Kanopolis Lake Camping

Near Ellsworth, Kansas there sits a man-made reservoir named Kanopolis Lake. In 1940, construction started on the Smoke Hill River. The dam was finished in 1948, which then created one of the oldest lakes in the entire state. Kanopolis Lake doesn’t just look pretty, however. It’s used for the purpose of water quality, water supply, flood control, and more.

Kanopolis Lake was built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in response to the Flood Control Act of 1938. The Corps continues to maintain the lake up to this day. The lake is incredibly useful for maintaining the minimum flow of the Smoke Hill River. Normally the lake has 41 miles worth of shoreline. When it’s at flood stage, however,

Kanopolis Lake is also used for recreational purposes. There are six different recreation areas carved out for this lake. The Kanopolis State Park maintains two of them, while the Army Corps of Engineers maintains four. Kanopolis State Park was the very first park in Kansas that was state-owned. It’s a large park, with a service marina, 25 miles of hiking trails, over 300 campsites, and plenty of different outdoor activities.

The Corps and the State work together in order to ensure there’s easy access to the water. After all, recreation is absolutely vital to the continued maintenance of Kanopolis Lake. There are three public boat launches, and there’s an entire section that’s partitioned off for fishing. However, make sure to double-check whether or not fishing is allowed before you head in. Since the area is part of the wildlife refuge, there are times when the area may be off-limits. There are numerous species of fish, including but not limited to Wipers, Crappie, Walleye, and White Bass.

Stripers may be saltwater fish, but each year they migrate to freshwater in order to spawn. Since their eggs require motion in order to hatch, the rivers and streams are the perfect spawning grounds. Due to this, plenty of landlocked stripers live within the lakes. If you’re fishing for stripers, keep near the deeper waters. Should you find schools of shad, you’re generally near stripers.

If you really want some thrills, try using large topwater baits should you find any feeding action near the surface. Of course, when the stripers are deep down, jigging spoons and jigs are the way to go. Live and cut bait both tend to attract striped bass at medium or deeper water levels. If there’s a defined depth change, try fishing near the river channel. You can also troll, which works quite well. Make sure to use the flashier lures in the biggest sizes you can get.

When people discovered stripers were able to survive in fresh water in spite of being saltwater natives, they quickly introduced the fish to the ecosystem. Unfortunately, these invasive fish are causing issues. Since they eat anything that moves, they’re wreaking havoc on the indigenous fish population. As if that wasn’t enough, they can grow to huge sizes. Even a few of them can leave a lake empty of baitfish before long. Where there’s one striper, there are more.

Fly fishing is quite popular for catching stripers. Still, stripers are aggressive enough to be exciting no matter what catching method you use. The most common approach to stripers is using medium or heavy tackle and bait. For more suggestions and tips, check the articles section.

Kanopolis Lake Wildlife Refuge has a huge variety of species. You can find animals such as coyotes, mink, bobcats, muskrats, and of course the common American varmints such as raccoons and opossums. And no wildlife refuge would be complete without the standard spread of quail, pheasants, rabbits, whitetail deer, and multiple waterfowl. Hunting is allowed, a permit is required and there are hunting seasons.

There are numerous caves to explore around Kanopolis Lake. It’s carved out of the Dakota Sandstone Bluffs, which is beautiful to see throughout the year. When you’re done crawling through caves, you can climb up to the bluffs and look down upon the wilds of nature. Ellsworth County doesn’t rely only on Kanopolis Lake for tourism, however! There are several museums of interest, such as Fort Harker and Hodgen House. If you have the time, you simply have to visit them.

Kansas gets hot in the summer, which makes the water amazing. Kanopolis Lake is fairly high-traffic, but the state works hard to ensure everyone has access. Because there are so many boats, water skiers, canoes, and jet skis zipping about the lake, people try to keep things civil. You can also go swimming if you want to cool off. The beaches are maintained regularly, and the lake offers clean camping and picnic areas. You could easily plan an entire vacation around a visit.

So if you’ve been feeling as if you needed to get out of the house, try looking into Ellsworth County. There are amazing things to do in town, and even more, amazing things to do out in nature. It may not have the kind of hopping nightlife as places like Las Vegas, but it’s great if you just want some peace and quiet in the great outdoors.