Fishing reports
14939 reports across all 50 states — current conditions and what's biting.
Sea bass running hot on NJ drops as fall fish fill in
Water reads 67°F at NOAA CO-OPS station 8537121, and this week's reports point at the bottom bite. Capt Ron's Atlantic Highlands NJ says sea bass fishing has been 'very good all day', with keepers for everyone aboard and fluke up to 4 pounds on a recent charter. Blue Chip Sportfishing (NJ) reports sea bass charters doing very good, with most trips filling the boat. Fishermans HQ LBI (NJ) credits live baitfish for false albacore, with fluke also in the mix. Fishermans HQ LBI (NJ) reported on October 1 that the surf is settling after a storm that brought big waves, flooding and erosion, and that the post-storm fall fishing is good. OTW Northern New Jersey flags lingering bluefish and false albacore, with a fall striper push still ahead.
Big offshore fish keep the Southern California Bight on the move
Water is running warm for early October. Station 9410170 reads 77.5°F, and station 9410230 is 6.6 degrees cooler at 70.9°F, a split worth weighing when choosing where to fish. Western Outdoor News reports offshore action across the Bight, including the Northern Channel Islands, with the bite described as the best in years. Its San Diego report also says at least three fish over 400 pounds were landed in the past two weeks. These are captain reports relayed by the outlet, not agency counts.
Bait runs are pulling redfish to the beach as fall sets in
Gulf water is still summer warm. NOAA's Pensacola station (CO-OPS 8729840) read 81.9°F at 7:30 AM EDT, and the Panama City and Apalachicola stations both read 80.4°F. The clearest angler signal this week is redfish. Coastal Angler Magazine reports a redfish caught off Vilano Beach during a bait run that, in the report's words, "brought a bunch of oversize bulls to the beach." Vilano is on the northeast coast, so read it as how redfish behave when bait moves in, not as a Panhandle report. That makes the bait-run pattern the one to test first.
Fall tides set the afternoon window on Puget Sound and Pacific
NOAA CO-OPS station 9443090 read 53°F water at 4:30 AM PDT today, with predicted tides near 11 AM (high) and 4:45 PM (low). That reading is the most concrete conditions data we have for the region this morning, so the tide timing is the best planning tool for the day.
Redfish catches lead as Gulf water holds summer heat
Gulf water is still summer-warm for early October. NOAA CO-OPS station 8735180 read 82°F at 6:30 a.m. local, and station 8736897 read 80.8°F at the same time. That warmth keeps the bite tied to moving water more than to the calendar. The only angler intel this week is from Coastal Angler Magazine, where one reader posted a redfish catch and another posted a snook taken in Naples. Both photos came from Florida, so read them as regional signal, not a Mobile Bay report.
Summer-warm Gulf water holds the early October window open
Gulf water is still running summer-warm: NOAA CO-OPS station 8725520 read 86°F and station 8727520 read 82.2°F, both at 7:30 a.m. EDT. Coastal Angler Magazine's photo of a snook caught in Naples is the only snook or redfish mention on the Gulf side of this week's intel, so snook is the species to watch. Tide timing sets the plan: station 8727520 peaks at 10:51 a.m. EDT and bottoms at 6:02 p.m. EDT, while station 8725520 peaks at 1:26 p.m. EDT.
Columbia returns hit record low as fall planning begins
Hatch Magazine reports the Columbia and Snake river return is the smallest ever recorded, with just over 52,000 fish counted past Bonneville Dam since counting began July 1. That count covers the Columbia system, not the Olympic Peninsula rivers, so read it as a signal of how strong the season is, not as a readout for your water.
Morning tide window opens the Oregon Coast as fall water cools
NOAA CO-OPS station 9435380 read 58.6°F at 4:24 a.m. PDT this morning. Tides set the day's shape: station 9435380 peaks at 10:19 a.m. and bottoms at 3:55 p.m., so the afternoon is a falling tide, while station 9439040 bottoms at 4:49 a.m. and floods to a high at 11:14 a.m., giving a rising-water window through late morning.
Fall striper run builds up the coast as Shore water cools
Water at the NOAA station 8631044 gauge is reading 67°F this morning, with the first low near 11:20 AM EDT. Regional reports show the fall run moving. The Fisherman's NJ/DE Bay forecast logged the first 50-inch-plus striped bass of the fall along the north coast, and its Long Island forecast says bluefish and bass are chasing bait while the back bays are producing fish. Anglers Journal describes the late-season striper blitz as underway. These reports come from farther north, not local catches, so read them as a preview of what the migration is doing up the coast.
