My Kentucky Lake Home

Barkley Dam in February

2011-02-20T19:42:00.000-08:00

Click image for panoramic view.

I finally made it down to the tailwaters of Barkley Dam on the Cumberland River. For the month of February, it was an unseasonably warm Sunday, great day to be out and about. I was in hopes of picking up a few sauger beneath the dam but I came up empty, thank goodness McDonald's is just down the road a bit. There was one "gate" open (see pic above), a bit too turbulent in my opinion. I had heard that fellows were catching some nice sauger using "Christmas tree rigs", dangling jigs and minnows, fishing from boats. Fishing from the rocks along the shoreline can be productive, especially for white bass, aka "stripes" during the Summer months. I have caught lots of bluegill along the rocks too, usually in the less turbulent eddies during the Spring. Of course fishing for catfish is probably the most popular activity beneath the dam, rockfish are popular too.
There are some nice picnic facilities at the Barkley Dam facility, a launch ramp too. Kentucky Lake dam also offers an equally nice access to the tail waters of the dam on the Tennessee River, just a few mile from Barkley. Both dams are must see attractions, both also offer free powerhouse tours.

Kentucky Lake Winter 2010-2011

2010-12-30T13:06:00.000-08:00

Wow, went a year before posting another pic and note to my blog, shame on me! New Year's eve is tomorrow, the year 2011 is just a few tick tocks away. Was a good sailing year on Kentucky Lake this year, was fortunate to get in quite a few outings. The water temperature broke the 60ºF mark early this past Spring, winds were fair which enabled me to go sailing earlier than normal. I stay off the lake when temperatures are below 60ºF, too dangerous if the sailboat capsizes and I go for a swim; hypothermia is a killer.
The picture above is of Lighthouse Landing marina in Grand Rivers, KY, a very popular meeting place for local sailors. Most sailboat races on Kentucky Lake originate from this marina. Just a short distance down the road is Patti's 1880's restaurant and to the South of the marina is one of the more popular diners for locals and visitors, Mr BBQ, excellent lunch and breakfast.
Time snuck by me last Winter, didn't get to go sauger fishing below the dam, but I plan to give it a go in January or February. Crappie fishing was very good last Spring, caught lots of 10-14" fish on the standard chartreuse curly tail jigs, 1/16 ounce size. The large "slabs" are getting harder to come by, I caught more of these large fish in the Fall than in the Spring, coincidence maybe. I try to fish the main lake, even during the spawn. There is a lot of fishing pressure on crappie in the bays. But when the wind is huffing on the main lake, I hit the bays. If you are into fly fishing like I am, Kentucky Lake smallmouth bass offer some of the best sport fishing in the MidWest. I practice catch and release at the point of capture. When the "mayflies" are hatching, emerging, fly fishing is at its best. These hatches happen throughout the Spring and Summer, not just in May.

Kentucky Lake Winter 2009-2010

2010-01-26T10:03:00.000-08:00

Winter time at Kentucky Lake Dam State Park marina above, a quiet time of year, hibernating pleasure craft. Of course there are some die hard fishermen venturing out on warmer days. Me, I would rather stay home huddled close to the firebox and wait for Spring. Sauger fishing below Kentucky Dam is supposed to be excellent from mid-January through mid-February, a spawning run I have been told. In all of my 28 years on the lake, I have never tested this rumor. This past Sunday, I crossed the new US641 bridge across the Tennessee River on my way to Grand Rivers, not a single fisherman in sight below the dam. All the gates were open and the water beneath the dam was quite turbulent which might explain the absence of fishermen. We used to catch a lot of sauger years ago in the main lake, mostly by trolling or bouncing jigs across gravel bars in the main lake. But when the mussel boats started dragging the lake, the sauger fishing seemed ruined. The forecast for this week is wintry, maybe next week will bring a warm day. If so, I think I will go try for sauger below the dam. I'll update this blog with my results.

First Sail of the Season on Kentucky Lake

2009-06-02T13:08:00.000-07:00

Above is a picture of the main thwart of the Thistle, also the mast step is visible as is my RU-90 Rithcie compass. If you look closely in the center, you will see the boat manufacturer's plate: D&M. As I mentioned in an earlier post, this Thistle is over 45 years old and has a lot of beautiful woodwork and hardware. Click here for a larger view of the above picture.

