Trout Regulations and Permits

Trout Regulations and Permits

All trout-fishing areas require anglers to have a Missouri fishing permit or exemption.

Permit prices are as follows:

Resident (ages 16-64) $12 (residents 65 and older and younger than 16 are exempt)
Nonresident (age 16 and up) $42
Daily Fishing Permit $7
Trout Permit $7
Trout Permit (age 15 years or younger) $3.50
Daily Trout Tag (trout parks only) $3
Daily Trout Tag (age 15 years or younger)(trout parks only) $2.

A trout permit is required to possess trout, except in areas where a daily trout-fishing tag is required. Anglers must also have a fishing permit or qualify for an exemption.

A trout permit is required for all fishing in winter catch-and-release fishing in trout parks, and for all fishing year-round in Lake Taneycomo upstream from U.S. Highway 65 bridge.

Trout Lure Definitions

Fly: an artificial lure constructed on a single point hook, using any material except soft plastic bait and natural and scented baits as defined below, that is tied, glued or otherwise permanently attached.
Artificial lure: a lure constructed of any material excluding soft plastic bait and natural and scented bait as defined below.
Soft plastic bait: synthetic eggs, synthetic worms, synthetic grubs and soft plastic lures.
Natural and scented baits: a natural fish food such as bait fish, crayfish, frogs permitted as bait, grubs, insects, larvae, worms, salmon eggs, cheese, corn and other food substances not containing any ingredient to stupefy, injure or kill fish. This does not include flies or artificial lures. It does include dough bait, putty or paste-type bait, any substance designed to attract fish by taste or smell and any fly, lure or bait containing or used with such substances.

**Blue Ribbon Trout Areas**
Trout Water	Miles or Area	County	Area	Key	Length Limit	Daily Limit	Authorized Lures and Baits
Barren Fork Creek	3.2 miles	Shannon	County Road AD to its junction with Sinking Creek	a	At least 18 inches	1	Artificial lures and flies only
Blue Springs Creek	4.0 miles	Crawford	Blue Springs to its junction with the Meramec River	a	At least 18 inches	1	Artificial lures and flies only
Crane Creek	8.0 miles	Stone and Lawrence	Upstream from Quail Spur Road crossing on Stone County Road 13-195	a	At least 18 inches	1	Artificial lures and flies only
Current River	9.0 miles	Dent, Texas and Shannon	From the lower boundary at Montauk State Park to Cedargrove Bridge	a	At least 18 inches	1	Artificial lures and flies only
Eleven Point River	5.5 miles	Oregon	Greer Spring Branch junction to Turner Mill Access	a	At least 18 inches	1	Artificial lures and flies only
Little Piney Creek	9.9 miles	Phelps	Phelps/Dent county line downstream to Milldam Hollow Access	a	At least 18 inches	1	Artificial lures and flies only
Mill Creek	7.7 miles	Phelps	Yelton Springs to the Little Piney River, including Wilkins Spring and its spring branch	a	At least 18 inches	1	Artificial lures and flies only
North Fork of the White River	8.6 miles	Ozark	Upper outlet of Rainbow Springs to Patrick Bridge	a	At least 18 inches	1	Artificial lures and flies only
Spring Creek	6.2 miles	Phelps	Relfe Spring to the Big Piney River	a	At least 18 inches	1	Artificial lures and flies only

**Red Ribbon Trout Areas**
Trout Water	Miles or Area	County	Area	Key	Length Limit	Daily Limit	Authorized Lures and Baits
Meramec River	8.2 miles	Phelps and Crawford	From Highway 8 bridge to Scotts Ford, and on Dry Fork Creek from the elevated cable crossing to the Meramec River	a	At least 15 inches	2	Artificial lures and flies only
North Fork of the White River	7.0 miles	Ozark	The unimpounded portion of the river and its tributaries from Patrick Bridge to Norfork Lake	a	At least 15 inches	2	All
Roubidoux Creek	2.2 miles	Pulaski	Downstream of the elevated utility cable, approximately 1/2 mile below Business I-44 bridge in Waynesville to the Gasconade River	a	At least 15 inches	2	Artificial lures and flies only

