Fishing reports
16501 reports across all 50 states — current conditions and what's biting.
Fall transition dials in bass and crappie on Lake Conroe
Texas Fish & Game Magazine's early-September outlook on Lake Conroe frames what anglers should expect right now: the shift from summer to fall patterns is arriving in stages rather than all at once, with September often still feeling like mid-summer in Southeast Texas even as bass and crappie begin repositioning. Statewide, that same staged transition is the story for early September — expect fish keying on baitfish movement as water starts to cool rather than a hard pattern flip. Blue catfish remain a dependable target on North Texas reservoirs; North Texas Catfish Guide has reported strong feeding activity on Eagle Mountain Lake whenever fresh water and rising levels get fish moving, a pattern worth watching if recent rain has pushed inflow into your local lake. White bass activity has historically picked up on Eagle Mountain later in the season. No fresh buoy or gauge readings came through for this cycle, so lean on on-the-water reports and check conditions before you head out.
Lake Erie smallmouth and walleye ease into fall feeding mode
No new buoy or gauge readings came in for Presque Isle this cycle, so today's outlook leans on seasonal pattern knowledge as Lake Erie eases into its early-September transition. Fishing the Midwest's Mike Frisch frames the current walleye debate as "blending old and new" this week — traditional live-bait rigs and crankbait trolling still produce, but forward-facing sonar has changed how many anglers locate suspended fish over open basins. Bass anglers should take note too: Tactical Bassin's fall-transition roundup highlights reaction baits and baitfish-pattern presentations as bass push shallow chasing schooling baitfish, a pattern that typically plays out on Erie's smallmouth flats as well. Yellow perch typically begin schooling tighter in early September as surface temps ease down, and Presque Isle Bay's protected water is a reliable perch producer this time of year. Steelhead remain weeks out — tributary runs on the Presque Isle-area creeks don't usually build until cooler fall rains arrive in October.
Fall Transition Puts Okeechobee and St. Johns Bass on the Move
No buoy or gauge readings came back for the Lake Okeechobee and St. Johns River corridor this cycle, and no Florida-specific shop or charter reports landed either, so this update leans on broader seasonal signal rather than a confirmed local bite. Early September sits right at the summer-to-fall turnover for Florida largemouth, and national bass coverage is already flagging that shift: Tactical Bassin describes bass "pouring into" docks as surrounding grass starts changing, and On The Water lists baitfish-style baits built for the fall transition as gamefish push toward moving bait. Fishing the Midwest ties the same cue to weeds — fish following "green, living" cover as older growth dies back. None of that is Okeechobee- or St. Johns-specific, but it's a reasonable proxy for what largemouth, crappie, and bluegill should start doing as water eases off its late-summer peak. Treat today's species calls as seasonal defaults, not confirmed local intel, until a Florida-specific report comes in.
Grand River jig bite holds as Michigan's fall salmon push nears
Buoy and gauge telemetry for the Great Lakes & Grand River corridor came back empty this cycle, so this update leans on agency notes and angler chatter. One Michigan Sportsman Forum post describes evening jigging on a Michigan river producing 'at least 5 nice fish per trip' over the past week, with almost no bug activity — a pattern typical as late-summer nights cool. The Michigan DNR's Weekly Fishing Report notes walleye remains the most-harvested species in Michigan's Great Lakes waters this season, underscoring the pressure the fishery is seeing heading into fall. The DNR is also running free public tours of the Black River sturgeon hatchery near Onaway this Labor Day weekend (September 5) for anglers wanting a change of pace. With no hard temperature or flow readings to confirm, treat conditions as a typical early-September transition: walleye holding steady, smallmouth shifting toward deeper structure, and the first Chinook salmon beginning to stage near river mouths.
Fluke pool fish top 7 pounds as bonito push into the surf
Capt Ron's out of Atlantic Highlands weighed in a 7-pound-11-ounce fluke pool fish this week, with Wade putting four keepers over the rail — including a 5-pound-1-ounce beauty — before the bite eased once the current ran past a knot on the tide change. Black sea bass are riding along as a steady bonus on those same drifts, and Blue Chip Sportfishing reports fluke and sea bass filling out half- and full-day trips at a good clip. Out front, warm water has pushed bonito and Spanish mackerel into the surf, with Grumpys Tackle pointing anglers to epoxy jigs to match the smaller bait, and OTW's Northern New Jersey report (Sept. 3) adds false albacore and blues to that mix along with scattered bluefin and mahi working midshore. Striped bass remain quiet in the bay for now, with the bigger fall push typically not arriving until closer to the equinox. Check current NJ size and possession limits before keeping fish.
