Share your catch
US

Cache la Poudre River Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Oct 23, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

Colorado's only federally designated Wild and Scenic River, flowing from Rocky Mountain National Park through the Poudre Canyon toward Greeley.

4/5
Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.
Water temp
~47 F est.
Air / High
63 / 73 F
Wind
SW 7 mph

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

Satellite view
Friday
23
October 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.

Cache la Poudre River asks for patience today: short windows, precise presentations. Today brings clear skies, wind SW around 7 mph, falling pressure near 1006 hPa and a high of 73. Water sits around 47 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 9:39 AM-11:39 AM and 10:08 PM-12:08 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Rainbow troutExcellent

In cold water rainbows use the deepest pools in rivers (Vermont), so slow, deep drifts there are the usual approach; Michigan DNR notes lake rainbows are also taken with bait or by jigging through the ice.

Brown troutExcellent

Below 50Β°F, fish slowly through the deeper pools; in early spring on the Great Lakes, Michigan DNR notes browns are often caught inshore before other species start biting.

Tomorrow: Cooler at 54 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made β†’

Before you go

Colorado requires a fishing licence from age 16, from $57.63 for residents. What a Colorado licence costs and where to buy it β†’

Chasing rainbow trout here? Check the size and bag limits with CPW before you keep anything. The season dates for Colorado, read off the agency, are on the Colorado seasons page.

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.

30405060JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~47 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp63 F
High / Low73 / 51 F
WindSW 7-18 mph
Pressure1006.3 hPa, falling
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 8%
Sunrise / Sunset07:21 / 18:09
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~47 F est.

Bite planner

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

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Which day to fish Cache la Poudre River this week

Today is the pick of the week on Cache la Poudre River, at 4 out of 5.

Best day this week: today, Oct 23 β€” good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 β€” Good

Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Solunar majors
9:39 AM-11:39 AM and 10:08 PM-12:08 AM
Minor period
4:02 AM-5:02 AM
Sun
07:21 to 18:09
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Overcast, 20 mph
Rain chance
8%

Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out: how the score is built.

Species guide

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

Rainbow trout illustration

Rainbow trout

Spring and fall in most lakes; rivers fish year-round while the water stays cool

A cold-water trout native to Pacific drainages from Alaska to Baja California, now stocked in most states and fished in rivers, tailwaters and lakes. In cold water rainbows use the deepest pools in rivers (Vermont), so slow, deep drifts there are the usual approach; Michigan DNR notes lake rainbows are also taken with bait or by jigging through the ice.

Brown trout illustration

Brown trout

Spring along Great Lakes shorelines; low light and overcast days in rivers; fall spawning runs

A European trout first stocked in the US in 1883 and now fished in rivers and lakes nationwide; it tolerates warmer water than other trout, and mature stream fish feed mostly at night. Below 50Β°F, fish slowly through the deeper pools; in early spring on the Great Lakes, Michigan DNR notes browns are often caught inshore before other species start biting.

When to come: the Cache la Poudre 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
Rainbow trout
Brown trout
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 47 F (estimated, not a reading).

30405060JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~47 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 Cache la Poudre River today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 67 F, wind to 12 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 70 F, wind to 14 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 69 F, wind to 12 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
Only used if we need to ask you about your report. No mailing list, no spam.

Before you go

License

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

Regulations

Colorado fishing license (16 and older). Special regulations apply inside Rocky Mountain National Park and on parts of the river; the South Fork above Pingree Park is closed (NPS). See CPW's current fishing brochure.

Access

Highway 14 through the Poudre Canyon; Roosevelt National Forest and Rocky Mountain National Park in the headwaters.

About this water

A northern Colorado river from Rocky Mountain National Park to the South Platte east of Greeley, with 76 miles designated Wild and Scenic in 1986.

Fishing Cache la Poudre River: the full guide

Wild and Scenic

Of Colorado's roughly 107,000 miles of river, only the Cache la Poudre carries a federal Wild and Scenic designation: 76 miles, 30 classed wild and 46 recreational, designated on October 26, 1986. The main and South forks rise in Rocky Mountain National Park, flow north and east through the Roosevelt National Forest, pass through Fort Collins and join the South Platte east of Greeley.

Canyon history

The National Wild and Scenic Rivers System traces the name to French trappers who cached gunpowder near the river's mouth during a snowstorm. Tie hackers floated railroad ties down the river, and grades from a canyon railroad that was never finished became the base of Highway 14.

Fishing the headwaters

Inside Rocky Mountain National Park, anyone 16 or older needs a Colorado fishing license and must follow the park's special regulations. The South Fork of the Cache la Poudre above Pingree Park is closed to fishing to protect Colorado River cutthroat trout. Downstream of the park, CPW's special regulations apply on parts of the river, so carry the current Colorado Fishing Brochure.

Common questions

Is the Poudre a Wild and Scenic River?

Yes, the only one in Colorado, with 76 miles designated in 1986: 30 wild and 46 recreational.

Can I fish the South Fork in the park?

Not above Pingree Park, which Rocky Mountain National Park closes to protect Colorado River cutthroat trout.

Where does the name come from?

The National Wild and Scenic Rivers System traces it to French trappers who cached gunpowder near the river's mouth during a snowstorm.

Is fishing good at Cache la Poudre 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

Horsetooth Reservoir13 miBoyd Lake24 miBig Thompson River38 miLake Granby45 miClear Creek (Golden)65 miBear Creek70 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 40.6800, -105.3500 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.
Pages checked
The facts in the written guide were checked against these pages, from the agencies and operators that manage the water, on October 5, 2026. Anything we could not verify was taken out.
The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
How this page was made. The daily report is computed by our scoring engine from live readings; nobody types it. The written text was drafted with AI assistance from the official pages listed above, and its facts were checked against those pages by automated verification on October 5, 2026; anything that could not be verified was taken out. Pablo Ruiz Quintero sets every guideline, the data-verification system and the minimum standards a page must meet to be published, reviews page structure and approves what goes live; the responsibility is his, and the AI carries out the work. We work this way because it is how one person can keep every page current with named sources. Errors are published in the verification log; the full policy is in the editorial policy.

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.