Fishing reports
15423 reports across all 50 states — current conditions and what's biting.
Chincoteague waits on the fall run as water begins to cool
Water on Virginia's Eastern Shore is still running warm for early October, with NOAA's Wachapreague station reading 72.5°F and the Kiptopeke gauge close behind at 69.8°F. That keeps us a step behind the cooldown already stirring the fall migration farther north. Saltwater Edge in Rhode Island reports the tautog bite picking up and the striped bass finally waking up as nights turn chilly, while Anglers Journal describes the fall striper blitz as the heartbeat of the Northeast fishery this time of year. Chincoteague anglers are watching the same shift arrive on a short lag.
Redfish hold steady as Outer Banks waters stay warm into October
Water off the Outer Banks held at 78.6°F Wednesday evening at NOAA CO-OPS station 8658163, still firmly in summer range as September closes out. Redfish are still producing: Coastal Angler Magazine reports a charter win on redfish this week, and that lingering warmth is likely why the bite hasn't slowed. On the beachfront, Hatteras Jack's Eric (Fisherman's Post NC) reports anglers working the Rodanthe-area surf finding steady bottom-fishing action, with scattered windows to sight-cast the skinny water as the tide swings.
Fall tide swings keep Oregon Coast anglers at the river mouths
Oregon Coast water temperatures are split by location today: 56.8°F at the central-coast station near Garibaldi (NOAA CO-OPS 9435380) versus 61.7°F off Astoria (NOAA CO-OPS 9439040), reflecting the Columbia River's warmer outflow mixing with cooler open-coast water. Anglers remain active at the classic fall spots. IFish.net Fishing Reports threads this week log gear lost or found at Buoy 10 near the Columbia's mouth, the Nehalem jetty, Garibaldi's public cleaning docks, and the mouth of the Lewis River, all signs of steady boat traffic working river-mouth structure as the season turns.
Snook heat up Sarasota Bay as fall pattern kicks in
Water temps are running warm at 84.6°F and 82.8°F across our two local NOAA CO-OPS stations, still holding onto late-summer heat as September closes out in the Tampa Bay and Sarasota region. Conditions remain solidly within the warm-season range for game-fish activity. Capt. Kelly Kurtz of CB's Saltwater Outfitters reports an active inshore bite in Sarasota Bay right now, with anglers connecting on snook and redfish alongside a mix of other inshore species this week. Capt. Brandon Naeve, also out of CB's, says the fall snook run is in full swing along the stretch down toward Fort Myers, calling it some of the best snook water anywhere this time of year.
Redfish keep biting as Gulf Coast waters hold steady
Water temperatures are holding at 83.5°F across both NOAA CO-OPS stations covering this stretch of the Gulf Coast, keeping the water squarely in late-summer range as September closes out. Redfish are the story worth telling: Coastal Angler Magazine's latest dispatches out of the Charlotte Harbor area show Fish Face Charters putting clients on reds between passing showers and lingering heat, while young angler Harvey Henke boated a solid red in the same stretch of water. With a Waning Gibbous moon overhead, reds are staying active on the shallow flats typical for this point in the season.
Redfish keep biting as Gulf Coast holds late-summer warmth
Water temperatures at NOAA's Dauphin Island and Mobile Bay CO-OPS stations both read 84.7°F today, still solidly in late-summer range for the northern Gulf coast. Redfish are providing the bright spot this week: Coastal Angler Magazine reports the Fish Face Charters crew landed a solid redfish "between the showers and heat," and young angler Harvey Henke boated a nice red as well, evidence the species is staying active as the calendar turns into fall.
Charleston Harbor stays summer-warm as fall transition builds
Charleston Harbor's NOAA CO-OPS gauges are still running summer numbers this week: 79°F at station 8665530 and 78.8°F at station 8661070, both recorded late Wednesday. That kind of warmth on September 30 keeps the harbor in a late-summer holding pattern rather than the sharper cool-down anglers start watching for as October opens, under this week's waning gibbous moon.
