Fishing reports
16851 reports across all 50 states — current conditions and what's biting.
Kennebec-Penobscot bass and salmon eye a late-summer turn
The Kennebec and Penobscot watershed's USGS gauge (01046500) logged a flow of 1,450 cfs early this morning, with no fresh water-temperature reading available and the moon sitting at waning gibbous. No Maine-specific catch reports came through our sources this cycle, so this outlook leans on regional patterns and season-typical behavior. Elsewhere in New England, The Fisherman's freshwater column describes smallmouth bass still hitting topwater at dawn and dusk and largemouth holding on senko-style plastics as summer winds down — a pattern that typically extends onto Maine's warmwater stretches too. Landlocked salmon should become more catchable on trolled streamers as surface water cools into fall, while brook trout activity typically stays slow through the tail end of summer heat before picking back up. Check current Maine fishing regs before harvesting, and expect the bite to firm up as nights cool.
Terrestrial Bite Keeps Smokies Tailwater Trout Locked In
USGS gauge 03565000 wasn't reporting flow or temperature at this writing, so treat generation schedules as the wildcard for both the Hiwassee and Caney Fork this week. Regionally, though, the seasonal signal is loud and clear: late-August terrestrials are the story on trout water everywhere. Caddis Fly (OR) just ran a feature on the "Sloshed Ant," a jigged sunken ant pattern built for trout keyed in on terrestrials as summer winds down — a searching-fly approach that translates directly to tailwater riffles and seams here. Hatch Magazine's terrestrial countdown out of Yellowstone confirms the same calendar cue: hopper-and-ant season typically holds through early September before cooling nights shut it off. On the subsurface side, Gink and Gasoline's reminder that San Juan worms produce consistently after high water and generation pulses is worth carrying in the box for whenever generation flows spike. No direct Hiwassee or Caney Fork reports came through this cycle — fish the moon phase and the terrestrial window until local intel firms up.
Iron Range muskies steal the spotlight as summer patterns shift
A 50-inch muskie landed on Vermilion Lake headlines this week's Iron Range report, per Wired 2 Fish — a pair of Northeast Minnesota anglers hooked the fish while chartering a guide to learn the lake's deep, clear-water structure, a solid sign that late-August muskie fishing remains strong across the region. USGS gauge 05129115 shows flow holding near 58 cfs, a stable read heading into the weekend. Walleye anglers are turning to forward-facing sonar to relocate fish that have moved off traditional bottom structure, per Fishing the Midwest's Mike Frisch, who notes anglers are finding walleyes suspending in places "we didn't used to look." Expect smallmouth bass to stay active on rocky points and panfish to hold typical late-summer patterns — deeper by day, shallower at dawn and dusk — across Boundary Waters lakes. We're seeing conditions favor mobile, search-based approaches over anchoring on old spots.
Merrimack Smallmouth Stay Red-Hot Into Labor Day Weekend
Smallmouth bass action remains excellent along the Merrimack River's Lowell-to-Lawrence stretch and into the Hooksett, New Hampshire, section, according to Roger Aziz Jr.'s latest roundup via The Fisherman — New England Freshwater. That's a strong signal for the Merrimack corridor heading into the holiday weekend. Direct Lake Winnipesaukee reports weren't part of this cycle's intel, so anglers there should lean on typical late-August patterns: smallmouth still active around rocky points and ledges, largemouth bass tightening up to weed edges as the post-spawn pattern fully settles in, and lake trout and landlocked salmon beginning to push deeper toward the thermocline as afternoon surface temps hold warm. A regional USGS gauge (01073500) shows a stable, low late-summer base flow near 9 cfs; no water-temperature reading came through this cycle, and no buoy data applies to freshwater NH. Expect the Merrimack smallmouth bite to hold steady through the week, with the best windows around dawn and dusk.
Sacramento Delta stripers and cats hold steady into early fall transition
The USGS gauge at Freeport (11447650) logged the Sacramento River at 69°F and roughly 17,900 cfs Saturday evening, conditions that are fairly typical for the lower Delta heading into early fall. Direct Delta-specific angler reports weren't available in today's source pull, so this update leans on seasonal patterns for the system rather than fresh testimony: late August into early September on the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta typically keeps striped bass, largemouth bass, and channel catfish feeding through warm afternoons and pushing into shallower water at low light, while white sturgeon activity tends to be slower through the warmest stretch of summer and usually builds as water continues to cool. Flows in the high-teens-thousands cfs range keep the main channels well-oxygenated with decent current for drift presentations. Expect a typical late-summer pattern of shade-and-structure fishing through the heat of the day, and check current California fishing regulations before harvesting any species, since Delta rules vary by water and season.
