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KANSAS CITY, Mo. – As winter arrives, so do rainbow trout at several lakes in the Kansas City area. The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) on Nov. 6 stocked trout at seven lakes to connect anglers with winter fishing opportunities.
Trucks ferried the trout from MDC’s Bennett Spring Fish Hatchery. Most are pan-sized rainbows. But the stocking at each lake also includes a few lunker trout, brood fish no longer needed at the hatchery.
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 are stocked to provide trout fishing where rainbows are normally not found.
Anglers fishing for winter trout generally use spinning, spincasting, or flyfishing gear. Small spinners and jigs are often used with spinning gear. A variety of flies work when using a flyrod.
Rainbow stockings on Nov. 6 in the Kansas City area included:
Trout fishing will not be open at the lakes at James A. Reed Memorial Wildlife Area until Nov. 9, due to a special managed deer hunt on the area.
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 stocked at Honker Pond at the James A. Reed Memorial Wildlife Area are 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 Kansas City area winter trout lakes will be stocked again in coming 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.
Tips for catching winter trout in urban lakes are found in an online Missouri Conservationist magazine story, https://short.mdc.mo.gov/Zpq. For more information on trout fishing throughout Missouri, visit http://mdc.mo.gov.
