Tuesday, February 03, 2009

2009 - Region 3 Public Fishing Report (Southwestern, KS)

Use this article to comment on the Fishing in Region 3 or Southwestern Kansas.

KDWP Region 3 Fishing Reports can be found HERE.

The list of Lakes and Reserviors in Region 3 can be found HERE.

Please limit comments to fishing information only. Comments not containing fishing information will be deleted.

For discussions about fishing not related to a current report from a local lake or stream, CLICK HERE.

102 comments:

Anonymous said...

anyone fished clark yet

Anonymous said...

yeah. fish are hard to find. not too active. and nothing in size either.

Anonymous said...

k thanx i just herd crappie and white bass were biting good

Anonymous said...

the crappie r bitin excellent IF u can find em in the brush piles........but bring plenty of jigs cuz u get hung up A LOT and u cant catch em w/ out crappie niblets

Anonymous said...

o yea at clark

Anonymous said...

Has anyone fished Pratt county or the ponds latly

jm said...

crappie are biting in ford county with worms drifting with the wind. soon as wind stop they stop so go on a windy day. like today. i think ill try goldfish today

Anonymous said...

I no that all our biologists are busy but if you could get some up dates on this region it would be great, thanks

Anonymous said...

Anybody crappie fished at meade lake recently? Thinking about going over there, and was just wondering what the fishing was like? Thanks.

Anonymous said...

thinking about going to meade on friday anyone have any reports?

PCC fisherman said...

Crappie are bitting good on minnows under a bobber around underwater brush piles, and by the inlet. A few whiper caught by the inlet too.

PCC fisherman said...

that last comment was for Pratt county lake

Anonymous said...

Concannon State Lake 17 miles east of Garden City is now completely dry. Very small puddles of water exist now.

Anonymous said...

where are you getting minnows at for pratt area?

PCC fisherman said...

i get my minnows from the ninnescah river by kingman. i couldn't find any on the river around pratt.

Anonymous said...

i have a pond that has an "established" population of bullheads in it. Oxygen levels are probably pretty low but i would like to throw a few bass and some panfish in for some variety. Possibly a few channels also. Can anyone give me advice here and where could i get...stocker fish i guess you could say. Thanks for input.

Anonymous said...

Thanks Pcc fisherman, i know that theres a bait shop in town but only open in the warmer months, do you sein for them or trap them?

Anonymous said...

anyone been to meade lake recently or clark hows the fishing

Anonymous said...

fished goodman in boat on n. side...........caught 50+crappie in 2 hrs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!not 2 many of any size but a ton of fun.......and people please dont keep all the little ones.....let them grow up!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

There are countless small crappie at Goodman as well as Ford County lake. Most of the small crappie need to be kept. I fished both in the last week and easily caught 50 or more at each place fishing a tube jig about 18 inches under a bobber, color does not really matter.

Anonymous said...

Has anyone fished Jetmore City lake? Where are the crappie at Ford County? I want to take my three year old and catch anything that will hook him on fishing.

Anonymous said...

Has anyone been to the baitshop at watersports this year? does he have minnows yet?

Anonymous said...

yea i have been fishing @ jetmore city lake cought 20 large mouth bass about 10-12 inches long no keepers but a lot of fun if u can stay out of the moss try a small crank bait in the afternoon

Anonymous said...

Has anyone fished clark in last few days? Want 2 try it in the morning.

Anonymous said...

any 1 fished stone lake or vets

Anonymous said...

went to meade lake yesterday caught a few crappie and sand bass that they stocked this year waters about 52 degrees

Anonymous said...

wat r sand bass

Anonymous said...

Sand bass, sandies, Are White Bass I beleive.

Anonymous said...

Sand bass are white bass arnt you a fisherman and you dont know your fish

Anonymous said...

only oklahomans use the term sand bass!

Anonymous said...

I went to Scott City over the weekend 03/22/09 Saturday and caught my limit of 5 trout and 3 cats. The trout were about a pound and a half and one was about 2 or 3 pounds. I had a ball. I caught the trout on rainbow power bait and the cats on worms. Good fishing all you fisher men.

PCC fisherman said...

i use traps to get my minnows but make sure u take nothing but minnows like white perch!!

Anonymous said...

channel cat are biting at meade lake use sonnys stink bait

Anonymous said...

has anyone tried too walk the dam at scott for walleye?

Anonymous said...

For you guys who have hit Clark this year, is it still as low as last year. I imagine it is, but wanted to hear from somone who's been. Thanks.

