Fishing reports
14676 reports across all 50 states — current conditions and what's biting.
New moon tides set the tempo on the Oregon Coast
NOAA's CO-OPS station at South Beach (9435380) logged 52.3°F this week, a seasonal step down as Oregon's nearshore water heads into its fall cool phase. The new moon is widening the tidal swing: the next high at South Beach stacks up just after midnight, with the following low arriving around sunrise, and Garibaldi (station 9439040) runs roughly an hour behind on the same cycle. Bigger spring-tide exchanges like this push more water through the bars and jetties on a tighter schedule, which is the main variable worth planning around this week.
Florida Keys fishing turns the seasonal corner as fall settles in
Water temps in the Keys are still running summer-warm, with NOAA CO-OPS buoys reading 86.2°F at Key West (station 8724580) and 87.3°F at Vaca Key (station 8723970) this morning. ALL IN Key West reports the season is turning, with the captain noting the heat of summer is "finally starting to break" after taking September off the water. That cooler-air shift typically nudges Keys gamefish into more consistent feeding windows as the water column cools from the surface down.
Yellowtail Push Keeps SoCal Boats Busy as Fall Settles In
Western Outdoor News — Saltwater reports the crew aboard the half-day boat Daily Double, running out of Point Loma, crushed yellowtail this past week while wrapping up a strong season, a sign the bite is still firing even as the calendar turns toward fall. NOAA's coastal tide stations are reading 76.3°F and 70.9°F, a split between warmer nearshore water and cooler conditions just offshore that's typical for this stretch of October. Today's new moon is widening the tidal swing, with low tide near 3:10 a.m. and the next high filling in by roughly 9:20 a.m., both read directly off NOAA CO-OPS stations.
NorCal anglers eye new-moon tides as coastal water cools
Water sampled at the region's two tracked stations overnight came in nearly nine degrees apart — 47.8°F at one gauge, 56.5°F at the other — a split that lines up with cool upwelling holding on the outer coast while enclosed water runs warmer behind it. That gap lands in the middle of a new moon week, when tidal exchange is at its strongest and current lines tend to sharpen around the turns. Western Outdoor News — Saltwater reports steady offshore action building farther up the California coast this week, one more sign that the fall transition is underway across Northern California water generally.
Black sea bass and bluefish keep biting as Bay shakes off the blow
Water in the bay reads 66.7°F per NOAA CO-OPS station 8570283, a reading that still supports an active fall bite over structure. Reports from The Fisherman — DE/MD/Chesapeake show boats working ocean structure coming back with black sea bass mixed in among flounder, while bluefish worked metal lures during the incoming tide. Elsewhere in the region, wind kept most boats and surf anglers off the water entirely through a stretch of rough seas.
Outer Banks red drum running strong into the fall surf bite
Water temps are holding at 74.3°F at the Beaufort NOAA station, and red drum are the story up and down the North Carolina coast this week. Nathan at East Coast Sports in Topsail/Sneads Ferry reports a run of slot-sized red drum in the surf and off the piers, with some over-slot fish mixed in. On the Pamlico/Neuse, Donald of Custom Marine Fabrication says red drum are the main focus, with fish showing throughout the river wherever bait has stacked up. Down at Swansboro/Emerald Isle, Morgan of The Reel Outdoors reports scattered red drum working the beachfront, with bluefish also in the mix. Red drum carry extra weight on this coast as North Carolina's official state saltwater fish, and right now they're earning that title, per Fisherman's Post.
Mississippi Sound clears after Isaias as snapper season closes
Water temperatures across Mississippi Sound held in the mid-70s this morning, 74.1°F at CO-OPS station 8747437 and 76.8°F at station 8741533, as the Sound dries out after Hurricane Isaias forced MDMR's Biloxi licensing office to shut down Oct. 9 (it reopens Monday, Oct. 12, per MS DMR). The bigger story for anyone planning a trip is regulatory, not biological: per MS DMR, Mississippi's state recreational red snapper season closed for the year at 11:59 p.m. on Sept. 27, and no red snapper may be landed or possessed in state waters for the rest of 2026.