Finally made it out for a sail Saturday, went sailing with my friend and his wife on their Hunter. Lots of sailboats on the lake enjoying the fresh breeze and mild temperatures. We started at Moors Resort, sailed over to Kentucky Lake Sails in Grand Rivers to pick up the skipper's wife. We had a good wind for most of the day, a nice shakedown after a long "Winter". It was great to be under sail once again, nice to flex my sea legs. Got quite a bit of sun, made the mistake of removing my hat during the wind gusts, feared losing my hat. Instead, I ended up with a bit of burn on my scalp where my hair is thinning. Sunday, I finally got the Thistle wet. Either lack of wind or too much wind had prevented me from launching on an earlier date. When I go sailing by myself, I pick my weather carefully, rarely going out in winds in excess of 10 mph, a true "fair weather sailor". Had a good sail, winds were light and slowly diminishing. Towards the end of the trip, I had to haul out the paddle and scull most of the way back to the marina. The Thistle is a fairly easy boat to paddle especially when the wind and current are absent. Think I will try to sneak out for another sail this evening. Winds are predicted to be light, the moon is waxing, good moonlight after dark, love to sail in the moonlight.

Spring Kentucky Bass

2009-05-05T20:57:00.000-07:00

   Caught this Kentucky bass a couple weeks ago while crappie fishing, using a 1/8 ounce round head jig with a chartreuse curly tail, my favorite lure for crappie. The crappie spawn is just about over but there are still a lot of fish up in the shallows, less than ten feet of water. The lake is in the "flood" stage, great time to fish for bass in the flooded buck brush up in the bays. My fishing pal likes to toss a torpedo around the brush, has good results, gets tangled up a lot too, all of those dangling hooks. My favorite bass offering is a quarter ounce round headed jig with black buck tail with about a three inch plastic worm tail. More often than not, I usually am either vertical jigging around the brush or making short underhanded casts to the brush and letting the jig fall. If you fish jigs regularly, you probably realize that the bass usually hit the jig on the fall, crappie do the same. The water temperature is between 65º and 70º, prime Spring fishing time.
   Finally got the Thistle varnished, had to wait for a couple consecutive warm and dry days to do the work, tough to find such weather here during the early Spring. She looks pretty nice for an old boat (circa early '60's), anxious to get her in the water and sail the lake, should be sailing within the next week or so.
   Kentucky Lake Sailing Club has had two races so far this season, check out the most recent race results at klsc.net.

Spring Crappie

2009-03-18T19:17:00.000-07:00

Above, my first crappie of the season, nice fish, about 12 inches. Caught the fish on a 1/16 ounce round headed jig with a chartreuse curly tail. I rarely use a heavier jig when fishing for crappie, the lighter the jig, the slower the fall, the better the results. I also use light mono-filament line, 6 pound test, usually Stren. The fish are moving in, caught this fellow and five others of similar size in about ten foot of water off a point in Little Bear Bay. Water temperature is on a slow rise, about 51 degrees F, cold front this week might keep the warming rate slow.

Saw a few sailboats on Kentucky Lake today, anxious to join them. Have to varnish the rails on the Thistle, have her looking sharp on her first sail of the season. For those of you who may not be familiar with the Thistle Class sailboat, the boat has wooden rails, thwarts, gratings and other wooden elements, some hulls are wooden but the vast majority of hulls are of fiberglass construction. The wooden elements add a lot of beauty to the boat. There is a lot of maintenance required to keep her looking good but that is true of many of our loves.

Kentucky Lake: Spring of '09

2009-03-11T12:34:00.000-07:00

Spring is just a few days away, the lake has warmed up to about 55ºF, my sailing season will be here soon. The lake is still at Winter pool, shallow, but it will be on its annual rise by the end of this month, March.

As with all bodies of water, you should familiarize yourself with the lake and one of the best ways is to purchase a map of Kentucky Lake. These maps are available at almost every bait and tackle store in the lakes area. I have navigated this lake for over 25 years and I still tap the bottom once in a while, especially during low water periods, late Fall and early Spring. Last Fall, I was "cutting a corner" and jumped a shallow gravel bar, grinding a new edge on my glass- over-mahogany rudder and breaking a rudder fitting. I knew better, knew there was a gravel bar in the area but I figured the water depth was adequate, I guessed wrong. This happened in the area of "Old Birmingham", the submerged town of Birmingham, KY.

