McNealy Lake

[walkeraviator]

Any of you Louisville guys ever catch anything out of McNealy lake? I have heard it is a good bluegill lake and i have seen 2 lb bass there. But is there anything bigger? Or are there any numbers there?

If you had a depth finder on it, how deep does it get? Does the grass aound the edges ever come to an end?

[first2fish]

Mcneely is what i would call my home lake. I have caught bass as big as 3 1/2 pd. There are bigger in there because i have seen them in spring during the spawn on the nest. Bluegill are decent size if you fish away from the crouds. Some years bluegill are bigger and some years smaller. I dont know why. There is a lot of grass in there and this time of year i fish the outside edge of the grass with a white rapala x-rap and have a lot of luck. Mcneely can be at times a good lake to fish if you catch it at the right time and other times i would swear someone came and took all the fish out of it ! Hope this info helps. Good luck,jc

[first2fish]

Oh, max depth is around 20-25 feet deep at the dam but average depth is probably 8-10 feet deep

[Panfish Man]

McNeely produces very good panfish, contrary to popular belief. I have flat wore out the bull gills and have took some nice redear from that lake as well. Its bee a couple years since I've been out, but as f2f stated, fish the grass lines and you will have some luck.

[walkeraviator]

Do you pretty much have to get in a boat and get away from the park area? is the better fishing around the point and down by the dam??

My buddy and i are gonna hit it in his grandfathers Jon boat on sunday morning... any other tips besides x-rap??? I know there are NO shad in the lake and craws are probably the main forage... so with x-rap/crankbai kinda stuff should i imitate bluegill?

[Panfish Man]

Can't give you a lot of help on the bass, although I have caught a bunch by mistake. Your best bet would be to start at the ramp opposite the bank fished side and work your way down. Only one side of the bank really gets beat up, I've caught some keepers out there on small crankbaits that run 2 or 3'.

[findingem]

I live pretty close to the lake, but do not fish it much. Pretty lake, I like to drive through at times and see if anyones catching anything. Seems to be just what the rest of everyone said, good for a few blugill. Although, I was there April of last year and caught one on a jig about five pounds. So I know there is at least one there that weighs 5pds, if no one taken it out yet. Seems to me if you stay on the side of the golf course, you will be better off.

[findingem]

I have a picture of that fish somewhere. I will see if I can find it and post it.

[walkeraviator]

what size/color/type jig and trailer?

[findingem]

Ha ha ha, I should have known that was coming. It was a D&L 1/4oz. blue/black jig with okeechobee paca craw. I'm not saying I catch a lot of big fish, but its funny how you remember every little detail of the ones you do catch. Good luck

[first2fish]

I usually fish dark plastic worms like 7 inch berkley blue fleck power worm with the most luck. Buzzbaits in the morning or late evening does good too. Pockets in the grass that recede to the bank are good targets. When i fish for bass in a boat i always stay to the left side headed toward the dam. The other side is heavily pressured. The back cove to the left by the dam is where i spend a lot my time for bass. I usually take live bait also in case the bass arent biting. Wax worms and nightcrawlers will do the best---good luck,jc

[BASSKING]

i have been fishing that lakeon and off for 25 years and i've seen it through the worst, LOL. its for sure come a long way. they have cleaned it up a lot. there are good numbers of bass in that lake. i've seen some big females crusing the grass during the spawn and it seems harder toget them to bite during the spawn than any other lake i have fished.
my advice is if your going after bass , take a boat and fish the golf course side from the ramp all the way to the dam and then back into the cove left of the dam. i had my best luck on dark colored worms, t-rigged fished fairly slow, black/blue jig with matching trailer, green pumkin jig with natural color trailer, a dark lizzard with heavy weight ( 1/2 -3/4 Oz.) in the thick grass and 2-5 ft running crank baits in bluegill and craw patterns. sometimes i throw that jig where the water drops off and gets deeper closer to the dam and have caught a few good ones like that. it drops from 8-10 ft to around 15-17 ft. buzz baits work good on the grass line and pockets sometimes. my best fish out of there was just shy of 6Lbs and had spawned so it was probably a little bigger earlier in the year.

if you just wanna catch some bluegill or have kids you want to take fish in the park with wax worms and crawlers and they should have a blast , only problem is finding a spot thats not covered with grass.

theres also some decent catfish in there , ive never caught any real big ones but i have seen a few oics and heard a few stories. goodluck and be patient up there cause it can be disheartning at times