Delaware River and Pine Barrens bass eye the fall transition
Tactical Bassin's early-September coverage points to the fall transition now setting up for largemouth bass — fish sliding onto docks and remaining grass edges as baitfish patterns shift, a pattern that applies directly to Delaware River backwaters and Pine Barrens ponds as nights cool. No live buoy or USGS gauge reading came back for this stretch today, so treat flow and water temperature as typical for early September until a fresh reading updates. Smallmouth on the river's rockier runs should still hold tight to current breaks and points, taking reaction baits worked through faster water. Chain pickerel in the tannic, weedy Pine Barrens waters are a dependable target as summer vegetation starts to thin — Fishing the Midwest's fall weed-edge logic (find the remaining green, find the fish) applies here too. Catfish remain a steady bottom-bite option in deeper holes. Separately, NJ Fish & Wildlife News is asking anglers statewide to keep logging catch data this season to help shape future regulations.
Quabbin and Wachusett bass set up for the fall baitfish shift
No fresh buoy or gauge readings came through for Quabbin or Wachusett this cycle, so this update leans on seasonal pattern and this week's technique intel rather than a live number. Early September in central Massachusetts sits right at the edge of the fall transition — surface layers are still warm from summer but starting to lose heat overnight, which is exactly the window On The Water flags in its rundown of fall-transition baitfish patterns and Tactical Bassin covers in its September bass-fishing notes: bass push out toward baitfish schools and start feeding more aggressively as water cools, while topwater, crankbaits, and moving reaction baits start out-producing slow, deep presentations. Lake trout and landlocked salmon at Quabbin typically stay deep and comparatively unhurried until true turnover arrives, so don't expect them to fire yet. Check the state's current freshwater regulations before keeping anything, and always verify local conditions before launching.
Squid-fueled striper blitz keeps Cape Cod Bay anglers busy
The story out of the Canal right now is squid: On The Water's podcast crew described a massive concentration of shortfin squid pushing into the Cape Cod Canal and touching off one of the wildest striper blitzes of 2026, with 40- and 50-inch bass hammering squid in the current — soft plastics outfished traditional squid-pattern plugs. Cape Cod Bay proper should be feeling the edges of that same bait push as squid and peanut bunker funnel out of the back bays; Saltwater Edge in nearby Rhode Island is already reporting the same late-summer baitfish exodus triggering bonito and the first spanish mackerel. Further offshore, OTW Saltwater flagged a false albacore run building around Nantucket. No fresh buoy or gauge readings came in for this cycle, so check a live marine forecast before running out. With a Last Quarter moon overhead, expect moderate tidal push rather than the biggest swings of the month.
Squid blitz has stripers stacked in the Cape Cod Canal
A dense push of shortfin squid has turned the Cape Cod Canal into what On The Water's OTW Podcast called "the craziest striper blitz of 2026," with 40- and 50-inch bass annihilating squid in the current and soft plastics outfishing traditional squid-imitation plugs. That current is the headline story for Buzzards Bay and Vineyard Sound right now, with the Canal feeding bigger fish toward both ends. Out at Nantucket, OTW Saltwater reports anglers chasing outsized "buffalo" false albacore in rough water — a sign albies are working the outer edges of the Sound. To our south, Saltwater Edge Blog (RI) is already seeing bonito and the first Spanish mackerel mixed into baitfish pushed from the salt ponds, with albies expected any day — a pattern Vineyard Sound typically mirrors within a week or two. A rare barracuda turned up on Massachusetts water this week too, per On The Water, underscoring how warm the late-summer water has stayed.
Snapper-Amberjack Overlap Keeps Galveston Boats Offshore
Party boat action out of Galveston was "good" this week, per the Galveston Daily News' Reel Report, with red snapper and amberjack seasons overlapping this September — the Reel Report calls it one of the better windows all year to get offshore. Back in the bays, the same account described a picture-perfect weekend: light winds, flat bay water, and a calm surf that had anglers working everything from the beachfront to the back lakes. Down at the Lower Coast, Capt. Cliff Fleming reports live shrimp remain hard to come by at Port Isabel-area bait camps, with live croakers the more dependable option right now — worth knowing before a bait run south. The CCA Texas STAR Tournament wraps this Monday at 6 p.m., so leaderboard chasers have one last weekend to add a fish. Speckled trout and redfish stay the bay's bread-and-butter as the coast eases toward fall, per Texas Fish & Game Magazine's look at the region's brackish bite.
