Saylorville Reservoir

General Information

County: Polk
Location: North edge of Des Moines
Acres: 5950.00
Maximum Depth:
Motoring Restrictions: none

Amenities

Amenities at Saylorville Reservoir include:

Boat Access
Fishing Jetty
Accessible Pier
Boat Rental
Picnic Area
Beach
Trails
Accessible Facilities
Playground
Restrooms
Camping
Good/Excellent Shorefishing
Hard Surface Boat Ramp

Fishing Report

Warm, stable weather has brought some good fishing. The central Iowa crappie spawn is going with anglers having good success at many lakes. For questions on central Iowa lakes and rivers contact Ben Dodd or Andy Otting at 515-432-2823.

Crappie - Good: Crappie are being caught near riprap near rip rap in the marina, the Cherry Glenn jetty, and Lake View jetty using small tube jigs or live minnows under a bobber. Best access is from a boat, but shore fishing is possible. Crappie are also being caught in the riprap below the Big Creek spillway.

Walleye - Fair: Flow over the Big Creek spillway is also attracting walleye. Anglers are picking up decent numbers of 14-16 inch casting jigs.

White Bass - Good: Flow over the Big Creek spillway is attracting white bass. Anglers are doing will casting jigs or fishing minnows under a bobber. Some good white bass activity is also occurring around the marina point.

Fishing Forecast

Fall gill netting occurred in 2012 and a good game fish sample was obtained. White bass are present in good numbers. White bass were sampled in sizes from 7 to 16.5 inches. Most were 7 to 11 inches. White bass fishing was good in 2012 and looks to remain that way in 2013. Wipers were sampled up to 27.5 inches in length. Catch rates of wipers was significantly higher than in past years suggesting the wiper population is on the rise. Crappies are not sampled in big numbers with gill nets, but a good population of both white and black crappie exist with fish commonly from 9 to 13 inches. Walleye catch rates were also up significantly with a large group of fish in the 13 to 17 inch range. These walleye will reach the 15 to 19 inch range during 2013. Channel catfish were sampled in good numbers and good size. Sizes ranged from 8 to over 30 inches, with the majority of fish sampled being over 20 inches. (2012)

Lake Maps

Download Printable Lake Map
Download Printable Fishing Structures Map

You can zoom in on the map for bathymetric information for some lakes

Popular Fish Species at this Lake

Regulations

Fishing Regulations

Fish Surveys

Lake Fish Survey Data Data from the most recent fisheries survey of this lake is provided on this external web site. This data may include information from various netting surveys and/or electroshocking surveys. Data includes numbers of fish sampled, and fish size ranges. Not all lakes are sampled every year.

Lake Mini-report

Lake Reports Summary report information about selected (~130) lakes regarding water quality, upstream land use, usage, economic value and more. Reports are customizable by the user to include only that information which the user desires to include.

Water Quality

Iowa-Caught Fish Are Safe to Eat, In Almost All Cases

The vast majority of Iowa’s streams, rivers and lakes offer safe and high-quality fish that pose little or no threat to human health if consumed. Some limitations may apply for young children and pregnant women. Here’s a Fish Consumption Fact Sheet from the Iowa DNR and the Iowa Dept. of Public Health for more information. Here is a list of current fish consumption advisories for Iowa lakes and rivers.

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