Lake Taneycomo's clear cold waters provide some of the finest trout fishing available anywhere in the world. The Rainbow Trout and Brown Trout that ply the waters of Lake Taneycomo provide a year round fishing experience that is exciting as well as varied. From Fly Fishing and artificial only fishing in Lake Taneycomo's Trophy Trout Area, near her Headwaters, to bait fishing outside of the Trophy Trout Waters, Lake Taneycomo offers Rainbow and Brown Trout fishing at its best all year round.
From 1913 until 1958 it was a "warm water" lake.
The completion of Table Rock Dam in 1958, 22 miles upstream at White River Mile 528.8, created a physical southern boundary for the Lake which now consists of over 2,080 surface acres. Virtually overnight, a "cold water" fishery was created because of the temperature of water coming through the "generators" of Table Rock Dam as its water is used for the generation of power. To take advantage of this change the Missouri Department of Conservation constructed the "Shepherd of the Hills Trout Hatchery" at the foot of the Dam. Today Lake Taneycomo is one of the best trout fisheries in the nation. A State Record Brown Trout was caught in the Summer of 1994.
When power is not being generated Lake Taneycomo has the characteristics of both a river and a lake for anglers to enjoy. The shallow colder water, at Lake Taneycomo Mile Marker 22, located adjacent to the Junction of State Highways 165 and 265 near the Table Rock Dam, averages 48 degrees F, resembles a river and permits wading and bank fishing for trout. The average temperature of the water gets warmer and the depth of the Lake deepens to depths in excess of 50 feet near Lake Taneycomo Mile Marker 1 and the Power Site Dam in Forsyth. When Table Rock Dam is generating power its current is very strong throughout its whole length, its water temperature drops, and for all practical purposes it becomes a very deep, cold, fast running river. Exactly how deep, cold, and fast depends on how many generators are being used to generate electricity at Table Rock Dam.
Lake Taneycomo Fishing Reports
