Dix River ***Can anyone help***

[Brush Creek]

I have been hearing alot about the Dix river.I was going to go this week but I have a few questions before I go, if anyone can help me..
Question 1:Is the river deep and wide enough to acces with a 19 1/2 foot nitro bass boat.If so,How far.
Question 2:What species of fish are abundent I know of rainbow and browns.)Is there any others.( Sauger,walleye,smallmouth,white bass.)
Question 3:Is the boat ramp there near the mouth of dix river on the kentucky river free public access.(High Bridge)
Question 4:Can you suggest any baits that work better than others.( On the cumberland river I throw alot of the rapala SSR5 crankbaits and blue fox spinners.I thought, I would throw the same.)
Thanks for any help you can give me.

[know1]

I plan on checking out the Dix river from the KY this year myself. I drove down to High Bridge a few weeks back and there is a ramp there (go to the right before the entrance to High Bridge park). The cost is $4 according to the sign. I can't really answer the rest of your questions.

[djh480]

Answer 1 - Yes it is but ya better go real slow til ya know the river. You can take it to the first riffle which puts you in trout country.
Answer 2 - depending on how hard they are pulling Herrington, If it is normal about halfway up you can catch LM,SM,Whites and some awesome bluegill. After you hit the cold water which you will know because you can see the bottom of the river from there to the riffle. After that point its trout and maybe an occasional SM.
Answer 3 - Maybe a half mile to the mouth of the Dix from the ramp. Launch fee is $4.00 in a courtesy box. Please be courteous.
Answer 4 - Use the same baits there that ya catch fish on anywhere else.
Hope that helps ya out. I was born and raised there and live only 5 miles from the rap now. Real close friend owns the ramp. Good luck to ya. I can tell ya it is Gin clear in the dix and muddy on the Ky, sometimes that makes good fishin in the mouth of Dix.

[know1]

I would have gone there yesterday, but since I've never been there before and I was fishing alone, I decided to go someplace that I was familiar with. Plus, the KY river looked very green. Come to think of it though, so did the water at Cedar Creek.

[artcarney_agr]

Make the effort to go to the Dix sometime...it's worth it! I usually go once a year for a good solid weekend of fishing and camping. My buddies and I usually put a canoe in at the ramp mentioned in the post above and usually put a little more in the courtesy box in exchange for an "extra eye" on our vehicles during the entire weekend. We usually camp downstream of the riffle. The best fishing is above the riffle, which we have to take the canoe out of the water and walk it up above the riffle. One thing to remember is that only artificial lures are allowed past a certain point - usually roostertails work great or Rapala Countdowns. You can easily take your limit of rainbows, however catching a keeper brown is tough! It's a fun trip and the scenery is amazing with all of the huge bluffs and clear water.

[bluegrasser]

You would need to check some water levels depending on how far up the Dix you want to go with that size boat. It's plenty deep at the mouth and quite a ways up, but it gets real shallow in some spots the farther up you go.

Also, there's plenty of "widowmakers" - tree stumps just below the surface of the water. I have heard and seen plenty of guys flying up and down that river bang into something HARD.

Common sense and an attentive eye should let you access the river fairly well, but it will depend on water levels on how far upstream you can get.

[Brush Creek]

Thanks everyone for the help.

[know1]

Do you have to know the generation schedule for Dix Dam? I looked online, but haven't really seen anything about that. I'm pretty anxious to try that stretch of water.

[artcarney_agr]

I go in the fall each year and have never looked at the generation schedule or what they are releasing and haven't ever run into any trouble. Really, as small as the powerhouse is, I can't imagine that would have enough power generation to cause a disturbance. Always figured if the current was really rolling, I could go to plan B and go after some of the monster catfish in there.....

[know1]

I go in the fall each year and have never looked at the generation schedule or what they are releasing and haven't ever run into any trouble. Really, as small as the powerhouse is, I can't imagine that would have enough power generation to cause a disturbance. Always figured if the current was really rolling, I could go to plan B and go after some of the monster catfish in there.....

Now you're talking! I could go for the catfish. If you're ever interested in paddling up there some day, I've got two kayaks with all the accessories.

[djh480]

The only time ya have to worry about getting swamped up there from a release if they have to open a flood gate. Trust me you dont wanna be there when that happens. That is one scary situation. Been there done that. Lost fishin tackle and some other goodies from that, being up there in a small john boat and oars. Couldnt get to the bank fast enough. Had to swim from the point of Dix and the Ky to the High Bridge side. If you start hitting gin clear water at the bend where the lil ramp is at then thats normal but if ya hit that cold water at the mouth of Dix they pulling hard and the current gets tough the further up ya get.

[bluegrasser]

Art, you are not quite correct in this assumption: "Really, as small as the powerhouse is, I can't imagine that would have enough power generation to cause a disturbance."

I have been up at the dam when they sounded the sirens that they were going to release. I paddled my canoe as quick as possible down to the spillway rapids, shot the chutes, and parked the canoe on the downstream side of the shoals.

I sat there for a few minutes and watched what was a gentle current turn into a massive wall of water with waves taller than I was standing on the bank. I took some pictures and video. I guess that is on a disk somewhere, will have to dig through it.

Trust me, if they are running more than 1 generator you will not be fishing for trout anywhere near the spillway. Way too much current. The fish don't bite and it's downright dangerous.

Now, downstream as you get closer to the Dix/KY junction that current moderates quite a bit and, as other posters have said, if they're not running 2 or 3 generators, then the current usually dies out mid-way down the Dix where it hits the backed up KY river water. When they're really pulling hard, that cold clear water flushes all the way out to the Ky and then some.

That's when your plan B for monster catfish comes into play.