Buoy 10 chatter hints at hot Chinook action on the Columbia
USGS gauge 14105700 on the Columbia River logged 108,000 cfs and a 71°F water temperature as of Friday evening (Aug. 29), conditions on the warm side heading into the heart of fall Chinook season. Angler chatter is thin this cycle, but one report via IFish.net Fishing Reports out near Buoy 10 described "HOT chinook action trolling solo," a promising early signal for the stretch where the river meets the ocean — though it's a single account, not yet corroborated elsewhere, so treat it as one boat's good day rather than a confirmed pattern. Sturgeon anglers should note the elevated flow, which typically redistributes fish along deeper holes and can make bank presentations less consistent than normal. With water still sitting in the low 70s, expect salmon to hold tighter to cooler current seams and deeper water through the warmest part of the day.
Truckee Trout Turn to Crayfish and Mayflies as Cooling Sets In
Guide Aden Breckner's latest On-the-Water Report from Reno Fly Shop calls for Truckee River water temperatures to drop over the next several days, a shift expected to sharpen the bite after a slow bug hatch. Fish are keying on crayfish patterns and mayfly imitations early in the day on both the California and Nevada sides, per the shop. Carp fishing has also been strong for shop clients working urban water near Reno, though that's on the Nevada side of the drainage. In the high country, Reno Fly Shop's season primer on Heenan Lake off Highway 89 near Markleeville flags California Department of Fish and Wildlife's annual Lahontan cutthroat trout stocking at the gated, no-frills lake — a low-pressure alternative to Pyramid Lake water. Live USGS flow and temperature telemetry for gauge 10265200 wasn't reporting this cycle, so treat the cooling trend as directional rather than exact.
High water pushes Driftless browns toward streamer bites
USGS gauge 05407000 is reading 3,650 cfs today, a notably high flow for these Driftless Area limestone spring creeks, with no live water-temp reading available yet. High, often off-color water is streamer water, and that lines up with what Root River Rod Co. is running right now — per MidCurrent's Tying Tuesday roundup, their go-to Driftless pattern is a pine-squirrel jig streamer built to bounce the rocky bottom of the region's tight, technical spring creeks without hanging up. Terrestrials still have a role once flows settle: Caddis Fly Shop notes sunken ant and other subsurface terrestrial patterns remain a strong searching option late in the summer as surface hatches taper off. We're watching for flow to ease back toward a more typical wading stage before the dry-fly window fully reopens. Under a waning gibbous moon, low-light hours are the higher-percentage window for pressured, spooky Driftless browns right now.
Rainy River walleyes settle into late-summer current pattern
USGS gauge 05133500 logged 74°F water and 4,420 cfs of flow on the Rainy River late Saturday night, conditions consistent with a normal late-summer stretch on this system. Fishing the Midwest's recent technique coverage still favors live-bait rigs — leeches and crawlers worked slow along current seams — alongside controlled crankbait trolling and forward-facing sonar for locating walleyes that have moved off the classic bottom-and-structure spots anglers used to count on. Smallmouth bass remain a solid target on rock and current breaks as water begins its slow late-summer cool-down, and muskie anglers statewide have reason for optimism — Wired 2 Fish reported a 50-inch fish out of northeastern Minnesota's Vermillion Lake this month, a sign big fish are actively feeding. We're not seeing Lake of the Woods- or Rainy River-specific bite reports in this intel cycle, so treat the species notes below as seasonally grounded rather than confirmed on-the-water testimony.
High water keeps Missouri River cats feeding as Ozark bass slide deep
The USGS gauge on the Missouri River near Hermann is running hot and full — 82°F and roughly 51,000 cfs as of Saturday night, more late-July than late-August. That kind of warm, high water pushes smallmouth bass in the clearer Ozark tributaries off the banks and onto deeper points and ledges, the exact structure Field & Stream's rundown of Carolina-rig fishing calls out as the go-to pattern once bass slide past 10 feet. Catfish, by contrast, tend to feed harder when current picks up, working seams and eddies the high flow creates. Largemouth are still riding a summer pattern too: Tactical Bassin's late-summer video warns anglers not to keep fishing yesterday's spots as the fall transition nears, pointing toward low-light buzzbait and topwater windows instead. No Missouri-specific angler reports came through this week's feeds, so treat species behavior here as seasonal generalization rather than an on-the-water account.
