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KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Kearney Mayor Bill Dane thought about families connecting with fishing, as he watched Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) staff drop 500 pan-sized rainbow trout, plus seven lunkers, into his city’s lake at Jesse James Park. Trout were stocked at several lakes in the Kansas City metro to on Nov. 7 as part of MDC’s urban winter trout fishing program to give anglers close-to-home fishing opportunities. Kearney recently joined MDC’s Community Assistance Program for aid to fishing lakes.
“I think it’s a great thing for the kids of Kearney and the adults, too,” Dane said, “when I can walk out here on a Sunday and see mom and dad and the kids out there fishing.”
The trout stocked for winter fishing in Kansas City’s urban and suburban lakes are raised at MDC’s Bennett Spring Fish Hatchery. Lunkers are added from brood stock no longer needed at the hatchery. The winter trout program offers MDC a chance to partner with cities and counties to offer fishing in community lakes.
Trout are not native to Missouri. They have been introduced to the cold, spring-fed, streams of southern Missouri. In winter, when the water is cold enough and holds sufficient oxygen to support trout, selected lakes and ponds in urban areas are stocked to provide close-to-home trout fishing.
Rainbow stockings on Nov. 7 in the Kansas City area included:
Anglers should note, the James A. Reed Memorial Wildlife Area is closed through Nov. 9 for a special managed deer hunt. The lakes at the Reed Area will reopen for fishing on Friday, Nov. 10.
Statewide trout fishing regulations apply. All Missouri residents over age 15 and under 65 must have a valid fishing permit, and all non-residents over age 15 must have a fishing permit. The daily limit is four trout. To keep trout, all anglers must have a Missouri trout permit. Pole and line methods only are allowed, and each angler may have no more than three fishing poles.
Trout were also stocked at Honker Pond at the James A. Reed Memorial Wildlife Area. But that pond is for fishing by youths only. Youths must be 15 or under to fish at Honker Pond. They may keep trout up to a limit of four if they have a Missouri trout permit.
Some of the lakes will be stocked again in later winter months. The most up-to-date information on MDC’s winter trout stockings in the KC Metro Area is available by calling the trout hotline at 816-525-0300, ext. 4001.
For more information on trout fishing throughout Missouri, visit http://mdc.mo.gov.
