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Kinkaid Lake Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Oct 23, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

A 2,750-acre lake near Murphysboro that IDNR calls one of Illinois's premier muskie lakes, with strong largemouth numbers and big crappie.

3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Water temp
~74 F est.
Air / High
75 / 75 F
Wind
ESE 6 mph

Sources: Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
23
October 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

3/5Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Kinkaid Lake offers the kind of conditions this water was made for. Today brings clear skies, wind ESE around 6 mph, steady pressure near 1022 hPa and a high of 75. Water sits around 74 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 9:33 AM-11:33 AM and 10:02 PM-12:02 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

MuskellungeExcellent

Main open-water season: cast or troll large bucktails, spoons and plugs along weed edges and other cover where muskies wait in ambush.

Largemouth bassGood

The main feeding season after the spawn: work moving baits along weed edges, points and wood, and follow up with a soft plastic where a fish swirls.

Catfish (blue, channel)Good

Spawning season from late May into summer: Iowa DNR suggests drifting bait under a float along riprap and snags where males guard nests in cavities.

Smallmouth bassGood

Post-spawn and summer feeding: cover rock, wood and current breaks with crankbaits, jigs and tubes, and use live crayfish, minnows or hellgrammites where bait is the plan.

WalleyeGood

Summer pattern: nightcrawlers and leeches on rigs or jigs near bottom, trolled crankbaits to find scattered fish, and the shallows after dark in clear lakes.

CrappieFair

Early in this band crappie are spawning in protected coves; afterward they move to docks, brush piles and standing timber near deeper water.

Tomorrow: Similar at 77 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made β†’

Before you go

Illinois requires a fishing licence, from $15.00 for residents. What a Illinois licence costs and where to buy it β†’

Chasing largemouth bass here? Check the size and bag limits with IDNR before you keep anything. The season dates for Illinois, read off the agency, are on the Illinois seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings.

No live gauge on this water

Conditions here are modeled from weather, season and the nearest stations. Water readings appear when a USGS gauge is available.

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~74 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp75 F
High / Low75 / 44 F
WindESE 6-6 mph
Pressure1022.2 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset07:13 / 18:09
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~74 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Which day to fish Kinkaid Lake this week

The best day on Kinkaid Lake this week looks like Monday Oct 26, at 5 out of 5, against 3 today.

Best day this week: Monday, Oct 26 β€” excellent at 5/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 β€” Fair

A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Solunar majors
9:33 AM-11:33 AM and 10:02 PM-12:02 AM
Minor period
3:56 AM-4:56 AM
Sun
07:13 to 18:09
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Partly cloudy, 6 mph
Rain chance
0%

Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out: how the score is built.

Species guide

The species that matter on Kinkaid Lake: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Largemouth bass illustration

Largemouth bass

Best: the spring pre-spawn and the fall feed

A warm-water sunfish of lakes, reservoirs, ponds and slow river backwaters that holds tight to cover: weeds, logs, rock ledges and docks. In Texas, TPWD surveys rank it "by far" the freshwater fish anglers most want to catch. The main feeding season after the spawn: work moving baits along weed edges, points and wood, and follow up with a soft plastic where a fish swirls.

Catfish (blue, channel) illustration

Catfish (blue, channel)

Year-round, best at dusk and after dark

Three big catfish share most of the country's rivers and reservoirs: the channel catfish, the most widespread; the blue catfish, the largest; and the flathead, which hunts live fish. All feed mostly on or near the bottom. Spawning season from late May into summer: Iowa DNR suggests drifting bait under a float along riprap and snags where males guard nests in cavities.

Crappie illustration

Crappie

Best: the spring spawn; summer around docks, brush and the thermocline

Two slab-sided panfish, the white crappie and the black crappie, that gather around submerged timber, brush piles, docks and bridge pilings in lakes, reservoirs and slow river backwaters. Texas Parks and Wildlife counts crappie as the state's most popular panfish. Early in this band crappie are spawning in protected coves; afterward they move to docks, brush piles and standing timber near deeper water.

Smallmouth bass illustration

Smallmouth bass

Best: spring and fall, when bigger fish come shallow

A bronze-brown black bass of clear, cool streams and rocky lakes, with dark vertical bars instead of a side stripe. Michigan DNR says its southeastern coast, from Port Huron to Lake Erie, is known nationally for both the size and the number of its smallmouth. Post-spawn and summer feeding: cover rock, wood and current breaks with crankbaits, jigs and tubes, and use live crayfish, minnows or hellgrammites where bait is the plan.

Walleye illustration

Walleye

Best: spring and late fall, around dawn, dusk and night

A cool-water perch of large lakes, reservoirs and rivers whose reflective eyes are built for low light, so it feeds most at night and in murky water. The Missouri Department of Conservation ranks it among the continent's most important freshwater game fish. Summer pattern: nightcrawlers and leeches on rigs or jigs near bottom, trolled crankbaits to find scattered fish, and the shallows after dark in clear lakes.

Muskellunge illustration

Muskellunge

Fished from late spring into late fall where seasons allow

Muskellunge are solitary, fish-eating ambush predators of the pike family, holding in weed beds and other cover in lakes and rivers of the Great Lakes, upper Mississippi and Ohio basins. Main open-water season: cast or troll large bucktails, spoons and plugs along weed edges and other cover where muskies wait in ambush.