Low, clear South Platte and Arkansas tailwaters reward small flies
USGS gauge 06701900 is holding at a lean 110 cfs this week, consistent with the drought Pat Dorsey Fly Fishing described in its "Drought Update," which ranks 2026 among Colorado's worst water years on record. Cutthroat Anglers echoes that theme, noting historic-low snowpack has concentrated fish into fewer holding lies — a workable edge for anglers willing to fish carefully around spooky, skinny water. On the South Platte's Dream Stream, Colorado Trout Hunters reports one of the better recent runs of reservoir-origin browns and rainbows, best approached with a stealthy presentation given the reduced flows. AvidMax's Fly Tying Tuesday lineup — the Titan Tube Midge, Jigged CDC PT Tungsten, and Chocolate Foam Back — points toward small, natural profiles as the standard under clear tailwater conditions, with an ABC Leech pattern worth a swing through slower runs. Browns and rainbows remain the primary targets, with whitefish rounding out the catch.
Late-summer walleye transition sets up on Mille Lacs
Conditions data for Mille Lacs Lake is thin this cycle — the available gauge reading (USGS 05227530) is a flow station showing 0 cfs and no water temperature, and none of today's angler-intel feeds carry a Mille Lacs-specific or Minnesota walleye report. We're not able to confirm a specific bite pattern from today's sources, so anglers should lean on local bearings and recent personal experience rather than this feed for today's exact pattern. Late August into early September on Mille Lacs is typically a transition window: walleyes begin sliding off summer mud and deep structure toward classic fall staging areas as surface temps ease down, with jigging and live-bait rigging techniques regaining favor as forward-facing sonar era anglers relearn structure-based basics, a shift touched on generally by Fishing the Midwest this season regarding walleye technique trends. Check current Mille Lacs-specific reports before heading out.
Low water pushes Delaware bass into thick cover
USGS gauge 01493500 is reading an exceptionally thin 3.04 cfs as of early Saturday morning, underscoring the drought-stressed, low-flow stretch running through Delaware's Christina and Nanticoke watersheds this week. No shop or captain filed a report specific to either river in this week's feeds, but nearby freshwater intel from the state offers a reasonable read on what to expect locally: per The Fisherman — NJ/DE Freshwater, Smith's Bait and Tackle in Leipsic is seeing good topwater largemouth activity in and around vegetation, while panfish and perch are stacking up in the spillways at Garrisons Lake, Massey Mills, and Silver Lake. Allen's Dock, also reporting for Delaware freshwater, noted the recent heat has kept a lot of anglers off the water even though the fishing itself has stayed fair. With skinny flows and warm water statewide, expect Christina and Nanticoke bass, catfish, and panfish holding tight to shade and cover, feeding mainly in the low-light dawn and dusk windows until conditions ease.
Coosa and Tennessee River bass ease toward the fall transition
USGS gauge 02339500 logged river flow at 769 cfs overnight, holding in a steady, typical range for the Tennessee and Coosa systems as late August wears toward the fall transition. No fresh water-temp reading came through on this gauge, but stable flow like this usually means bass stay locked into late-summer positioning rather than getting scattered by a fresh pulse of water. Tactical Bassin notes that reservoir bass this time of year are splitting time between shallow points early and deeper offshore structure once the sun gets up, working topwater and finesse jigs through the transition, and the same outlet's late-summer rundown flags that anglers still fishing the spots that worked a month ago are the ones getting left behind as fish reposition. Field & Stream's Carolina rig breakdown is a solid go-to for probing river ledges and points past the ten-foot mark. Hybrid stripers should firm up more as flows and temps ease toward September.