Warm Gulf pattern keeps trout and reds biting off Mobile Bay
NOAA buoy 42012 logged 86°F water and a light 4 m/s breeze (roughly 9 mph) this morning, putting Mobile Bay and the nearby Gulf squarely in late-summer conditions. Inshore, the approach mirrors what Sport Fishing Mag lays out for the wider Gulf Coast this time of year: larger plugs and live or cut bait like mullet, pogies, and croakers for trophy speckled trout, with redfish willing to eat a wide range of artificial lures worked around structure. Offshore, gag grouper remain a short-season target on Gulf reef structure, per Sport Fishing Mag's trolling report out of Florida's west coast — check current season dates before running out. One Pensacola Fishing Forum angler logged a rough 17-mile trip in building chop and boated a ling (cobia), a single, unverified catch worth watching rather than acting on as a trend.
Half Moon Bay bluefin blitz has Central Coast anglers watching
Central Coast buoys are reading 61–64°F this week (NOAA 46042, 46028, 46026), with light wind around 6–8 m/s — solid upwelling conditions typical of early September. The bigger story sits just up the coast: per Western Outdoor News — Saltwater, boats working out of Half Moon Bay are into an exploding bluefin tuna bite, with Captain John Marfia of Tanker City Sport Fishing recently boating six bluefin between 130 and 170 pounds, and other party and commercial boats blowing past what used to be considered a banner five-fish day. Farther south, the same source reports sea-surface temps near 80°F off San Clemente Island, with yellowfin, dorado, and yellowtail pushing as far north as Santa Cruz Island — a sign warm water is still working its way up the coast. Locally, expect steadier bottomfish action while that tuna window plays out to our north.
Bluefin Blitz Keeps Half Moon Bay Boats Busy
Buoy 46026 off San Francisco is reading 62°F this morning, with light 6-7 m/s winds across the outer waters — solid late-summer conditions for the offshore run. The headline story is bluefin: per Western Outdoor News — Saltwater, Half Moon Bay's bite has "exploded to unheard of levels," with Captain John Marfia of Tanker City Sport Fishing recently boating six bluefin between 130 and 170 pounds, and skippers now routinely topping the five-fish days that used to be rare. Inshore, striped bass, halibut, and rockfish remain the steady Bay Area staples this time of year, typically holding through early fall as water temps stay in the low 60s. No tide or gauge data came through this cycle, so pair any Half Moon Bay run with a check of the current tide charts before you head out. Winds stayed manageable at both offshore stations, keeping the door open for longer runs.
Buoy 10 chinook chatter builds as WA salmon season rolls on
No fresh buoy or gauge readings came through for this update, so today's picture leans on angler chatter and typical early-September patterns for Puget Sound and the Washington coast. The most concrete signal is unofficial: an IFish.net forum post from the Buoy 10 area near the Columbia mouth describes "HOT chinook action trolling solo" in roughly 22 feet of water just north of the green line — encouraging, but a single, uncorroborated report rather than a confirmed trend. Washington Sea Grant's latest posts lean conservation and program news (Clean Marina certifications, coastal cleanup totals, a September Skills and Drills course built around the commercial Dungeness crab fishery) rather than day-to-day catch data, and WDFW's fishing-report page describes its ongoing creel-survey and stocking program without a fresh regional catch summary attached this cycle. Typical for the calendar: chinook still working river-mouth structure while coho begin staging for the fall push, and rockfish holding as a steady bottom option. Treat all of that as seasonal expectation, not a verified bite, until better sourcing lands.
