LIMESTONE DRIFT KENTUCKY WATER, TOLD STRAIGHT
FIELD CARD Pool & Access · No. 08-6
TVA lake · KY 121 corridor · south of Murray · Calloway County

Kentucky Lake

Seven launches off KY 121 south of Murray by KY 444, KY 280, Klein Road and Cypress Cove Road — five of them free, three unpaved, one a carry-down. The kayak shore: the south side of Blood River, the Kentucky Lake WMA launch, and the last two ramps before Tennessee.

KY 121 SOUTH OF MURRAY Launches at KDFWR coordinates · schematic
KY 280 / KY 614KY 121 · Murray–New ConcordKY 444Boat rampBrandon's MillNo fee · unpavedBoat rampBoyd's BranchNo feeWalk-in accessKentucky Lake WMA RampCarry-downBoat rampSteeleNo fee · unpavedBoat rampPatterson's PointNo feeMarinaMissing Hill ResortFee · marinaMarinaCypress CreekFee · marinaN02 miSchematic · launches at KDFWR coordinates · hollow discs are other corridors · a dot with a leader is the published position
Three numbers to get right
What you hearWhat the primary sources actually say
"Just read the USGS gauge."There isn't one. USGS 03609000 served "0 data types" on 10 Sep 2026. The pool is TVA's: its lake-levels page, or NWS gauge KYDK2. A link, never a level.
"Winter pool is way down."Five feet. TVA: "typical summer target level is 359 feet"; "minimum winter elevation of 354 feet". No fill or drawdown date on any readable page; no KDFWR launch on this lake carries a winter-pool warning.
"A Kentucky licence covers the lake."North of the US 68 / KY 80 bridge, yes. South of it to the US 79 bridge a Kentucky licence covers a boat angler under Kentucky rules; a bank angler follows the state they stand in; Blood River is Kentucky-only. Not Lake Barkley.
What the pool does on this road
Three of the seven are unpaved, light-boat only — Brandon's Mill, Steele and the WMA carry-down. Brandon's Mill is the deepest into Blood River of any ramp on the lake by its own directions, and Blood River is where the WMA record puts its "mud flats and lowlands at back of bays". Boyd's Branch and Patterson's Point — paved, dock, no fee — are the two launches here that do not ask the question. Record first; the rest is reasoning from the shape of a reservoir.
The Tennessee line is just below Cypress Creek. The whole road is inside the reciprocal zone — Kentucky licence and rules for a boat angler south to the US 79 bridge — except Blood River, which KDFWR says "is not included in the bordering waters zone". On the bank, the state you stand in rules. Kentucky Lake WMA: the Cherry Corner–New Concord carry-down is the only WMA launch KDFWR names; hunted under statewide county rules. South of the line is Tennessee water, not researched here. Status pending.
LIMESTONE DRIFT
KENTUCKY LAKE · KY 121 Access and limits
Seven launches, Blood River to the state line
LaunchFeeKDFWR record, in the agency's words
Brandon's MillNoKY 444 (5 miles), Beat Farmer Road (2), Carson Road to the end. Light boats, unpaved, no dock, no restrooms. Year-round.
Boyd's BranchNoKY 444 (7 miles); follow signs. Any trailerable, paved single lane, dock, no restrooms, retail limited hours. Year-round.
Kentucky Lake WMA Ramp (carry-down)NoKY 280, Cherry Corner – New Concord Road. Unpaved, no facilities. Ramp seasonal; shoreline year-round.
SteeleNoKY 444 (2 miles), Buffalo-Sulphur Road, Bailey Cemetery Road to the end. Light boats, unpaved, no dock, no restrooms. Seasonal.
Patterson's PointNoCypress Cove Road. Any trailerable, paved single lane, dock, no restrooms. Year-round.
Missing Hill ResortYesKlein Road, Red Bank Drive, Dockway Lane. Light boats, single lane, dock, seasonal camping and marina. Ramp seasonal, limited hours.
Cypress CreekYesKlein Road to the end. Any trailerable, single lane, dock, seasonal restrooms and marina, accessible pier. Year-round.
Limits — four of them differ from statewide
SpeciesSizeDaily creel
Largemouth bass15 in minimumstatewide
Smallmouth bass15 in minimumstatewide
Crappie, black and white10 in minimum20 combined
Sauger14 in minimum6
Everything else is statewide — redear, striped bass and hybrid, white bass, catfish, sunfish, black bass creel; on the Tennessee shore a bank angler follows Tennessee's. Camping on this road: Missing Hill (seasonal, limited hours) per KDFWR; nothing public. Marinas: Cypress Creek and Missing Hill, both seasonal; slips, fuel and hours status pending. Fish attractors: KDFWR publishes a GPX and a map; no count is stated.
Live pool: tva.com/environment/lake-levels/kentucky · NWS gauge KYDK2 · no USGS series · Kentucky Lake WMA (KDFWR) (270) 753-6913.
Sources: TVA Kentucky dam page and Kentucky Reservoir Land Management Plan (verbatim elevations, dates and statistics); KDFWR waterbody records 64 and 320, the 43 access-site records, 2026 Fishing Forecast, WMA record and reciprocal-agreements page; USFS Land Between the Lakes boating, rules and camping pages; USGS 03609000.
Conditions change. Verify pool, access and regulations before you travel. Revised September 2026.
QR code: https://limestonedrift.com/waterways/kentucky-lake/#ld-alertslimestonedrift.comAlerts and the water page
Water alerts. We email when the pool, the ramps or the rules actually change. limestonedrift.com/alerts/?w=kentucky-lake