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Garrisons Lake Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Sep 11, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

A Smyrna-area pond: Garrison Lake holds largemouth, crappie and pickerel in central Delaware.

4/5
Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.
Water temp
~84 F est.
Air / High
74 / 82 F
Wind
NNE 7 mph

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

Satellite view
Friday
11
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.

4/5Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Garrisons Lake stays in its summer rhythm: early magic, midday siesta, evening reprieve. Today brings cloud cover, wind NNE around 7 mph, falling pressure near 1014 hPa and a high of 82. Water sits around 84 F for the season (estimated). With the new moon, the solunar majors run 11:32 PM-1:32 AM and 11:32 AM-1:32 PM: plan around them and beat the heat.

The plan, species by species

Catfish (blue, channel)Excellent

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

Largemouth bassGood

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.

White bassGood

Early schooling action over humps; slabs and small spinners under the birds.

CrappieFair

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 with likely rain: fish ahead of the front. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Sep 12, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

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 →

Chasing largemouth bass here? Check the size and bag limits with DNREC before you keep anything.

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 temp74 F
High / Low82 / 69 F
WindNNE 7-16 mph
Pressure1014.4 hPa, falling
Sky / Rain100% cloud, 40%
Sunrise / Sunset06:40 / 19:17
MoonNew Moon, 0%
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 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Fri Sep 11 · Showers, 82/69 F, wind 9 mph, rain 40%

Fair or better. A 9 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

The species that matter on Garrisons 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. 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.

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.

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.

White bass illustration

White bass

Best: Mar-May run

River-run spawners and open-water schoolers. Fast limits when you find them. Early schooling action over humps; slabs and small spinners under the birds.

When to come: the Garrisons 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
Crappie
Catfish (blue, channel)
White bass
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 Garrisons Lake today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 10

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at excellent. High of 88 F, wind to 11 mph.

Wed, Sep 9

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at excellent. High of 86 F, wind to 15 mph.

Tue, Sep 8

3/5 Fair. Fish early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 82 F, wind to 7 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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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 license. Largemouth, crappie and panfish limits per current DNREC regulations; motor restrictions may apply.

Access

Public access with car-top and small-boat launching plus shoreline fishing, beside Smyrna.

About this water

A roughly 90-acre impoundment beside Smyrna, Kent County, Delaware.

Fishing Garrisons Lake: the full guide

A small central Delaware lake

Garrison Lake sits beside Smyrna in Kent County, Delaware, a modest impoundment of roughly 90 acres surrounded partly by golf course and partly by woods. It is a straightforward warm-water fishery holding largemouth bass, black crappie, bluegill, chain pickerel and channel catfish, with usable shoreline and small-craft access.

Bass and pickerel

Largemouth relate to the shoreline wood, the vegetation and any depth change, taken on plastics, spinnerbaits and topwater through the warm months. Chain pickerel hold the weedier margins and hit spinners and spoons aggressively. The lake is shallow and small enough that a systematic pass covers most of the productive water.

Crappie and panfish

Black crappie hold the wood and brush and are best in spring around the spawn on small jigs and minnows. Bluegill fill the shallows through summer and give families steady action, and channel catfish take bottom baits in the evening. Vegetation growth by midsummer changes the patterns noticeably.

Kent County logistics

A public access serves the lake with car-top and small-boat launching and shoreline fishing available. Smyrna is at the doorstep, Dover 15 minutes south and Wilmington 30 minutes north. It is a good option for a short evening trip rather than a destination, and pressure is light on weekdays.

Common questions

Is it good for a short trip?

Yes: it is small enough to fish thoroughly in an evening, with light weekday pressure.

Are there pickerel?

Yes: chain pickerel hold the weedy margins and hit spinners and spoons with real aggression.

Can I launch a boat?

Car-top and small craft, yes: check current motor restrictions before going.

Is fishing good at Garrisons Lake 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

Silver Lake10 miNoxontown Pond11 miLums Pond20 miKillens Pond20 miDelaware Bay23 miSusquehanna Flats29 mi
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