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Wilson Lake Fishing Report, Kansas

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

Central Kansas striper water: Wilson Lake’s 9,000 acres on the Saline River hold stocked stripers, walleye, white bass and catfish.

4/5
Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.
Flow
5 cfs
Air / High
80 / 81 F
Wind
S 21 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 06868200, 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.

4/5Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Wilson Lake feels the season turning: shorter days, grouping fish. The nearest gauge is running 5 cfs, falling. Today brings clear skies, wind S around 21 mph, falling pressure near 1012 hPa and a high of 81. Water sits around 55 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 10:11 AM-12:11 PM and 10:39 PM-12:39 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

WalleyeExcellent

Spring: post-spawn fish scatter and can be slow for a couple of weeks. Fall: one of the best windows, with minnows on jigs and three-way rigs as the water cools toward ice-up.

Striped bassExcellent

Spring and fall are the shoreline seasons: ODWC points to windblown points, riprap and dams during the May shad spawn and the pre-winter feed.

Catfish (blue, channel)Excellent

In spring after ice-out, Iowa finds channel cats feeding on winter-killed shad on the shallow, warmer mudflats at the upper ends of reservoirs; cut bait on the bottom works there.

White bassGood

The spring run happens in this band: tributaries, shoals and the upper ends of reservoirs as the water reaches about 55°F.

Tomorrow: Similar at 81 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Before you go

Kansas requires a fishing licence from age 16, from $27.50 for residents. What a Kansas licence costs and where to buy it →

Chasing walleye here? Check the size and bag limits with KDWP before you keep anything. The season dates for Kansas, read off the agency, are on the Kansas seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings from Saline River at Wilson Dam.

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 06868200.

59135 cfs09/2310/0310/1310/23

Today’s flow against 63 years of October 23

At 5 cfs, the flow at USGS gauge 06868200 (Saline River at Wilson Dam) is at the 22nd percentile for the date: below normal. In half of the 63 years of approved record the daily mean on October 23 was below 10 cfs; the highest was 1,540 cfs and the lowest 3 cfs.

p10 4median 10p90 56

Percentiles of the daily mean flow for this date, from the USGS Water Data Statistics API for gauge 06868200; today’s reading is the latest instantaneous value. Classes follow the ones the USGS used on its WaterWatch maps (retired at the end of 2025): below 10th, much below normal; 10th–24th, below; 25th–75th, normal; 76th–90th, above; over 90th, much above.

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp80 F
High / Low81 / 61 F
WindS 21-29 mph
Pressure1012.4 hPa, falling
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 1%
Sunrise / Sunset07:51 / 18:44
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~55 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 Wilson Lake this week

Today is the pick of the week on Wilson Lake, at 4 out of 5.

Best day this week: today, Oct 23 — good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 — Good

Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Solunar majors
10:11 AM-12:11 PM and 10:39 PM-12:39 AM
Minor period
4:34 AM-5:34 AM
Sun
07:51 to 18:44
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Overcast, 20 mph
Rain chance
1%

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

Species guide

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

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. Spring: post-spawn fish scatter and can be slow for a couple of weeks. Fall: one of the best windows, with minnows on jigs and three-way rigs as the water cools toward ice-up.

White bass illustration

White bass

Best: the spring run up the tributaries, then summer surface schools

A silvery temperate bass of rivers and large reservoirs, also called sand bass, that schools in open water after shad and runs up tributaries to spawn in early spring. The spring run happens in this band: tributaries, shoals and the upper ends of reservoirs as the water reaches about 55°F.

Striped bass illustration

Striped bass

Best: spring and fall inland; on the coast, during the seasonal migrations

The largest of the temperate basses, a sea-run fish of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts that now also lives in reservoirs across much of the country after hatchery stocking. Inland, it follows schools of shad and herring through open water. Spring and fall are the shoreline seasons: ODWC points to windblown points, riprap and dams during the May shad spawn and the pre-winter feed.

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. In spring after ice-out, Iowa finds channel cats feeding on winter-killed shad on the shallow, warmer mudflats at the upper ends of reservoirs; cut bait on the bottom works there.

When to come: the Wilson 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
Walleye
White bass
Striped bass
Catfish (blue, channel)
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 55 F (estimated, not a reading).

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~55 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 Wilson 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. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 82 F, wind to 18 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 78 F, wind to 9 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Walleye led the card at excellent. High of 75 F, wind to 19 mph.

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

License

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

Regulations

Kansas fishing license. KDWP lists a blue catfish limit of 10 per day with only one over 30 inches at Wilson; check current KDWP regulations for striped bass, walleye and other species. Live white perch may not be possessed.

Access

Corps of Engineers recreation areas at Sylvan Park, Lucas Park and Minooka Park.

About this water

A Corps of Engineers reservoir of 9,000 surface acres behind Wilson Dam on the Saline River, central Kansas.

Fishing Wilson Lake: the full guide

A Corps lake on the Saline

The Corps of Engineers manages Wilson Lake’s 9,000 surface acres and 13,000 acres of surrounding land, releasing water from Wilson Dam to the Saline River. KDWP’s reservoir fishing report covers black bass, striped bass, white bass, blue and channel catfish and walleye at Wilson.

Stripers and white bass

KDWP stocks Wilson with striped bass; its current report notes 480,000 fry stocked in May. The agency suggests trolling crankbaits, casting or jigging large bucktails, or drifting live shad or sunfish along channel breaks, and has reports of stripers surfacing on shad early and late in the day. For white bass it points to shad-imitating swimbaits over wind-blown points and slab spoons along the river channel.

Walleye and catfish

KDWP stocked 225,984 walleye fingerlings in May 2026 and recommends crankbaits and swimbaits over main-lake points and flats early and late in the day. Channel catfish take cut, dough and punch bait across the lake; blue catfish scatter along river-channel swings and nearby flats in 6 to 30 feet of water, and KDWP encourages anglers to harvest the smaller ones.

Parks and invasive species

The Corps operates three recreation areas at the lake: Sylvan Park, Lucas Park and Minooka Park, with campsites, many of them with electric hookups. Wilson is a designated water for zebra mussels and white perch, so live fish may not be transported from the lake, white perch may be kept only dead and never used as bait, and boats must be cleaned, drained and dried at the ramp.

Common questions

Does Kansas stock stripers in Wilson?

Yes. KDWP’s fishing report notes 480,000 striped bass fry stocked in May.

Why can’t I take live fish home from Wilson?

KDWP designates Wilson for zebra mussels and white perch, and it is illegal to transport live fish from designated waters.

Where can I camp?

At the three Corps of Engineers parks: Sylvan, Lucas and Minooka.

Is fishing good at Wilson Lake right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Nearby waters

Kanopolis Lake34 miGlen Elder Reservoir41 miCedar Bluff Reservoir68 miMilford Lake83 miMarion Reservoir85 miHarlan County Lake91 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 06868200 — Saline River at Wilson Dam
Read from the USGS Water Data API (api.waterdata.usgs.gov). Latest value timestamped 2026-10-23 at 18:45 UTC.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 38.9300, -98.5000 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.