Eight public accesses, six of them in a published float order, and a Class II gorge in the middle of it. Also a protective slot limit that a lot of people fishing here do not know exists.
ACCESS & FLOAT SCHEMATICTo scale along the channel · creek shape is schematic
Boat ramp
Carry-down launch
Bank & wade only
Gorge · Class II
Read the gauge before you load the truck
Condition
Gauge ht
Flow
What it changes
Low
under 2.5 ft
under 100 cfs
Shallow, and you will be dragging. Wade it instead — this creek fishes well on foot.
Good
2.5 – 4.0 ft
100 – 600 cfs
Floatable throughout. KDFWR calls these ratings recommendations, not rules.
High
over 4.0 ft
over 600 cfs
Pushy and stained, and the gorge becomes a consequential Class II. Strainers move.
Gauge: USGS 03289500, Elkhorn Creek near Frankfort (Franklin County). One gauge covers the whole run. American Whitewater publishes no minimum flow for the gorge — any figure you see quoted as one is most likely their live readout on the day someone looked.
Strainers, not dams — and they move
The Jim Beam low-head dam was removed in 2021, so the old killer is gone. What replaced it as the real hazard is wood: strainers relocate after every high-water event, and the gorge is where they matter, because it is continuous Class II with limited eddies to stop in. Scout after any rise. A creek you floated clean last month is not the same creek.
LIMESTONEDRIFT
ELKHORN CREEKAccesses, floats, the slot
Eight accesses — six in float order
Access
Type
Watch for
To next
AMA on the Creek
Carry-down, paddle only. Fee.
Only paved lot up here.
4.8 mi
Elkhorn Creek VPA #3
Bank and wade. No launch.
Unpaved parking. VPA #1 and #2 also bank access.
2.6 mi
American Whitewater (Elkhorn Acres)
Carry-down. Fee. Boating only.
No bank fishing.
1.3 mi
T. N. Sullivan WMA
Carry-down, wade and bank.
0.2 mi walk from parking.
5.8 mi
Pfeiffer Hatchery
Carry-down, wade and float.
Weekdays only, 7 a.m.–3 p.m.
3.5 mi
Still Waters
Boat ramp. Fee. Camping.
Only true ramp on the creek.
Kentucky River
Six ways to run it
Segment
Miles
Plan on
American Whitewater → Sullivan
1.3
Short. Good half-day or an evening.
VPA #3 → American Whitewater
2.6
Gorge water. Class II, occasional III.
Pfeiffer → Still Waters
3.5
Lower creek. Weekday launch only.
VPA #3 → Sullivan
3.9
The full-day float. Gorge plus the run out.
AMA → VPA #3
4.8
Upper creek, quieter water.
Sullivan → Pfeiffer
5.8
Longest — take-out gate shuts at 3 p.m.
The slot limit most people miss
Species
Size
Daily creel
Smallmouth bass
Slot: release all 12–15 in
10 — black bass combined
Largemouth bass
Slot: release all 12–15 in
counts toward the same 10
The slot runs from the Forks to a posted marker about 3,400 ft above the Kentucky River. A 13-inch smallmouth
goes back.
Not marked here: holes, ledges, laydowns, seams. Access, hazards, flow and rules are public record; those we give straight.
What 111 years of gauge record say. Elkhorn sits inside the 100–600 cfs window on 58% of May days and 26% of September days. Winter fails you high, autumn fails you low. The median in-window spell lasts five days and a quarter of them run eleven or longer — this is a creek you can plan a weekend around.
Sources: KDFWR Elkhorn Creek stream profile (accesses, mileages, recommended levels) and KDFWR waterbody record (special bass regulations); 301 KAR 1:201 §3(26) (limit, boundary); USGS gauge 03289500 (Elkhorn Creek near Frankfort); American Whitewater, Elkhorn Gorge. Conditions change. Verify flow, access and regulations before you travel. Revised October 2026.
limestonedrift.comAlerts and the water page
Water alerts. We email only when the water actually changes on this creek — not on a schedule. limestonedrift.com/alerts