Albies and Bonito Ignite the Jersey Shore Fall Run
False albacore and Spanish mackerel are flooding the surf from Sandy Hook to Long Beach Island, with Grumpys Tackle (NJ) confirming the season's first "FAs" have shown up alongside bonito and Spanish mackerel, and OTW Northern New Jersey's Sept 3 report placing all three species in the wash from Sandy Hook south along with steady bluefish. Fluke remain the most dependable producer this week — The Fisherman — Central NJ reports bigger fish mixing in with the usual shorts as the season's final month plays out, with the reef bite holding steady. Offshore, The Fisherman — NJ/DE Offshore has good reports of yellowfin tuna, mahi, and tilefish out of Barnegat Light as the fall tuna bite builds toward its typical September-October peak. Along LBI, Fishermans HQ LBI (NJ) notes spearing, peanut bunker, and mullet stacking up in the surf and bay — the bait signal anglers watch before stripers push in behind it.
Weakfish Return to Delaware Bay as Flounder Bite Holds Steady
Weakfish are back along the Delaware Bay beaches this week after sitting out spring and summer entirely, with Hands Too Bait and Tackle in Cape May reporting fish to 24 inches on bloodworms and jigs worked into the evening. The EP Tower has been the standout, per Higbee's Bait and Tackle, with private boaters, party boats, and the charter fleet all finding croaker, bluefish, weakfish, tog, triggerfish, spot, and the occasional blowfish — and flounder action there has really picked up, with multiple boaters posting limits of keepers to 22 inches and pool fish to 25 inches. Elsewhere the picture is more mixed: Big Dave's Tackle says short flounder are feeding aggressively in the warm back bay on strip baits, Gulp, and minnows, while keeper-size fish are holding deeper near the inlet and reef sites. Croaker and spot remain thick on bloodworms and Fishbites along the surf, and sheepshead to 9 pounds are stacked on the rocks at Cold Spring Inlet.
Fall Transition Bass Patterns Take Shape on Eufaula and Red River
USGS gauge 07247500 logged a trickle-thin 2.39 cfs early Friday morning, underscoring how locked into late-summer lows regional flows remain heading into the second week of September. No direct on-the-water reports came in from Lake Eufaula or the Red River this cycle, but the broader Southern Plains bass scene is turning a corner: Tactical Bassin's fall-transition coverage flags moving baits — bladed swim jigs, topwater, and reaction baits — as bass push toward baitfish and feed more aggressively as water begins to cool, while Fishing the Midwest notes fish relocating toward the healthiest remaining green grass as summer weeds die back. Those same seasonal cues typically apply to Eufaula's flats and Red River backwater structure this time of year. Hybrid striper activity around current breaks should hold steady, catfish remain a dependable after-dark option on cut bait in the river channel, and crappie stay a patience game around docks and standing timber until nights cool further.
Catawba & Roanoke bass shift into fall mode as flows run thin
USGS gauge 02142900 logged just 0.38 cfs overnight, confirming how skinny the Catawba and Roanoke system has run through late summer — no temperature reading came through with this check, so treat water as typical warm early-September until a fresh number posts. Flow this low concentrates fish into deeper holes, current breaks, and shade, and narrows the water worth covering. We didn't get any shop or captain chatter specific to these rivers this cycle, but national coverage from Tactical Bassin and On The Water both flag the fall transition setting up now, with largemouth starting to push shallower on baitfish as days shorten — a pattern worth testing locally even though neither outlet reported from Catawba or Roanoke directly. Catfish are the safer low-water bet, working deep bends after dark. Crappie typically lag until water temps drop further. Check current flow before launching; skinny water changes what's passable and where fish are willing to sit.
Central MA bass hold to topwater as flows run low
Central Massachusetts bass water is running low and weedy, and Jerry's Bait and Tackle in Milford reports the typical back-to-school slowdown as fishing pressure eases — but largemouth bass are still producing on North Pond (Lake Maspenock) in Hopkinton and Lake Winthrop in Holliston, with topwater lures the top producer in the thin, grass-choked shallows. That matches what our gauges show: flow at USGS gauge 01105500 sits at just 7.42 cfs and gauge 01111500 at 32.5 cfs, both consistent with a dry late-summer stretch rather than any recent rain bump. Farther north on the Merrimack, Roger Aziz Jr. notes low water below the Essex Dam in Lawrence but says anglers above the dam are still contacting pike. With the Last Quarter moon overhead, expect the bite to stay concentrated around dawn and dusk feeding windows through the weekend.
