Fishing report: They’re still biting at Kansas City-area lakes despite recent chill
Here is the fishing report for lakes and reservoirs in the Kansas City area and regionally around Kansas and Missouri for May 13, 2020.
Missouri
BLUE SPRINGS: low 60s, stained, normal Outlook: Lee’s Summit Area Fishing Facebook Group reports: Look for wipers near the blowhole on the bank side. Anglers were catching nice whites and wipers there in the last week. Whites have also been stacked along the dam but have to work through a lot of small fish. Some reports of crappie on crankbaits trolled along the dam. Crappie will likely be deeper with the cold temps and rain moving in. Largemouth bass have been tough in the last week.
BULL SHOALS: 64 degrees, clear, 26 feet and rising Outlook: Del Colvin Guide Service reports: limited access to ramps and parking, call first. Fish are spawn and post spawn. Look for flat pockets halfway back to the backs of coves. Post spawners are moving out. Points have been good using a swimbait or jerkbait near shad balls. Close to spawning areas: with wind, the spinnerbait or chatterbait on old banks and bushes with stain will work. Senko, jig, beaver, weightless worm, topwater frogs, small spooks, and lots of other baits are working if you get around the fish. Fish the conditions. For smallmouth, gravel banks, boat ramps, and old roads are good places to drag baits like the ned rig, tubes, or Carolina rigs 26 feet down. Below the dam: John Berry of Berry Bros. Guide Service reports: The White has fished well. The hot has been the Catch and Release section below Bull Shoals Dam. The hot flies were olive woolly buggers (#8, #10), Y2Ks (#14, #12), prince nymphs (#14), zebra midges (black with silver wire and silver bead or red with silver wire and silver bead #16, #18), pheasant tails (#14), ruby midges (#18), root beer midges (#18), pink and cerise San Juan worms (#10), and sowbugs (#16). Double fly nymph rigs have been very effective (current favorite combination is a deep water worm with a weighted egg suspended below it).
JACOMO: low 60s, stained, normal Outlook: Lee’s Summit Area Fishing Facebook group reports: Look for crappie near brush in 6-10 feet of water or along the public docks using jigs or minnows. Folks were catching good numbers from the banks lakewide but started to slow as weather moved in. They are likely to be a little deeper now. For bass, look for spawning pockets in shallow parts of coves close to deeper water.
JAMES A. REED: 62 degrees, stained, normal Outlook: Missouri Dept. of Conservation reports: crappie remain fair using very small jigs or minnows near brush. Keep your limit! Folks have been reporting using a 1/32nd or smaller jig fished starting shallow and moving deeper to find them. A lot of folks finding them in 2-5 feet of water. Catclaw has been a popular lake. Largemouth bass have been hit or miss on a variety of baits, but seeing consistent reports on crankbaits. All other species slow. Due to public safety concerns from the coronavirus, MDC has suspended the channel catfish stockings for the Kansas City area park lakes until further notice. Also, the rental boats will not be available at the James A. Reed Area until further notice.
LAKE OF THE OZARKS: 60 degrees, stained, 3 feet high Outlook: Gier’s Bass Pro reports: crappie have slowed down a bit and moved back into brush. Look for them 1-10 feet down on pea gravel banks and near structure in spawning pockets. The shallow bass bite has remained strong even with the cold weather. Look for them behind docks and backs of pockets. Topwater has been very good too.
LONGVIEW: 59 degrees, clear, normal Outlook: Longview Marina reports: Marina will open on the 16th but dock fishing will be closed until further notice. All lake permits will be available for sale on the 16th. Crappie have slowed down. They will be deeper in the coming week of cool weather. Check the timber near mouths of coves in 8-15 feet of water. No reports on whites. Largemouth have slowed down as well. Join Lee’s Summit Area Fishing Facebook group for daily updates.
NORFORK: 65 degrees, clear, 18 feet high Outlook: Bink’s Guide Service reports: White bass, largemouth, kentucky’s, and smallmouth are still spawning. Stripers are in about 35 feet feeding on small shad. Smallmouth will be the best bite for the next few weeks.