New moon swings open bigger tide windows on the Central Coast
Port San Luis is reading 66.4°F this morning and Monterey Bay 64.6°F, and today's new moon is driving a stronger spring-tide exchange across the Central Coast. Low water lands near 4 AM at both stations (3:57 AM at Port San Luis, 4:27 AM at Monterey), building into a late-morning high near 10 AM, a noticeably wider swing than typical quarter-moon tides. That bigger push moves bait through the kelp edges and rocky points that define this stretch, and the two hours around each tide change are typically the strongest current window. Surface temps in the mid-60s keep both sites solidly in their early-fall pattern, still carrying summer warmth ahead of the seasonal cooldown.
Gulf of Alaska tides swing wide under new moon as water cools
NOAA CO-OPS readings put Gulf of Alaska water at 48.4°F and 47.3°F across our two tracked tide stations this cycle, continuing the fall cooldown. Tonight's new moon is widening the tidal range toward its monthly peak: both stations show predawn high water, 2:52 a.m. local at one station and 1:28 a.m. at the other, with lows following by mid-morning, 8:46 a.m. and 7:22 a.m. respectively. That combination, bigger swings stacked on predawn highs, is the standout signal this cycle.
Columbia River flows run high as early fall transition begins
The Columbia River's Cascade Locks reach is running high for early October: a USGS gauge (site 14105700) logged 90,500 cfs and 65°F as of Wednesday evening. That combination, heavier flow riding on water that hasn't fully cooled yet, marks the hinge point between late-summer and fall patterns across Columbia and Puget Sound river systems this week.
Kennebec holds steady flow as Maine's fall cooldown begins
The Kennebec gauge near its headwaters is holding a steady, seasonally normal flow this week, with no sign of a recent freshet or sharp drawdown. Early October on Maine's cold-water rivers typically marks the start of the fall cooldown, when water temperatures move toward the ranges that trigger more active feeding ahead of winter. This week's new moon keeps nights darker, which tends to push low-light feeding activity later into the dusk and dawn windows.
Fall turnover takes hold across Rangeley Lakes and Androscoggin headwaters
The USGS gauge on the Androscoggin headwaters near Rangeley is reading a low, typical early-fall discharge, with no temperature reading available this cycle. Mainely Fly Fishing's season-ending report notes another dry summer across northern New England, part of what the blog calls an increasingly California-like pattern for the region's water years. That same blog's fall preview flagged trout already showing spawning colors as days shorten — a seasonal cue, not a specific stream report, but consistent with where Rangeley-area water sits heading into mid-October.
Moosehead's cold-water bite gears up as flows settle into fall rhythm
Flow on the USGS gauge feeding the upper Penobscot drainage near Moosehead is running low for mid-October, consistent with the watershed settling into its typical fall base-flow stage after the summer boating season wound down. The New Moon this week sharpens low-light feeding windows, favoring dawn and dusk trips over the middle of the day as water temperatures continue their seasonal slide toward turnover.
Cooling flows set up a fall shift on the Green River
Green River flows are showing real spread this week. USGS gauge 09234500 reads 51°F on 2,180 cfs, a notably cooler reach than gauge 09261000's 60°F on 2,540 cfs just downstream. A Uinta Lakes site (USGS 404417108524900) holds a steady 55°F with no flow reading, consistent with still water this time of year. That nine-degree swing across one drainage is the story: the cooler stretch is holding its fall pattern while the warmer reach has yet to fully turn over, and the lake sits right in between.
Dam release keeps Green River tailwater running cold and steady
Flows on the Green River tailwater below Flaming Gorge Dam held steady at 2,180 cfs with water at 51°F as of October 9 (USGS gauge 09234500) — the classic cold bottom-release signature this stretch is known for, even as the calendar moves into mid-October. Downstream at the Jensen gauge the river had warmed to 60°F on a comparable 2,540 cfs (USGS gauge 09261000), and reservoir water near the dam sat at 55°F (USGS gauge 404417108524900).
Kaw River running high and stained as fall pattern sets in
Two Kansas River mainstem gauges (USGS 06892518 and 06892350) are reading 22,600 and 22,200 cfs, with water temperature holding at 71°F at both sites as of late Tuesday night into early Wednesday. A third gauge on a smaller tributary (USGS 06893100) tells a different story: flow down at just 8.75 cfs and temperature a touch cooler at 67°F, running low and comparatively clear while the mainstem stays bulked up and likely carrying color. That contrast between big water and small water is the story for Kansas and Arkansas River anglers this week.
