Get the skinny here
Fishing adventures await in shallow waters
IN THE FISHING WORLD, skinny water is defined as shallow water accessible by wading or in a small boat. Kentucky is home to many skinny water fishing adventures. I’m betting there’s a creek or backwater near you loaded with fish to cast to. Here are a few skinny water destinations in Kentucky.
East Fork Indian Creek
East Fork Indian Creek is in the Daniel Boone National Forest and is renowned for its excellent skinny water action. It is stocked with rainbow trout and brown trout, offering excellent fly-fishing opportunities. Light spinning gear is also a great way to target trout in the East Fork Indian Creek. Public access is readily available, with parking area and even a small creekside camping area.
Crocus Creek
Crocus Creek is a tributary of the Cumberland River and offers plenty of fishing opportunities. It is listed as a good smallmouth creek, but trout do migrate up Crocus Creek, providing great rainbow and brown trout fishing. This skinny water can be wade fished, depending on the water level, but it can also be floated in a small boat or canoe. The confluence to the Cumberland River is a good fishing spot and provides great access. Trout congregate there to escape the current when the Cumberland is flowing from the spillways at the Wolf Creek Dam.
Paint Creek
Paint Creek is the tailwaters of Paintsville Lake, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers flood-control lake. The water coming from the lake is cold enough to support the rainbow and brown trout that are stocked in Paint Creek. Paint Creek offers great opportunities for families with children. The concrete parking area lines the creek near the spillway where trout, of catchable size and ready to bite, are stocked. You can fish from this area, where there is an accessible pier and restroom that is open all year, 24 hours a day.
For those who prefer to escape the crowds, head downstream for some great trout action in a more natural setting. There are miles of fishable water, with the lower section turning into private land. This section can be floated for several miles with a take-out in Paintsville. The lower section begins to offer great smallmouth fishing, but some trout do venture here and are usually the larger holdover trout that can grow to trophy size.
More information
You can find details about these great skinny water opportunities by searching on their names at the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources website, fw.ky.gov.
KEN MCBROOM, an outdoors writer/photographer, created RamblingAngler.com. McBroom grew up in Lynchburg, Tennessee, and now lives in western Kentucky.
