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Nolin River Lake Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Oct 23, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

A 6,017-acre Corps lake on the Nolin River in Edmonson, Grayson and Hart counties, under Kentucky's special length limits for bass, crappie and walleye.

4/5
Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.
Flow
64 cfs
Air / High
60 / 72 F
Wind
E 8 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 03310300, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
23
October 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

4/5Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Nolin River Lake offers the kind of conditions this water was made for. The release below the dam is running 64 cfs, falling. Today brings clear skies, wind E around 8 mph, falling pressure near 1025 hPa and a high of 72. Water sits around 74 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 9:20 AM-11:20 AM and 9:49 PM-11:49 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Largemouth bassExcellent

The main feeding season after the spawn: work moving baits along weed edges, points and wood, and follow up with a soft plastic where a fish swirls.

Smallmouth bassExcellent

Post-spawn and summer feeding: cover rock, wood and current breaks with crankbaits, jigs and tubes, and use live crayfish, minnows or hellgrammites where bait is the plan.

WalleyeExcellent

Summer pattern: nightcrawlers and leeches on rigs or jigs near bottom, trolled crankbaits to find scattered fish, and the shallows after dark in clear lakes.

Rainbow troutExcellent

The top of this band is already stressful. In rivers fish mornings and evenings; in lakes WDFW notes rainbows turn sluggish and go deeper, so troll or suspend bait near the bottom.

CrappieGood

Early in this band crappie are spawning in protected coves; afterward they move to docks, brush piles and standing timber near deeper water.

White bassGood

Summer and early fall schooling season over open water; follow the shad, and try live bait on the bottom at night.

Tomorrow: Similar at 75 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Before you go

Kentucky requires a fishing licence from age 16, from $23.00 for residents. What a Kentucky licence costs and where to buy it →

Chasing largemouth bass here? Check the size and bag limits with KDFWR before you keep anything. The season dates for Kentucky, read off the agency, are on the Kentucky seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings from Nolin River at White Mills (below dam).

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 03310300.

7712717864 cfs09/2310/0310/1310/23

Today’s flow against 67 years of October 23

At 64 cfs, the flow at USGS gauge 03310300 (Nolin River at White Mills (below dam)) is at the 33rd percentile for the date: normal. In half of the 67 years of approved record the daily mean on October 23 was below 85 cfs; the highest was 2,970 cfs and the lowest 27 cfs.

p10 43median 85p90 428

Percentiles of the daily mean flow for this date, from the USGS Water Data Statistics API for gauge 03310300; today’s reading is the latest instantaneous value. Classes follow the ones the USGS used on its WaterWatch maps (retired at the end of 2025): below 10th, much below normal; 10th–24th, below; 25th–75th, normal; 76th–90th, above; over 90th, much above.

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp60 F
High / Low72 / 43 F
WindE 8-15 mph
Pressure1024.5 hPa, falling
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset07:00 / 17:57
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~74 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Which day to fish Nolin River Lake this week

The best day on Nolin River Lake this week looks like Saturday Oct 24, at 5 out of 5, against 4 today.

Best day this week: Saturday, Oct 24 — excellent at 5/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 — Good

Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Solunar majors
9:20 AM-11:20 AM and 9:49 PM-11:49 PM
Minor period
3:42 AM-4:42 AM
Sun
07:00 to 17:57
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Partly cloudy, 8 mph
Rain chance
0%

Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out: how the score is built.

Species guide

The species that matter on Nolin River Lake: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Largemouth bass illustration

Largemouth bass

Best: the spring pre-spawn and the fall feed

A warm-water sunfish of lakes, reservoirs, ponds and slow river backwaters that holds tight to cover: weeds, logs, rock ledges and docks. In Texas, TPWD surveys rank it "by far" the freshwater fish anglers most want to catch. The main feeding season after the spawn: work moving baits along weed edges, points and wood, and follow up with a soft plastic where a fish swirls.

Crappie illustration

Crappie

Best: the spring spawn; summer around docks, brush and the thermocline

Two slab-sided panfish, the white crappie and the black crappie, that gather around submerged timber, brush piles, docks and bridge pilings in lakes, reservoirs and slow river backwaters. Texas Parks and Wildlife counts crappie as the state's most popular panfish. Early in this band crappie are spawning in protected coves; afterward they move to docks, brush piles and standing timber near deeper water.

White bass illustration

White bass

Best: the spring run up the tributaries, then summer surface schools

A silvery temperate bass of rivers and large reservoirs, also called sand bass, that schools in open water after shad and runs up tributaries to spawn in early spring. Summer and early fall schooling season over open water; follow the shad, and try live bait on the bottom at night.

Smallmouth bass illustration

Smallmouth bass

Best: spring and fall, when bigger fish come shallow

A bronze-brown black bass of clear, cool streams and rocky lakes, with dark vertical bars instead of a side stripe. Michigan DNR says its southeastern coast, from Port Huron to Lake Erie, is known nationally for both the size and the number of its smallmouth. Post-spawn and summer feeding: cover rock, wood and current breaks with crankbaits, jigs and tubes, and use live crayfish, minnows or hellgrammites where bait is the plan.