POMME DE TERRE: 63 degrees, stained, 4 feet high (3000 CFS) Outlook: Pomme Muskie Guide Service reports: inclement weather has limited fishing activity. Crappie are still being found along the banks on jigs and minnows. Overall everything is pretty slow. Some bass still being caught with big bellies of eggs so spawners are still up. All other species slow or no reports.
SMITHVILLE: 58 degrees, clear, 1.5 feet low (8 CFS) Outlook: Burton’s Bait and Tackle reports: The crappie spawn is still going on in most areas of the lake especially on the main lake. The cold temps at night have slowed them down so may take some patience to find them. Quality has been very good. Jigs or minnows are both working. The bass are biting well on brush hogs, jigs, and senkos in shallow pockets of coves. The channel cats will start showing up at the end of the crappie spawn which is coming soon. Crappie guys will start catching them on jigs while crappie fishing. A few blue cats are being reported. The walleye should start showing up at any time. Shallow main lake points in 10 feet or less of water using a shad rap, flicker shad or rattle trap can be productive. Some whites are being caught under the bridges as they move toward the main lake after spawning. Rooster tails or road runners in white are productive. A 1/4 oz spoon can also be productive especially when the fish are deeper.
STOCKTON: 57 degrees, clear, 5.2 feet high (4200 CFS) Outlook: Tandem Fly Outfitters reports: fish have been a little more scattered, but walleye are still biting well on main lake points fishing a 1/8th Jakked shooter head tipped with a nightcrawler. Start deeper in 25 feet or so work shallower until you find them. Walleye, crappie, and white bass are being caught on #7 flicker shad. Crappie are spawning and catching them in 1-10 feet. The Big Sac arm is the best right now. Bass are staging to spawn and are being caught on spinner baits, jigs, and Carolina rigging a brush hog in the mouth of spawning pockets.
TABLE ROCK: 65 degrees, clear main lake (clear to stained in rivers), 1.5 feet high Outlook: Eric Prey of Focused Fishing Guide Service reports: Topwater bass bite has been awesome as fish are coming off the spawn. Look for fish to be on main lake and secondary points. Small jigs, shaky heads and Ned rigs are effective on gravel points 8’-12’ deep throughout the lake. Crappie are moving back to the banks in the river arms. Look for them on shallow wood cover less than 10 feet deep on steep banks leading into spawning pockets. White jigs, small tubes and live minnows have all been effective. The white bass are all but done spawning. They have moved to larger flats in the river arms and can be caught with small crankbaits, swimbaits and grubs. Look for schools of whites chasing shad on the flats less than 10’ deep. Eric provides daily fishing reports at tablerockfishingintel.com.
TANEYCOMO: 46 degrees, clear, low generation Outlook: Lilleys’ Landing reports: Big trout are still being caught on Taneycomo on a variety of methods including float and shad fly, float and jig, marabou jigs, jerkbaits (5-10 feet diving range), crankbaits, and small minnow baits. Trophy area has been good especially using jigs, small jerkbaits, and scuds. Best jig colors have been black/yellow, sculpin and sculpin/peach, tri-olive, and sculpin/orange. Use a bell weight or split shot to get your small minnow crankbaits to the bottom. Best to use a shad color/pattern. Quality rainbows are being caught in the 17 to 20-inch range. The Berkley Pink Power Worm under a float is working very well at the Branson Landing. Fish it with four-pound line and about five- to seven-feet deep under the float. You can also hook it on a #8 hook and fish it drifting on the bottom using a split shot or a drift rig. Big browns have been sighted chasing shad and small rainbows all over the lake but mostly in the Fall Creek area on down to Lilley’s Landing. There is a big midge and mayfly hatch all over the lake and fish are hitting the surface frequently. For fly fishermen, drop a San Juan Worm and a scud under an indicator and fish the flats both above and below Fall Creek. Be sure to watch One Cast, the Lilley’s Landing daily fishing video, for daily reports.
TRUMAN: 62 degrees, stained, 3.2 feet high (28,900 CFS) Outlook: Richard Bowling Guide Service reports: Crappie are being caught in the creeks and spawning pockets in 1-3 feet of water using jigs under a bobber or just casting with a jig. Spider rigging the center of the creeks and live scope fishing is working as well. It is a good bite all day but more fish move to the bank in the afternoon after the water warms up. Spawn is on and just getting started. Black bass are being caught on spinner baits and chatter baits in the flat pockets. Look for the pockets with no wind and keep on the move. The overall bite is on so get down there if you can.
