Nebraska’s Best Fishing Destinations



 


Featured Destinations – Quick Links


Lake McConaughy North Platte River
Merritt Reservoir South Platte River
Missouri River

Learn more about our featured fishing destinations below.


Lake McConaughy


Lake McConaughy Fishing

Lake McConaughy is a large reservoir that covers more than 30,000 surface acres with over 100 miles of shoreline.  It is located 9 miles north of Ogalla, Nebraska and it is one of the better big fish lakes in the midwest.  Anglers target walleye, northern pike, smallmouth bass, white bass, wipers, channel catfish and more.


Merritt Reservoir


Merritt Reservoir Fishing

Merritt Reservoir was located in the Sandhills of Nebraska southwest of Valentine, Nebraska.  It is a deep lake that is a popular recreational lake for fishing, boating and camping.  Anglers do well here for a variety of fish species.  For most anglers, walleye will be the main species targeted.  Merritt Reservoir has a very good walleye fishery with good numbers of them and big fish too.  Largemouth bass and smallmouth bass are here in good numbers as well and the fishing is very good for them in the shallows early in the year.  Bass are not targeted by many anglers here, so if you want to fish for them, you have a chance to targeted less pressured bass on this lake.  Northern pike and muskie are in the lake and very large fish of both species are available.  Muskie are here in much lower numbers, but they are definitely here in large enough numbers to pursue them.  Yellow perch, crappie and catfish round out the fishery.


Missouri River


Missouri River Fishing

The Missouri River begins at the town of Three Forks, Montana, where the Gallatin, Jefferson, and Madison rivers meet in the Rocky Mountains.  The river then flows north, east and south where it eventually ends at the Mississippi River in St. Louis, Missouri.  The Missouri River is the longest river in North America, flowing more than 2,300 miles.  The fishery changes as it moves from the rocky mountains to St. Louis, Missouri.  In the mountains, it is a world class trout fishery.  As it flows through the Dakotas, it becomes an excellent walleye fishery with northern pike, catfish and other species too.  Once the river flows into the St. Louis area, it becomes more of a catfish fishery, but other fish can be found there too.


North Platte River


North Platte River Fishing

The North Platte River is a major tributary of the Platte River and it flows for more than 700 miles through the states of Colorado, Wyoming and Nebraska.  This river is a very good fishing river and it passes through so many good destinations that are perfect for a trout fishing vacation.  This river is home to the famous “Miracle Mile” and so many other awesome stretches for trout fishing.  Anglers catch rainbow trout, brown trout and cutthroat trout in the mountain states while targeting a variety of warm water species in Nebraska as its waters become warmer.


South Platte River


South Platte River Fishing

The South Platte River is a popular fishing river in Colorado.  The river begins as 3 different streams named the South Fork, Middle Fork and North Fork Platte Rivers.  Each fork originates around Fairplay, Colorado (South Park area).  There is some very good trout fishing available on this river.  On the South and Middle Forks, they are both small streams that are known for producing good numbers of small fish, but this is definitely not the part of the river to fish if you’re looking for big trout.  There are a series of dams along the South Platte River that create a series of tailwater fisheries.  Some of these tailwater fisheries are excellent for numbers of fish and big fish too.


 

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