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Chena River Fishing Report

Updated Mon, Sep 14, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

Fairbanks’ river: the Chena runs Arctic grayling and pike through interior Alaska.

4/5
Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.
Flow
5,460 cfs
Air / High
40 / 54 F
Wind
N 1 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 15514000, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Monday
14
September 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

4/5Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Chena River offers the kind of conditions this water was made for. The river is running 5,460 cfs, on the rise. Today brings clear skies, wind N around 1 mph, falling pressure near 1023 hPa and a high of 54. Water sits around 66 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing crescent, the solunar majors run 1:11 AM-3:11 AM and 1:11 PM-3:11 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Chinook salmonExcellent

Peak interception: downriggers on the feeding lanes, mooching where the fleet permits. River mouths stage fish late summer: the estuary bite runs on tide changes.

Rainbow troutExcellent

Prime dry-fly and hopper season. Match the hatch morning and evening; nymph the seams midday.

SteelheadFair

First fall runs after rain: fresh chrome in the lower pools on spawn bags and beads.

Tomorrow: Cooler at 48 F with likely rain: fish ahead of the front. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Tue, Sep 15, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Water and weather

Live readings from CHENA R AT FAIRBANKS AK.

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 15514000.

2,1603,4604,7605,460 cfs08/1508/2509/0409/14

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp40 F
High / Low54 / 38 F
WindN 1-3 mph
Pressure1023.1 hPa, falling
Sky / Rain19% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset07:10 / 20:19
MoonWaxing Crescent, 8%
Water temp (seasonal)~66 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Mon Sep 14 · Overcast, 54/38 F, wind 6 mph, rain 0%

Fair or better. Calm and stable: plan around the solunar majors at dawn and dusk.

Species guide

The species that matter on Chena River: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Chinook salmon illustration

Chinook salmon

Best: Jun-Sep ocean runs

The king: the Pacific's heavyweight, intercepted trolling the ocean feeding lanes or swinging rivers on the spawning run. Peak interception: downriggers on the feeding lanes, mooching where the fleet permits. River mouths stage fish late summer: the estuary bite runs on tide changes.

Rainbow trout illustration

Rainbow trout

Best: Apr-Jun, Sep-Oct

The workhorse of western rivers: riffles, seams and dry-fly eats. Prime dry-fly and hopper season. Match the hatch morning and evening; nymph the seams midday.

Steelhead illustration

Steelhead

Best: Oct-Apr

Lake-run rainbows that turn tributaries into winter fisheries. First fall runs after rain: fresh chrome in the lower pools on spawn bags and beads.

When to come: the Chena River calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Chinook salmon
Rainbow trout
Steelhead
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 66 F (estimated, not a reading).

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~66 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Chena River today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Sun, Sep 13

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Chinook salmon led the card at excellent. High of 53 F, wind to 9 mph.

Sat, Sep 12

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Chinook salmon led the card at excellent. High of 52 F, wind to 13 mph.

Fri, Sep 11

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Chinook salmon led the card at excellent. High of 56 F, wind to 11 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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Before you go

License

Alaska requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

Alaska license. Arctic grayling are catch-and-release on much of the river and rules vary by reach: check current ADFG interior regulations.

Access

Chena Hot Springs Road pullouts and the Chena River State Recreation Area upstream; city launches and bank access in Fairbanks.

About this water

A 100-mile interior river to the Tanana at Fairbanks, Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska.

Fishing Chena River: the full guide

A river through the interior

The Chena River flows about 100 miles through the interior of Alaska to the Tanana at Fairbanks, running clear over gravel through boreal forest before slowing through the city. It holds Arctic grayling, northern pike, whitefish, burbot and sheefish, and it is the most road-accessible quality fishing in the Fairbanks area.

Grayling upstream

The upper Chena, reached along Chena Hot Springs Road, is the grayling water: clear gravel runs and pools holding fish that rise readily to dry flies through the short summer. It is catch-and-release for grayling on much of the river, and the fishing is genuinely excellent for anglers who like small-water fly fishing.

Pike and the lower river

The lower river through and below Fairbanks slows, warms and holds northern pike in the sloughs and backwaters, taken on spoons, spinnerbaits and large flies. Burbot are taken through the ice in winter, and sheefish move through the Tanana system. Winter here is long and severe: the open-water season is short and intense.

Fairbanks logistics

Access is excellent by Alaska standards: Chena Hot Springs Road parallels the upper river with pullouts and the Chena River State Recreation Area, and the city provides launches and bank access downstream. Fairbanks has full services. Summer daylight is nearly continuous, which extends the fishing day remarkably.

Common questions

Where are the grayling?

The clear upper river along Chena Hot Springs Road: gravel runs and pools, with fish rising readily to dries.

Are there pike?

Yes, in the slower lower river and the sloughs and backwaters below Fairbanks.

How long is the season?

Short and intense: interior winters are severe, but near-continuous summer daylight extends each fishing day.

Is fishing good at Chena River right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Nearby waters

Talkeetna River189 miLittle Susitna River233 miKenai Lake312 miRussian River312 miSkilak Lake317 miKenai River318 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 15514000 — CHENA R AT FAIRBANKS AK
Read from waterservices.usgs.gov/nwis/iv. Latest value timestamped 2026-09-14 at 08:15 station time.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 64.8454, -147.7036 in this water's own timezone. A model, not an observation.
Moon and solunar windows
Calculated on this site
Astronomical calculation from these coordinates and the date, not a third-party feed. How much weight it deserves.
The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
Written and reviewed by a person against the sources above. Errors are published in the verification log, not quietly corrected.

Readings refresh on a 30-minute window. The full method, with every figure and its source, is on how our reports are made. Something wrong here? Tell us and it goes in the log with the date.

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