June 2007 - Volume 68, Issue 6
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Fishing KC continued...
Almost all area streams have at least one public fishing access. Anglers who want to fish from the bank above or below these access areas should first obtain landowner permission.
Small Lakes and Ponds
Most conservation areas and state, city and county parks in the Kansas City area have lakes or ponds. The Conservation Department works with local government to manage the fisheries in many of these waters and make them inviting and accessible to anglers.
On many managed waters, special regulations concerning daily limits, horsepower limits and fishing methods apply. These are posted at accesses and on area bulletin boards.
A good place to catch large bluegill is Tobacco Hills Lake in the Guy B. Park Conservation Area in Platte County. An 8-inch minimum length limit keeps plenty of bluegill around long enough to grow big. Several longer than 10 inches are caught every summer.
The picturesque 17-acre lake has a boat ramp, but you can effectively fish the lake from shore. Bass are also numerous here, but you’ll find few fish longer than the 15-inch minimum length limit.
Watkins Mill State Park in Clay County has a 100-acre lake with both shore and boat fishing access. A 3.75-mile asphalt trail encircles the lake, providing anglers easy access to almost all of the shoreline. The lake has good numbers of largemouth bass, bluegill, crappie, channel catfish and redear sunfish.
Anglers often take large redear sunfish in the spring when the fish are spawning in shallow coves and in the shallows near shore. You can sometimes see the fish in the water. These hard-fighting sunfish are vulnerable to small jigs or worms. They make great table fare.
South of the Missouri River, the James A. Reed Memorial Wildlife Area provides lots of good fishing. This 2,603-acre area has 11 fishable lakes and ponds that add up to 252 acres of water. Only children under the age of 16 can fish in Honker Pond.
Anglers catch largemouth bass, bluegill, channel catfish, redear sunfish and hybrid striped bass from area waters. Numerous fishing jetties, docks and trails make the lakes extremely accessible for bank anglers. Rental boats are available on some of the lakes during the summer months.
Visitors to the Reed Area willing to brave cold weather may face action that rivals any of southern Missouri’s trout parks. From November through March, the Conservation Department periodically stocks skillet-size rainbow and brown trout in Coot and Plover lakes, as well as in Honker Pond.
A 55-acre lake on Amarugia Conservation Area and the City of Harrisonville’s 34-acre North Lake both provide bank and boat fishing opportunities in Cass County. Both of these lakes have been stocked with largemouth bass, bluegill, crappie and channel catfish.
About This Article
Authors
TODD GEMEINHARDT is a fisheries management
biologist in the Kansas City region and has been
with the Missouri Department of Conservation
since 1999. In his free time, he enjoys hunting
and fishing as well as spending time with his
wife, Nicole, and his 15-month- old daughter,
Madelyn.
PAM LANIGAN is a fisheries management biologist
who has been with the Department of
Conservation for more than 15 years. She and
her husband, Tim, live in Independence with
their two young children, Luke and Logan. Pam
and her family like to fish, hunt and spend time
outside with their dogs.
