about two feet underneath a bobber. It is really important that you use light line. The benefits far outweigh any potential problems. In my opinion there is no reason to use line of more than four pound test for crappie. These fish do not have teeth and while a large two pound crappie will stress your line it is nothing a sound drag and quality rod cannot handle. Because the crappie is a skittish fish in clear water I advise using fluorocarbon line for its clarity. You will be amazed at the increase in your catch rate with line that is less visible.
You will want to be very careful in how you approach crappies on the beds. The light line you will be using aids you in this endeavor. You can and should strive to make long casts when fishing for shallow water crappie. Precision casting is not required; if you present your offering in the general vicinity of the bed you should receive action. When you approach an area to fish do so quietly. Turn off the outboard motor and use an electric trolling motor.
If the wind is blowing the right direction you can even drift the boat into position. You will also need to cut down on the noise level while fishing. Talking or playing music is not suggested but also is not the worst thing you can do. Banging the bottom of the boat is by far the biggest mistake I see fisherman do when fishing the beds. Dropping your tackle box and bottom of the boat is a recipe for disaster when fishing the beds.
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