Tuttle Creek Reservoir Fishing Information

Counties:

Pottawatomie, Riley

GPS:

N39 15.445 W96 34.77

Surface Acres:

10,900 acres

Maximum Depth:

50 feet

Normal Lake Level:

1075 mls

View Live Lake Information

Tuttle Creek Fishing Report - Updated: 03/03/2026

Species	Rating	Size	Baits, Method, and Location
Crappie	Good	1/2 to 2 pounds	The lake has been providing good crappie fishing the last six years due to good spawning success and robust growth rates during this time. The 2025 fall sample shows that this good trend continues. There was another robust spawn in 2025. In addition, the abundance of older crappie was almost double the 20-year average for the lake. Size structure of the crappie population should be appealing to anglers as 32% this fall were 10" to 12" and 4% were over 12" with almost every fish being fat and healthy. No recent reports.
White Bass	Slow to Fair	1/2 to 2 pounds	White bass numbers have been struggling due to limited spawning success for most of the last decade. This has improved some in recent years but the population is still well below the good fishery the lake has produced in the past.
Channel Catfish	Fair	Fair numbers of bigger fish over 28 inches.	The lake and the connected river system has maintained a good channel catfish population through the history of the lake and has been one of the best places around to catch channel cats over 8 pounds. The 2025 sample recorded that channel catfish numbers are slightly above normal with 9% of the fish collected were over 24 inches. Fishing in the upper end of the lake and the river tends to be the most consistent spots for channel cats.
Blue Catfish	Fair to Good	Good numbers of nice eater size fish from 20 to 30 inches with a few fish over 40 pounds	The blue catfish population at Tuttle Creek has modest numbers when compared to other KS lakes but has maintained an excellent size structure due to good growth rates. Sampling in June 2025 showed that 46% of the blue catfish were between 20 to 25 inches, 24% were from 25 to 30 inches, and 20% were over 30 inches. Fresh cut bait or fresh shad are usually good baits. The upper end of the lake is the most consistent area to find blues. Blue catfish harvest regulations are a 10 fish daily creel limit which may include only one fish 30 inches or longer.
Largemouth Bass	Slow to Fair	1 to 5 pounds	Coves in southern third of the Reservoir have some locally good largemouth bass populations. The McIntyre Cove area tends to produce the best fishing with Carnahan Cove second best.
Saugeye	Fair	Up to 6 pounds	The saugeye population has been doing very well the last few years due to stable water conditions. From the 2025 fall fish sampling, numbers of saugeye were slightly elevated over the 10-year norm. The saugeye size structure was very appealing with 29% of the fish were over 18 inches. Since saugeye like to leave Tuttle Creek through the dam downstream during large releases, some of the best opportunities to harvest saugeye is in the River Pond or Rocky Ford or at the "tubes". Great shoreline access at all of these spots and fish are regularly being caught year-round. K-State is conducting a study to track fish movements and there are a few saugeye with a purple tag in their back - please release all fish with a purple tag.
Rainbow Trout	Fair	Up to 3 pounds	Trout season is here at Willow Lake which is below the Tuttle Creek dam in the State Park. The last stocking was on February 9th of 1,080 pounds of rainbow trout that ranged from half a pound to over 2 pounds. These fish can be caught on about anything but dough baits tend to be the best. A trout permit is required to fish a Willow Lake during the trout season. Good luck.
General Comments
You can check current water conditions HERE Tuttle Creek has zebra mussels which classifies the lake and River Pond and Rocky Ford as Aquatic Invasive Species waters. Fish may not be transported alive from AIS designated waters. To help prevent the spread of invasive species, please CLEAN, DRAIN & DRY all equipment when changing water bodies and please do not move fish you have caught or your bait.