Anonymous said...

Went to Scott Lake State Park caught two trout on power bait and a 14 inch walleye south east of the dam.

PCC fisherman said...

i fished pratt lake today with minnows and caught around 50 and kept 30. people without minnows couldn't catch crap. i believe they are very close to spawning

Anonymous said...

Couple weeks ago was up at Scott when the weather was in 70-80's..was catching 12-14" Rainbow..couple of small White Bass, nothing of size. Went today, nothing!! not even a bite, tried all over using different baits. Just real windy, and real cold. maybe better next time.

Anonymous said...

Has anyone fished clark state lake yet i wanted to go on my days off and was wondering if it was a waste of time

RN flyfisher said...

I fished at Pratt's Centennial pond yesterday. I caught 18 rainbow trout between 10 and 17 inches. I was fly fishing using black, and brown wooley buggers and dry mosquito flies at dusk. Had a blast!!! Look forward to going again soon.

Anonymous said...

any 1 fished goodman, jetmore, or hodgeman??????? input wud be great!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

Anonymous said...

any action at any of the state fishing lakes around?????????

Anonymous said...

i've been fishing @ ford county a few days this week cought about 100 crappie & 20 perch all together a lot of fun use crappie nibbles 12-18in. under a bobber in the evening crappie in the 6- 8" range

Anonymous said...

Fished Clark, caught 2 white bass 12" with minnow, also caught a 3 lb. catfish with minnow.

Anonymous said...

Well, now that we've gone over the biologies of the fish, and lakes...I've been taking the family up to Scott almost every weekend for the last month or so, the kids were at first knocking the daylights out of the Trout. This weekend we went and there were a lot of people and gorgeous weather. We heard a few people hoop-n-holler about a catch, but really it seemed slow. I caught a small (6")cat, and a little bitty minnow that could barely grab the lure. Great day for fun, couldn't ask for better weather, but the fishing wasn't too hot.
Cody

Anonymous said...

been going to meade the last couple of weeks caught several channel cats and crappie are just know starting to come in to spawn

Anonymous said...

does anyone no the trick for catching channel cats at hain sfl or ford co. the bullheads always seem to take my bait whether i use worms liver or shrimp. also where is the best spot for crappie at ford county. thanks

Rich

Anonymous said...

Hey Rich,
I haven't fished ford, but have Catfish. Make sure you don't have too much weight on your line, just enough to hold it on the bottom; make sure the weight isn't very far from the hook ( about 8"-10" is plenty ) otherwise you won't notice them biting; finally, after you get your line tight in the water, take some more off your drag and then you can sit back with the line against your finger without being hunched over but yet still tight in the water. Hope that helps..
Cody

Anonymous said...

yeah i do that cody but it just seems that there are so many damn bullheads that the real cats dont even have time to find my bait before it is gone again. Does anyone no a sure fire way to Lol "not" catch these fish. they are very annoying.

Rich

Anonymous said...

anyone been to clark recently going monday threw wensday just wondering if any fish are bitting espacially channel cats and crappie

Anonymous said...

Has anyone been out to pratt co lake lately figure the weather has everything messed up

Anonymous said...

fished clark yesterday, fished a bass tournament caught 7 keepers the biggest only 3.02 lbs caught a crappie in the shallows during the tournament so after the tournament went back out and from 4:30 till 7:30 caught about 75 crappie. 40 keepers. they are up in the cattails in the northeast corner of the lake spawning. used little tube jigs under a float about 16 to 18 inches deep. color didn't really matter.

Anonymous said...

Went to Meade Lake yesterday on 05/02/09. Fished the east side of the lake. Lots of people around me were catching crappie on minnows. They looked fairly small to me. I used a crappie jig with come crappie nibbles. Floated it about 12 in. under a bobber. Got a few good bites but didn't get anything. Almost wondered if the fish were too small for my hook. All the fish being caught were within 10 feet from the shoreline.

