Coffey County Lake Fishing Information
Burlington, KS
No fees required. No reservations required
Must always wear a life jacket.
No trotlines or setlines will be allowed.
Open 30 minutes after sunup to 30 minutes before sundown
Closed during winter under certain weather conditions. Call the gatehouse at 620-364-2475
| Species | Rating | Size | Baits, Methods, Locations |
|---|---|---|---|
| largemouth bass | Slow-Fair | 8 in to 21 inches | Vibrating jigs, spinnerbaits, crankbaits, swimbaits or jerkbaits fished around structure. Texas-rigged plastics or weightless stick baits are great lures for spawning bass. Quality fish are present but numbers remain low. |
| walleye | Fair | 14-25 inches | Fish should be on rocky points, humps, or drop offs. Trolling jig and crawler rigs or crankbaits around this type of structure or casting and working jighead and soft plastic slowly on same structure. |
| channel catfish/blue catfish | Good | 1/2-5 lbs, Blues up to 50lbs. | Various prepared baits, liver, and worms usually good for channel catfish lakewide. Using fresh cut bait such as shad or carp usually is best for blue catfish. Fishing wind blown banks or up in the riprap should be productive or try creek channel swings and humps. Don't be afraid to fish shallow water for both species. 921 blue catfish were tagged for a population study, so be on the lookout for tags in the blue cats that you catch and please report any you do catch. If you report a tag, you will receive a prize and your name will be entered in a drawing for a Yeti cooler towards the end of the project. |
| smallmouth bass | Slow-Fair | 10-20 inches | Throwing small shad imitators like compact spinnerbaits or crankbaits. Topwater season is here grab your favorite and throw it around key structural elements. Crayfish imitating baits should also work. Ned rigs or drop shots are great techniques to use for smallmouth. Recent sampling continues to show a lower density population, however, more smaller fish were sampled this year which is a good sign. We also sampled a beautiful 5 lber. |
| white bass/Wipers | Good | up to 5lbs. | Using small shad imitating baits such as small crankbaits, bucktail jigs, slab spoons, or twister tail grubs fished on wind blown points. There are some nice wipers being caught, a 9 lber was sampled during the sping sample. |
| crappie | Fair-Good | 11-15 inches | Look for crappie to be back in deeper water near the standing timber or creek channel breaks. |
| General Comments | |||
| Entrance gate phone number is 620-364-2475 call for lake conditions. Fishing near the warm water outlet during the fall and winter can be very productive for multiple species. Registration for Coffey County Lake is now available online at https://www.coffeycountyks.org/home/showdocument?id=3502. A large brush pile was created north of the boat ramp in the old creek channel and is marked with a fish attractor buoy. There were also several trees sunk at the end of the hot water dike and should be easily marked on your locator. These spots should be really good in the fall and winter months. ZEBRA MUSSELS have been confirmed in Coffey County Lake! Please help stop the spread. Clean, Drain, and Dry your boat and livewell after leaving this lake. It is illegal to transport live fish, bait, and water from this lake. For more information on waters in Anderson, Allen, Coffey, and Woodson counties click the following link to sign up for the New Strawn District Fisheries Newsletter. http://kdwpt.state.ks.us/news/KDWPT-Info/News/Newsletter-Request-Forms/Request-a-Newsletter-for-the-New-Strawn-Fishing-District | |||
| Fishing Population | Creel Limit | Min Length Limit |
|---|---|---|
| Blue Catfish | 5 | |
| Channel Catfish | 10 | |
| Flathead Catfish | 5 | |
| Largemouth Bass | 2 | 18 |
| Smallmouth Bass | 2 | 18 |
| Walleye | 2 | 21 |
| Crappie | 5 | 12 |
| White Bass | No creel limit | |
| Wiper | 1 | 21 |
* Largemouth, Smallmouth, Spotted Bass in Combination
** Striped Bass or Wiper in Combination
*** Walleye, Sauger or Saugeye in Combination