Share your catch

San Luis Reservoir Fishing Report

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

The wind-blown off-stream giant: San Luis holds striped bass and wind that ends fishing days early.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Water temp
~84 F est.
Air / High
77 / 80 F
Wind
W 9 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.

San Luis Reservoir stays in its summer rhythm: early magic, midday siesta, evening reprieve. Today brings clear skies, wind W around 9 mph, rising pressure near 1013 hPa and a high of 80. Water sits around 84 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: plan around them and beat the heat.

The plan, species by species

Striped bassGood

Deep and early: live bait on downlines over the river channel at first light, or downriggers along thermocline depth.

Catfish (blue, channel)Good

Anchor on 20-30 ft baited holes with punch bait or cut shad. They keep biting through the heat when everything else quits.

Largemouth bassFair

Topwater at first light on points and seawalls, then slide out to 12-25 ft brush and points with a Carolina rig, deep crank or drop shot. The bite is dawn, dusk or deep.

CrappieSlow

Straight down on bridge pilings and deep brush at 15-25 ft. Minnows outfish jigs in hot water; move until the graph shows them stacked.

Tomorrow: Similar at 81 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.

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~84 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp77 F
High / Low80 / 61 F
WindW 9-11 mph
Pressure1013.0 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain2% cloud, 1%
Sunrise / Sunset06:38 / 19:28
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~84 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 · Overcast, 80/61 F, wind 18 mph, rain 1%

Fair or better. A 18 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

The species that matter on San Luis Reservoir: 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. Topwater at first light on points and seawalls, then slide out to 12-25 ft brush and points with a Carolina rig, deep crank or drop shot. The bite is dawn, dusk or deep.

Striped bass illustration

Striped bass

Best: spring and fall

The reservoir heavyweight. Follows shad and herring schools in open water year-round. Deep and early: live bait on downlines over the river channel at first light, or downriggers along thermocline depth.

Catfish (blue, channel) illustration

Catfish (blue, channel)

Good year-round

The most reliable bite on most southern waters. Blues run big; channels fill the cooler. Anchor on 20-30 ft baited holes with punch bait or cut shad. They keep biting through the heat when everything else quits.

Crappie illustration

Crappie

Best: Nov-Mar

Brush piles, bridge pilings and standing timber. The fish fry favorite. Straight down on bridge pilings and deep brush at 15-25 ft. Minnows outfish jigs in hot water; move until the graph shows them stacked.

When to come: the San Luis Reservoir 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
Striped bass
Catfish (blue, channel)
Crappie
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 84 F (estimated, not a reading).

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~84 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 San Luis Reservoir today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

2/5 Slow. The wind owns today. 24 mph gusts make boat control the real battle. Striped bass led the card at good. High of 80 F, wind to 24 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 79 F, wind to 20 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

2/5 Slow. The wind owns today. 25 mph gusts make boat control the real battle. Striped bass led the card at good. High of 75 F, wind to 25 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. Striped bass and black bass limits per current CDFW regulations; mussel inspection may apply.

Access

San Luis Reservoir State Recreation Area ramps at Basalt and Dinosaur Point; wind closures are enforced.

About this water

A 12,000-acre off-stream State Water Project reservoir west of Los Banos, Merced County, California.

Fishing San Luis Reservoir: the full guide

A reservoir fed by pumps

San Luis Reservoir spreads about 12,000 acres in the hills west of Los Banos, an off-stream reservoir filled by pumping water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. That plumbing brings the fishery with it: striped bass arrive through the pumps and grow large, joined by largemouth bass, crappie, catfish and the occasional sturgeon that also made the trip.

Striped bass

Stripers are the main draw: they school over open water chasing shad, blowing up on the surface in the cooler months and holding deep in summer. Trolling deep-diving plugs, casting swimbaits into surface activity and drifting live bait all produce. Fish reach substantial size given the forage base and the reservoir’s productivity.

Bass and the wind

Largemouth work the rocky shorelines and submerged structure, though the reservoir’s bare, wind-exposed setting limits cover. The wind is the defining condition: the Pacheco Pass funnels afternoon gales that regularly close the reservoir to boating and make it genuinely dangerous. Morning is the fishing window, always.

Merced County logistics

San Luis Reservoir State Recreation Area provides ramps at Basalt and Dinosaur Point, with a wind warning system that closes the water when gusts exceed thresholds. Los Banos is minutes east on Highway 152. Water levels swing enormously with State Water Project operations, sometimes leaving ramps unusable.

Common questions

Why are there stripers?

They arrive through the pumps from the Delta along with the water, and grow large on the reservoir’s shad.

How bad is the wind?

Severe: afternoon gales through Pacheco Pass regularly close the reservoir to boating. Fish mornings only.

Does the level change?

Enormously with State Water Project operations: check current elevation, as ramps can become unusable.

Is fishing good at San Luis Reservoir 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

Lake Del Valle47 miMonterey Bay52 miDon Pedro Reservoir61 miLake McClure61 miLos Vaqueros Reservoir61 miNew Melones Lake70 mi
Share your catch