Green River vs Rough October

Me and a buddy are looking at a fall crappie trip and maybe some bass fishing in October. We've never been to either and look forward to trying some new water. Any advise would be appreciated and maybe November would be better. Thanks Tech

Thanks for the help guys....

It might depend on how you like to fish or are set up to fish. I know almost nothing about Rough, and have only fished Green in the Fall a few times (and not within the last few years). Best I can remember is Green is still a Pushing Jigs or cranks lake and/or Spider Rigging lake in Oct. depending on water temps. Most of the locals I know are probably gearing up for the CUSA tourney at Cumberland (10/3-10/6), so even their knowledge may be limited on what's currently happening at Green.

If I talk to any of them in the next few days, I will find out what they are "expecting" the fishing to be like in Oct ... and I'll relay that info to you here.

In October look for shad schools on the surface in the coves and fish around them for bass.

Muskie fishing can be good especially in the feeder creeks. Most of the time a white spinnerbait is best.

I don't know if this plays a factor in your choice but come 10/15 Rough starts pull water in preparation for their winter drawdown. Green does the same thing but it typically starts 11/15.

Thanks guys. Much appreciated

[QUOTE=Technonorb;569837]Me and a buddy are looking at a fall crappie trip and maybe some bass fishing in October. We've never been to either and look forward to trying some new water. Any advise would be appreciated and maybe November would be better. Thanks Tech[/QUOTE]

I can't give you any crappie info about Green River lake, but I know I have had some great success fishing Rough River lake in October for crappie.

At Rough River, I have fished the south end of the long arms of the lake, fishing standing wood cover. We don't catch a lot of huge crappie, but you can usually catch a limit no problem. Deep in the creek arms are where we always fished. Minnows were our go-to, but I've caught limits on jigs fished under bobbers, fishing 2-8 feet deep, depending on water temp. December is a great time to fish Rough for crappie too.

Thanks for the help guys and sorry life has got in the way of my reply. With that said... Crappie Pappy may be seeing you in December....

[QUOTE=Technonorb;571521]Thanks for the help guys and sorry life has got in the way of my reply. With that said... Crappie Pappy may be seeing you in December....[/QUOTE]


Uhhhh, you're not likely to be seeing ME out on the water in Dec. LOL !!! But, Spider Rigging minnows/jigs down close to the bridge has been known to produce Crappie during that time of year.

My friend Tim Marple (now a Crappie guide on Green) did this video with Tim Farmer/Ky Afield : [url]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qma07Wa8Yeo[/url] ... And yes, it was done several years ago, but the technique shown is likely still a valid way to catch them. You can see by the scenery when the camera pans the banks, that the water is well down at Winter Pool & they are not fishing all that deep as they run the river channel edge. The Crappie aren't monsters, and the creel limit has been reduced to 20/person/day ... but, Green is more a "numbers" lake than a "size" lake, though there are still some Slabs to be had.