El Dorado Reservoir Fishing Information

Counties:
GPS:
N37 50.037 W96 47.084
Surface Acres:
8,000 acres
Maximum Depth:
60 feet
Normal Lake Level:
1339 Conservation Pool
Current Lake Level:
See link

Blue Catfish Tagging Project Underway at El Dorado

Blue catfish – native to major river basins in eastern Kansas – can reach massive sizes. Kansas’ current state record was caught from the Missouri River, weighing in at more than 100 pounds. As blue catfish populations become established in Kansas’ largest reservoirs, popularity of this species among anglers also continues to grow. One such growing fishery can be found in El Dorado Reservoir.

While many anglers might associate El Dorado Reservoir with monster walleye, hard-fighting wipers, or slab crappie, blue catfish are developing a following in the 8,000-acre impoundment. Blue catfish were introduced into El Dorado Reservoir in 2004 to establish an additional predatory fish population and to provide anglers with a new sport fishing opportunity. Annual stockings occurred for six years, creating a population that first exhibited natural recruitment in 2009. As the population grew, it became apparent that the fishery would benefit from harvest of smaller fish. In 2016, KDWPT implemented a 25- to 35-inch protected slot length limit, five fish daily creel limit, and a maximum of two fish over 35 inches.

As with any new regulation, data is needed to gauge effectiveness. To collect this data, KDWPT Fisheries biologists are tagging up to 2,000 blue catfish in El Dorado Reservoir. Tags will appear as a small yellow vinyl tube beneath the fish’s dorsal fin. Each tag will display an ID number unique to that fish and a phone number to call to report the catch, (620) 342-0658. Biologists hope to gain information about the area’s blue catfish population size, entrainment through the dam, and the fish’s susceptibility to harvest.

Success of this project is dependent on anglers reporting the tagged fish they capture. Information needed during the call will be the length of the fish, date, tag number, and whether the fish was kept or released. Anglers who report their tagged catch will receive an award as compensation for their participation.

Anglers should note that tagged blue catfish that are not legal for harvest must be returned to the water immediately after recording the tag information. If the tagged catfish is legal for harvest, anglers may keep or release the fish. Because part of this study is to evaluate harvest patterns, biologists encourage anglers not to let the presence of a tag influence their decision to keept or release the fish.

If you find a tagged blue catfish on the end of your line this summer, please take the time to call it in. Data collected from these fish are invaluable to fisheries biologists and will only improve angling success in the future.

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Creel limits for similar species, including largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, and spotted bass; or walleye, saugeye, and sauger; or wiper and striped bass apply to single species or in combination. For example, at El Dorado Reservoir, an angler may keep five largemouth bass OR three largemouth bass and two smallmouth bass OR two largemouth bass, two smallmouth bass, and one spotted bass or any other combination of the three.

Fishing Forecast Information

View Fishing Forecast definitions

+Largemouth Bass Forecast

NAME Density Preferred Lunker Big fish Bio rating
LARGEMOUTH BASS          
  (>12") (>15") (>20") (lbs.) BR
SEBELIUS 264.55 81.66 1.03 5.24 G
WILSON 49.43 38.12 0.39 5.63 G
WEBSTER 45.72 29.11 0.00 3.80 F
KIRWIN 37.30 28.81 0.00 3.72 F
LACYGNE 35.01 26.89 1.96 7.70 G
BIG HILL 33.15 14.38 0.64 6.81 G
CEDAR BLUFF 18.65 7.00 0.09 5.83 G
KANOPOLIS 17.03 2.14 0.53 4.85 F
MILFORD 10.70 2.81 0.00 4.21 F
GLEN ELDER 10.26 7.17 0.07 4.92 G
MELVERN 8.57 1.89 0.00 2.03 F
EL DORADO 7.93 4.29 0.21 3.94 F
CLINTON 6.09 2.53 0.00 4.75 F
WOLF CREEK 5.61 4.23 0.59 5.49 P
PERRY 3.51 1.74 0.27 6.00 P
LOVEWELL 2.94 2.35 0.00 4.56 P
TORONTO 1.50 1.50 0.00 3.71 P
HILLSDALE 1.47 1.05 0.00 2.99 P