Walleye Anglers Eye Western Basin's Fall Cool-Down
USGS gauges feeding Lake Erie's Western Basin are reading 62 to 63 degrees this week: the Maumee River at Waterville (04193500) running near 1,280 cfs, the Tiffin River (04192500) near 1,210 cfs, and the Portage River (04198000) at a low 85.8 cfs. Flows are steady rather than runoff-swollen, which keeps water quality workable heading into the fall walleye window. Fishing the Midwest points to the bottom-bouncer-and-crawler "plain rig" as a dependable fall walleye approach region-wide, a pattern worth keeping in the rotation as these watersheds continue cooling toward the lake's seasonal turnover.
Fall Cool-Down Signals Shift Across Cumberland Region Waters
Across the Cumberland region's stream gauges this week, water temperatures are split: USGS gauge 03433500 reads 68°F on light flow (39.7 cfs), gauge 03431514 logged a comparatively warm 74°F, and gauge 034324146 sits at 69°F. A fourth gauge (03434500) downstream is running higher at 80.6 cfs. That six-degree spread across gauges in the same watershed shows fall cooling landing unevenly right now, with some stretches still holding summer-range water.
Cooling Saginaw Bay tributaries dial in fall walleye bite
A Saginaw Bay-area tributary gauge (USGS 04157005) logged 61 degree water and 451 cfs of flow Friday night, putting the system into the fall transition anglers watch for. Fishing the Midwest's Mike Frisch flags his "plain rig" — a bottom bouncer weight, plain snell and nightcrawler — as his go-to once water settles into this range, working the same bottom structure walleye hold on through the rest of fall. It is a slower, bottom-contact presentation that tends to outfish faster gear as water cools.
Wind River flows drop and cool for a classic fall trout bite window
Water is settling into a clean fall pattern across the Wind River gauge network. USGS gauge 06258000 is reading 9.32 cfs at 55°F, gauge 06253000 shows 115 cfs at 56°F, and the larger downstream reach at gauge 06236100 is running 350 cfs at 60°F. That's a tight band in the mid-50s to low-60s, the range where rainbow and brown trout typically stay active without the metabolic drag of summer heat.
Ohio river temps split as fall walleye bite builds
Ohio's river gauges are telling two different stories this week. USGS gauge 03274000 on the Great Miami River reads 66°F with flow pushing 1,950 cfs, while gauge 03242350 nearby holds warmer at 70°F with no flow reading on file. Upstream, gauge 03240000 shows a cooler 58°F on a lean 67.2 cfs, a noticeably different thermal signature from the lower basin. Per Fishing the Midwest's Mike Frisch, fall walleye are turning on as water cools, with the 'plain rig,' a bottom bouncer, snell, and nightcrawler, working as a go-to producer this time of year, alongside a bladed swim jig for mixed-species days.
Salt River chain splits warm and cool as fall settles in
Water temperatures are splitting across the Salt River chain this week. The upper river near Roosevelt Lake is reading a cool 57°F (USGS gauge 09497830), while the lower Salt River chain runs noticeably warmer at 67°F with flow holding at 147 cfs (USGS gauge 09510000). A third chain gauge near the Pinal Creek confluence shows the highest volume of the three readings, 325 cfs (USGS gauge 09498500). That spread, a cool upper stretch against a milder lower chain, tracks the normal pattern of fall cooling working its way downstream through the system.
Fall Transition Takes Hold on Lake Eufaula and Red River
USGS gauges across the Lake Eufaula and Red River drainages are holding at 73°F this morning, with flows running low: 07335700 reads 0 cfs, 07247500 sits at 3.05 cfs, and 07198000 is at 180 cfs. That tracks with the fall transition a B.A.S.S. News report from an Oklahoma-based writer described this week. Hurricane Polo's late-September rain cooled area waters 6 to 10 degrees after a long dry stretch, and the piece notes fish are starting to shift off deep summer haunts toward shallower water as the season turns. With flows this thin, any current break in the moving-water sections is worth more attention than the open lake basin right now.
Delta channels cool into fall as Sacramento outflow stays strong
USGS gauges across the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta are reading in the upper-60s to 70°F this week, with one tidally influenced channel gauge logging a slight reverse flow of -107 cfs and the lower Sacramento River system still pushing well over 12,800 cfs through the system. That volume of moving water, paired with new moon tides this week, means strong exchange through the Delta's channels and sloughs. Water in the high 60s to low 70s sits right at the edge of the fall transition, cool enough to start waking up cold-water appetite without having fully turned over yet.