18 public waters in the South Central & Green River region — 2 lakes/reservoirs and 16 rivers. Every one is public water fishable on a Kentucky licence.
See every public fishing venue in Kentucky on the map, with boat ramps, camping, parking and full rules for each one.
Lake Cumberland (50,000 ac) — Kentucky's largest lake by volume, a deep, clear, steep-sided Corps reservoir on the Cumberland River. Home of the state's premier striped-bass fishery (fish over 50 lb), plus largemouth, smallmouth and Spotted Bass, Walleye, White Bass, Crappie, and stocked rainbow and Brown Trout in the lower lake. Wolf Creek Dam.
McCreary County, Kentucky — Laurel Creek Reservoir is a 43-acre lake, managed by Kentucky Department of Fish & Wildlife Resources: A small KDFWR-managed lake or state-park lake — Largemouth Bass, Bluegill, Redear Sunfish, Crappie and Channel Catfish, typically with a boat ramp, a fishing pier and outboard restrictions. Fished on the standard Kentucky licence.
Big South Fork Cumberland River runs 86 km through McCreary, Pulaski and Wayne Counties, Kentucky, managed by Commonwealth of Kentucky (public / navigable water): The Cumberland River below Wolf Creek Dam — one of the South's premier Trout tailwaters, running cold for 75 miles to Tennessee. Trophy Brown Trout (a 21 lb state record), stocked and holdover rainbows, plus Walleye, Striped Bass pushed down from the lake, and smallmouth. Sudden generation-driven flows.
In Wayne and McCreary Counties, Kentucky, Little South Fork is a 61 km river or creek, managed by Commonwealth of Kentucky (public / navigable water). A Kentucky smallmouth stream (Rockcastle River, Elkhorn Creek, Dix River, Buck Creek, Fishing Creek) — smallmouth and spotted (Kentucky) bass, Rock Bass ('redeye'), longear and Bluegill Sunfish, Channel Catfish, and Muskellunge in a few. Classic wade-and-canoe bronzeback water in the knobs and the Cumberland Plateau.
Whitley and McCreary Counties, Kentucky — Jellico Creek is a 39 km stream, managed by Commonwealth of Kentucky (public / navigable water): A warmwater Kentucky river or large creek — largemouth and Spotted Bass, channel and Flathead Catfish, Bluegill and Longear Sunfish, White Bass, and Rock Bass in the rockier reaches. Access at KDFWR sites, bridges and county landings.
In McCreary County, Kentucky, Rock Creek is a 38 km river or creek, managed by Commonwealth of Kentucky (public / navigable water). A Kentucky stocked or wild Trout stream — rainbow and Brown Trout stocked on a rotation October to spring in the Daniel Boone National Forest and elsewhere, with a handful of streams (Bad Branch, Rock Creek, Dog Slaughter) holding wild or catch-and-release fish. A Trout permit is required.
In McCreary and Whitley Counties, Kentucky, Marsh Creek is a 28 km river or creek, managed by Commonwealth of Kentucky (public / navigable water). A Kentucky smallmouth stream (Rockcastle River, Elkhorn Creek, Dix River, Buck Creek, Fishing Creek) — smallmouth and spotted (Kentucky) bass, Rock Bass ('redeye'), longear and Bluegill Sunfish, Channel Catfish, and Muskellunge in a few. Classic wade-and-canoe bronzeback water in the knobs and the Cumberland Plateau.
Roaring Paunch Creek runs 19 km through McCreary County, Kentucky, managed by Commonwealth of Kentucky (public / navigable water): A warmwater Kentucky river or large creek — largemouth and Spotted Bass, channel and Flathead Catfish, Bluegill and Longear Sunfish, White Bass, and Rock Bass in the rockier reaches. Access at KDFWR sites, bridges and county landings.
Capuchin Creek (8 km) flows through Whitley and McCreary Counties, Kentucky, managed by Commonwealth of Kentucky (public / navigable water). A warmwater Kentucky river or large creek — largemouth and Spotted Bass, channel and Flathead Catfish, Bluegill and Longear Sunfish, White Bass, and Rock Bass in the rockier reaches. Access at KDFWR sites, bridges and county landings.