Creel Length/Limits

Fishing Population	Creel Limit	Min Length Limit
Blue Catfish	10	only 1 Blue Catfish over 30"
Bluegill
Channel Catfish	10
Crappie	50
Flathead Catfish	5
Green Sunfish
Largemouth Bass	5	18
Saugeye	5	15
White Bass
Trout	5

* Largemouth, Smallmouth, Spotted Bass in Combination
** Striped Bass or Wiper in Combination
*** Walleye, Sauger or Saugeye in Combination

Fishing Forecast Information

View Fishing Forecast definitions

+Saugeye Forecast

SAUGEYE	(>14")	(>18")	(>22")	(lbs.)	Fishing Rating
RESERVOIR
SEBELIUS	6.87	3.83	0.87	6.41	F
COUNCIL GROVE	2.58	1.82	0.73	6.82	G
POMONA	1.94	0.72	0.11	5.18	G
MELVERN	1.84	0.16	0.00	2.36	G
CLINTON	1.13	0.13	0.00	2.82	G
KANOPOLIS	1.10	0.68	0.37	6.78	G
TUTTLE CREEK	0.71	0.38	0.04	4.81	G
CHENEY	0.19	0.00	0.00	2.26	P
WEBSTER	0.03	0.03	0.03	4.34	P
ELK CITY	0.00	0.00	0.00	1.11	P

+Black Crappie Forecast

BLACK CRAPPIE	(>8")	(>10")	(>12")	(lbs.)	Fishing Rating
RESERVOIR
CEDAR BLUFF	9.88	4.67	0.27	1.27	G
SEBELIUS	5.10	3.03	0.83	1.28	F
KIRWIN	2.77	2.67	1.40	1.94	F
MARION	2.39	1.00	0.11	1.09	P
KANOPOLIS	2.00	1.64	0.39	1.24	G
WEBSTER	1.53	0.97	0.00	0.89	P
LOVEWELL	1.13	0.69	0.13	2.31	F
MILFORD	0.94	0.23	0.06	2.07	F
HILLSDALE	0.91	0.05	0.00	0.49	F
BIG HILL	0.63	0.13	0.00	0.53	F
GLEN ELDER	0.44	0.24	0.04	1.02	P
CLINTON	0.42	0.21	0.03	0.93	P
POMONA	0.29	0.12	0.05	1.44	F
TUTTLE CREEK	0.23	0.07	0.02	1.09	P
LACYGNE	0.21	0.12	0.00	0.93	P
TORONTO	0.21	0.04	0.02	1.26	P
PERRY	0.20	0.09	0.02	1.60	P
WILSON	0.18	0.16	0.04	1.22	F
WOLF CREEK	0.07	0.00	0.00	0.28	P
MELVERN	0.04	0.02	0.00	0.63	P
EL DORADO	0.04	0.00	0.00	0.31	P
FALL RIVER	0.02	0.02	0.00	0.54	P
COUNCIL GROVE	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.07	P

+Bluegill Forecast

BLUEGILL	(>6")	(>8")	(>10")	(lbs.)	Fishing Rating
RESERVOIR
SEBELIUS	11.60	5.17	0.00	0.64	G
HILLSDALE	4.98	0.02	0.00	0.35	G
CEDAR BLUFF	4.90	0.15	0.00	0.48	P
BIG HILL	4.20	0.10	0.00	0.36	F
LACYGNE	3.63	0.00	0.00	0.29	P
KANOPOLIS	2.69	0.03	0.00	0.39	G
MILFORD	2.56	0.35	0.00	0.52	F
WEBSTER	2.47	0.56	0.00	0.60	P
LOVEWELL	2.38	0.05	0.00	0.43	P
MARION	1.94	0.00	0.00	0.39	F
CLINTON	1.84	0.11	0.00	0.52	F
PERRY	0.73	0.00	0.00	0.29	F
WILSON	0.67	0.00	0.00	0.26	G
TUTTLE CREEK	0.64	0.00	0.00	0.25	P
MELVERN	0.46	0.00	0.00	0.29	P
FALL RIVER	0.44	0.00	0.00	0.22	P
POMONA	0.32	0.00	0.00	0.22	P
GLEN ELDER	0.22	0.10	0.00	0.56	P
WOLF CREEK	0.20	0.00	0.00	0.17	P
TORONTO	0.19	0.02	0.00	0.17	F
COUNCIL GROVE	0.14	0.00	0.00	0.30	P
KIRWIN	0.10	0.04	0.00	0.45	P
ELK CITY	0.05	0.00	0.00	0.22	P

