Caney Fork River Trout Fishing

The Caney Fork River is a popular trout fishing spot for many anglers in Tennessee. This river is one of the major drainages for the Cumberland River. It winds 144 miles through middle and central Tennessee, and is about 20-30 yards wide in most areas.

Trout anglers most often fish from shore, canoe or by wading in the river. Float tubes can also be used, but often present a problem due to frequent shallow areas in the river.

Rainbow and brown trout are stocked each year near the Center Hill Dam (65 miles East of Nashville) down to the where the river joins the Caney Fork River joins the Cumberland River.

Fly fishers and spin fishers alike enjoy fishing the Caney Fork River. Most anglers using spinning rods and reels report better success using ultra lite rigs (2-4 lb test line).

Some of the more popular lures fished at the river include Panther Martins, rooster tails, and small Rapalas.

Popular bottom fishing baits include corn, salmon eggs (red, pink, or orange), PowerBait, and mini marshmallows.

For more information about Caney Fork River trout fishing, click here.

Cumberland River Trout Threatened by Dam Work

Like many lakes in the U.S., Lake Cumberland was created by the construction of a dam on a river. And like all man-made structures, this dam (the Wolf Creek Dam) is need of serious repairs. But unfortunately, these repairs threaten the health of trout fishing in Kentucky.

In order to make the repairs water levels will have to be lowered, which results in higher water temperatures. In fact, they've already been lowered from 723 feet to 680 feet in order to relieve pressure on the dam - which is already causing some stress on the fish.

Trout are cold blooded fish and do not survive long in water temperatures above 70 degrees. They become distressed and eventually suffocate when they can't find relief in cooler water.

This is a serious problem for trout in Lake Cumberland and in the Cumberland River around the dam. To read the full story, click here.