North Shore fall turnover sets up lake trout, steelhead runs
Minnesota's Lake Superior North Shore is settling into its fall pattern this week: cooling surface water starts pushing lake trout out of deep basins toward nearshore structure, and the first steelhead begin staging at river mouths ahead of the tributary runs that define the shoulder season here. The lake trout story making headlines right now is on the management side. Per WI DNR Lake Superior Fishing, the department will hold a public meeting Oct. 15 in Ashland to review the recommended lake trout quota for management zone WI-2, a call that shapes harvest limits across the shared Lake Superior basin population that North Shore anglers also target. The waning gibbous moon this week favors low-light bites at dawn and dusk for anglers working the shoreline.
Fall transition arrives for UP trout streams and Lake Superior
The Wisconsin DNR has scheduled an Oct. 15 public meeting in Ashland to discuss the Lake Superior lake trout quota for the WI-2 management zone, per WI DNR Lake Superior Fishing, a sign that trout management for the western basin is actively in motion as the region settles into its fall fishing stretch. Across the Upper Peninsula, that same fall transition is underway: cooling water typically pulls stream trout into steadier feeding windows and starts nudging lake trout toward shallower structure ahead of the late-fall spawn.
Wisconsin walleye dial in as fall weed die-off begins
Fishing the Midwest's fall dispatches point to two specific plays working right now on Wisconsin's inland walleye water. Guide Mike Frisch describes a bottom-bouncer plain rig, a simple snell-and-crawler setup, holding up through the cooling water of fall after producing all summer on typical Midwest walleye structure. He also flags the bladed swim jig as a dependable multi-species option worked over weed edges, drawing walleye along with other predators as flats hold fish before vegetation fully dies back. The mechanism behind both plays, per the same source's fall-pattern note: as weeds die off with cooling water, oxygen drops in those beds, baitfish push toward the remaining healthy green weeds, and predators follow. On Lake Superior, the WI DNR's Lake Superior Fishing program is focused on management rather than day-to-day reports this week: a public meeting is set for Oct. 15 in Ashland to discuss the recommended lake trout quota for the WI-2 zone. The walleye pattern above is the clearest read on where fish are relocating on Wisconsin water right now.
Fall transition takes hold on North Texas lakes as bass turn on
Texas lake anglers are hitting the seasonal sweet spot. Per Tactical Bassin (blog), the early-fall transition has largemouth bass keying hard on baitfish, with the topwater bite improving and anglers working chatterbaits, swimbaits and crankbaits to cover water fast and locate schools before committing to a slower presentation. The blog notes subtle differences in size, cadence and retrieve style are making an outsized difference on topwater right now, which is typical once fish start feeding aggressively but selectively. On Eagle Mountain Lake near Fort Worth, North Texas Catfish Guide reports the tail end of the summer grind giving way to the first real signs of fall, with cooling water and fading weekend boat traffic starting to spread fish out and firm up feeding windows across the lake. Read the bite itself this week: aggressive reaction strikes are the clearest tell that the transition has arrived.
Kennebec and Penobscot ease into the fall turnover
Late September marks the seasonal turn for Kennebec and Penobscot anglers, with Maine's inland rivers moving into the early fall transition. Cooling water typically pushes brown trout and smallmouth bass into more consistent feeding windows as summer's slower, shade-seeking pattern gives way to a more active pre-winter bite.
Fall Turnover Sets Up Multi-Species Bite on PA Rivers
Pennsylvania's Susquehanna and Allegheny systems are entering the fall transition that typically resets river fishing for the year, as cooling water pushes baitfish and gamefish out of summer haunts and onto staging structure. Fishing the Midwest's latest fall reports single out dying weed edges as the key trigger this time of year: as healthy green growth thins, oxygen drops in the thickest cover and baitfish shift to what remains, pulling walleye and other predators with them. That shallow-to-structure movement is the seasonal signal worth watching on Pennsylvania's freshwater systems right now.
