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Melvern Lake is a public lake in Osage County, Kansas, managed by Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks. It is public water managed for fishing by the Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks. Public access confirmed via marquee water.
One of Kansas's big US Army Corps of Engineers flood-control reservoirs (Milford, Tuttle Creek, Perry, Clinton, Melvern, Pomona, John Redmond, Council Grove, Marion, El Dorado, Hillsdale) — the state's best all-round fisheries. Walleye and stocked saugeye, white bass and wiper (striped bass hybrid) runs, largemouth and smallmouth bass, slab crappie, and trophy-class channel, blue and flathead catfish. Big open water with a strong summer boating scene.
Melvern Lake covers about 6,290 acres in the Northeast Kansas region. Anglers here mostly fish for walleye, saugeye, white bass, wiper; largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, channel catfish, blue catfish are also on record. The nearest other mapped waters on PiscaMaps are Frog Creek and Chicken Creek.
Species from PiscaMaps water-type profiles, KDWP trout designations and hand research.
Night fishing: No statewide night-fishing closure in Kansas. Snagging, gigging, bowfishing and trotlines/limblines for carp, gar, buffalo and catfish are legal on most waters with their own gear-tagging rules; some state fishing lakes and city parks post gate hours after dark.
Boats: The big federal reservoirs (Milford, Tuttle Creek, Wilson, Perry, Clinton, Cheney, El Dorado, and the rest) have no horsepower limit on the main body; many KDWP State Fishing Lakes and some coves are posted no-wake or trolling-motor-only. Kansas requires boater education for operators born after 1 Jan 1989.
Bank & bivvy camping: Camp at the Corps/Reclamation campgrounds ringing every federal reservoir (Milford, Tuttle Creek, Wilson, Perry, Clinton, Cheney, and the rest all have extensive public campgrounds) and at Kansas state parks, most of which sit on a reservoir shoreline. Vehicle permits are required at state parks and most Corps recreation areas separate from the fishing licence.
Tackle: Statewide largemouth/smallmouth/spotted bass limit is usually 5 in combination (15-inch minimum on many reservoirs); walleye/saugeye/sauger 5 in combination (some waters have a slot or minimum length); wiper/white bass generous; channel/blue/flathead catfish generous with a protected slot on some trophy-catfish lakes; crappie 50 combined on most water. Check the current KDWP fishing regulations summary for this water.
Boat ramps: 6 mapped — Boat ramp, Boat ramp, Boat ramp, Boat ramp, Boat ramp, Boat ramp.
Camping: 20 sites mapped nearby — Sailboat Beach Campground, Blackjack Campground, Lakeview Group Camp, Cowboy Campground, Fivestar Campground, Abilene Group Area Campground and others.
Source: OpenStreetMap contributors.
Anyone 16 or older needs a Kansas fishing licence — the resident annual is about $29.50, the non-resident annual about $97.50, with non-resident 1-day (~$14.50) and 5-day licences also sold. A separate trout permit (~$14.50) is required in addition to the fishing licence to keep trout at KDWP's winter community-lake trout program waters. Kansas residents 75 and older need no licence, and anyone under 16 fishes free. Buy from KDWP at ksoutdoors.com. A Kansas fishing licence covers this federal reservoir.
Every water carries species, bank & boat access, current regulations and live water conditions — and members get Swim Mapper, Catch Logger and Trip Planner. It's the only US map with a dedicated carp-water layer.
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