What!?! Muskys In Barren River?

[smashdn]

I never knew of muskie being in the lake proper.

The tailwaters and tribs of Barren yes. Drakes Creek is chock full of them from the dam in Franklin downstream to BG and upstream of the dam in the resevoir in Franklin.

They are also in the upper Green. I would assume some must be in the lower Green but KDFWR doesn't report on them there.

Here is the 2011 fishing forecast > http://kyafield.com/pdf/2011fishingforecast.pdf

I have caught them in Drakes on crappie jigs, Bandit crankbaits, and texas rigged worms.

[Fntsyfbgod]

Musky travel lots of lakes have a few in them from upstream stocking. There are even a few in the upper part of Lake Cumberland they come from a small river in TN then go down the Big South Fork. Back home you hear about a few caught on Grayson every year.

There are fish in lakes we don't realize. I caught a big bowfin on Guntersville once and the state record pike came from Laurel River Lake.

[Barren Bass Master]

Very informative thankyou all
Ben

[ESOX2009]

My son caught this 34 inch muskie today from the banks of the green river:

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y10...sky2011007.jpg


He laid it in his truck bed to get the hooks out and then released it. I was dumb enough to work today instead of going fishing with him...

When I'm fishing Barren River, I usually take three rods. One with a big white spinner bait, one with a big plastic swim bait, and one with a large rapala x-rap. I've landed pretty good size muskie on 20 lb mono and I've also had muskie break 50 lb braided, so you never really know what could happen. Now, I pretty much stick to using 65 lb braided power pro line. I haven't had one break that yet, but I wouldn't be too surprised if it happened.

[RICHYD4U]

Musky are native to Barren River. They as well as walleye were in Barren River long before the lake was thought up and built.

That's cool to know about the muskies being native...I had no idea. Thx.

-Rich

[rangerjohn]

A friend of mine caught a 49 inch muskie out of Barren last fall on a crankbait while bass fishing. He showed me a photo of it, it is the largest muskie that I have seen come out of Barren.

[publican57]

I want to go down there to musky fish someday. I only know two things about them; the first is they are called the fish of a thousand cast because they are suppose to be hard to catch. The second is it is critical if you are musky fishing to end your retrieve doing a figure 8 in the water with your lure, because musky often follow the lure to the boat (or shore) and they often strike at the end of the retrieve and figure 8. I learned this all from Green River guides that did a presentation at the boat show in Louisville a couple of years ago.

[Catfish Bob]

When I lived in Bowling Green for a while I found a spot on barren river that is an abandoned LOCK.
If you want to catch some musky find that spot and toss out something shinny like a spinner bait,spoon,,,, you can't get a boat to it because the current coming off that old LOCK is way too strong.
Ya better have some strong line cause their some big'ins in that water.

[smashdn]

I want to go down there to musky fish someday.

Fish the river below the dam a ways. The density is so much more than in the lake. Like I said in the post before, I never knew that they were in the lake proper. Meaning I have fished it for quite a while and quite a bit and never caught one while bass fishing.

I have however caught them in Green River (actual river above and around lock 5), and they are thick in Drakes Creek, above and below the dam in Franklin, KY.

[publican57]

I may get a chance. I have some friends that want me to take them to see their folks. Maybe I will leave them with their folks while I go find some Muskys.