Kansas
CLINTON: 60 degrees, stained, 3.8 feet high (2500 CFS) Outlook: KDWPT reports: All boat ramps open in State Park. Bloomington ramps are open, but some may not have docks in. Crappie are fair to good in 3-15 feet around brush and rocky areas. Most anglers are using jigs and minnows. White bass are good. Casting crankbaits on the dam is working some days, or jigs and spinners on the Wakarusa River above the reservoir. Some action trolling with crankbaits. Wipers have been mixed in. Catfish will bite well on nightcrawlers near inflows. Outlet should be good as flow increases. Walleye should be moving to the flats now and can be targeted with jig and a nightcrawler or trolling with crankbaits.
COFFEY COUNTY: 60 degrees north end, hot water outlet 71, clear, normal Outlook: KDWPT reports: lake is now open but fishing activity has been slow with inclement weather. Should have some updates by next week. Entrance gate phone number is 620-364-2475, call for lake conditions.
EL DORADO: upper 50s/low 60s, murky, 0.3 feet high (7 CFS) Outlook: KS Dept. of Wildlife, Parks & Tourism: Wipers/white bass are fair near breaks or humps early and moving towards shallow points and shorelines as the water warms up during the day. Jig and plastic or crankbaits work well. 4-inch shad are numerous so match your bait accordingly. Crappie action has been up and down with the sporadic weather this week. Fish were beginning to go shallow before the most recent cold front arrived. Fish will be hitting the shallows again as the warmer weather returns. Some blue catfish being caught on shallow windy points or shorelines with an incoming wind. Fresh cut bait has been best. A few walleye have been caught on the flats on jig and crawler combos in water 6 to 9 feet deep. Walleye action will be picking up soon.
GLEN ELDER (WACONDA LAKE): 61 degrees, clear, 1.5 feet high (300 CFS) Outlook: KDWPT reports: colder weather has moved the crappie back out to deep water and anglers have been having the best luck fishing in 15-20 feet of water trolling crankbaits and jigging over Georgia Cubes, brush piles, and other structure. Once things warm up and the weather turns around the fish will move back in shallow to spawn. Crappie tend to spawn in 2-5 feet of water and can generally be found near some sort of structure like cattails, stickups, or even rip rap. Many of the post-spawn walleye have moved toward the Cawker City causeway while some can be found along the north shore points in 5-10 feet of water. There are also fish hanging out in 25-35 feet of water along the river channel south of the marina toward the saddle area. Gibbs Point has also produced a lot of fish lately. Anglers should be able to catch a few fish using jig/crawler combos along the river channel or by targeting fish around the Cawker City Causeway and Mill Creek area in 5-15 feet of water. Smallmouth bass fishing has been very good recently with anglers catching high numbers of spawning fish. With a 21-inch length limit these fish are almost all sublegal so use extreme care and release them where you caught them so they can resume their spawning activities. They can be found along the dam, the south bluffs, and along the state park shoreline. Anglers typically catch them using a variety of crankbaits, soft plastics, and Ned Rigs. Anglers have been catching fair to good numbers of channel catfish near the mouth of Oak Creek and Carr Creek, off the Cawker City dike and golf course, and in Mill Creek. The white bass fishing has been excellent up the rivers, especially the South Fork. These fish will also start to congregate along rocky banks such as the Cawker City causeway, Granite Creek, and the dam.
HILLSDALE: 56 degrees, stained, 0.9 feet high (160 CFS) Outlook: KDWPT reports: some walleye are being caught on shallow flats and mud banks. Drifting live bait, jigging, trolling crankbaits, casting baits while targeting structure can all be effective methods right now. Crappie are shallow now and available from the shore on jigs and minnows. Look for them in 10-15 feet of water and moving in. White bass are fair on wind blown points. Jigs and shad imitation lures are the best baits right now. Channel cats have been pretty slow lately.
KILL CREEK PARK: 62 degrees, clear, normal Outlook: Johnson County Parks and Rec reports: trout are slow to fair on powerbait. Crappie and bluegill have been hitting minnows and worms. Look for them to move deeper in the cooler weather. Bass have been fair on plastic worms. Catfish are fair on chicken livers and nightcrawlers.