**White Ribbon Trout Areas**
Trout Water	Miles or Area	County	Area	Key	Length Limit	Daily Limit	Authorized Lures and Baits
Capps Creek	2.0 miles	Barry and Newton	Approximately 2 miles upstream from its junction with Shoal Creek	a	Rainbow trout–none. Brown trout–at least 15 inches	4	All
Current River	7.7 miles	Dent and Shannon	Downstream from Cedargrove Bridge	a	Rainbow trout–none. Brown trout–at least 15 inches	4	All
Eleven Point River	14.2 miles	Oregon	Downstream from Turner Mill Access	a	Rainbow trout–none. Brown trout–at least 15 inches	4	All
Hickory Creek	2.7 miles	Newton	From Highway 86 bridge to Shoal Creek	a	Rainbow trout–none. Brown trout–at least 15 inches	4 from March 1–Oct. 31, catch and release from Nov. 1–Feb. 28	All from March 1–Oct. 31, artificial lures and flies from Nov. 1–Feb. 28
Little Piney Creek	3.7 miles	Phelps	Milldam Hollow Access downstream to Phelps County Road 7360	a	Rainbow trout–none. Brown trout–at least 15 inches	4	All
Niangua River	11.5 miles	Dallas and Laclede	All of the Niangua River and its tributaries	a	Rainbow trout–none. Brown trout–at least 15 inches	4	All
Roaring River	4.0 miles	Barry	From the lower boundary of Roaring River State Park to Table Rock Lake	a	Rainbow trout–none. Brown trout–at least 15 inches	4	All
Roubidoux Creek	0.9 miles	Pulaski	Upstream of the elevated utility cable, approx. 1/2 mile below Bus. I-44 bridge in Waynesville	a	Rainbow trout–none. Brown trout–at least 15 inches	4	All
Stone Mill Spring Branch ¹	0.3 miles	Pulaski	The entire spring branch, from the spring to the Big Piney River	a	Rainbow trout–none.	4 from March 1–Oct. 31, catch and release from Nov. 1–last day in Feb.	All from March 1–Oct. 31, artificial lures and flies from Nov. 1–last day in Feb.

¹ Roads to Stone Mill Spring Branch on the Mark Twain National Forest pass through Fort Leonard Wood. Access to the Spring Branch through the fort occasionally may be denied by the U.S. Army for security reasons. Contact the fort's Sportsmen's Center at (573) 596-4223 for information.

**Trout Parks: March 1 - October 31**
Trout Water	Miles or Area	County	Area	Key	Length Limit	Daily Limit	Authorized Lures and Baits
Bennett Spring State Park	1.5 miles	Dallas and Laclede	As posted	a c g	Rainbow trout–none. Brown trout–at least 15 inches	4	As posted
Maramec Spring Park ² (Open daily from the second Mon. in Nov. to the second Mon. in Feb. )	0.7 miles	Phelps	As posted	a c g	Rainbow trout–none. Brown trout–at least 15 inches	4	As posted
Montauk State Park	3.0 miles	Dent	As posted	a c g	Rainbow trout–none. Brown trout–at least 15 inches	4	As posted
Roaring River State Park	3.0 miles	Barry	As posted	a c g	Rainbow trout–none. Brown trout–at least 15 inches	4	As posted
Trout Parks Fri.–Mon. from the second Fri. in Nov. to the second Mon. in Feb.	As posted	All four trout parks	As posted		Winter catch-and-release season; all trout must be released unharmed immediately after being caught.	0	Flies only

2 Maramec Spring Park is a private park owned by the James Foundation. It is open to the public for trout fishing and other recreational activities. Park hours vary by season. There is a parking fee, payable at the gate. Permits and tags are available at the park store. Contact the park store at (573) 265-7387 for fishing hours and camping information. During the winter catch-and-release season the park is open seven days a week.

**Lake Taneycomo**
Trout Water	Miles or Area	County	Area	Key	Length Limit	Daily Limit	Authorized Lures and Baits
Lake Taneycomo	3.0 miles	Taney	From the closed zone 760 feet below Table Rock Dam to the mouth of Fall Creek	a b	Rainbow trout–less than 12 inches or greater than 20 inches. Brown trout–at least 20 inches	4, except only 1 may be a brown trout	Artificial lures and flies only
Lake Taneycomo	19.7 miles	Taney	Mouth of Fall Creek to Powersite Dam, and all tributaries to Lake Taneycomo	a b	Rainbow trout–none. Brown trout–at least 20 inches long.	4, except only 1 may be a brown trout	All

**Columbia Winter Trout Area**
Trout Water	Miles or Area	County	Area	Key	Daily Limit	Authorized Lures and Baits
Cosmo-Bethel Lake	6.0 acres	Boone	All		4 from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, catch and release from Nov. 1–Jan. 31	All from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, only artificial lures and flies from Nov. 1–Jan. 31

**Jackson Winter Trout Area**
Trout Water	Miles or Area	County	Area	Key	Daily Limit	Authorized Lures and Baits
Rotary Lake	3.2 acres	Cape Girardeau	All	d	4	All from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, only flies, artificial lures and unscented soft plastic baits from Nov. 1–Jan. 31

**Jefferson City Winter Trout Area**
Trout Water	Miles or Area	County	Area	Key	Daily Limit	Authorized Lures and Baits
McKay Park Lake	6.0 acres	Cole	All		4 from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, catch and release from Nov. 1–Jan. 31	All from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, only flies, artificial lures and unscented soft plastic baits from Nov. 1–Jan. 31

**Kansas City Winter Trout Areas**
Trout Water	Miles or Area	County	Area	Daily Limit	Authorized Lures and Baits
Liberty Pond 1 on the Fountain Bluff Sports Complex	3.04 acres	Clay	All	4	All
Liberty Pond 2 on the Fountain Bluff Sports Complex	2.87 acres	Clay	All	4	All
Chaumiere Park Lake	4.0 acres	Clay	All	4	All
Coot Lake on the James A. Reed Memorial Wildlife Area	22.0 acres	Jackson	All	4	All
Honker Pond on the James A. Reed Memorial Wildlife Area	1.0 acre	Jackson	Anglers under age 16 only	4	All
Plover Lake on the James A. Reed Memorial Wildlife Area	15.0 acres	Jackson	All	4	All

