Humphreys Co. Outdoor Report for July 10th

Published Jul 11, 12:33pm

TVA has started the annual drawdown period for area lakes.  With the lack of rainfall, we may not see much fall over this week, but further up stream, many of the lakes have already started to fall.  TVA is trying to maintain water quality during this ongoing drought by releasing water further up-stream, keeping some flow in the system. Expect the lake to start dropping during this month, with the lake reaching winter pool of 354ft by fall.  Kentucky Lake at New Johnsonville is holding at 358.2ft and is predicted to remain there this week. Water temperatures at the surface on Kentucky Lake have been flirting with the 90 degree mark by late afternoon. Most fish have been seeking areas of the lake with cooler temps. The flow rates have been low, with less than 14,000cfs last week, but TVA is predicting flow to increase somewhat to around  20,000cfs.  Both the Duck and Buffalo Rivers are down due to lack of rain. The Duck at Dyer Rd is at 1.7ft with a flow of 1,086cfs and the Buffalo at Lobelville is at 3.8ft with a flow of 614cfs.

Fishing has been tough of late, with most anglers fishing during the morning hours before the heat of the day chases them off the water.  The fishing does seem to be better when flow is present, especially for the bass and catfishermen.  A few bass and catfishermen have been fishing at night as the moon helps fishermen see better. It used to be a local tradition to crappie fish at night years ago. Although not as common today, crappie fishermen would use lanterns or lights off the side of the boat, which attracted baitfish, which in turn attracted crappie and stripe. Many night time crappie/stripe fishermen would fish this way around bridges like the Hwy 70 bridge at New Johnsonville.

TWRA reports there was a single boating-related fatal incident over the three-day July 4th holiday.  The incident occurred Saturday evening on the Tennessee river in Decatur County.  The preliminary investigation reports that a 10-year old female was on a tube being pulled by a pontoon boat when the outboard motor contacted the tube and the girl.  There have been 16 boating related fatalities on Tennessee  waters so far this year.

It is that time of year to apply for the area duck blinds,(Camden, Big Sandy, Gin Creek, Dover, etc).  The application period will be open through July 20th.  To enter the blind drawing, go to TWRA’s website;  TNWildlife.org  or applications are available at GoOutdoorsTennessee.com

TWRA has taken over management of Carroll County 1000 acre recreational lake in Carroll Co. on July 1st.  TWRA has re-named the lake, Lake Halford.  More information can be found on TWRA’s web site; TNWildlife.org