Hunting and Fishing
A Sportsman’s Paradise
Wet your line or nock an arrow — the Burg is the perfect spot to bring home your next fishing or hunting tale. Warrensburg is in the center of Johnson County — Missouri’s seventh-largest county. Because of the county’s size and the rural nature of the region, Warrensburg boasts a great diversity of wild game, including deer, turkey, quail, rabbit, and a unique variety of waterfowl, attracting many hunters from surrounding states.
Lions Lake
One of Warrensburg’s smaller lakes at 12 acres, Lions Lake provides a quiet spot for fishers in search of bass, catfish, crappie, and sunfish. Boats with trolling motors or no motors are allowed.
Learn more about Lions Lake.
Knob Noster State Park
Cast your line into two small lakes — Buteo and Clearfork — or Clearfork Creek, where catfish, bass, bluegill, and crappie abound. Fishing is available from sunrise to sunset daily, except during special management activities when the park may be closed.
Learn more about Knob Noster State Park.
Hazel Hill Lake
The Missouri Department of Conservation purchased this 502-acre area in 1984; the 71-acre Hazel Hill Lake was constructed in 1987-88 and stocked with fish in 1989. The area is composed of cropland, old fields, native grass plantings, and timbered areas, which together create habitat for a variety of wildlife species. Vegetation is managed using prescribed fire, mowing, and cropping to provide year-round food and cover for both upland and forest wildlife. Hazel Hill Lake includes a boat ramp, disabled-accessible fishing, parking, and toilets, plus areas for fishing and hunting deer, dove, quail, rabbit, squirrel, and waterfowl.
Learn more about Hazel Hill Lake.
Lake Cena
Just south of Lions Lake, Lake Cena — also known as Pertle Springs Lake — is owned and managed by the University of Central Missouri. Local fishermen recommend the shaded west end of the lake for catfish. The much smaller Racehorse Lake — at the southernmost tip of Lake Cena, across from Par Drive — is also open to the public.
Ralph & Martha Perry Memorial Conservation Area
This area is named after the late Dr. Ralph Perry and his wife, Martha, who donated both land and money to create the conservation area. The area features a diversity of terrain and habitats, including crop fields, old-field habitat, wetlands, glades, woodlands, and both bottomland and upland forest. Management of this 4,134-acre area includes mowing and controlled burning to maintain plant diversity in the open areas. Habitat plantings include shrubs, native grasses, and trees, including two plantings of the Concordia oak, a rare three-way hybrid. Wetland management includes the seasonal flooding of more than 750 acres.
A hiking trail consisting of two loops travels through varying habitats and provides access to several fishing lakes. Several small ponds, the Blackwater River, and two lakes provide fishing opportunities; waters are regularly stocked with catfish, bass, redear sunfish, and bluegill. Seasonal access to the Blackwater River is provided in Unit 1. More than seven miles of the Blackwater River flow through the area.
Learn more about Ralph & Martha Perry Memorial Conservation Area.
J.N. Turkey Kearn Memorial Wildlife Area
J.N. “Turkey” Kearn Memorial Wildlife Area is in Johnson and Pettis counties. J.N. “Turkey” Kearn, who delighted many people with his humor and knowledge of local history, lived on this land in harmony with its natural beauty. In 1976, he donated 1,479 acres to the Missouri Department of Conservation with the wish that the bounty of wildlife his ancestors spoke of when they first settled here be restored and preserved for future generations. The department purchased an additional 195 acres, bringing the area to its present size of 1,674 acres. The area features a great variety of habitats, including wooded hills, bottomlands, crop fields, and native grass fields. Two fishing lakes covering nine and 25 acres, respectively, were built in 2000. The area contains several small ponds and one two-acre pond. Muddy Creek crosses the northwest corner of the area.
Management of the area focuses on providing habitat for upland wildlife species, including deer, turkey, rabbits, squirrels, doves, and songbirds.
Learn more about J.N. Turkey Kearn Memorial Wildlife Area.