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Christina River Fishing Report

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

Christina River: Wilmington's tidal river, with three DNREC boat ramps, a busy catfish fishery in state surveys and strict fish-meal advice.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Flow
4,990 cfs
Air / High
63 / 63 F
Wind
E 7 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 01480120, 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.

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

Christina River is in transition: bait on the move and predators following. The river is running 4,990 cfs, dropping and clearing. Today brings clear skies, wind E around 7 mph, rising pressure near 1027 hPa and a high of 63. Water sits around 64 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 9:36 AM-11:36 AM and 10:05 PM-12:05 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Catfish (blue, channel)Good

In spring after ice-out, Iowa finds channel cats feeding on winter-killed shad on the shallow, warmer mudflats at the upper ends of reservoirs; cut bait on the bottom works there.

Tomorrow: Similar at 61 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

Delaware requires a fishing licence from age 16, from $8.50 for residents. What a Delaware licence costs and where to buy it β†’

Chasing catfish (blue, channel) here? Check the size and bag limits with DNREC before you keep anything. The season dates for Delaware, read off the agency, are on the Delaware seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings from Christina River at Wilmington, DE (tidal).

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 01480120.

-9,312-3,0203,2724,990 cfs09/2310/0310/1310/23

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp63 F
High / Low63 / 46 F
WindE 7-8 mph
Pressure1026.9 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain4% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset07:21 / 18:11
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (gauge)61 F USGS
Water temp (seasonal)~64 F est.

Bite planner

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

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunset

Which day to fish Christina River this week

The best day on Christina River this week looks like Sunday Oct 25, at 4 out of 5, against 2 today.

Best day this week: Sunday, Oct 25 β€” good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 β€” Tough

Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Solunar majors
9:36 AM-11:36 AM and 10:05 PM-12:05 AM
Minor period
3:58 AM-4:58 AM
Sun
07:21 to 18:11
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Overcast, 11 mph
Rain chance
0%

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

Species guide

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

Catfish (blue, channel) illustration

Catfish (blue, channel)

Year-round, best at dusk and after dark

Three big catfish share most of the country's rivers and reservoirs: the channel catfish, the most widespread; the blue catfish, the largest; and the flathead, which hunts live fish. All feed mostly on or near the bottom. In spring after ice-out, Iowa finds channel cats feeding on winter-killed shad on the shallow, warmer mudflats at the upper ends of reservoirs; cut bait on the bottom works there.

When to come: the Christina 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
Catfish (blue, channel)
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 64 F (estimated, not a reading).

4050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~64 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 Christina River today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 69 F, wind to 10 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 66 F, wind to 11 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 71 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

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

Regulations

Delaware fishing license; see DNREC's 2026 tidal seasons, sizes and creel limits, including spawning-season rules on Delaware River tributaries. Christina Creek (stocked trout stream): trout stamp in the designated seasons. Fish consumption: 1 meal a year below I-95, 12 a year from I-95 to Smalley's Dam.

Access

DNREC tidal access areas: 7th Street Wilmington (Babiarz Park; ramp and pier), Newport (2-lane ramp), Churchmans Road (1-lane ramp).

About this water

A tidal river through Wilmington and Newport, New Castle County, Delaware, flowing into the Delaware River.

Fishing Christina River: the full guide

Public ramps

DNREC's tidal fishing access list (updated June 15, 2026) includes three Fish and Wildlife sites on the Christina, which it spells Christiana: 7th Street in Wilmington, inside Babiarz Park, with a one-lane ramp and a fishing pier on the Christina, Brandywine and Delaware rivers; Newport, with a two-lane ramp; and Churchmans Road, with a one-lane ramp.

What anglers reported

In DNREC's 2018 freshwater angler survey, the Christina River and Brandywine Creek were the most popular of the four New Castle County piedmont streams on the form. Anglers reported about 48,050 fish caught on the Christina, at 6.3 fish per trip, and the highest catfish catches were in the Christina, Nanticoke and Mispillion systems. Respondents also reported catching invasive northern snakehead in the Christina.

Fish consumption advice

DNREC and the Division of Public Health advise eating no more than one 8-ounce meal a year of any finfish from the Christina between its mouth and I-95 at Peterson Wildlife Refuge, and no more than 12 meals a year from I-95 upstream to Smalley's Dam. The non-tidal river above Smalley's Dam is also limited to 12 meals a year. Stocked trout from Christina Creek, between Rittenhouse Park and the Maryland line, are limited to six meals a year.

Gauge

Water data on this page come from USGS gauge 01480120, Christina River at Wilmington, a tidal station that reports water level and a tidally reversing flow.

Common questions

What do anglers catch on the Christina?

In DNREC's 2018 survey the Christina was among the top systems for catfish catches, and anglers also reported northern snakehead there.

Where can I launch a boat on the Christina?

At DNREC's 7th Street (Babiarz Park), Newport and Churchmans Road access areas.

Is fish from the lower Christina safe to eat?

DNREC advises no more than one meal a year of any finfish from the mouth up to I-95 at Peterson Wildlife Refuge, because of PCBs, dioxins and other contaminants.

Is fishing good at Christina River 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

White Clay Creek4 miBrandywine Creek5 miLums Pond13 miNoxontown Pond20 miSusquehanna Flats29 miGarrisons Lake32 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 01480120 β€” Christina River at Wilmington, DE (tidal)
Read from the USGS Water Data API (api.waterdata.usgs.gov). Latest value timestamped 2026-10-23 at 19:36 UTC.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 39.7086, -75.5983 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 8, 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 8, 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.