An Official Website of the Commonwealth of Kentucky
Anglers and waterfowl hunters can use their Kentucky resident licenses to fish or hunt a number of waters shared with neighboring states.
Reciprocal fishing agreements include the Ohio River, Mississippi River, Kentucky Lake, Dale Hollow Lake, the Big South Fork of Cumberland River, the Big Sandy River and Tug Fork River.
Reciprocal waterfowl hunting agreements include the Big Sandy and Tug Fork rivers bordering West Virginia, and the section of the Ohio River bordering Indiana and Ohio.
Under the agreements:
Kentucky law requires resident hunters and anglers utilizing reciprocal waters to have a Kentucky-issued license.
Signed fishing and hunting reciprocal agreements:
These maps are intended to show the bodies of water that are affected and specifically show how the state line crosses these bodies of water. Click a map to download and print.
Anglers must obey the regulations of the state in which they are licensed unless they are fishing from the bank. Bank anglers, regardless of which state’s license they hold, must abide by the regulations of the state in which they are fishing.
Reciprocal waters are from the KY 92 bridge at Yamacraw in Kentucky upstream to the Leatherwood Ford Bridge in Tennessee (TN 297). Anglers must obey the regulations of the state in which they are licensed unless they are fishing from the bank. Bank anglers, regardless of which state's license they hold, must abide by the regulations of the state in which they are fishing.
Reciprocal waters are the Wolf River arm of the lake. This includes the Illwill Creek embayment beginning at a line crossing the Wolf River at its mouth where it meets the Obey River and the main part of the lake. Anglers must obey the regulations of the state in which they are licensed unless they are fishing from the bank. Bank anglers, regardless of which state’s license they hold, must abide by the regulations of the state in which they are fishing.
Reciprocal waters extend from Eggner’s Ferry Bridge (U.S. 68/80) in Kentucky south to Governor Ned McWhorter Bridge (U.S. 79 and TN 76) in Tennessee. This includes all tributaries and embayments, except for the Blood River embayment in Kentucky. Anglers must obey the regulations of the state in which they are licensed unless they are fishing from the bank. Bank anglers, regardless of which state’s license they hold, must abide by the regulations of the state in which they are fishing.
Along the Missouri border, anglers must obey the regulations of the state in which they are fishing; if licensed in one state but fishing in another, anglers must comply with the most restrictive regulation. Bank anglers, regardless of which state’s license they hold, must abide by the regulaions of the state in which they are fishing.
Includes the main stem of the Ohio River bordering Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. Embayments and tributaries are not included in the reciprocal agreements. Anglers must obey the regulations of the state in which they are licensed unless they are fishing from the bank. Bank anglers, regardless of which state’s license they hold, must abide by the regulations of the state in which they are fishing.