Moosehead region holds steady as upper Penobscot runs low into fall
The upper Penobscot's USGS gauge (01030500) is reading a lean 42.5 cfs as of early Wednesday morning, a typical low-water stage for early September ahead of the fall rains that usually build the system back up. No fresh water-temperature reading came through this cycle, so this update leans on flow and calendar rather than a confirmed thermal picture for Moosehead Lake and the upper Penobscot corridor. Regional bass coverage from Tactical Bassin and Fishing the Midwest is already flagging the late-summer-to-fall transition further south and west, with fish pushing shallow onto docks and green weed edges as baitfish shift — a pattern that typically arrives on Maine smallmouth water on a similar clock. Lake trout and landlocked salmon, the region's marquee draws, should still be sitting on summer structure with low light your best window until nights cool further. Treat the species notes below as seasonal expectation rather than confirmed local reports this cycle — no charter, shop, or state feed on Moosehead itself came through today.
Kennebec and Penobscot bass ease into the fall transition
USGS gauge 01046500 in the Kennebec drainage logged a flow near 1,630 cfs in this morning's reading, with no water temperature reported this cycle. No Kennebec- or Penobscot-specific catch reports came through in today's angler intel, but the broader pattern lines up with a typical early-September shift: anglers elsewhere in New England are already seeing it move. Tactical Bassin's late-summer coverage notes docks and grass lines are still holding largemouth bass right up until the fall transition fully arrives, and Fishing the Midwest's fall notes point anglers toward the greenest, still-living weed edges as older growth dies back and baitfish relocate. On The Water's fall-transition roundup echoes the same shift toward chasing moving baitfish with reaction baits. We'd expect Maine's bass to follow the same script as nights cool, while brook trout fishing typically stays quieter until temperatures drop further.
Low flows keep North Shore salmon staging as fall run builds
The lone hard data point this cycle comes from USGS gauge 04015330, which logged a lean 18.5 cfs on September 5 — a low-water reading typical of a North Shore tributary sitting between rain events. No buoy or open-water temperature reading came through today. Low, clear flow like this in early September usually means Lake Superior's fall salmon run is still staging in the lake rather than pushing upstream: coho and Chinook typically hold and feed near river mouths until a rain pulse raises levels enough to draw them in, while lake trout keep working deeper structure as surface temps slide. Direct North Shore angler reports were thin in today's feed. The closest regional signal was WI DNR Lake Superior Fishing's note on Chequamegon Bay whitefish, which speaks to broader Lake Superior fishery interest but not specifically to North Shore conditions. We'd call this a staging week, not a running week, until flow comes up.
Hudson Valley Bass Hold Steady as Warm-Water Bite Rolls Into September
Flow on the Mohawk River is running near 767 cfs with water holding at 76°F this week (USGS gauge 01357500), while the Hudson gauge downstream at Waterford (01358000) shows a much heavier 4,140 cfs — enough to push feeding fish toward softer margins and eddies. Warm, stable water keeps Hudson Valley and Finger Lakes bass biting on classic late-summer patterns: per NY DEC's Fishing Line, black bass season activity has stayed strong as water temperatures climbed through summer, and panfish like bluegill and pumpkinseed remain easy targets in the shallows on hot afternoons. Elsewhere in New York, Brookdog Fishing Co.'s Lake Ontario-area reports describe walleye and smallmouth bass biting aggressively through late August, a signal that statewide warm-water species are still firing hard heading into September. Largemouth are starting to key on dock structure as noted by Tactical Bassin, an early tell of the fall transition to come.
Fall transition creeps in as TX bass and crappie shift patterns
Water is still running summer-warm across Texas lakes and rivers — our USGS gauge (08211200) reads 89°F with flow holding at a modest 92.4 cfs, a low, stable stage that isn't pushing any dramatic change yet. Texas Fish & Game Magazine's Lake Conroe report frames the season as 'Transition Time,' noting that fall doesn't arrive on Texas reservoirs all at once — September often still feels like mid-summer, with the real cooling-water shift for bass and crappie coming in stages rather than a single cold front. Nationally, Tactical Bassin's September bass coverage backs that pattern up: fish pouring onto docks as surrounding grass changes, and schooling fish keying hard on baitfish near open water as summer eases toward fall. Catfish remain a staple of Texas reservoirs and should stay active in water this warm, though we don't have a fresh Texas-specific catfish report this week to confirm bite quality. Expect a patchwork stretch on the water — some fish still holding summer structure, others starting to slide toward the docks and staging zones that mark the early fall pattern.