+Channel Catfish Forecast

CHANNEL CATFISH	(>16")	(>24")	(>28")	(lbs.)	Fishing Rating
RESERVOIR
BIG HILL	8.60	0.83	0.17	9.56	G
HILLSDALE	6.50	0.62	0.07	11.01	E
LOVEWELL	5.18	0.70	0.07	10.72	G
MARION	4.00	0.15	0.03	18.72	G
KANOPOLIS	3.50	0.30	0.02	9.93	G
WILSON	3.38	0.37	0.00	8.87	G
CHENEY	2.76	0.43	0.08	12.42	G
FALL RIVER	2.33	1.77	0.73	12.19	G
PERRY	2.24	0.44	0.05	10.13	G
LACYGNE	2.22	0.05	0.00	6.12	G
TORONTO	1.92	1.14	0.17	9.89	G
COUNCIL GROVE	1.78	0.13	0.04	9.41	F
MELVERN	1.74	0.09	0.02	6.74	G
CLINTON	1.72	0.19	0.00	6.97	G
POMONA	1.67	0.03	0.00	7.53	G
CEDAR BLUFF	1.51	0.40	0.08	15.88	G
GLEN ELDER	1.45	0.42	0.12	16.33	G
KIRWIN	1.33	0.19	0.00	8.78	G
WEBSTER	1.22	0.22	0.00	7.45	G
JOHN REDMOND	1.15	0.39	0.08	12.29	G
ELK CITY	0.80	0.00	0.00	3.92	G
TUTTLE CREEK	0.62	0.15	0.05	13.80	G
EL DORADO	0.55	0.00	0.00	4.22	F
MILFORD	0.50	0.05	0.00	5.96	F
SEBELIUS	0.47	0.30	0.20	19.36	G
WOLF CREEK	0.44	0.00	0.00	3.50	G

+White Bass Forecast

WHITE BASS	(>9")	(>12")	(>15")	(lbs.)	Fishing Rating
RESERVOIR
GLEN ELDER	19.97	18.29	3.26	3.07	G
CEDAR BLUFF	19.86	18.20	6.75	2.16	E
MARION	12.32	5.97	0.18	1.85	G
POMONA	8.89	6.75	1.03	2.20	G
WEBSTER	8.31	6.81	0.06	1.99	G
BIG HILL	7.07	5.57	0.20	2.07	G
CLINTON	6.44	4.61	0.96	2.42	G
KANOPOLIS	5.63	4.73	0.37	2.08	G
WOLF CREEK	5.56	2.48	0.19	2.07	G
MILFORD	4.58	3.90	0.58	2.13	F
KIRWIN	4.28	3.61	0.39	1.95	G
PERRY	3.85	2.32	0.03	2.20	G
TORONTO	3.58	1.86	0.50	2.51	G
EL DORADO	3.13	2.63	0.58	2.76	F
MELVERN	3.04	2.60	0.58	2.38	G
COUNCIL GROVE	2.84	1.20	0.13	2.19	F
LACYGNE	2.70	0.11	0.08	1.95	G
WILSON	2.41	2.26	1.43	2.82	G
HILLSDALE	2.40	1.50	0.12	1.67	F
FALL RIVER	2.30	1.50	0.60	2.61	G
ELK CITY	1.83	1.27	0.27	2.80	F
JOHN REDMOND	1.77	1.18	0.53	3.61	G
LOVEWELL	1.68	1.29	0.25	2.32	F
TUTTLE CREEK	0.33	0.16	0.02	1.96	F
CHENEY	0.22	0.22	0.16	3.93	P

