Fishing report: Angling prospects looking mighty good ahead of Memorial Day weekend
Here is the fishing report for lakes and reservoirs in the Kansas City area and regionally around Kansas and Missouri for May 20, 2020.
Missouri
BLUE SPRINGS: low 60s, stained, normal Outlook: Lee’s Summit Area Fishing Facebook Group reports: White bass can be found lakeside, especially near the dam, but having to work through a lot of small fish. Some reports of crappie on crankbaits trolled along the dam. Trolling crankbaits for crappie should be a good way to find them. Largemouth bass have been tough in the last week. Seven boats fished the tournament and winning weight was 11.6 pounds with 4 keepers.
BULL SHOALS: 65-70 degrees, clear, 31 feet and rising Outlook: Del Colvin Guide Service reports: limited access to ramps and parking, call first. Post spawn patterns are in effect. 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, flipping bushes where you can reach the shore. Weightless worm, topwater frogs, small spooks, and lots of other baits are working if you get around the fish. For smallmouth, gravel banks, boat ramps, and old roads are good places to drag baits like the ned rig, tubes, or Carolina rigs 18-32 feet down. Below the dam: John Berry of Berry Bros. Guide Service reports: The White has fished well. The hot spot has been Rim Shoals. The water below Crooked Creek and the Buffalo is high and off color. 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 size fourteen pheasant tail with a size eighteen ruby midge 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. Not as many people reporting catches from the bank in the last week but trolling crankbaits has been productive. For bass, look for spawning pockets in shallow parts of coves close to deeper water.
JAMES A. REED: 64 degrees, stained, normal Outlook: Missouri Dept. of Conservation reports: crappie are fair using jigs and minnows near brush. Anglers are still finding them shallow. Bluegill are fair on small jigs or small pieces of worms. Largemouth bass have been hit or miss on a variety of baits. Some large 10+ pound wipers have been caught in the last week as well. Due to public safety concerns from the coronavirus (COVID-19), the rental boats will not be available at the James A. Reed Area until further notice.
LAKE OF THE OZARKS: low 60s, stained, 0.7 feet low Outlook: Gier’s Bass Pro reports: crappie are excellent. Look for them 1-10 feet down on pea gravel banks and near structure in spawning pockets. Docks on secondary points are producing as well. Bass bite has been good on main lake points using crankbaits. The shallow bass bite is still good on spawning pockets. Topwater continues to be good. Fishing your bait slow has been key.
LONGVIEW: 60 degrees, clear, normal Outlook: Longview Marina reports: dock fishing closed until further notice. 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. Largemouth have been hard to come by. Only 2 keeper bass were weighed in the recent tournament out of 9 boats. Join Lee’s Summit Area Fishing Facebook group for daily updates.
NORFORK: 65 degrees, clear, 22 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: 66 degrees, clear (dam) to murky (up lake), 4 feet high (3000 CFS) Outlook: Pomme Muskie Guide Service reports: 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: 59 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. North of the W bridge has been a good area. 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. A few walleyes reported in the last week. 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: 60 degrees, clear, 7.5 feet high (4290 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: 67 degrees, clear main lake (clear to muddy in rivers), 8 feet high Outlook: Eric Prey of Focused Fishing Guide Service reports: For bass, the top water 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 have moved to larger flats and flat points and can be caught on swimbaits and grubs. Look for schools of whites chasing shad on the flats less than 10’ deep.
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: 63 degrees, stained, 3 feet high (20,000 CFS) Outlook: Richard Bowling Guide Service reports: Crappie are being caught in the creeks in 10 feet of water and more fishing 8 feet deep. Minnows and jigs are working. Spider rigging and one pole are very effective. Crappie are starting to move out onto post spawn areas. 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: 61 degrees, stained, 0.2 feet low (47 CFS) Outlook: KDWPT reports: All boat ramps open in State Park. Bloomington ramps are open, but some may not have docks in. Road over the dam is still closed. Crappie are fair to good in 2-10 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. 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. Should be some in the outlet as well.
COFFEY COUNTY: 74 degrees north end, hot water outlet 83, rest of lake mid 60s, clear, normal Outlook: KDWPT reports: white bass have been on fire in the lake recently. Channel and blue catfish have been biting very well on the north end. All other species have been slow. Entrance gate phone number is 620-364-2475, call for lake conditions.
EL DORADO: upper 50s/low 60s, murky, 2.6 feet high (3243 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. Crappie action has been up and down but should be shallow still. 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, 0.8 feet high (750 CFS) Outlook: KDWPT reports: crappie should be back shallow but could be deeper in 15-20 feet of water trolling crankbaits and jigging over Georgia Cubes, brush piles, and other structure. 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. Gibbs Point has been a good area. 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. They can be found along the dam, the south bluffs, and along the state park shoreline using 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: 57 degrees, stained, 0.5 feet high (10 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.
KILL CREEK PARK: 63 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. Fish feeders are off. 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. Largemouth are fair to good fishing the deep side of the riprap areas and weed beds. Some 6+ pound fish have been caught near the hot water outlet recently. 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. The creek mouth has been a good area for them as well. Some wipers have been found near the bridge.
MELVERN: 59 degrees, clear, 3.1 feet high (1500 CFS) Outlook: Melvern Lake Marina reports: Crappie became a little hit or miss with inclement weather but anglers are still finding them from the bank. Check 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, crankbaits, and jigs on rocky banks. White bass are fair on shallow crankbaits and minnows on wind blown points and along the dam. 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: 60 degrees, stained, normal (747 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 should be shallow, too. Walleye are fair 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: 60 degrees, stained, normal (3000 CFS) Outlook: Don and Tom’s Bait and Tackle reports: Crappie are on fire right now in full spawn mode all over the lake. 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. Minnows are best but plastics are working great, too. 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: 59 degrees, stained, 2 feet high (1000 CFS) Outlook: KDWPT reports: catfish are biting well. 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 moving out soon. 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: 63 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: 64 degrees, clear, 0.1 feet low (3000 CFS) Outlook: Kansas Department of Wildlife reports: Crappie are good lakewide on jig and minnows. A lot still shallow 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.