Kentucky Hunting & Fishing

Kentucky has quietly become one of the South's premier hunting states, with a whitetail herd that produces trophy bucks rivaling the famous Midwest. Hunting guides in Kentucky work the western farmland and the eastern Appalachian foothills, and the state's strong elk restoration program in the southeastern coalfields now offers a limited but genuine elk hunt east of the Mississippi. Spring turkey hunting across the state is excellent.

Fishing in Kentucky is anchored by two of the largest man-made lakes in the eastern United States. Outfitters and fishing charters on Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley chase largemouth and smallmouth bass, crappie, and catfish, while the Cumberland River tailwater below Wolf Creek Dam holds trophy brown and rainbow trout. With more navigable water than nearly any other state, Kentucky keeps anglers busy year-round.