Caney "fished out"?
 

As I said in one of my earlier posts, I've returned to the Caney after about a fifteen year (geez, that makes me feel old) absence. Bumped into a guy yesterday who stated the following opinion: " up till about ten years ago, the Caney was one of the top 5 tailwaters for trout east of that big muddy creek. But, now it is fished out. I honestly, couldn't say, anybody care to comment on that opinion?

I have heard about the "glory" years of the Caney, and I hear it isn't as good now....but from my understanding it has to do with lower water quality due to working on the dam. I can tell you from experience....it is by no means fished out!

If they'll ever quit generating I'll let you know what I think.

I don't care who you are, that right there was funny!

Look back at past posts from the dearly departed "old sailor" (not deceased, just easily P'-Off) but a great fisherman none the less. I wouldn't think there was a trout longer than my hand in there, but he consistently caught...well just check em out.

Yep it's fished out. Better take your 2wt to the Smokey Mountains and catch fish over there.

Jeremy

Long periods of sustained generation are tough on the fish that are under 16" or so. I don't know if they get eaten by predators, or if they can't find enough food (since they're eating bugs instead of fish at that size), or if they wander downstream to Old Hickory when there aren't riffles to keep them oriented to home, or what. Maybe it's a combination of a bunch of factors.
All I know is that when the river is high for several months straight, the smaller fish numbers will be low when it comes down. It takes several months of stocking to fully replenish it. The bigger fish seem to do okay even when the water is high for a long time.

For that reason, the river is best in drought years when there isn't a lot of generation, and it falls off in rainy years. With the work on the dam, it has been much worse because whenever the lake gets above 630, they'll generate constantly until it comes down.

The canoe and kayak traffic can be a pain in the ass but I don't think fishing pressure is the problem. They can dump in more stockers than people can take out when everything is going right.

Sent from my SPH-M580 using Tapatalk 2

The Caney is fished out. I would recommend to take up carp fishing on the Stones River. I would also not recommend kayaking on the Caney either due to the poor water quality.

In all seriousness I have been fishing the Caney for over 25 years and what we have seen happen is it has switched from a predominately Rainbow river to a predominately Brown river. As some have mentioned the dam repair has messed with the fishing and the water quality to some degree. Another thing is there was a big Rainbow kill last year at the hatchery which kept the Caney from being stocked with Rainbows.

Trust me the Caney still fishes as good as it did 20 years ago and probably even better. Take your time to learn the river and fish it religiously and you will see that it is a great trout fishery. True, it can humble you at times but it can also be very rewarding.

Roy

The slot is really going to help the quality on the river and has a bunch already. Is it fished out simple short answer is no. A bunch of factors contribute to it not being as good as when the sluice first started. They stock the river twice a month and the fish problem at DHNFH last year hurt. If you are a fisherman that just wades into a well worn spot like the dam or happy but never adjust anything once on the water you could easily get blanked. Seen it many times an angler complaining in the parking lot about the fishing but I went on to have a good day.

Smerk on my face <'TK><
 

I believe it, I've seen a few of them. Its just rare for one to be on the end of my line.

Interesting posts, all. Especially, Browntrout's observation that the river has gone from "predominantly rainbow" to "predominantly brown". I know rainbows are all I ever caught there when I did first fish it. I kind of figured the guy didn't have a clue. First of all, couldn't really understand how a regularly stocked tail water could be "fished out". BD's obversations make a lot more sense. Guess the guy thought since he couldn't catch em, then must be no fish. :D

Been there. There really aren't any trout there, urban legend.

I might add also that I mainly fish when they are generating. As mentioned earlier go back and search for posts by old sailor. Dude is 100% legit the best trout fisherman up on the Caney. From reading his posts you will see that the Caney is alive and well.

Roy.

I have just as much luck there now...when I can fish it..as I did 10 years ago. I know it's not "fished out". I wish it was "canoed out".

The big ones !! <'TK><
 

You aren't the fella that donated those boats that were submerged in silt on the Caney are you?

TK,
Thanks for the advice. An old mutual friend of ours shared your story with me. If anything I am super cautious when on the water especially when around any structure. My motto is "Live to fish another day."

Roy

Yesterday was my first time ever fishing heavy generation in the caney (only because I just bought an aluminum jon that is 70" wide). It can be unnerving! There was swirling water in sections that appears to be a wide open stretch with no visible obstructions.

Before the heavy generation caught up to us I did catch a brown just over 20 inches on my very first cast then blanked the rest of the day. Spent a few hours bass fishing on the Cumberland and only had one bite.