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Folsom Lake Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Sep 4, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

Sacramento's water-line barometer: granite-sloped bass water, landlocked kings and the drought-flood cycle written on every bank.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Water temp
~73 F est.
Air / High
73 / 77 F
Wind
SSW 8 mph

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

Satellite view
Friday
4
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.

2/5Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Folsom Lake offers the kind of conditions this water was made for. Today brings clear skies, wind SSW around 8 mph, rising pressure near 1013 hPa and a high of 77. Water sits around 73 F for the season (estimated). With the last quarter, the solunar majors run 5:39 AM-7:39 AM and 5:39 PM-7:39 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Smallmouth bassGood

Peak season. Tubes, jerkbaits and swimbaits around gravel points, boulders and current seams.

Rainbow troutGood

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

Largemouth bassFair

Prime chasing season. Work moving baits on points and pockets: spinnerbaits, chatterbaits and squarebills, with a stick worm behind for followers.

CrappieSlow

Spawning shallow around cover in spring; jigs under a float near buck brush and laydowns.

Tomorrow: Warmer at 82 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Sep 5, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Water and weather

Live readings.

No live gauge on this water

Conditions here are modeled from weather, season and the nearest stations. Water readings appear when a USGS gauge is available.

4050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~73 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp73 F
High / Low77 / 61 F
WindSSW 8-10 mph
Pressure1013.1 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain2% cloud, 19%
Sunrise / Sunset06:36 / 19:30
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~73 F est.

Bite planner

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

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunset

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Fri Sep 4 · Showers, 77/61 F, wind 10 mph, rain 19%

Fair or better. A 10 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

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

Largemouth bass illustration

Largemouth bass

Best: spring and fall

The headline act on most American reservoirs. Relates to cover: docks, brush, grass edges and points. Prime chasing season. Work moving baits on points and pockets: spinnerbaits, chatterbaits and squarebills, with a stick worm behind for followers.

Smallmouth bass illustration

Smallmouth bass

Best: May-Oct

Current and rock. Finds gravel flats, boulders and drop-offs, and fights far above its weight. Peak season. Tubes, jerkbaits and swimbaits around gravel points, boulders and current seams.

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.

Crappie illustration

Crappie

Best: Nov-Mar

Brush piles, bridge pilings and standing timber. The fish fry favorite. Spawning shallow around cover in spring; jigs under a float near buck brush and laydowns.

When to come: the Folsom Lake 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
Largemouth bass
Smallmouth bass
Rainbow trout
Crappie
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 73 F (estimated, not a reading).

4050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~73 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 Folsom Lake today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

5/5 Excellent. Go now. Everything lines up: pressure, wind and light are in your favor. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 77 F, wind to 11 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

5/5 Excellent. Go now. Everything lines up: pressure, wind and light are in your favor. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 78 F, wind to 12 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 77 F, wind to 13 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
Only used to send you this water's report each week. No spam, ever.

Before you go

License

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

Regulations

California license. Bass 12-inch/5; salmon rules seasonal: check CDFW. State-park entry fees; AIS inspection.

Access

Granite Bay, Brown's Ravine (marina), Folsom Point, Beals Point ramps: stage varies with elevation.

About this water

11,450 acres on the American River forks, Sacramento/Placer/El Dorado counties, CA. The capital's two-story barometer.

Fishing Folsom Lake: the full guide

The capital's reservoir

Folsom pools the American River's forks above Sacramento: 11,500 acres when full, dramatically less when not: the lake's rings tell California's water story annually. The fishery rolls with it: spotted-and-largemouth bass on the granite structure, landlocked Chinook trolling the cold band, and spring stripers pushing up from the river system.

Bass on granite

The lake's decomposed-granite points and rockslides run a classic western finesse program: drop shots, Neds and jigs at 10-40 ft tracking the seasonal ladder. Flooded willows in high-water years add a flipping bite the granite never offers: read the elevation, pick the era. Winter's spoon-and-jerkbait game off the steep dam faces quietly produces the year's quality.

Kings and the cold band

Stocked Chinook (a Folsom tradition) ride the thermocline: trollers pull hoochies and spoons at 30-60 ft spring through fall, deeper in the heat. The North Fork arm's cool depths hold the summer school: downriggers and patience. Add planted rainbows in the cold months and the two-story label fits truly.

Reading the rings

Elevation rules everything: ramps extend and strand (Granite Bay's multi-stage launch tells the story), five-mph zones move, and the fish re-map with every 10-foot swing. State-park fees cover access: Granite Bay, Brown's Ravine, Folsom Point: and the aquatic-invasive inspections keep quaggas out: arrive clean and drained.

Common questions

Does Folsom still have salmon?

Landlocked kings, stocked and steady: troll the 30-60-ft band from spring onward. They run smaller than river fish but fight the same language.

How does the water level change Folsom fishing?

Completely: high years flood willows (flipping heaven), low years expose granite structure (finesse school). Check the elevation before every trip: it is the lake's real season.

Is fishing good at Folsom Lake right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Nearby waters

American River16 miSacramento River25 miLake Amador26 miLake Camanche35 miMokelumne River36 miYuba River37 mi
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