Cumberland River Trout!!!!

Thanks tglass. Those are my impressions as well. I have no doubt that stripers do take a few trout, but I would be surprised if they took a lot. Seems that all the guides down there use skipjack for bait rather than trout even though trout would be legal in TN and stay alive in a tank much easier.

SSKY, I would love to see the lake have a trophy fishery. Just don't think its likely to happen. Too many variables. Water temps get too high in summer to allow catch and release all year, so you have to allow for smaller fish to be taken. I see no reason why the trout fishery below the dam cannot be improved. Just reading the posts on this forum suggests that it is a pretty good fishery. Not sure why you feel it important to distinguish the striper as an ocean fish? After all, rainbows and browns are not native to the river either.

TN does stock the river below Dale Hollow, so I am sure some of those trout do end up in the Cumberland. I think you will also find that, while stripers certainly make it all the way to the dam, the larger ones stay stream a way. I know several of the big striper guides prefer the TN sections of the river.

I actually do fish the altantic for stripers. Bluefish too. Just a little far to travel for a weekend. 600+ miles one way.

Andrew

Hey I realize from your guys posts in the past that you are good fishermen and that striper fishing in the river is fun I have done it myself out of the obey and ran up the cumberland and used skipjacks. I do believe that if trout were not stocked in the river that the stripers would not do as well as they have. That has been the case for other tailwater fisheries where stripers and trout have been stocked at the same time the trout have not done well and the trout could do better if they were not food. Kentucky does not have the ### to tell Tenn not to stock stripers in their trout waters so the stripers will always be there. I have caught stripers below the dam while wading with trout in the belly and if I was allowed again to fish for them close to the dam with the remains from the cleaning station bottom fishing I would catch some more stripers but I was told that I cannot do that anymore from a game warden. Simple question, if there were no more 20 pound plus predators in the river would the trout do better? If not lets stock some muskie they would be vicious and fun as well.

Then again, I still cannot even go fishing as my motor blew up and I am just Po'd at everythingx(

Hey ssky sorry to hear about your motor. Hate that you can't get out there. you i actually know that Ky has asked Tenn not to stock the stripers in the river before but they know what kind of fishery it is and that is why they continue to stock the stripers. nothing against our state but Tenn. stocks many more lakes with stripers than KY. They also stock the same rivers with both trout and stripers. I am sure they are not just doing that to feed the stripers. Also you know it is not just the stripers that eat trout but catfish, bass, walleye, and of course bigger trout. I would be up for musky in the river too. I wouldn't mind catching them either. Tenn. actually does this at melton hill. It is turning into a great musky lake and still produces big stripers. Both states have their reasons to stock the way they do. But to tell the truth the only thing that really hurts the trout fishery or the striper fishery is people.

TN stocks strppers in Cordell Hull that effect the Cumberland. Dale Hollow is not on the Cumberland. They do not stock Dale Hollow with strippers at last look since they don't want them competing with the trophy smallmouth fishery. As far as any of the TH fish & wildlife people I have talked to know they don't stock the Cumberland with strippers directly. The strippers in the Cumberland are Cordell Hull fish that head up the Cumberland for cooler water and when they find the banquet table (trout) there they just don't migrate back. Stippers do consume a large number of trout as anyone that opens the stomach of one up knows. Several years ago the arguement was given that they were mostly close to TN. That arguement is shot to heck these days when trophy strippers are taken within site of the dam. They are a very invasive preditor At one time in the past the lake was stocked with trout, but the introduction of strippers wiped them out. That is OK trout do better in the stream and strippers did better in the lake. The real problem for strippers in the lake was the introduction of elawey (probably spelled wrong) that forced the natural shad minnows out and reduced the food source. The Cumberland above the TN line is a TROUT fishery as managed by the state the two populations do not work well unless you stock bigger trout and that doesn't help a lot. I caught a 17" brown a few years ago and it took a while to land in very hard current so I had to do some work reviving it before I let it swim away. I had no sooner let it swim from my hand when a big stripper took it in one bite. Lets face it a 17" brown isn't a trophy, but it isn't a minnow either. I have nothing against people that fish for strippers. I fish for them myself, but we have one trout fishery in KY that is viable year round and strippers and hybrids are just about evrywhere. Seems like the big boys could give the little guys one place to go??? We can't stop the strippers in Cordell Hull, but we can liberalize the limits in the Cumberland to reduce the numbers}(
Barry Morris
Secretary
Louiville Trout Unlimited

How liberal of limit do you want? Remember that the 2/24inch rule only apply's to the lake not the river.
By the way I've seen a BIG Brown trout slam the side of the boat try'ing to eat a 12inch Striper plug. Talk about predator! :o

We should all look at the results of what we want 20 or 10 years down the road. if i live that long it will be good. the trout fishery below the dam was a big thing for local anglers that could afford to fish below the dam for rainbows in the river that practice wading has fallen off and the rainbow has seemed to be an after thought. the people that i know that used to religious fishing below the dam are now not fishing for the rainbows while wading.I do understand the argument from the striper fishermen they have a very good thing and they like it. But with the money trail that puts fish in the river it may run out and the trout fishery may not do so well. Again just my opinion.i have no ideal as to how the walleye can survive in that environment they must eat trout.

Tell them to keep stocking musky in the south fork. and yes I agree.

I have no Dog in this fight. :-) Just some late night ramblings and ?? about the topic. The trout are put and take in the river just like the Stripers in the lake. We even have to pay extra to fish the river even if not fishing for trout. Maybe the locals do not want to pay for fish they have to release now with the new slot limit etc.
I may be wrong, but I thought the slot limit was working for the "Purist" trout guys that report.
For anyone, not was you're largest Striper but the smallest caught in the Ky. part of the river. The little one's stay in the nursery until time.
Why does Calif. have 20# plus LM bass in small lakes! They also stock rainbows.
Do Otters eat trout, how about Eagles, and let's not forget those trophy Browns.
It's a manmade fishery that was put in place after displacing the native fish when the Dam was built. Not exactly breaking new's.
I'm done :-)

I am just picking at the stripper people to get a rise! Obviously there are many preditors that can do damage. Strippers are just at the top of the chain. As I said waaaaaay back in this discussion, the slot and creel limit in effect now works and I see no need to add to it unless things change. Some time in the future we could look at no treble or barbless hooks or circle hooks for bait fishing, but those things are not essential to the fishery and are not worth angering someone to get. Responsible use of the river is the key no matter what you fish for or how you fish. Right now I think everyone gets a piece of the pie and it is working.
Barry Morris

I am still curious as to how the guys in cal can stock florida strain bass in a lake that supports trout. Do the florida bass tolerate cool water which I doubt and then the trout are stocked for food. The same conditions could exsist on laurel lake with the same fish. Or the same conditions could be made for native walleye.

After fishing for a while with barbless hooks I can say you will not lose any fish if you keep consistent pressure and you will not have to yank off fish flesh to get the hook out. If you want to let the fish go.