North Coast bite heats up as Bay Area waters ease into fall
NOAA's CO-OPS station 9416841 clocked the Bay Area's saltwater at 54.9°F as of this morning, a cooling read that lines up with the calendar's turn into fall. Western Outdoor News — Saltwater's weekly coastal roundup described some of the strongest offshore action of the season farther up the North Coast this week, with boats logging steady counts, and also noted solid inshore numbers out of Monterey Bay. Neither report sits squarely inside the SF Bay/Bodega corridor, but both point to a coastwide push of activity as water temperatures settle into their autumn range.
Tautog bite holds up as Delaware Bay eyes post-storm push
Delaware Bay's NJ side is holding at 67.3°F this morning per NOAA CO-OPS station 8537121, still warm enough to keep the tautog bite rolling before the fall shift takes full hold. The Fisherman's Southern New Jersey report has Big Dave's Tackle describing a good tautog bite around the back-bay bridges and lighthouse structure on sandfleas and green crabs, with baitfish pushing up the bay and into the inlets all week. In the same report, Hands Too Bait and Tackle says the wrecks and reefs off Cape May have black sea bass stacked up, with anglers anticipating quick limits once this week's wind dies down, and the striped bass bite along the sod banks has been holding, with fish to 30 inches landed before the blow. The Fisherman's NJ/DE Surf report, also from Hands Too, had tautog, weakfish, striped bass and bluefish all keeping anglers busy on most tides right up until the storm chopped up the beaches and bayside flats. Next low tide at this station lands around 7:58 p.m. local.
Sea bass bite carries Sandy Hook as NJ fluke season winds down
Water off Sandy Hook is holding at 67 degrees this morning, per NOAA CO-OPS station 8531680, still mild for the turn into October. Black sea bass are the story right now. Capt Ron's out of Atlantic Highlands worked a 55-foot drop this week and found a strong keeper-and-short bite that ran steady until the tide change, and Blue Chip Sportfishing says sea bass charters are "doing very good," with most trips putting enough fish in the cooler for everyone aboard. Fluke added to the bay mix too. Capt Ron's called one recent outing close to a season finale, with shorts, keepers, and quality sea bass biting all day on a deeper drift, but New Jersey's summer flounder season is closing out, so check the exact date before keeping any. Grumpys Tackle reports blues in and has a bucktail sale timed to the fall run, a sign shop owners expect striped bass activity to build as the water keeps cooling.
Fall mullet run keeps snook and tarpon feeding on FL's Atlantic coast
Water temperatures are running warm across Florida's Atlantic coast, with NOAA CO-OPS stations reading 84.7°F and 82.2°F this week, right in line with the tail end of the fall mullet run. Snook Nook in Stuart reports snook, tarpon, jacks and sharks still feeding hard on schools of mullet moving down the beaches, with the better action coming early morning and evening as the full moon and higher king tides made midday timing tougher. Coastal Angler Magazine noted a redfish win for Fish Face Charters this week, worked in between afternoon showers.
Warm Gulf Water Persists as Statewide Redfish Bite Builds
Water temperature at NOAA CO-OPS station 8729840 read 84.4°F this morning, with station 8729108 at 84.7°F and station 8728690 at 84.9°F, all still full summer warmth as September closes out. Coastal Angler Magazine reports redfish action this week for Florida anglers, an early marker of the fall shift building along the Gulf coast, though that report is out of other Florida waters rather than the immediate Destin-Pensacola stretch. Closer to home, anglers on the Pensacola Fishing Forum describe an active bait-gathering trip near Ft. Morgan, working diving birds and structure between rain squalls, a sign baitfish are stacking up as the season turns.