+Walleye Forecast

NAME Density Preferred Lunker Big fish Bio rating
WALLEYE          
  (>15") (>20") (>25") (lbs.) BR
KIRWIN 4.78 0.56 0.06 8.46 G
MARION 4.74 0.49 0.00 4.65 G
WEBSTER 3.06 0.92 0.11 6.36 G
EL DORADO 2.73 1.00 0.09 7.94 G
WILSON 2.62 1.18 0.07 7.45 G
MILFORD 2.60 0.20 0.00 3.87 F
CEDAR BLUFF 2.15 0.57 0.03 7.93 G
GLEN ELDER 2.04 0.22 0.01 6.61 F
CHENEY 1.20 0.73 0.14 7.54 F
HILLSDALE 1.17 0.31 0.10 7.06 G
LOVEWELL 1.00 0.47 0.00 4.62 F
WOLF CREEK 0.66 0.20 0.02 5.99 F
MELVERN 0.49 0.02 0.00 4.45 F
CLINTON 0.42 0.04 0.00 3.45 F
POMONA 0.38 0.08 0.00 4.16 P
KANOPOLIS 0.12 0.02 0.00 5.83 P
BIG HILL 0.10 0.00 0.00 1.39 F
ELK CITY 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.30 P
SEBELIUS 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.51 P

+Black Crappie Forecast

NAME Density Preferred Lunker Big fish Bio rating
BLACK CRAPPIE          
  (>8") (>10") (>12") (lbs.) BR
SEBELIUS 26.47 14.00 1.33 1.54 G
CEDAR BLUFF 23.61 4.75 0.08 1.29 G
KIRWIN 9.56 9.15 5.79 2.06 G
LOVEWELL 4.46 0.76 0.05 1.43 F
KANOPOLIS 3.94 3.03 0.44 1.43 G
WEBSTER 3.77 1.75 0.02 1.40 F
MARION 3.33 0.67 0.33 1.09 F
MILFORD 2.88 0.94 0.02 1.06 F
HILLSDALE 1.75 0.32 0.05 1.02 G
CLINTON 1.11 0.70 0.02 0.93 G
JOHN REDMOND 0.75 0.13 0.04 1.29 P
GLEN ELDER 0.73 0.40 0.13 1.11 F
WILSON 0.64 0.24 0.11 1.68 P
PERRY 0.38 0.08 0.00 0.81 P
POMONA 0.34 0.14 0.02 1.44 P
TORONTO 0.34 0.15 0.04 1.19 P
BIG HILL 0.33 0.03 0.00 0.52 F
WOLF CREEK 0.23 0.07 0.07 1.39 P
LACYGNE 0.20 0.11 0.00 0.93 P
EL DORADO 0.14 0.04 0.00 0.60 P
FALL RIVER 0.10 0.08 0.02 1.14 P
TUTTLE CREEK 0.09 0.07 0.05 1.17 P
MELVERN 0.02 0.02 0.00 0.63 P
ELK CITY 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.13 P

+Bluegill Forecast

NAME Density Preferred Lunker Big fish Bio rating
BLUEGILL          
  (>6") (>8") (>10") (lbs.) BR
SEBELIUS 44.33 9.47 0.00 1.21 G
CEDAR BLUFF 15.12 0.20 0.00 0.40 F
HILLSDALE 6.07 0.05 0.00 0.46 F
LACYGNE 4.39 0.02 0.02 0.31 F
KANOPOLIS 3.78 0.03 0.00 0.39 G
WILSON 3.51 0.00 0.00 0.33 G
WEBSTER 2.94 0.50 0.00 0.50 F
LOVEWELL 2.56 0.05 0.00 0.43 P
BIG HILL 2.37 0.00 0.00 0.36 G
MARION 2.00 0.00 0.00 0.39 F
MILFORD 1.44 0.35 0.00 0.52 P
CLINTON 1.11 0.07 0.00 0.52 F
KIRWIN 0.81 0.06 0.00 0.59 F
PERRY 0.60 0.00 0.00 0.32 P
MELVERN 0.52 0.05 0.02 0.37 P
EL DORADO 0.32 0.00 0.00 0.23 F
TUTTLE CREEK 0.32 0.00 0.00 0.25 P
GLEN ELDER 0.30 0.10 0.00 0.70 P
WOLF CREEK 0.30 0.00 0.00 0.18 P
FALL RIVER 0.29 0.00 0.00 0.26 F
POMONA 0.23 0.02 0.02 0.43 F
COUNCIL GROVE 0.14 0.00 0.00 0.21 P
TORONTO 0.13 0.00 0.00 0.23 P
ELK CITY 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.13 P