Walleye illustration

Walleye

Best: spring and late fall, around dawn, dusk and night

A cool-water perch of large lakes, reservoirs and rivers whose reflective eyes are built for low light, so it feeds most at night and in murky water. The Missouri Department of Conservation ranks it among the continent's most important freshwater game fish. Summer pattern: nightcrawlers and leeches on rigs or jigs near bottom, trolled crankbaits to find scattered fish, and the shallows after dark in clear lakes.

Rainbow trout illustration

Rainbow trout

Spring and fall in most lakes; rivers fish year-round while the water stays cool

A cold-water trout native to Pacific drainages from Alaska to Baja California, now stocked in most states and fished in rivers, tailwaters and lakes. The top of this band is already stressful. In rivers fish mornings and evenings; in lakes WDFW notes rainbows turn sluggish and go deeper, so troll or suspend bait near the bottom.

When to come: the Nolin River Lake calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Largemouth bass
Crappie
White bass
Smallmouth bass
Walleye
Rainbow trout
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 74 F (estimated, not a reading).

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~74 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Nolin River Lake today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Largemouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 75 F, wind to 6 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Largemouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 75 F, wind to 5 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

5/5 Excellent. Go now. Everything lines up: pressure, wind and light are in your favor. Largemouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 75 F, wind to 6 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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Before you go

License

Kentucky requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

Kentucky fishing license required, plus a trout permit to keep trout from the tailwater. KDFWR special regulations for Nolin River Lake: largemouth and smallmouth bass 15-inch minimum, limit 6; black and white crappie 10-inch minimum with statewide creel limits; walleye 14-inch minimum, limit 6. White bass under statewide rules. Confirm in the current Kentucky Fishing and Boating Guide.

Access

KDFWR lists eight paved ramps: Bacon Creek, Brier Creek, Conoloway, Dog Creek, Iberia, Moutardier, Nolin Dam and Wax; Wax and Moutardier have marinas. Day-use fees apply at some ramps. Tailwater: one paved, no-fee ramp. Corps office: (270) 286-4511.

About this water

A 6,017-acre Corps of Engineers reservoir on the Nolin River in Edmonson, Grayson and Hart counties, Kentucky. Below-dam flow: USGS gauge 03310300, Nolin River at White Mills.

Fishing Nolin River Lake: the full guide

The lake

Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources lists Nolin River Lake at 6,017 acres across Hart, Edmonson and Grayson counties. The Louisville District of the Corps of Engineers runs the lake from its office on Nolin Dam Road, with a Mammoth Cave, Kentucky, address. KDFWR lists largemouth and smallmouth bass, black and white crappie, white bass and walleye among the lake's fish, each with a regulation entry.

Special length limits

The lake's rules lean toward bigger fish: largemouth and smallmouth bass must be 15 inches, crappie 10 inches and walleye 14 inches to keep (details under Regulations). Check KDFWR's annual Fishing Forecast and its Nolin River Lake largemouth bass assessment for current population trends before a trip.

Below the dam

KDFWR lists brown and rainbow trout in the Nolin River Lake tailwater in Edmonson County, under statewide trout regulations, with one free paved ramp. Its monthly trout stocking list shows when fish go in.

Common questions

What size bass can I keep?

KDFWR sets a 15-inch minimum for largemouth and smallmouth bass on Nolin River Lake, with a limit of 6.

Where can I launch?

KDFWR lists eight paved ramps, including Wax, Moutardier, Dog Creek and the Nolin Dam ramp.

Are there trout below the dam?

KDFWR lists brown and rainbow trout in the tailwater under statewide trout regulations; see its monthly stocking schedule.

Is fishing good at Nolin River Lake right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Nearby waters

Barren River Lake27 miRough River Lake28 miGreen River Lake52 miBlue River66 miDale Hollow Lake71 miOld Hickory Lake71 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 03310300 — Nolin River at White Mills (below dam)
Read from the USGS Water Data API (api.waterdata.usgs.gov). Latest value timestamped 2026-10-23 at 14:15 UTC.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 37.2800, -86.2300 in this water's own timezone. A model, not an observation.
Moon and solunar windows
Calculated on this site
Astronomical calculation from these coordinates and the date, not a third-party feed. How much weight it deserves.
Pages checked
The facts in the written guide were checked against these pages, from the agencies and operators that manage the water, on October 5, 2026. Anything we could not verify was taken out.
The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
How this page was made. The daily report is computed by our scoring engine from live readings; nobody types it. The written text was drafted with AI assistance from the official pages listed above, and its facts were checked against those pages by automated verification on October 5, 2026; anything that could not be verified was taken out. Pablo Ruiz Quintero sets every guideline, the data-verification system and the minimum standards a page must meet to be published, reviews page structure and approves what goes live; the responsibility is his, and the AI carries out the work. We work this way because it is how one person can keep every page current with named sources. Errors are published in the verification log; the full policy is in the editorial policy.

Readings refresh on a 30-minute window. The full method, with every figure and its source, is on how our reports are made. Something wrong here? Tell us and it goes in the log with the date.