Wilson Co State Fishing Lake
Wilson County, Kansas119 acresView mapDirections
KDHE publishes the water-quality measurements for Wilson Co State Fishing Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- Impaired · Nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen)
- 33 ft max depth
- Limited data
Wilson Co State Fishing Lake in Wilson County, Kansas has water-quality measurements published by KDHE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3.6 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 25.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 23 µg/L. Surface area: 119 acres.
Wilson Co State Fishing Lake is a 119-acre productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Wilson County, Kansas with an estimated average depth of about 33 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, KDHE, last sampled 2018-07-23. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyRecreation use not supported
Based on clarity and algae readings from past sampling — there is no live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Wilson Co State Fishing Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Wilson Co State Fishing Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Wilson Co State Fishing Lake
These are the measurements KDHE publishes for Wilson Co State Fishing Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Murky, only visible to about 3.6 ft. Phosphorus 25.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 23 µg/L. TSI 57.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 3.6ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 25.5µg/L | Measured, not scored The nutrient that most limits algae growth in freshwater. More phosphorus, more algae potential. |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 23µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 57 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Wilson Co State Fishing Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~33 ft est.
Surface area
119 acres
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Kansas has not published bathymetry for Wilson Co State Fishing Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
11 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
3.1 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
925 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS). Mean depth here is modelled, not surveyed — HydroLAKES v1.0 estimates lake depth from surrounding terrain rather than from soundings. Treat it as an approximation, and prefer a state bathymetric survey where one exists.
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Stays near Wilson Co State Fishing Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Wilson Co State Fishing Lake in Wilson County, Kansas — live availability and prices for your trip. Switch the map to Satellite to see the lake and how close each stay is to the water. The water-quality readings cover nutrients and algae, not lodging. Cabins and rentals around Wilson Co State Fishing Lake are listed below.
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Fishing Wilson Co State Fishing Lake
Water quality readings over time
2 seasons of samples on record (2012–2018). Calling a direction takes at least 4 years of the same measurement.
Water clarity
Worsening2 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+0.75 µg/L/yr2 years
Chlorophyll-a
Stable+0.27 µg/L/yr2 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Wilson Co State Fishing Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Wilson County State Lake (completed 1955), built primarily for fish and wildlife pond on the Woodruff Br Buffalo Creek; earth-type dam, 55 ft tall and 1,800 ft long.
- Surface area
- 119 ac
- Normal storage
- 1,935 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 3,924 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 10.61 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- KANSAS DEPT OF WILDLIFE PARKS & TOURISM
All listed purposes: Fish and Wildlife Pond;Recreation.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID KS00899 · Operator website · Matched by proximity (0.27 km)
EPA Impairment Status
Wilson Co State Fishing Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 4A).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Drinking water, Aquatic life, Recreation.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit KS-LM015101 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Wilson County
Frequently asked questions about Wilson Co State Fishing Lake
Where is Wilson Co State Fishing Lake?
- Wilson Co State Fishing Lake is a lake in Wilson County, Kansas. Its water-quality measurements are published by KDHE and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Wilson Co State Fishing Lake?
- Wilson Co State Fishing Lake in Wilson County, Kansas has water-quality measurements published by KDHE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3.6 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 25.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 23 µg/L. Surface area: 119 acres.
Is Wilson Co State Fishing Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Wilson Co State Fishing Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Wilson Co State Fishing Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Wilson Co State Fishing Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 33 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate. The lake covers 119 acres.
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Where this data comes from
8 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2012–2018. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Kansas Department Of Health And Environment
21KAN001_WQX8 samples · 2012–2018
Analytical methods
- Depth, Secchi disk depth
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- 10200 H ~ Chlorophyll a-b-c Determination
Monitoring station identifiers (1)
EPA condition classes from the National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See where the data comes from and data sources.
Other records on this page
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)