+Channel Catfish Forecast

NAME Density Preferred Lunker Big fish Bio rating
CHANNEL CATFISH          
  (>16") (>24") (>28") (lbs.) BR
LOVEWELL 6.94 0.94 0.11 11.81 G
BIG HILL 6.30 0.73 0.03 9.05 G
HILLSDALE 5.36 0.33 0.05 10.45 G
MARION 4.43 0.23 0.03 5.79 G
KANOPOLIS 3.37 0.43 0.02 9.93 G
WILSON 2.97 0.46 0.03 10.11 G
TORONTO 2.56 1.83 0.47 11.33 G
PERRY 2.45 0.67 0.14 12.70 G
CHENEY 2.45 0.41 0.04 14.81 G
ELK CITY 2.23 0.23 0.00 5.65 G
LACYGNE 2.19 0.02 0.00 7.26 G
GLEN ELDER 2.18 0.46 0.16 16.60 G
MELVERN 2.14 0.27 0.04 8.33 G
CLINTON 1.82 0.12 0.00 6.06 G
FALL RIVER 1.73 1.39 0.64 14.53 G
POMONA 1.55 0.05 0.05 11.96 G
CEDAR BLUFF 1.46 0.32 0.04 14.15 G
COUNCIL GROVE 1.42 0.20 0.09 9.41 F
WEBSTER 1.39 0.11 0.03 10.64 G
KIRWIN 1.06 0.25 0.08 11.23 G
JOHN REDMOND 1.05 0.31 0.07 12.33 F
TUTTLE CREEK 0.95 0.20 0.09 14.31 G
WOLF CREEK 0.70 0.00 0.00 4.12 F
EL DORADO 0.58 0.00 0.00 3.84 F
SEBELIUS 0.37 0.23 0.17 22.56 F
MILFORD 0.35 0.07 0.02 9.23 F

+White Bass Forecast

NAME Density Preferred Lunker Big fish Bio rating
WHITE BASS          
  (>9") (>12") (>15") (lbs.) BR
GLEN ELDER 18.32 16.17 3.84 3.49 G
MARION 17.06 12.20 0.43 1.87 G
CEDAR BLUFF 10.24 9.28 2.79 2.25 G
PERRY 9.76 5.82 0.22 2.15 G
KANOPOLIS 8.17 6.15 0.28 2.70 G
POMONA 7.40 4.58 0.45 2.20 G
CLINTON 6.88 5.20 1.02 2.32 G
WEBSTER 6.22 3.92 0.08 2.73 G
MILFORD 5.78 4.93 0.55 2.13 G
KIRWIN 5.19 4.22 0.67 2.18 G
TORONTO 5.00 3.00 1.36 2.69 G
FALL RIVER 4.24 2.94 0.94 3.02 G
WOLF CREEK 3.96 2.44 0.32 1.98 G
MELVERN 3.33 2.63 0.43 2.26 G
LOVEWELL 3.25 1.75 0.25 1.85 P
EL DORADO 3.24 1.58 0.36 2.03 F
JOHN REDMOND 3.14 2.21 0.95 3.24 F
BIG HILL 3.00 1.83 0.07 1.73 G
LACYGNE 2.71 1.60 0.33 2.88 G
COUNCIL GROVE 2.47 1.58 0.18 2.23 F
HILLSDALE 2.43 1.83 0.10 1.43 G
WILSON 2.21 2.11 0.86 2.96 G
CHENEY 0.86 0.80 0.33 2.09 P
ELK CITY 0.80 0.40 0.03 1.94 F
TUTTLE CREEK 0.47 0.18 0.02 2.96 F

