There were some drought conditions that really helped the spawns. Reproduction is better during years with dry conditions. High water and flooding has the opposite effect on the success of the spawn.

That was the case in the late 1990s. In those years, there was much flooding that resulted in poor reproduction. This left the stream with some poor year-classes of smallies.

The chain of events over these years created a natural ebb and flow with the fishery. From about 1995 to 2000, anglers enjoyed the peak of good fishing because of the spawning success in the late 1980s and early 1990s. There were ample numbers of fish in the 16- to 18-inch range.

Then between 2002 and 2003, fishing began to drop off some and anglers wondered why. Is something wrong with the creek? Is it being overfished? Unfortunately, it was just one of the naturally occurring downsides of a cyclic fishery. The poor spawns and limited year-classes had finally caught up and most of the big fish from the earlier great reproduction years had been caught out or died of old age.

Now the creek is on the rebound. There were some great reproduction years in 1999 and 2000, which resulted in excellent year-class production. The last two to three years have seen many small fish showing up in catches. It's nearing time for anglers to really see a dramatic increase in the quality of fish coming from Elkhorn Creek. Within the next one to two years, the creek should really start peaking for anglers.

Elkhorn Creek is divided into three sections. The North and South forks are not as good as the main stem. The main stem is 18.2 miles long and runs from the forks of Elkhorn to the Kentucky River. This section has much more suitable habitat for smallmouths with its higher gradient and good ripple-pool combination. The main stem is floatable.

UPPER CUMBERLAND
The Cumberland River offers some 134.6 miles of smallmouth stream. The bulk of the river flows 116 miles from Cumberland Falls to Harlan County. Another 18.6 miles of smallmouth stream runs from the Bell and Harlan county line to the confluence of Martins and Clover Fork.

Although smallmouths can be found throughout the river, the upper Cumberland can be very productive. Just above Cumberland Falls is an especially popular location with smallmouth anglers.

Much of the Cumberland is floatable. However, many areas offer limited access. A four-wheel-drive vehicle is required to access some portions of the upper Cumberland area.