LA CYGNE: upper 50s/low 60s, clear, about normal Outlook: KDWPT reports: catfishing has been good from shore. Look for fresh inflows and use nightcrawlers. The creek mouth is a good area to look. The crappie are moving into staging areas for spawning, usually close to structure. Some fish have been caught off the wall gates where water is released at the dam. Some fish caught off of marina coves and it’s usually good at the hot water outlet area. They will move out a bit with the colder weather but should hopefully come back in shallow again when it passes. Largemouth are fair to good fishing the deep side of the riprap areas and weed beds. Use cranks, jerkbaits, or spinner baits like shad imitations. White bass are fair using shad imitations or silver spoons in the area of the hot water outlet. Most have been in the 1-2 pound range. Some wipers have been found near the bridge.
MELVERN: 63 degrees, clear, 2.1 feet high (1000 CFS) Outlook: Melvern Lake Marina reports: Crappie are great right now over shallow established brush piles, on the shore on the north side of the lake, and along the docks on minnows and small jigs. Smallmouth are good lakewide on minnows and shallow crankbaits on rocky banks. White bass are fair on shallow crankbaits and minnows on wind blown points. Channel catfish are fair to good with a few caught near cleaning stations and in the outlet area on nightcrawlers. Blue cats have been good on mud flats and around the docks on crappie entrails or fresh cut bait. Walleye are fair and being reported along the dam trolling nightcrawlers.
MILFORD: 58 degrees, stained, 1.5 feet high (2000 CFS) Outlook: KDWPT reports: Catfish are fair overall. Channel catfish are biting cut bait, worms, and stink bait. Look for freshwater inflows. Blue catfish are typically caught on fresh cut bait. Target wind blown flats and river channel ledges for catfish. Crappie are fair 10-20 feet deep suspended near points, flooded brush, and ledges on jigs and minnows and starting to transition. Look for them more shallow as water temps approach 60. Walleye are fair to good near rocky or wind-swept mud banks with jigs or jerkbaits as they move up to spawn. White bass/wipers are fair along windy banks and points using jigs on the reservoir and in the river on north end of the reservoir.
PERRY: 58 degrees, stained, 3 feet high (5000 CFS) Outlook: Don and Tom’s Bait and Tackle reports: Crappie are on fire right now. Bank fishermen fishing around Slough Creek Bridge are getting into them. Fishing around the docks continues to produce. Folks are finding them below the spillway as well. Jigs or minnows should work. White bass have been hitting around Rock Creek Bridge and are making their run up the Delaware. Catfish have been biting very well on fresh cut shad or crappie remains.
POMONA: 60 degrees, stained, 4 feet high (1000 CFS) Outlook: KDWPT reports: catfish are biting well and getting better. Good baits are worms, dip baits, sunfish entrails, cutshad, and stink/prepared baits. Both of the parks provide many good shorelines for bank fishing. Crappie are still spawning but may be out deeper with the recent cold rain. Work the shallow areas then move deeper. Some nice fish caught especially around the rock quarry on dark jigs and/or minnows.
SHAWNEE MISSION PARK: 61 degrees, clear, normal Outlook: Johnson County Parks and Rec reports: trout are fair on powerbait. Crappie and bluegill are hitting small plastics and worms and moving shallow on warmer days. Probably deeper now with the cooler weather and rain moving in. Catfish have been good on cut bait. Bass and wipers have been hitting minnow imitation crank baits.
TUTTLE CREEK: 61 degrees, clear, 8.2 feet high (3000 CFS) Outlook: Kansas Department of Wildlife reports: Crappie are very good lakewide on jig and minnows. Moving shallower up to 2 to 4 feet of water, with some still holding 10 to 14 feet deep. Coves in southern third of the reservoir have some locally good largemouth bass populations but fishing has been slow to fair lately. Catfish are fair on fresh cut bait on flats and channel swings. Look for fresh inflows of water. Saugeye are best in the River Pond or at Rocky Ford.
Tyler Mahoney is a Rockhurst University-educated outdoors fanatic who works to support his hunting and fishing habits. Read more of his next-generation insight at mahoneyoutdoors.com.