Tide-turn windows set the pattern on the Texas Gulf this week
Water is holding near 83°F at NOAA CO-OPS station 8771450, with 82.9°F at both 8771341 and 8772471, so the summer warmth has not broken yet. The tide sets the schedule this morning: a low around 8:20 to 8:50 AM CDT across the three stations, with the flood building toward a high near 11:20 AM to 12:10 PM. Saltwater Sportsman describes fall fish staging at bayou mouths as the tide turns, so plan around the turn of the tide rather than the clock.
Striped bass push into the surf as fluke season nears its close
Water is 65°F on the offshore buoys, and striped bass have moved into the surf behind the nor'easter. Tight Lines Tackle on the South Fork reports fish into the upper 40-inch range at Shinnecock Inlet, with bass to 51 inches around the Ponquogue Bridge. White Water Outfitters says bass over 40 pounds were landed in the surf, and Miller Place Bait and Tackle had one customer release nine fish over 30 pounds during the storm. Fluke have a hard deadline: Captain Gillen says the season closes October 15, and the Shinnecock Star will keep targeting them until then.
Bay bass feeding tight to structure as the fall run builds
Block Island's buoy 44097 reads 62°F and tide station 8452660 reads 62.8°F, so the water is holding late-summer warmth into the fall run. Per The Fisherman — Rhode Island, Saltwater Edge is seeing striped bass feed on bait tight to structure around the islands, with surf and boat anglers both doing well, and Quonnie Bait and Tackle reports bass working the breachways and beaches. Green bonito have returned while false albacore have moved off for now.
Stripers still reported along Maine's coast as fall sets in
Gulf of Maine water is in the mid-50s, from 54.7°F at CO-OPS station 8410140 to 58.3°F at 8418150, and NOAA buoy 44007 reads 57°F. The Fisherman's South Shore MA to ME roundup says striped bass are still around locally and that bass reports are still coming out of Maine, with Maine anglers driving south to buy eels for bait. Wind is the variable: NOAA buoys 44007 and 44027 show 11 to 13 m/s, so the open water will stay lumpy until it lays down.
Monterey Bay nearshore fishing has been good, per recent reports
Water off Monterey reads 62°F at NOAA buoy 46042, and NOAA buoy 46028 to the south reads 65°F, so the coast is still carrying late-summer warmth. Air at that buoy is about 58°F with winds near 4 m/s. Western Outdoor News reports nearshore fishing out of Santa Cruz has been very good, with the bigger fish tied to calmer weather. The Monterey tide station reads 64.2°F, between the two buoy readings.
Post-nor'easter fall run settling in along the NH coast
Buoy 44007 is reading 57°F water on October 6, and the bite is recovering from the weekend nor'easter. Saltwater Edge Blog (RI) reports fish are back on the feed, with the water needing a few more days to clean up in most spots. Striped bass are the anchor: AW Marina on the Thames River, per The Fisherman's Connecticut report, says the mouth bite has improved since the storm passed. The Fisherman's South Shore MA to ME report says peanut bunker has gone missing since the blow, so fish are working whatever bait is left. Black sea bass are the boat target, with The Fisherman's Rhode Island report noting better keeper numbers as smaller fish moved off.
Sarasota Bay snook and redfish biting as fall moves fish inshore
NOAA buoy 42036 off West Tampa reads 85°F, and Sarasota Bay is fishing well. Capt. Kelly Kurtz, reporting for CB's Saltwater Outfitters (Sarasota) this past week, describes an active inshore bite for snook and redfish in the bay, and says a client landed a nice redfish on a recent day out of Siesta Key. The shop's October forecast from Capt. Rick Grassett calls it a good month for snook, which should be pulling away from the passes and beaches toward inside water. Per CB's weekly report, fall snook season on the Gulf Coast begins September 1, so check current state regs before keeping any fish.
Bass and bluefish hold along Cape Cod beaches as the fall run builds
Water is holding at 62°F on buoy 44020 and at CO-OPS station 8449130, and striped bass remain the core of the bite. Per The Fisherman's Cape Cod & Islands roundup, Goose Hummock reports bass working the ocean beaches and inlets, with decent fish around Billingsgate and Wood End in Cape Cod Bay. Sports Port says bass are back in the Monomoy rips, while Falmouth Bait and Tackle reports schoolies along the Falmouth shore and bluefish and bones from Hyannis to Woods Hole.
