Caney Fork 1-22-11 report

[tennfish]

Trout were on a good shad-kill bite on Saturday. Rainbows, browns and brookies (and the occasional skippy) were ready to eat anything that looked like a shad. It was cold but the action kept us warm. Good day and a good day to be on the water. This was the first time in a while that I've seen trout act aggressively and attack baits.

One observation: ALL the drilling and grouting equipment and various supplies were gone from the dam site. I mean ALL of it. Are they done? Did they "fix" it. Will the lake be brought up to old summer pool this year? Hope so. It makes for a much larger supply of cold water during the summer. Sure helps the trout in July, August and September.

[spottedbass]

Were you up by the dam? I am assuming you were fishing while there was generation happening?

[tennfish]

Yep. Seemed to slow down quite a bit below the campground.

[bd-]

My understanding is that they have finished the first "phase" of the project, grouting the embankment on the left of the dam (looking downstream), and they are getting ready to start grouting the middle section in front of the dam. They are far from done - I think there are a few more years to go.

The repairs at Wolf Creek are a couple years ahead of Center Hill and they haven't authorized Lake Cumberland to go back to normal summer pool yet, so I think we've still got a long time before we see Center Hill filled up again.

bd

[Travis C.]

Hopefully this year they will let Lake Cumberland rise some.

When they start the middle part will it have any affect on the campground or ramp on that side?

[bd-]

The Corps has been extremely conservative with the water levels. I thought they would let Lake Cumberland come up by now, but I'm getting the impression that they're not going to raise it until they are done.

At the last Corps informational meeting I attended, they didn't mention any impact on the campground or ramp. I'm more concerned about them making sure that excessive grout doesn't seep into the tailwater. It's extremely alkaline.

bd

[drrxnupe]

I recall reading somewhere on the net that the planned completion of the project will be mid-2013.

I read that the corps may not raise center hill lake levels because the dam was deemed unsafe for full lake water levels, that it was lowered due to fears of dam failure a few years ago. fishing has not been near as good for a few years.