Anonymous said...

is the bait shop open in kingsdown

Anonymous said...

yes the bait shop is open and meade lake has countless crappie that need to be thinned out so bigger fish can be caught. Does anyone no where to fish at Hain SFL for channels

Anonymous said...

fished pratt sat. 2nd caught two walleye one short and a 24 in. also a few nice crappie and two keeper c-cat . nice rain off and on afternoon and evening . i'm wanting to troll the lake for wiper and walleye any ideals what lures might be the best . thanks larry

Anonymous said...

hey larry the best 1's in my opinion are hot;n;tots and wally divers....greens, reds,and/or bluse/silver r my favorite

Anonymous said...

thanks for the info , i'm fishing pratt thursday i should have all that you segested we'll see what works thanks again larry

Anonymous said...

just got done fishin clark county the crappie are spwning use crappie niblets or small jigs dont matter wat color also channel cats r starting to bite good water temp in the higher 50s...caught 30 crappie and that many channels use stink bait and ckn liver

Anonymous said...

cane anyone tell me if there is a baitshop in Dodge City or nearby and what time it opens in the mornings? Thanks

Anonymous said...

wanting to know how the fishing is at scott sfl or at sheridan sfl any info greatly appreciated

Anonymous said...

cinnamon river outdoors has minnows and worms. hours 10 - 6 mon- fri 12-6 sat.

Tkirby said...

Fished Clark these past few day did excellent on catfish and crappie. Used liver and cheese flavored stinkbait and ckn livers for the cats and lil jigs and crappie nibblets for crappie.

Anonymous said...

has any1 had any luck at hodgeman or goodman??

Chris said...

Does anyone know anything about the Wipers at Stone Lake in Great Bend? I have a little John boat that I would like to try out and I heard that there is good action there.

Anonymous said...

In Dodge there is a bait shop. You can find it here http://tinyurl.com/owks62. Wal-Mart has worms and stink baits.

Anonymous said...

Has anyobe fished Scott yet for bluegills? KJ

Anonymous said...

Has any one fished Vets park in Great Bend, just wondering if the fish are bitin thanks

Anonymous said...

has anyone fished any lakes or rivers around the larned or great bend area at all???

Anonymous said...

fished scott lake monday 5-18 3 crappie on minnows, 3 small bass on plastic worm fished all day pretty slow pretty slow considering the nice weather. Was wondering what the trick is to catching walleye at scott, tried jig n worm and crank baits not a one any info appreciated

Anonymous said...

Fished Scott Lake on May 14, was using worms and fished the creek. Didn't even get a bite.

Anonymous said...

how is the bite at clark and meade sfl

Anonymous said...

Fished Clark all day last Sunday. Caught 3 largemouths, 1 white bass, 1 tiny channel cat, 3 decent size crappie, and 1 walleye between 2 people.

Tkirby said...

for all you who fish walley at scott the trick is to fish along the damn and just drift with the wind this works best for me ive also caught them in the mouth of the creek and in the reeds on chatter baits. I plan on going up on the weekend ill let you know how the fishing is at scott

Anonymous said...

Fished the kids pond at pratt yesterday abd the kids caught the heck out of big catfish, the smallest was about 18inlong ,the biggest was 30in long all on liver

Anonymous said...

There seems to be a lot more moss in Centennial Pond than last year. Is this normal for this pond, and will it last all year?

Anonymous said...

anyone fished scott lake recently wondering how the bluegill and walleye are biting?

Anonymous said...

Fished at Meade Lake on June 9,10, and 11th. Caught a few small crappie(on jigs and minnows) and small channel cats(doughbait and minnows). I tried different crankbaits, spinners, and topwater plugs for bass and never had a hit. Did not catch anything from a boat.

Dave

Anonymous said...

does anyone know what the hours are at the bait shop in kingsdown thanks

Anonymous said...

fished pratt county lake this morning caught a few sunfishon worms and some smaller largemouth bass on firetiger cranks close to the banks, fun times,

Anonymous said...

Me and my family fished Meade lake on june 11 12 13 14, and it was pretty barren. Although we saw alot of people pulling in big pretty carp, that was about it besides numerous pesky turtles we pulled in. And we tried all kinds of bait, the blood stuff in lil bags, night crawlers, liver, shad, minnows, we even tried steak the raccoons ripped out of our coolers and left all over camp site. Tried bobbers, and on bottom, it was pretty much a waste of time. If there are fish there they are few and far between, and although the lake is nice for camping, i woudln't waste my time if you are looking to enjoy the fishing, this was just alot of frustration.

Anonymous said...

has anybody fished clark recently want know about catfish white bass and crappies any info appreciated

Anonymous said...

alot of white bass in clark, some crappie, and few channels/..

Anonymous said...

i heard sum guys caught a big ol pike out of clark???.... any1 no anything bout it?

Anonymous said...

have not heard, nor did not know there were pike in clark county.i know there are good pike at kingman ,and pike used to be in cheney til the late 70's.also at marion co.lake and council grove res. but they dont seem to be in those lakes no more .get ahold of someone with fish and game they could probably answer about pike in clark .....fishin pal jer

Anonymous said...