Land Between the lakes took a hard hit from our recent ice storm, lots of trees were toppled, lots of huge limbs broke from the trees, never seen such a mess. The Trace, the road that bisects LBL, was closed for quite a while because of fallen trees on the road. The bicycle paths were also blocked, closed to the public. Since the storm, bicycle enthusiasts have gathered with Wood n Wave together with the US Forest Service and have cleared the trails. Mountain biking has become one of the most popular activities in the LBL thanks in large part to the support and encouragement from Wood n Wave. Hundreds of miles of excellent trails of varying degrees of difficulty through some of the most beautiful country in the MidWest are available to biking enthusiasts, ride on!

Thistle Mid-Winter East at SPYC

2009-03-04T08:21:00.000-08:00

The Thistle class Mid-Winter East races are underway in St. Petersburg, FL. Races are being held at the SPYC. Heard tell the winds have been strong, rather chilly temperatures, hot racing though! Check out the photos and current status of contestants posted by the St. Petersburg Yacht Club: http://tinyurl.com/aw7mgb

A bit cold here on Kentucky Lake, lake temperature still too cold for my comfort and peace of mind, around 45ºF last I checked. Seeing the pictures of the Thistles racing in Florida arouses my sailing enthusiasm, makes me even more anxious for the warmer weather coming soon.

By the way, if you ever are curious about the Kentucky Lake water temperature, Murray State posts the current temperature and keeps an excellent record of lake temperature over the past several years. Other parameters are recorded too, data such as pH, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, lake level and more, all of this information at your finger tips. Check out MSU's Hancock Biological Station.

2009-02-27T22:38:00.000-08:00

Spring is just a few weeks away, the lake temperature will slowly climb and the sailing season begins anew. For most of the larger cruising sailboats, the water temperature is not as large a concern as is the atmospheric temperature. In my Thistle and other sailing dinghies, both media temperatures are safety concerns as a capsize in chilly water can have some serious consequences. I usually wait until mid-April, by then the water temperatures have reached the mid- to upper 60's. Fishermen, especially those in pursuit of crappie, usually start hitting the lake hard around that time of year, maybe a bit earlier if the ambient temperature is comfortable.

Grand Rivers is the address of Kentucky Lake Sails, one of three major sailboat marinas in the Kentucky-Barkley Lakes region, the other marinas being Green Turtle Bay, located on Lake Barkley, and the Kentucky Dam State Park marina. The Kentucky Lake Sailing Club conducts all of their races out of the Kentucky Lake Sails facility. Both Kentucky Lake Sails and Green Turtle offer sailboat maintenance and repair services, check out their websites for more information.

While on the subject of Grand Rivers, I need to mention a few other attractions. Patti's 1880's Settlement is probably the most popular attraction in our area, excluding the two lakes of course. Check out their website for the particulars. Grand Rivers is located at the North end of Land Between the Lakes, aka LBL. This is one of the largest recreation areas in the Midwest, operated by the US Forest Service. Amongst the many adventurous activities available, mountain biking has become one of the most popular. Miles and miles of trails of varying degrees of difficulty abound in the park. One of the best bike shops around is Wood n Wave located in Grand Rivers, swell people, super helpful. And last but definitely not the least is the SoCool Shop across the street from Patti's. My friend runs the shop, the super cool Ms. Laurie. She too is an avid sailor. Check out her website for more info.

My Thistle

2008-01-13T09:33:00.000-08:00

Uploading an image of my Thistle, easy enough. Above, my Thistle #1717 named "Witchcraft", built in or around the mid-60's. Earlier Thistles came with both a wooden mast and a wooden boom. If you notice, this boat still has a wooden boom. The boat was built by D&M of Ohio, Douglas and McLeod I believe it is. They also built some of the early Tartan boats.
The boat has a relatively large main and a small jib, a spinnaker too. I mostly sail solo on Kentucky Lake, rarely in any heavier than 10mph winds because of the large main. The boat weights about 600 pounds and is designed to sail its best with a crew weight of about 500 pounds. When the wind strengthens, extra weight is needed on the rail when going to windward in order to keep the boat balanced and keep it from capsizing.
Its a fun boat to sail, one of the fastest boats I have ever sailed. It was a bit tricky at first but after a couple seasons, I have discovered most of its peculiarities and am able to keep the boat right side up, very important.
Kentucky Lake is a great place to sail. There are a lot of larger sailboats on the lake, mostly cruising types. From time to time I see a few dinghy class boats, a Hobie once in a while. Back in the early '70's there were quite a few Thistles and other one-design boats, sailed mostly out of Kenlake, a very active sailing club I heard tell.
If you are into sailing and live in the Midwest, you should check out Kentucky Lake.