Kansas Trout Stocking Schedule 2026
Every sentence here comes from the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks (KDWP), and each section names its sources. Updated .
The Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks (KDWP) stocks rainbow trout for winter fishing in 32 waters, from city lakes to the stilling basins below dams. The trout season runs from December 1 through March 31, and KDWP announces stocking dates around the first of December, January and February. During the season some stocked waters need a trout permit to fish at all, and others only to fish for trout. The permit is $20 with fees, $7 for anglers 15 and under, and lasts 365 days.
From KDWP: Trout Season Info (PDF) and KDWP: Trout Stocking Program.
The KDWP trout stocking schedule
The season's stocking dates by region, for the waters KDWP stocks itself and for community lakes stocked by cities and counties, with the estimated number of trout for each water. For a community lake that has no dates listed, KDWP asks you to call the city or county office.
Open the Trout Stocking Schedule- Trout Season Info: A map of every stocked water, numbered and marked Type 1 or Type 2, with the season dates, the limit and the permit rules on one sheet.
From KDWP: Trout Stocking Program and KDWP: Trout Season Info (PDF).
When Kansas stocks trout
Winter trout season
KDWP stocks rainbow trout through the winter season, December 1 to March 31, in waters ranging from the Webster Stilling Basin and the Kanopolis Seep Stream to city lakes and state park ponds, and posts each round of dates around the first of December, January and February. Trout can still be in ponds and lakes after March 31, and from then on no trout permit is needed to fish for them.
From KDWP: Trout Season Info (PDF) and KDWP: Trout Stocking Program.
Rules on stocked water
- Residents 16 through 74 and nonresidents 16 and older need a fishing license. Base prices: residents $25 a year or $3.50 a day; nonresidents $75 a year, $25 for 5 days or $10 a day. A $1 agent fee and a $1.50 transaction fee are added to each item.
- From December 1 through March 31, everyone fishing a Type 1 water needs a trout permit, and on a Type 2 water anyone fishing for or keeping trout does. The permit is $17.50 before fees, or $4.50 for anglers 15 and under, who need no fishing license, only the youth permit.
- The limit is 5 trout a day and 15 in possession, after March 31 too. Some waters have their own creel or gear rules.
From KDWP: Fishing Licenses & Permit Fees, K.A.R. 115-25-14, as amended July 25, 2025 (Kansas Register), KDWP: Trout Stocking Program and KDWP: Trout Season Info (PDF).
How to hear about a stocking
- KDWP posts each round of stocking dates on its Trout Stocking Program page, around the first of December, January and February.
Worth knowing before you go looking
- Some cities and counties, around Kansas City among them, stock trout on their own. Many charge a local fee instead, and the state permit is not needed there.
- Salina's Lakewood Lake has a limit of 2 trout.
- Access to the Kanopolis Seep Stream has changed while the stilling basin is under construction; KDWP points to its Kanopolis Lake map.
Which day to fish it
The schedule says where the fish went in. Which day to go is a different question: the forecast scores each day of the week for trout at the water you pick, from its water temperature, the wind and the weather.
See the week for rainbow troutSpecies guides: Rainbow Trout
Sources
Every sentence above was read on one of these pages, and a check re-reads each quoted line against the page it came from.
Spotted something out of date or plain wrong here? Tell us and we will check it.