When to come: the Kinkaid Lake calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Largemouth bass
Catfish (blue, channel)
Crappie
Smallmouth bass
Walleye
Muskellunge
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 74 F (estimated, not a reading).

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~74 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Kinkaid Lake today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Muskellunge led the card at excellent. High of 77 F, wind to 6 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Largemouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 75 F, wind to 6 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Muskellunge led the card at excellent. High of 73 F, wind to 5 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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Before you go

License

Illinois requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

Illinois fishing license required. IDNR site regulations: largemouth or smallmouth bass 16-inch minimum, 3 per day; muskie 48-inch minimum, 1 per day; live bait over 8 inches must be on a quick-set rig. The crappie limit differs between IDNR's 2025 fact sheet (15 per day, no more than 10 over 10 inches) and its iFish page (25 per day): confirm with IDNR before keeping crappie. Tournaments over 39 boats need a Conservancy District permit as well as the IDNR permit.

Access

Public boat launches around the lake; the Johnson Creek arm is a no-wake zone. IDNR Kinkaid Lake Fish and Wildlife Area: 618-684-2867. Kinkaid-Reed's Creek Conservancy District: 618-687-1722.

About this water

A 2,750-acre lake built in 1968 in Jackson County, Illinois, three miles northwest of Murphysboro; 82 miles of shoreline, 80 feet deep at most.

Fishing Kinkaid Lake: the full guide

Bluffs, hills and a deep lake

Kinkaid Lake was built in 1968 in Jackson County, three miles northwest of Murphysboro off State Route 149. IDNR gives it 2,750 acres, 82 miles of shoreline and a maximum depth of 80 feet, set among sandstone bluffs and oak-hickory hills. IDNR manages about 4,000 acres around the lake and the U.S. Forest Service about 5,000, with the Kinkaid-Reed's Creek Conservancy District sharing oversight. The upper northwest arm, the Johnson Creek area, is a 3-mile no-wake zone that turns muddy for days after heavy rain.

Muskie

IDNR calls Kinkaid one of the premier muskie lakes in Illinois. Muskie are stocked every year (1,015 adults in 2025) and many over 40 inches are caught annually; IDNR's 2024 spring survey collected 101, the largest 44 inches. IDNR asks anglers not to target muskie in the warm summer months, when it believes catch-and-release mortality is very high, and to report tagged fish to the district biologist.

Largemouth and crappie

IDNR rates the largemouth population very good: its 2024 spring survey caught 136 bass an hour, with 21% over the 16-inch minimum and 8% over 18 inches. Kinkaid is known for large crappie, with fish over 2 pounds caught each year, and the Illinois record hybrid crappie (18.1 inches, 4.55 pounds) came from here in March 2017. A large crop of slow-growing white crappie under 9 inches led IDNR to drop the old 9-inch minimum.

Other species and timing

IDNR stocks walleye each year, but numbers are low; the best spots are in front of the dam and the spillway in spring, especially at night when water is going over. It warns that walleye stocking will stop if surveys stay low. Channel catfish and redear are average, bluegill poor. Smallmouth stocked from 2005 to 2015 did not take hold. Summer weekends bring heavy boat traffic, so fish early or midweek. IDNR has 50 permanent fish attractors; the district biologist emails the map on request.

Common questions

Is Kinkaid a good muskie lake?

IDNR calls it one of Illinois's premier muskie lakes, stocks it every year and reports many fish over 40 inches caught annually. It asks anglers to avoid muskie fishing in summer heat.

What is the bass limit?

IDNR sets a 16-inch minimum and 3 bass per day on Kinkaid Lake.

Are there striped bass?

IDNR's 2025 fact sheet does not list striped bass among Kinkaid's sport fish; its stocked predators are muskie and walleye.

Is fishing good at Kinkaid Lake right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Nearby waters

Cedar Lake14 miRend Lake33 miCarlyle Lake62 miMeramec River80 miReelfoot Lake98 miLake Barkley104 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 37.8000, -89.4200 in this water's own timezone. A model, not an observation.
Moon and solunar windows
Calculated on this site
Astronomical calculation from these coordinates and the date, not a third-party feed. How much weight it deserves.
Pages checked
The facts in the written guide were checked against these pages, from the agencies and operators that manage the water, on October 5, 2026. Anything we could not verify was taken out.
The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
How this page was made. The daily report is computed by our scoring engine from live readings; nobody types it. The written text was drafted with AI assistance from the official pages listed above, and its facts were checked against those pages by automated verification on October 5, 2026; anything that could not be verified was taken out. Pablo Ruiz Quintero sets every guideline, the data-verification system and the minimum standards a page must meet to be published, reviews page structure and approves what goes live; the responsibility is his, and the AI carries out the work. We work this way because it is how one person can keep every page current with named sources. Errors are published in the verification log; the full policy is in the editorial policy.

Readings refresh on a 30-minute window. The full method, with every figure and its source, is on how our reports are made. Something wrong here? Tell us and it goes in the log with the date.