Key West cool-down signals bite kicking back into gear
Water temperatures across the Keys remain warm, with NOAA CO-OPS stations at Key West and Vaca Key reading 84.9°F and 83.1°F this evening. That warmth held through the peak of summer, when ALL IN Key West described the season's action as some of the best in 16 years of running trips, with bait and fish stacked up throughout the backcountry and reef. The captain has now returned from a September break for boat upgrades and reports the first real crack in the heat, cooler air finally breaking up the summer swelter as fall approaches. Bud n' Mary's in Islamorada echoed the same pattern through early summer, citing warm water, calm seas and heavy bait as the hallmarks of the season's strongest stretch across the flats, reef and Gulf Stream.
Fall transition begins on Lake Okeechobee and the St. Johns
Late September marks the start of Florida's fall transition on Lake Okeechobee and the St. Johns River, as shorter days and cooling overnight air begin loosening summer's grip on both fisheries. The shift is gradual this time of year rather than abrupt, with water levels typically starting to ease as the region moves out of the wet season.
Fall Turnover Settles Over the Delaware River and Pine Barrens
The seasonal shift that matters this week is the fall turnover moving through the Delaware River and the Pine Barrens river systems, as cooling nights push surface temperatures down and start mixing the water column top to bottom. That transition typically kicks smallmouth bass into a heavier feeding pattern as they key on baitfish schools staging in deeper runs and along current breaks, while walleye begin shifting toward low-light and after-dark activity as the fishery moves out of summer's slow, stable pattern.
Sea Bass Carries Jersey Shore Boats While Fluke Season Winds Down
Water temperatures are holding at 66.7°F at NOAA CO-OPS station 8534720 and 66.2°F at station 8536110 as of this morning, still comfortably in range for an early-fall bite. Capt Ron's out of Atlantic Highlands has been grinding through patchy weather this week — nine straight lost days at the dock, then back on the meat with steady keeper sea bass in 55 feet of water — and called one outing "Friday's Awesome Fishing," a full-day fluke bite from start to finish that may be one of the last big ones of the year; Fishermans HQ LBI is already flagging the "Final Days Of Fluke" as the season winds down. Offshore and mid-shore, Blue Chip Sportfishing says sea bass charters are "doing very good," with most trips filling the cooler for everyone aboard. On the bait and blitz side, Grumpys Tackle confirms blues are in and timed a bucktail sale to the fall run, while Fishermans HQ LBI reports bluefish blitzes moving with mullet along the surf.
Fall Bite Turns On for Walleye and Bass Across Michigan Waters
Fall's water-cooling reset is flipping on the bite anglers wait for all year. Per Fishing the Midwest, walleye are sliding onto the same bottom-bouncer-and-nightcrawler 'plain rig' spreads that work through the cooler shoulder seasons, a rig producing consistently as fish shift off deep summer structure. The same source notes a bladed swim jig pulling double duty right now, drawing bass, pike, and walleye as all three key on baitfish moving with the weed die-off. Tactical Bassin reports the October bass bite kicking into full gear nationally, with fish chasing baitfish hard on topwater, crankbaits and swimbaits, a pattern that tracks with what's unfolding on Great Lakes and inland Michigan water as vegetation thins and bait consolidates. Michigan DNR's weekly fishing report published today, the state's regular check-in covering the Great Lakes basins and inland fisheries.
Big Hole reopens as Montana's fall closures take hold
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks lifted the angling closure on Big Hole River Section 5 this week, covering the water from the Tony Schoonen Fishing Access Site downstream to the Beaverhead River confluence, after weekend rain pushed flows back up, according to MT FWP Fishing News. Section 1, from Saginaw Bridge on Skinner Meadows Road to the same confluence, stays closed. The reopening lands right before Montana's shift into fall regulations: spawning closures on select rivers begin October 1, per the same release, so anglers working tributaries that feed the Missouri headwaters should check current closure maps before launching this week. Aquatic invasive species inspection stations remain active too, with six of seventeen still staffed through October in high-risk corridors, and any boater trailering into Missouri or Yellowstone drainage waters is required to stop.