+Black Bass Combined Forecast

Waterbody Density Preferred Lunker 3 yr avg Size Rating
Sebelius Reservoir 267.22 82.69 1.03 5.24 Reservoir G
Wilson Reservoir 62.91 44.38 0.39 5.63 Reservoir G
Webster Reservoir 45.72 29.11 0.00 3.80 Reservoir F
Big Hill Reservoir 38.62 16.46 0.64 6.81 Reservoir G
Kirwin Reservoir 37.30 28.81 0.00 3.72 Reservoir F
LaCygne Reservoir 35.01 26.89 1.96 7.70 Reservoir G
Melvern Reservoir 25.37 6.34 0.00 2.86 Reservoir G
Cedar Bluff Reservoir 22.06 7.49 0.09 5.83 Reservoir G
Glen Elder Reservoir 20.90 11.69 0.07 4.92 Reservoir G
Kanopolis Reservoir 17.03 2.14 0.53 4.85 Reservoir F
Milford Reservoir 15.89 3.94 0.00 4.21 Reservoir F
El Dorado Reservoir 12.86 5.36 0.21 3.94 Reservoir F
Wolf Creek Reservoir 12.44 9.42 0.79 5.49 Reservoir F
Clinton Reservoir 9.56 3.75 0.00 4.75 Reservoir F
Perry Reservoir 4.74 2.70 0.27 6.00 Reservoir P
Lovewell Reservoir 2.94 2.35 0.00 4.56 Reservoir P
Hillsdale Reservoir 1.77 1.35 0.00 3.01 Reservoir P
Toronto Reservoir 1.50 1.50 0.00 3.71 Reservoir P

+Crappie Combined Forecast

Waterbody Density Preferred Lunker 3 yr avg Size Rating
Melvern Reservoir 34.23 14.91 1.41 1.61 Reservoir E
Sebelius Reservoir 28.53 15.00 1.83 1.54 Reservoir G
Lovewell Reservoir 26.88 10.54 1.02 2.50 Reservoir G
Hillsdale Reservoir 25.52 11.45 1.52 1.29 Reservoir E
Perry Reservoir 25.45 14.03 0.38 1.42 Reservoir G
Cedar Bluff Reservoir 24.71 5.51 0.43 1.80 Reservoir G
Toronto Reservoir 18.51 5.83 1.91 2.40 Reservoir G
Elk City Reservoir 15.49 5.57 1.35 2.40 Reservoir G
LaCygne Reservoir 15.07 5.95 0.45 2.30 Reservoir G
Clinton Reservoir 10.61 3.46 0.24 1.37 Reservoir G
Kirwin Reservoir 10.31 9.56 6.06 2.06 Reservoir G
Wolf Creek Reservoir 8.93 3.27 0.57 1.64 Reservoir F
Tuttle Creek Reservoir 7.57 4.68 1.05 1.69 Reservoir G
Pomona Reservoir 7.41 3.11 0.18 1.73 Reservoir G
Big Hill Reservoir 7.40 3.43 0.27 1.19 Reservoir G
Marion Reservoir 6.67 2.67 0.33 1.09 Reservoir G
Milford Reservoir 6.54 3.75 0.58 1.90 Reservoir G
Fall River Reservoir 6.06 1.85 0.44 2.58 Reservoir G
El Dorado Reservoir 5.93 2.29 0.82 1.59 Reservoir G
Council Grove Reservoir 5.89 3.22 1.33 1.87 Reservoir F
Kanopolis Reservoir 5.67 3.58 0.50 1.43 Reservoir G
Webster Reservoir 5.38 2.90 0.17 1.79 Reservoir G
Glen Elder Reservoir 3.33 1.38 0.46 1.91 Reservoir F
John Redmond Reservoir 1.71 0.79 0.25 3.04 Reservoir F
Wilson Reservoir 0.73 0.31 0.13 1.68 Reservoir P

