2026 regulation year
Braidwood Lake (Will County) 2026 — Illinois Fishing Regulations
Illinois statewide rules apply unless overridden below.
Last updated
Braidwood Lake (Will County) carries a special-regulation overlay on top of Illinois's 2026 fishing rules. Verify the agency booklet before launching: in-season changes are not yet wired to this page.
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State-level special regulation
Cooling lake on the Braidwood Generating Station, northeastern IL — year-round largemouth + hybrid striped bass driven by thermal discharge; 15 in min largemouth + smallmouth, 3 / day; striped + white + hybrid striped bass 10 / day, no more than 3 of 17 in or longer
Source: Illinois special-water list
Official source
Illinois Department of Natural Resources publishes the authoritative 2026 Illinois fishing regulations. Special-regulation lakes and rivers are listed in the agency booklet — always verify before fishing.
Visit official Illinois fishing regulations →
Emergency-order channel
In-season closures, slot-limit changes, and run-count-driven harvest pauses are posted to Illinois Department of Natural Resources's emergency-order feed — check it before any Illinois trip during the active season.
Other special-regulation waters in Illinois
- Baldwin Lake (Randolph County)
- Carlyle Lake (Clinton / Bond / Fayette Counties)
- Clinton Lake (DeWitt County)
- Coffeen Lake (Montgomery County)
- Crab Orchard Lake
- Dawson Lake (Moraine View State Recreation Area) (McLean County)
- Des Plaines River Basin (Cook County)
- Devil's Kitchen Lake
- Dolan Lake (Hamilton County)
- Double "T" Lake (Fulton County)
- Emiquon Preserve – Thompson Lake (Fulton County)
- Evergreen Lake (McLean County)
Frequently asked questions
- What special fishing regulations apply at Braidwood Lake (Will County)?
- Braidwood Lake (Will County) carries one special-regulation overlay that overrides Illinois' statewide 2026 rules. It reads: "Cooling lake on the Braidwood Generating Station, northeastern IL — year-round largemouth + hybrid striped bass driven by thermal discharge; 15 in min largemouth + smallmouth, 3 / day; striped + white + hybrid striped bass 10 / day, no more than 3 of 17 in or longer." Every overlay on this water body is listed in full above.
- Do I need a fishing license to fish Braidwood Lake (Will County)?
- Yes. Braidwood Lake (Will County) is in Illinois, so a valid Illinois fishing license is required just as it is anywhere else in the state, issued by Illinois Department of Natural Resources. The special regulations on this page change the bag, size, slot, or gear rules for Braidwood Lake; they do not waive the license requirement. Free-fishing days and youth exemptions follow the statewide Illinois rules.
- Do Braidwood Lake (Will County)'s special rules replace Illinois' statewide limits?
- Only where they conflict. Illinois' statewide 2026 regulations apply on Braidwood Lake by default; the overlays above replace the matching statewide rule for the species or gear they name, while everything not specifically overridden still follows the statewide rule. When a water-body rule and the statewide rule disagree, the water-body rule wins.