Surf redfish show up as fall settles over Maryland waters
Water at the Ocean City station reads about 66°F this morning, and the fall run is the thing to plan around. Per The Fisherman's Delaware, Maryland and Chesapeake reports, big redfish up to 40 inches showed in the surf last week and were released from the beach. Old Inlet Bait and Tackle had bluefish on metal during the incoming tide. Wind and rain then cut into most of the week's effort, and Smith's Bait Shop reports boats could not get out on Delaware Bay because of rough seas.
Keys heat finally breaking as fall trips open up
Key West water is holding at 85°F, and ALL IN Key West says the summer heat is finally letting up as it returns to the water after taking September off for boat upgrades. The charter's latest post calls this a good time to book fall trips, but it doesn't name a species that's biting, so this week's read is about conditions rather than a confirmed bite. The Key West tide station reads 84.6°F, which agrees with the 85°F figure.
Oversize redfish pushing onto Southeast beaches with fall mullet
NOAA buoy 41004 read 82°F at 6:40 AM, and the Charleston Harbor tide station reads 78.4°F, so the water is still warm for early October. Redfish are the one species this week's intel backs. Fisherman's Post reports red drum as the main focus on the Pamlico and Neuse rivers, with slot-sized fish running the Topsail and Sneads Ferry surf and piers. Coastal Angler Magazine reports oversize bulls on the beach at Vilano after a mullet run. Both reports come from North Carolina and Florida, so read them as a sign of how redfish are behaving along the Southeast coast, not as a Charleston catch report.
Lake trout quota meeting Oct. 15 headlines Superior fall planning
Wisconsin's DNR has a date on the calendar for Lake Superior anglers: a public meeting on Thursday, Oct. 15 at 6 p.m. in the Vaughn Public Library Community Room in Ashland to discuss the recommended lake trout quota for WI-2, per the WI DNR Lake Superior Fishing team. That quota governs Wisconsin waters, so read it as a regional signal for North Shore anglers rather than a Minnesota rule. Offshore, NOAA buoy 45004 is showing a fresh breeze, which is the first thing to check before you launch.
Fall green-weed pattern is the play as cooling water sets in
Wisconsin's DNR will hold a public meeting Thursday, Oct. 15, at 6 p.m. on the recommended lake trout quota for WI-2, per WI DNR Lake Superior Fishing, so Superior anglers have a dated regulatory event to mark on the calendar. On the water, Fishing the Midwest describes the pattern that matters this month: as water cools, weeds die back, oxygen drops, and baitfish relocate to the green weeds still standing. Its Mike Frisch favors a bottom bouncer with a plain snell and a nightcrawler for fall walleye, noting the rig also catches fish during the cooler water periods of spring and fall. Wind is the variable right now: NOAA buoy 45004 logged a brisk wind on the central lake this morning, so check conditions before committing to open water. The lesson from that piece for this week is simple: fish the edge of living cover and skip the dead stuff.
Fall cooling pushes Eastern WA lake fish toward green weed edges
Fall cooling is the main story for Eastern Washington freshwater right now. Fishing the Midwest notes that as waters cool, weeds die back, oxygen levels drop, and baitfish and gamefish relocate to whatever green, living weed beds remain, so those are the first places to fish. For current stocking and creel information, WDFW's fishing reports page is the official reference for lakes and streams statewide.
Red drum lead the Carolina surf and river bite this October
Red drum are the story this week. NOAA CO-OPS station 8652587 reads 71.8°F, and Fisherman's Post (NC) carries three shop reports pointing the same way. Nathan of East Coast Sports reports a run of slot-sized red drum in the Topsail and Sneads Ferry surf and on the piers, with some over-slot fish mixed in. Donald of Custom Marine Fabrication says red drum are the main focus on the Pamlico and Neuse rivers, with fish spread throughout the river. Morgan of The Reel Outdoors has scattered red drum on the Swansboro and Emerald Isle beachfront, and bluefish are also around, per the same blog. The red drum picture is consistent across three separate shops, which is why it reads as the main bite. Bluefish are a lesser story, showing up as scattered fish rather than a push.