+Sunfish Combined Forecast

Waterbody Density Preferred Lunker 3 yr avg Size Rating
Sebelius Reservoir 44.40 9.50 0.00 1.21 Reservoir G
Cedar Bluff Reservoir 15.33 0.22 0.00 0.44 Reservoir F
Hillsdale Reservoir 6.09 0.07 0.00 0.46 Reservoir F
LaCygne Reservoir 4.50 0.02 0.02 0.31 Reservoir F
Kanopolis Reservoir 3.81 0.03 0.00 0.39 Reservoir G
Wilson Reservoir 3.53 0.00 0.00 0.33 Reservoir G
Webster Reservoir 2.94 0.50 0.00 0.50 Reservoir F
Big Hill Reservoir 2.63 0.17 0.00 0.62 Reservoir G
Lovewell Reservoir 2.56 0.05 0.00 0.43 Reservoir P
Marion Reservoir 2.00 0.00 0.00 0.39 Reservoir F
Milford Reservoir 1.44 0.35 0.00 0.52 Reservoir P
Clinton Reservoir 1.20 0.07 0.00 0.52 Reservoir F
Kirwin Reservoir 0.83 0.06 0.00 0.59 Reservoir F
Perry Reservoir 0.60 0.00 0.00 0.32 Reservoir P
Melvern Reservoir 0.52 0.05 0.02 0.37 Reservoir P
El Dorado Reservoir 0.36 0.00 0.00 0.23 Reservoir F
Tuttle Creek Reservoir 0.32 0.00 0.00 0.25 Reservoir P
Glen Elder Reservoir 0.30 0.10 0.00 0.70 Reservoir P
Wolf Creek Reservoir 0.30 0.00 0.00 0.18 Reservoir P
Fall River Reservoir 0.29 0.00 0.00 0.26 Reservoir F
Pomona Reservoir 0.23 0.02 0.02 0.43 Reservoir P
Council Grove Reservoir 0.14 0.00 0.00 0.21 Reservoir P
Toronto Reservoir 0.13 0.00 0.00 0.23 Reservoir P
Elk City Reservoir 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.13 Reservoir P

+Percids Combined Forecast

Waterbody Density Preferred Lunker 3 yr avg Size Rating
Sebelius Reservoir 9.17 4.63 0.43 6.38 Reservoir P
Kirwin Reservoir 4.75 1.06 0.33 8.46 Reservoir G
Marion Reservoir 4.69 1.89 0.17 4.65 Reservoir G
Council Grove Reservoir 3.51 1.82 0.60 6.89 Reservoir G
Webster Reservoir 3.19 1.94 0.81 6.36 Reservoir G
El Dorado Reservoir 2.73 1.91 0.67 7.94 Reservoir G
Wilson Reservoir 2.62 2.02 0.84 7.45 Reservoir G
Milford Reservoir 2.60 1.13 0.05 3.87 Reservoir F
Cedar Bluff Reservoir 2.12 1.34 0.47 7.93 Reservoir G
Glen Elder Reservoir 1.96 1.10 0.13 6.61 Reservoir F
Kanopolis Reservoir 1.88 1.13 0.32 6.70 Reservoir G
Perry Reservoir 1.55 0.08 0.00 2.75 Reservoir E
Melvern Reservoir 1.37 0.12 0.02 4.45 Reservoir G
Cheney Reservoir 1.20 1.04 0.63 7.54 Reservoir F
Clinton Reservoir 1.20 0.34 0.02 3.45 Reservoir G
Pomona Reservoir 1.20 0.48 0.05 4.16 Reservoir G
Hillsdale Reservoir 1.14 0.62 0.24 7.06 Reservoir E
Lovewell Reservoir 1.00 0.89 0.38 4.62 Reservoir F
Wolf Creek Reservoir 0.64 0.40 0.16 5.99 Reservoir F
Tuttle Creek Reservoir 0.45 0.13 0.04 4.81 Reservoir G
Big Hill Reservoir 0.10 0.00 0.00 1.39 Reservoir F
Elk City Reservoir 0.00 0.00 0.00 1.11 Reservoir F
Trout Stocking Information

View Trout Stocking Program Information

South Central Trout Stocking Schedule

Department-owned Waters - Trout Stocking by KDWP

South Central Region El Dorado St Park
River Area (no stocking due to repairs)
Wichita
O.J. Watson Park Pond  
1st Stocking    
2nd Stocking    
3rd Stocking    
     
     
Total Estimated Trout Stocked for 2024-2025 Season 3,213 Trout 2,550 trout

 

Community Lake Stockings - Please contact local city/county offices for dates of stockings if not listed below

South Central Region Sedgwick County Park
Vic’s Lake
316-660-1780
Sedgwick County
Slough Creek
316-660-1780

Hutchinson
Carey Park Pond

New location 

620-694-1905

1st  Stocking       
2nd Stocking      
3rd Stocking      
       
       
Total Estimated Trout Stocked for
2024-25 Season
     
Map Information