ST. LOUIS WINTER TROUT

Trout season.
Without the Ozark drive.

MDC stocks multiple St. Louis-area lakes with rainbow trout from late fall through winter. The rules are not identical at every lake—this page helps you pick one and start with the right setup.

WINTER TROUT WATERS

Pick a lake.
Check its rule.

The six new guides below are part of the metro winter-trout system. Busch, Suson and Carondelet already have trout coverage elsewhere on Cast STL.

WINTER TROUT

Jefferson Lake

Forest Park · 9 acres
A nine-acre Forest Park lake with year-round urban fishing and a major winter-trout role right inside St. Louis City.

Open guide →WINTER TROUT

Gendron Lake

Tiemeyer Park · St. Ann · 1.5 acres
A compact Tiemeyer Park lake that combines winter trout with warm-season catfish, crappie, bass and sunfish.

Open guide →WINTER TROUT

Koeneman Park Lake

Jennings · 6 acres
A six-acre Jennings lake with an urban-fishing mix and a winter catch-and-release trout season.

Open guide →WINTER TROUT

January-Wabash Park Lake

Ferguson · 5.3 acres
A Ferguson urban lake with winter trout and one of the stronger spring largemouth bass prospects in the metro program.

Open guide →WINTER TROUT

Vlasis Park Lake

Ballwin · 0.5 acre
A very small Ballwin lake where stocking windows matter more than covering water—especially during winter trout season.

Open guide →WINTER TROUT

Tilles Park Lake

St. Louis County · 2 acres
A two-acre county-park lake with an accessible fishing setup and one of the metro area's established winter-trout fisheries.

Open guide →

BEFORE YOU GO

Three things
matter most.

01

Check the lake rule

Some winter lakes are catch-and-release/artificial-only before February. Others have different seasonal restrictions.

02

Check stocking

MDC's St. Louis fish stocking hotline is 636-300-9651. Recent stocking can matter a lot on small urban lakes.

03

Fish light

4–6 lb line, small spoons, spinners and jigs are a practical starting point when the lake's rules allow them.