The lower Colorado River is Arizona's fishing spine, and Havasu is its showpiece: world-record redear sunfish fattened on quagga mussels, resurgent smallmouth over hundreds of planted habitat reefs, and a winter season the rest of the country envies.
Reports current for Friday, October 23
Every one of the 18 Arizona waters we cover has a live read this morning. 1 is scoring 4 out of 5 or better and 1 is slow. Water runs 47 F to 74 F. Pressure is holding steady on most of them, so the day comes down to water temperature and wind. Wind touches 20 mph on the roughest of them.
Best right now: Lake Havasu 4/5, Alamo Lake 3/5, Apache Lake 3/5
Live verdicts from this morning's reports.
Lake Havasu: a 45-mile Colorado River lake behind Parker Dam, where AZGFD's record list holds a 6-lb redear and a 6-lb 4-oz smallmouth.
The Salt River's desert bass factory: saguaro shorelines and spring topwater to remember.
Phoenix's deep blue playground: stripers, white bass schools and desert-clear water.
Big Lake: a 450-acre White Mountains trout lake in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests, with a 10-horsepower motor limit.
A remote Bill Williams River reservoir 37 miles north of Wenden, where Arizona State Parks runs the ramps and the bass and crappie fishing usually peaks February through July.
The Verde's desert basin: saguaro-framed bass water an hour from Phoenix, with spring wildflower banks and a flathead night culture.
The Salt River's postcard pool: desert canyon walls, yellow bass swarms and largemouth living under the tour boat's wake.
The Rim's summer refuge: a spruce-lined trout pond at 7,500 feet where Phoenix escapes July and rainbows rise at dusk.
The White Mountains' walleye pocket: a small, deep lake where Arizona's unlikely gold swims beneath the ponderosas.
Black River: a White Mountains trout river with stocked Apache trout on the East Fork and tribal land along its lower reaches.
Fool Hollow Lake: a 150-acre lake in an Arizona State Parks recreation area at Show Low, with bass, walleye, northern pike and stocked rainbow trout.
The Lower Salt River below Stewart Mountain Dam, east of Phoenix: a dam-controlled desert river where seasonal bald eagle closures and quagga mussel rules apply.
The Salt River reservoir behind Horse Mesa Dam in the Tonto National Forest, with bass, walleye, yellow bass and trout, reached by the Apache Trail.
Patagonia Lake State Park: a 265-acre lake on Sonoita Creek in southeastern Arizona with largemouth bass, channel and flathead catfish, crappie and sunfish, and rainbow trout stocked from November through March.
A red-rock trout stream through Oak Creek Canyon above Sedona, with a catch-and-release section and wild and stocked trout, recovering from 2026 post-fire flooding.
San Carlos Lake: a Gila River reservoir on San Carlos Apache tribal land, fished under tribal permits when there is water in it.
Lees Ferry: the Colorado River below Glen Canyon Dam, which the National Park Service calls a world-class trout fishery.
The Verde River: a perennial central Arizona river with 40.5 Wild and Scenic miles, smallmouth bass and catfish, and winter trout stocking near Cottonwood.
Species activity across the state's covered waters. Peak of the year: March.
1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.
Seasonal surface curve for this state's dominant water type (estimated).
| Water | Type | County | Live gauge | Peak month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Havasu fishing report | Reservoir | Mohave | USGS | May |
| Roosevelt Lake fishing report | Reservoir | Gila | USGS | Mar |
| Lake Pleasant fishing report | Reservoir | Yavapai | USGS | Mar |
| Big Lake (White Mountains) fishing report | Reservoir | Apache | modeled | Apr |
| Alamo Lake fishing report | Reservoir | La Paz | USGS | Mar |
| Bartlett Lake fishing report | Reservoir | Maricopa | modeled | Mar |
| Saguaro Lake fishing report | Reservoir | Maricopa | modeled | Mar |
| Woods Canyon Lake fishing report | Lake | Coconino | modeled | Apr |
| Show Low Lake fishing report | Reservoir | Navajo | modeled | Apr |
| Black River fishing report | River | Apache | modeled | Apr |
| Fool Hollow Lake fishing report | Reservoir | Navajo | modeled | Apr |
| Salt River fishing report | River | Maricopa | USGS | Mar |
| Apache Lake fishing report | Reservoir | Maricopa | modeled | Mar |
| Patagonia Lake fishing report | Lake | Santa Cruz | modeled | Mar |
| Oak Creek fishing report | River | Coconino | USGS | Apr |
| San Carlos Lake fishing report | Reservoir | Gila | USGS | Mar |
| Colorado River fishing report | River | Coconino | USGS | Apr |
| Verde River fishing report | River | Yavapai | USGS | May |
Arizona concentrates its fishing into oases: the Colorado River chain (Havasu, Mohave, Powell's south end) with its stripers and record sunfish; the central reservoirs (Roosevelt, Bartlett) where desert bass fishing peaks each spring; Lees Ferry's glass-clear rainbow tailwater below Glen Canyon Dam; and the White Mountains' surprise: wild Apache trout, the state fish, recovering in high pine country. Every fishery is a contrast against the desert.
October-May is the golden stretch: mild weather, active fish, and desert lakes at their best (spring topwater on Roosevelt can rival anywhere). Summer flips life to dawn, night and altitude: full-moon striper nights on the Colorado chain, White Mountain mornings, and Lees Ferry's midge sippers before the canyon heat rises.
October through May: mild desert weather and active fish. Summer flips the day: first light and night fishing under lights.