Fished at Clark county SFL june 30-july1, had a great time caught many large cats using minnows, didn't matter if the minnows were dead or alive. Cats were caught all along the cattails on the east and west sides, a few on the north end. Also suprised to have caught alot of nice crappie slabs, and a few nice largemouth. Of course, white bass were plenty and fun to catch. We have never been skunked at Clark, we catch fish everytime we go! It was peaceful this time- didn't have to listen to someones generator running all night!

Anonymous said...

going to scott lake anybody been up there recently had any luck. Any info is appreciated!!

Anonymous said...

Went to Clark this past Tuesday, Caught 3, 19-22" cats at the North end back in the cove. Lots of hits on Mudpuppies and dead minnows some luck on fresh shrimp and beef liver w/ garlic salt. Had one break 50# power line with a mudpuppie. (hook'em thru the lips)Kingsdown baitshop carries the mudpuppies.

Anonymous said...

Refering to the comment posted 6/13- the kingsdown bait shop- there is usually someone around anytime. If it is closed, when you pull up out front usually someone shows up to open and help out, be patient. Also, they have bus cards inside w/ number you can call and someone will meet you there. Otherwise they have regular daytime hours. Seem to be good poeple to do business with.

Anonymous said...

Went to arkalon saturday, and caught two bullheads and about a dozen little bluegill. Nothing big, but had a blast.

Anonymous said...

I am going to be on vacation next week, and thought about doing a little fishing. Don't know where to go, so I am wondering how the fishing has been in: ford county hain, goodman, kiowa, meade, hodgeman, pratt county, scott, or jetmore city lake. Any info appreciated. Thank you for your time.

Anonymous said...

hi all anglers. Hubby and pal went fishing at scott and sheridan the past two weeks, came home broken hearted. Either too small, or skunked, which he hates. good luck all. keep us posted, as a happy fisherman is a happy hubby.
sheila

andy18288 said...

how is the action at stone lake grt. bend

Anonymous said...

anyone catching walleye at pratt co lake someone post something

Anonymous said...

Caught an 8# 26" walleye at Pratt on Sat. about 5:30 off the dam on small spinner.

Anonymous said...

wheres the best place to find crappie from the bank this time of year anybody have any info

Anonymous said...

Why didn't the Pratt Centennial pond get the initial 1000 trout as stated on the Kansas stocking schedule? I am told that only 450 trout were stocked. Why doesn't the headquarters spend more time enforcing the 2 fish limit at the pond. People have been seen taking full stringers of trout out of the pond. This isn't fair to the law abiding people who like to catch and release.

Anonymous said...

For the above Crappie question- We fished at clark county off of the handicap dock on the east side (north dock) and caught about 25 nice fat crappie using minnows, also a jig black with a bright green stinger tail, 1/32 oz jig head. Fish vertically 5 ft out from the dock, drop to the bottom and pick up about a foot on the brushpiles on either of the narrow ends of the dock. jig slow. Good luck! If you use minnows- the livelier the better, hooked through under their mouth up through the nostril. The crappie were not interested in minnows that were sluggish.

Anonymous said...

thanks for the info on clark ihavent been there in a long time i may have to go check it out if i get the chance, thanks again

Anonymous said...

Pratt Centennial Pond has received it's full amount of trout during each stocking, including a 1,000 fish initial stocking. Please report any fishing regulation violations promptly to law enforcement.
Thank you,
Tom Lang
KDWP-Fisheries Program Specialist

roba179 said...

Why have the maintainers of Stone Lake in Great Bend allowed the fishing to deteriorate so badly? Fishing has been absolutely horrible for two years now. The channel catfishing is at an all time low catch rate and what is caught are less than 8 inches. This lake has been overstocked with small fish with no regard to balance. The Crappie fishing is almost nonexsistant in what used to be a tremendous crappie fishery. This lake is in serious need of attention. It could use a large stocking of 3-5 lb catfish to restore the balance of size and quality. Great Bend has no other decent fishery for locals and kids to fish and one wonders why their is a lack of new fishing enthusiasts. Veterans lake has issues and McArthur has been let go to decline into a wasted fishery by authortities. Why not use Stone Lake for future Trout plants? It is deeper than any other local lake with a natural aquafier of cold water flowing into it from underneath. It is time for whoever maintains these local lakes and ponds to step up and provide positive leadership for this area. Not all of us are able to travel to out of the area lakes.

Anonymous said...

Is there a bait shop in Jetmore