+Percids Combined Forecast

Waterbody	Density	Preferred	Lunker	Big fish	Size	Bio rating
Sebelius Reservoir	6.87	3.83	0.87	6.41	Reservoir	Fair
Marion Reservoir	4.24	3.32	0.68	6.01	Reservoir	Fair
Kirwin Reservoir	2.75	1.31	0.19	6.44	Reservoir	Good
Pomona Reservoir	2.69	1.14	0.22	5.18	Reservoir	Good
Cedar Bluff Reservoir	2.62	1.20	0.34	6.68	Reservoir	Good
Council Grove Reservoir	2.58	1.82	0.73	6.82	Reservoir	Good
Cheney Reservoir	2.32	1.78	1.16	7.59	Reservoir	Fair
Perry Reservoir	2.17	0.61	0.00	3.27	Reservoir	Excellent
Melvern Reservoir	2.16	0.21	0.00	3.15	Reservoir	Good
El Dorado Reservoir	1.84	1.47	0.61	7.08	Reservoir	Good
Webster Reservoir	1.75	1.03	0.41	6.22	Reservoir	Fair
Milford Reservoir	1.62	1.08	0.42	6.35	Reservoir	Fair
Wilson Reservoir	1.56	1.36	0.60	6.41	Reservoir	Good
Clinton Reservoir	1.44	0.28	0.07	8.37	Reservoir	Good
Kanopolis Reservoir	1.15	0.73	0.38	6.78	Reservoir	Good
Hillsdale Reservoir	1.12	0.90	0.43	7.06	Reservoir	Good
Wolf Creek Reservoir	0.91	0.70	0.24	6.56	Reservoir	Fair
Glen Elder Reservoir	0.81	0.53	0.07	6.03	Reservoir	Fair
Tuttle Creek Reservoir	0.71	0.38	0.04	4.81	Reservoir	Good
Lovewell Reservoir	0.38	0.27	0.14	7.37	Reservoir	Fair
Big Hill Reservoir	0.33	0.20	0.03	4.85	Reservoir	Poor
Elk City Reservoir	0.00	0.00	0.00	1.11	Reservoir	Poor

+Crappie Combined Forecast

Waterbody	Density	Preferred	Lunker	Big fish	Size	Bio rating
Toronto Reservoir	23.25	6.71	2.71	1.84	Reservoir	Excellent
Hillsdale Reservoir	22.36	8.07	1.14	1.59	Reservoir	Excellent
Melvern Reservoir	18.98	10.59	1.33	1.41	Reservoir	Good
Perry Reservoir	16.68	6.61	0.52	1.60	Reservoir	Good
Big Hill Reservoir	13.23	5.93	0.90	1.26	Reservoir	Good
Elk City Reservoir	12.41	7.05	2.51	1.76	Reservoir	Good
LaCygne Reservoir	11.47	5.14	0.37	1.31	Reservoir	Good
Marion Reservoir	11.11	3.89	0.22	1.09	Reservoir	Good
Fall River Reservoir	10.75	3.77	1.31	2.50	Reservoir	Good
Cedar Bluff Reservoir	10.50	4.94	0.52	1.90	Reservoir	Good
Pomona Reservoir	10.49	5.05	0.83	1.88	Reservoir	Good
John Redmond Reservoir	9.53	9.00	1.67	1.71	Reservoir	Good
Council Grove Reservoir	9.50	1.36	0.33	1.83	Reservoir	Good
Tuttle Creek Reservoir	8.27	5.61	0.84	1.54	Reservoir	Good
Clinton Reservoir	8.03	4.11	0.37	1.37	Reservoir	Good
Sebelius Reservoir	7.37	4.27	1.00	1.28	Reservoir	Fair
Kanopolis Reservoir	5.75	2.53	0.44	1.24	Reservoir	Good
El Dorado Reservoir	5.11	2.89	0.54	1.70	Reservoir	Good
Lovewell Reservoir	4.36	2.51	0.38	2.31	Reservoir	Good
Kirwin Reservoir	3.96	3.50	1.96	1.94	Reservoir	Fair
Webster Reservoir	3.92	1.75	0.06	1.06	Reservoir	Fair
Milford Reservoir	3.71	2.08	0.58	2.07	Reservoir	Fair
Glen Elder Reservoir	1.25	0.76	0.13	1.41	Reservoir	Fair
Wolf Creek Reservoir	1.07	0.33	0.00	0.59	Reservoir	Fair
Wilson Reservoir	0.98	0.33	0.16	1.30	Reservoir	Fair