Colorado River Anglers Face Voluntary Closures as Heat Persists
USGS gauge 09095500 put the Colorado River at 70°F with flow near 1,570 cfs in its latest read, a mark that crosses the line Cutthroat Anglers has been warning about all summer: stop fishing once water hits 68°F. Crystal Fly Shop's current report confirms it — CPW has a voluntary full-day closure in place on the Colorado River near Glenwood Springs, alongside afternoon and full-day closures now running on the Roaring Fork and Crystal River. Pat Dorsey's drought update calls 2026 possibly the worst water year on record for the state, and Cutthroat Anglers' low-water coverage says the same: flows are historically thin and fish have pulled into scattered cool-water refuges. None of that means the season is dead — Cutthroat Anglers notes fish that remain are grouped up and still willing to eat for anglers who hike a little farther or fish a little lighter, but the mainstem here needs a rest until temperatures ease.
South Fork cutthroat key on terrestrials as summer flow holds steady
The USGS gauge on the South Fork (site 13037500) logged flow at 10,500 cfs late Friday night, a steady late-summer stage that's kept the river wadeable through the classic riffle-and-run stretches below Palisades. No water-temperature reading came through this cycle, but with days shortening into September, cutthroat and rainbow trout typically key hard on terrestrials — hoppers, ants, and beetles blown onto the film — a pattern Hatch Magazine's ongoing 'Yellowstone terrestrial countdown' has been tracking across the wider Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem this month, reinforced by Caddis Fly (OR)'s note this week on sunken-ant patterns working as fish key in tight to structure late in the season. Whitefish continue working subsurface lanes as usual. Idaho's trout fishery is drawing headlines elsewhere too — Outdoor Hub reported a new 44-inch catch-and-release lake trout record at Payette Lake, a sign the state's trout scene is running hot statewide, even if that fish came from different water than the South Fork.
Kansas River catfish and white bass settle into late-summer rhythm
USGS gauge 06892350 on the Kansas River logged 83°F water and roughly 3,810 cfs of flow overnight into Friday, numbers that put the system squarely in typical late-August form for this stretch. Warm water like this favors channel catfish, which feed most aggressively after dark and through low-light hours as the heat lingers into early fall. White bass should still be schooling on baitfish in current seams below riffles, a pattern that holds through late summer on Midwest rivers. Bass fishing is tougher at midday; Tactical Bassin's recent late-summer coverage recommends working shallow points early with topwater or a finesse jig before fish slide deeper as the sun climbs, then targeting suspended fish off structure once temperatures peak. Fishing the Midwest notes that as weeds and shallow cover thin heading toward fall, baitfish and gamefish begin relocating to the healthiest remaining green growth — worth watching on any weedy backwater sections.
NH smallmouth signal points up as Winnipesaukee eyes early-fall shift
Smallmouth bass are still firing across New Hampshire's rivers this week — per The Fisherman — New England Freshwater, action along the Merrimack River's Hooksett stretch remains excellent, a useful regional signal for how bronzebacks are likely behaving lake-wide as summer winds down. Direct reports out of Winnipesaukee itself weren't part of this week's intel pull, so we're leaning on that nearby read plus a USGS flow check (324 cfs, no temperature reading available this cycle) to round out the picture. Late August on Winnipesaukee typically has smallmouth and largemouth holding tight to rocky points and remaining weed growth as the lake begins its slow cool-down, with lake trout still deep near the thermocline and landlocked salmon anglers starting to watch for the early-fall temperature break. The waning gibbous moon favors low-light dawn and dusk bites this week.
Late-Summer Bass Patterns Shift on Texoma and Eufaula
USGS gauge 07331600 logged flow near 1,160 cfs Saturday night, a stable read that points to normal late-August water levels feeding the Texoma and Eufaula systems. No direct catch reports came in from either lake this week, but the seasonal outlook lines up with what bass anglers are seeing nationwide: per Tactical Bassin, fish are splitting time between shallow flats and depths past 40 feet as summer transitions toward fall, with topwater and finesse presentations producing early and mid-day. Fishing the Midwest notes weed-line edges holding baitfish and gamefish as shallower cover starts to thin — a pattern worth checking on main-lake points at both reservoirs. Striped bass, long the marquee draw at Texoma, should be staging for their fall push; blue catfish remain a dependable deep-water target. We're watching for the first cold fronts to trigger a faster bite.
