KY Lake and Barkley Lake are both huge waters. I read with surprise a few years back that the KY DNR has put a 10" size limit on the Crappie. Now Crappie lay tens of thousands of eggs each spawn and I would think that there would be no need for a crappie size limit but I was wrong.

I last fished KY lake for Crappie back in 2004 April and it was on a weekday. I saw lots of boats out on the Big Sandy Area of KY lake. Most boats were fishing the drops along the old River Channel. I was told that on a weekend the number of boats would be much greater.

Since fish tend to concentrate in certain areas it's quite possible to put a dent in the big crappie population.

You take some guides that fish everyday on KY lake and haul a limit out of the lake for one or two clients including themselves and you can see how the lake can be fished down.

One guide taking a limit for himself and two clients would add up quickly.

Most crappie fishermen are not going to take a limit home with them on every trip. Some will and some won't.

I guess the bottom line is that the KY and TN DNR guys think that a 10" size limit for crappie is necessary to protect the fishery. I would say that they know more about the fish populations that most people.

Regards,

Moose1am