McCreary and Whitley Counties, Kentucky — Indian Creek is a 11 km stream, managed by Commonwealth of Kentucky (public / navigable water): A warmwater Kentucky river or large creek — largemouth and Spotted Bass, channel and Flathead Catfish, Bluegill and Longear Sunfish, White Bass, and Rock Bass in the rockier reaches. Access at KDFWR sites, bridges and county landings.
Whitley and McCreary Counties, Kentucky — Bark Camp Creek is a 11 km stream, managed by Commonwealth of Kentucky (public / navigable water): A Kentucky stocked or wild Trout stream — rainbow and Brown Trout stocked on a rotation October to spring in the Daniel Boone National Forest and elsewhere, with a handful of streams (Bad Branch, Rock Creek, Dog Slaughter) holding wild or catch-and-release fish. A Trout permit is required.
McCreary County, Kentucky — Laurel Creek is a 10 km stream, managed by Commonwealth of Kentucky (public / navigable water): A warmwater Kentucky river or large creek — largemouth and Spotted Bass, channel and Flathead Catfish, Bluegill and Longear Sunfish, White Bass, and Rock Bass in the rockier reaches. Access at KDFWR sites, bridges and county landings.
Cooper Creek (9 km) flows through McCreary, Pulaski and Wayne Counties, Kentucky, managed by Commonwealth of Kentucky (public / navigable water). A warmwater Kentucky river or large creek — largemouth and Spotted Bass, channel and Flathead Catfish, Bluegill and Longear Sunfish, White Bass, and Rock Bass in the rockier reaches. Access at KDFWR sites, bridges and county landings.
In McCreary County, Kentucky, Cogur Fork is a 8 km river or creek, managed by Commonwealth of Kentucky (public / navigable water). A warmwater Kentucky river or large creek — largemouth and Spotted Bass, channel and Flathead Catfish, Bluegill and Longear Sunfish, White Bass, and Rock Bass in the rockier reaches. Access at KDFWR sites, bridges and county landings.
Pleasant Run runs 9 km through McCreary and Whitley Counties, Kentucky, managed by Commonwealth of Kentucky (public / navigable water): A warmwater Kentucky river or large creek — largemouth and Spotted Bass, channel and Flathead Catfish, Bluegill and Longear Sunfish, White Bass, and Rock Bass in the rockier reaches. Access at KDFWR sites, bridges and county landings.
Bridge Fork (6 km) flows through McCreary County, Kentucky, managed by Commonwealth of Kentucky (public / navigable water). A warmwater Kentucky river or large creek — largemouth and Spotted Bass, channel and Flathead Catfish, Bluegill and Longear Sunfish, White Bass, and Rock Bass in the rockier reaches. Access at KDFWR sites, bridges and county landings.
Kilburn Fork (7 km) flows through McCreary County, Kentucky, managed by Commonwealth of Kentucky (public / navigable water). A warmwater Kentucky river or large creek — largemouth and Spotted Bass, channel and Flathead Catfish, Bluegill and Longear Sunfish, White Bass, and Rock Bass in the rockier reaches. Access at KDFWR sites, bridges and county landings.
Ryans Creek (6 km) flows through McCreary and Whitley Counties, Kentucky, managed by Commonwealth of Kentucky (public / navigable water). A warmwater Kentucky river or large creek — largemouth and Spotted Bass, channel and Flathead Catfish, Bluegill and Longear Sunfish, White Bass, and Rock Bass in the rockier reaches. Access at KDFWR sites, bridges and county landings.
Across its mapped waters, McCreary County holds 18 species on PiscaMaps, including Bluegill, Channel Catfish, Spotted Bass, Largemouth Bass, Longear Sunfish, White Bass, Flathead Catfish and Smallmouth Bass.
Ramps, put-ins and species for every water — plus the carp layer no other US app has.
Open the Kentucky map Join PiscaMapsOne Kentucky Department of Fish & Wildlife Resources fishing licence covers every public water in the state — resident annual about $23, non-resident annual about $60, with 1-day, 7-day and 15-day short-term options. A ~$10 trout permit (resident and non-resident) is required to fish for or keep trout anywhere, including the Cumberland River tailwater below Wolf Creek Dam. Kentucky residents born before 1 January 1961 may fish without a licence; residents 65+ and disabled residents can buy a discounted combination licence. Buy at fw.ky.gov.