+Sunfish Combined Forecast

Waterbody	Density	Preferred	Lunker	3 yr avg	Size	Rating
Sebelius Reservoir	44.40	9.50	0.00	1.21	Reservoir	G
Cedar Bluff Reservoir	15.33	0.22	0.00	0.44	Reservoir	F
Hillsdale Reservoir	6.09	0.07	0.00	0.46	Reservoir	F
LaCygne Reservoir	4.50	0.02	0.02	0.31	Reservoir	F
Kanopolis Reservoir	3.81	0.03	0.00	0.39	Reservoir	G
Wilson Reservoir	3.53	0.00	0.00	0.33	Reservoir	G
Webster Reservoir	2.94	0.50	0.00	0.50	Reservoir	F
Big Hill Reservoir	2.63	0.17	0.00	0.62	Reservoir	G
Lovewell Reservoir	2.56	0.05	0.00	0.43	Reservoir	P
Marion Reservoir	2.00	0.00	0.00	0.39	Reservoir	F
Milford Reservoir	1.44	0.35	0.00	0.52	Reservoir	P
Clinton Reservoir	1.20	0.07	0.00	0.52	Reservoir	F
Kirwin Reservoir	0.83	0.06	0.00	0.59	Reservoir	F
Perry Reservoir	0.60	0.00	0.00	0.32	Reservoir	P
Melvern Reservoir	0.52	0.05	0.02	0.37	Reservoir	P
El Dorado Reservoir	0.36	0.00	0.00	0.23	Reservoir	F
Tuttle Creek Reservoir	0.32	0.00	0.00	0.25	Reservoir	P
Glen Elder Reservoir	0.30	0.10	0.00	0.70	Reservoir	P
Wolf Creek Reservoir	0.30	0.00	0.00	0.18	Reservoir	P
Fall River Reservoir	0.29	0.00	0.00	0.26	Reservoir	F
Pomona Reservoir	0.23	0.02	0.02	0.43	Reservoir	P
Council Grove Reservoir	0.14	0.00	0.00	0.21	Reservoir	P
Toronto Reservoir	0.13	0.00	0.00	0.23	Reservoir	P
Elk City Reservoir	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.13	Reservoir	P