**Kirksville Winter Trout Area**
Trout Water	Miles or Area	County	Area	Key	Daily Limit	Authorized Lures and Baits
Spur Pond	3.6 acres	Adair	All		4 from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, catch and release from Nov. 1–Jan. 31	All from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, only flies, artificial lures and unscented soft plastic baits from Nov. 1–Jan. 31

**Mexico Winter Trout Area**
Trout Water	Miles or Area	County	Area	Key	Daily Limit	Authorized Lures and Baits
Kiwanis Lake	3.0 acres	Audrain	All		4 from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, catch and release from Nov. 1–Jan. 31	All from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, only flies, artificial lures and unscented soft plastic baits from Nov. 1–Jan. 31

**St. Joseph Winter Trout Area**
Trout Water	Miles or Area	County	Area	Key	Daily Limit	Authorized Lures and Baits
Missouri Western State University, Everyday Pond	2.0 acres	Buchanan	All		4 from Feb. 1–Oct. 15, catch and release from Oct. 16–Jan. 31	All from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, only flies, artificial lures and unscented soft plastic baits from Nov. 1–Jan. 31

**St. Louis Winter Trout Areas**
Trout Water	Miles or Area	County	Area	Key	Daily Limit	Authorized Lures and Baits
Busch Lake 3	3.1 acres	St. Charles	All	d e	4 from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, catch and release from Nov. 1–Jan. 31	All from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, only artificial lures and flies from Nov. 1–Jan. 31
Busch Lake 21	6.0 acres	St. Charles	All	d e	4 from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, catch and release from Nov. 1–Jan. 31	All from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, only artificial lures and flies from Nov. 1–Jan. 31
Busch Lake 22	4.1 acres	St. Charles	All	d g	4	All
Busch Lake 23	4.0 acres	St. Charles	All	d g	4	All
Busch Lake 28	12.0 acres	St. Charles	All	d e	4 from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, catch and release from Nov. 1–Jan. 31	All from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, only artificial lures and flies from Nov. 1–Jan. 31
Carondelet Park Boathouse Lake	5.0 acres	St. Louis	All	d g	4	All
January-Wabash Park Lake	5.0 acres	St. Louis	All	d g	4	All
Jefferson Lake	9.0 acres	St. Louis	All	d e	4 from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, catch and release from Nov. 1–Jan. 31	All from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, only artificial lures and flies from Nov. 1–Jan. 31
Koeneman Park Lake	6.0 acres	St. Louis	All	d e	4 from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, catch and release from Nov. 1–Jan. 31	All from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, only artificial lures and flies from Nov. 1–Jan. 31
O'Fallon Park Lake	5.3 acres	St. Louis	All	d g	4	All
Suson Park Lake 1	1.5 acres	St. Louis	All	d g	4	All
Suson Park Lake 2	3.0 acres	St. Louis	All	d g	4	All
Suson Park Lake 3	3.5 acres	St. Louis	All	d g	4	All
Tilles Park Lake	2.0 acres	St. Louis	All	d e	4 from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, catch and release from Nov. 1–Jan. 31	All from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, only artificial lures and flies from Nov. 1–Jan. 31
Vlasis Park Lake	0.5 acres	St. Louis	All	d g	4	All
Walker Lake	2.0 acres	St. Louis	All	d e	4 from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, catch and release from Nov. 1–Jan. 31	All from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, only artificial lures and flies from Nov. 1–Jan. 31
Wild Acres Lake	2.5 acres	St. Louis	All	d e	4 from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, catch and release from Nov. 1–Jan. 31	All from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, only artificial lures and flies from Nov. 1–Jan. 31

**Sedalia Winter Trout Area**
Trout Water	Miles or Area	County	Area	Key	Daily Limit	Authorized Lures and Baits
Liberty Park Pond	3.2 acres	Pettis	All	d e	4 from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, catch and release from Nov. 1–Jan. 31	All from Feb. 1–Oct. 31, only artificial lures and flies from Nov. 1–Jan. 31

Key

Regardless of where taken, the head, tail and skin must remain attached to all fish for which length limits are established while on the waters (or banks) to which the length limit apply.
Additional permits may be required.
Area regulations, fishing methods and zones vary. Ask for details when you purchase your tag.
From Nov. 1—Jan. 31, not more than one pole and line may be used by one person at any time and the use of natural and scented baits as chum is prohibited.
From Feb. 1—Oct. 31, you must stop fishing for all species when you have four trout in possession.
From Nov. 1—Jan. 31, you must stop fishing for all species when you have four trout in possession.
You must stop fishing for all species when you have four trout in possession.

Felt-Soled Wader Ban

To prevent the spread of didymo, an invasive alga, the use of shoes, boots or waders with porous soles of felt, matted or woven fibrous material is prohibited at all trout parks and the areas listed in this section. This ban goes into effect March 1, 2012.

MDC