This lake offers great fishing opportunities for largemouth bass, panfish, and catfish on a small to moderately-sized reservoir in a peaceful setting of rolling pasture and scattered woodlands.
Location
Harrison County Lake is located about 8 miles north of the city of Bethany, Missouri. Look for the sign along County Route W.
History
The reservoir was completed in 1994 to serve as an additional water supply for the city of Bethany and surrounding rural areas in Harrison County. Fish were initially stocked by the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) in 1994 and 1995. Species stocked included bluegill, redear sunfish, largemouth bass, and channel catfish. Black crappie and white crappie were subsequently stocked by anglers (illegally), or migrated into the lake from upstream ponds.
Lake Descriptions and Facilities
Harrison County Lake covers 280 acres, has a maximum depth of 32 feet, and offers a variety of recreational activities including fishing, camping, swimming, water skiing, and day-use picnic sites. Under a cooperative agreement, MDC manages the fishery while Harrison County manages camping and provides all maintenance needs for lake facilities. The facilities include two concrete boat ramps, two floating docks, wheel-chair accessible fishing jetty and pit toilets, primitive and electric campsites (10-day limit), small swim beaches (no life guards), and a sheltered picnic area. There are no restrictions on boat motor size or speeds.
Fishing Outlook and Tips
This lake has a nice combination of varied fishing terrain, and moderately-fertile water quality, to provide excellent fishing opportunities for bass, panfish, and catfish. Flooded timber scattered in small coves, along shorelines, and in the upper basin provide good fish habitat and concentrate panfish for anglers. Bluegills in the 8-10” range are abundant and can be caught throughout the year on light tackle. Crappie fishing was a bit slower in 2005 than in recent years but fish from 9-11” were caught consistently, with some fish over 13”. For best success, use bobbers or slow vertical jigging with small jigs or minnows in and around submerged brush. Channel catfish are abundant and range in sizes up to 26”. Largemouth bass are also numerous with many fish 12-15” long. A 15” minimum length limit on bass promotes high predation rates on panfish, and in turn, and good growth rates for crappie and bluegill.
Fishing Regulations
| Species | Length Limit | Daily Bag Limit |
|---|---|---|
| Largemouth Bass | 15” | 6 |
| Crappie | none | 30 |
| Channel Catfish | none | 4 |
| All other species combined | none | 20 |
