Cooling NH rivers set up fall trout and smallmouth windows

What's biting

What's next

Expect the cool trend to hold over the next few days, with the coldest water on the 46°F gauge reading. Smallmouth Bass should slow and drop toward deeper structure edges as water nears the mid-40s. Tactical Bassin points to bladed swimbaits and underspins as a fall option when bass are chasing baitfish, and also notes jigs, soft jerkbaits and topwater in shallow water for October.

Brown Trout are the better bet in moving water at these temperatures. Low flows, especially 16.8 cfs on gauge 01073319, mean fish will be spooky in clear shallow runs. Plan on first light and the last hour of daylight, and fish pools and deeper seams rather than skinny water.

The First Quarter moon puts the brightest light early in the night and sets around midnight. That leaves darker pre-dawn hours, which may suit low-light streamer work. Check state regs before harvesting, since trout seasons and limits vary by water.

Context

Mid-October is typically the transition from late fall pattern to pre-winter in this part of New England. Lakes generally cool and turn over, fish relocate from shallow weed and rock to deeper structure, and river flows often stay low until fall rain arrives. Fall turnover rarely hits an entire lake at once, and Field & Stream suggests finding clear, shallow bays or creek arms that have not turned over yet, then covering water with search baits such as spinnerbaits. Walleye and Smallmouth Bass tend to bunch up as forage concentrates, which can make for fewer but better bites.