Late-summer bass bite holds steady across East Texas reservoirs
Lake Fork Trophy Bass's August update calls lake levels "in good shape" despite weeks of 100-degree heat, with plenty of cover keeping bass active — a pattern Toledo Bend and Sam Rayburn anglers are likely feeling too as regional reservoirs absorb the same heat load. The nearby USGS gauge (08030500) logged flow at 672 cfs late Friday into Saturday night, a steady, unremarkable read for this point in summer. Tactical Bassin's late-August coverage backs up the shallow-to-deep split anglers are working elsewhere: early low-light bites on topwater and finesse jigs around shallow points, sliding progressively deeper as the sun climbs. Field & Stream's rundown of the Carolina rig is a solid reminder for East Texas anglers working flat points and ledges in 10-plus feet once the morning shallow bite fades. Lone Star Outdoor News flagged urchin-style soft plastics as the gear story of the summer at ICAST — worth a look if standard jigs and worms have gone quiet. Largemouth remain the headline species; catfish and crappie stay serviceable options in deeper water through the heat.
Deschutes redsides shift to terrestrial patterns as summer winds down
No fresh readings came back from USGS gauge 14070500 this cycle, and none of today's angler-intel feeds carried reports specific to the Deschutes or Upper Klamath systems, so this update leans on typical late-August patterns for the region rather than fresh, source-attributed intel. Historically, Deschutes redsides key on caddis and PMD emergers in early light this time of year, sliding into hopper and ant patterns as the water warms through the afternoon — standard late-summer behavior for this fishery. On the Upper Klamath side, rainbow and brown trout fishing on the Wood and Williamson typically gets tougher as warm-water stress and algae build through late summer, with better action concentrated at dawn and dusk. Kokanee trolling on area reservoirs usually holds steady into early fall. We'd check current state and local shop reports before heading out, since we don't have verified conditions data for this cycle.
Late-summer transition sets up shallow-to-deep bass moves on OH reservoirs
Flow at USGS gauge 03110000 is holding steady around 105 cfs as of early Thursday morning, a normal late-August read for the watersheds feeding Ohio's inland reservoir system, including Mosquito and Pymatuning. Regional bass coverage from Tactical Bassin points to the seasonal fall transition opening up, with buzzbaits producing better as topwater feeding windows stretch into early and late light and shallow points still worth a look before the day heats up. Field & Stream's late-summer breakdown backs a slow-dragged Carolina rig worked along clean-bottom points and ledges in 10-plus feet for bass holding on structure. Fishing the Midwest flags green, living weed growth as the key variable for panfish and gamefish location right now — as weeds die back through fall, fish should consolidate on whatever healthy cover remains. Muskie activity, a signature draw at Pymatuning, typically builds toward its best window as water cools into fall.
Late-summer bass bite holds as Colorado, Salt rivers run high
USGS gauge 09380000 logged flow at 8,770 cfs and water temp at 71°F as of Saturday evening, a notably elevated flow for late August that likely means stained water and stronger current seams below any dam releases. No angler reports specific to Arizona's Colorado or Salt River systems came through this cycle, so species behavior below leans on typical late-summer patterns rather than local testimony. National bass coverage from Tactical Bassin this week emphasizes not slowing down as summer turns to fall — working shallow points early with topwater and buzzbaits before sliding deeper as the sun climbs, then targeting bass keying on baitfish schools. That approach should translate reasonably well to warm, high-flow bass water like this. Catfish typically feed well in stained, moving water with bait worked in current seams. Smallmouth tend to slow when flows run this high and water stays warm. Check state regs before harvesting.
High water keeps Upper Mississippi walleyes off the bottom near Clinton-Dubuque
The USGS gauge on the Upper Mississippi at Clinton (05420500) logged 78-degree water pushing 30,800 cfs late Friday night, well above a typical late-August baseflow for this stretch and a sign the Clinton-to-Dubuque pools are still running high off recent rain. No captain, shop, or state report specific to this pool crossed our feeds this week, so we're leaning on general Upper Midwest patterns rather than local testimony. Fishing the Midwest notes many walleye anglers are increasingly working suspended fish with forward-facing sonar rather than assuming bottom-only location — worth trying if wing dams and current seams aren't producing along bottom right now. The same outlet's late-summer notes suggest smallmouth and panfish push toward the healthiest remaining green weed growth as water starts its seasonal cool-down. Elevated, pushy flow like this typically favors channel catfish while putting walleye and sauger into a bit of a holding pattern until current settles.