+Temperate Basses Combined Forecast

Waterbody	Density	Preferred	Lunker	Big fish	Size	Bio rating
Cedar Bluff Reservoir	21.60	4.06	2.22	14.57	Reservoir	Good
Glen Elder Reservoir	19.25	2.49	0.78	8.60	Reservoir	Good
Marion Reservoir	15.59	5.26	1.35	6.33	Reservoir	Excellent
Kirwin Reservoir	10.11	6.25	0.75	7.63	Reservoir	Good
Webster Reservoir	9.78	2.53	0.72	10.77	Reservoir	Fair
Pomona Reservoir	9.22	2.81	0.97	5.12	Reservoir	Good
Milford Reservoir	7.65	2.22	0.78	8.02	Reservoir	Good
Sebelius Reservoir	7.17	6.40	3.87	8.75	Reservoir	Good
Clinton Reservoir	7.13	2.04	0.19	5.98	Reservoir	Excellent
Big Hill Reservoir	5.40	0.03	0.00	2.07	Reservoir	Good
Kanopolis Reservoir	5.25	0.47	0.17	7.28	Reservoir	Good
El Dorado Reservoir	4.71	1.24	0.39	7.36	Reservoir	Fair
Lovewell Reservoir	3.70	1.64	0.88	8.57	Reservoir	Fair
Wilson Reservoir	2.67	1.28	0.38	12.26	Reservoir	Good
Melvern Reservoir	2.44	0.12	0.00	2.38	Reservoir	Good
Perry Reservoir	2.29	0.02	0.00	2.20	Reservoir	Good
Wolf Creek Reservoir	2.09	0.13	0.02	4.25	Reservoir	Good
Toronto Reservoir	1.78	0.08	0.00	2.51	Reservoir	Good
Cheney Reservoir	1.54	1.35	0.24	10.30	Reservoir	Poor
Fall River Reservoir	1.43	0.37	0.00	2.61	Reservoir	Good
John Redmond Reservoir	1.35	0.39	0.00	3.61	Reservoir	Good
LaCygne Reservoir	1.35	1.05	0.00	4.38	Reservoir	Fair
Hillsdale Reservoir	1.31	0.07	0.02	1.67	Reservoir	Fair
Elk City Reservoir	1.23	0.17	0.00	2.80	Reservoir	Fair
Council Grove Reservoir	1.13	0.04	0.00	2.19	Reservoir	Fair
Tuttle Creek Reservoir	0.15	0.00	0.00	1.96	Reservoir	Fair

+Blue Catfish Forecast

BLUE CATFISH	(>20")	(>30")	(>35")	(lbs.)	Fishing Rating
RESERVOIR
JOHN REDMOND	124.65	9.03	0.35	29.57	G
EL DORADO	67.21	1.20	0.40	23.13	G
ELK CITY	61.90	11.37	1.05	24.78	G
PERRY	36.67	10.50	6.46	45.15	G
TUTTLE CREEK	33.17	8.22	1.03	33.04	G
KANOPOLIS	26.93	1.33	0.13	22.44	G
LOVEWELL	24.95	18.71	6.67	35.86	G
GLEN ELDER	22.78	8.13	3.35	39.60	G
MILFORD	21.14	1.10	0.66	59.47	E
CHENEY	20.78	8.63	6.26	57.71	G
WILSON	15.69	5.94	0.75	32.82	G
MELVERN	14.50	5.75	0.25	21.92	G
WOLF CREEK	11.98	3.91	0.26	26.03	G
CLINTON	7.88	3.01	1.51	37.44	F

Northeast Region	Fort Riley Moon Lake	Fort Riley Cameron Springs	Tuttle Creek Willow Lake	Eisenhower State Park Pond	Clinton State Park Lake Henry	Kill Creek Park Lake	Shawnee Mission Park Lake
1st Stocking Dec.	11/25	11/25	11/25	11/24	11/24	12/3	12/3
2nd Stocking Jan.	1/6	1/6		1/5	1/5
3rd Stocking Feb.	02/09	02/09	02/09	02/09	02/09	02/25	02/25

Total Estimated Trout Stocked for 2025-2026 Season	5,580 trout	4,500 trout	4,020 trout	900 trout	2,142 trout

Northeast Region	Herington Father Padilla Pond 785-258-2271	Shawnee County Lake Shawnee 785-251-6800	Holton Elkhorn Lake 785-364-2721	Atchison City Lake #1 913-367-5500	Johnson County Kill Creek Park Lake	Johnson County Shawnee Mission Park Lake
1st Stocking	12/10	11/21	11/21	11/21	12/3	12/3
	02/15

Total Estimated Trout Stocked for 2025-26 Season	650 trout

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Tuttle Creek Reservoir Fishing Information