A fishing calendar answers one question: which days does the moon favour? Solunar theory, which John Alden Knight set out in the 1920s, puts the best days around the new and full moon and the best hours at the moon’s transits, rise and set. This calendar works all of that out on this site, for 2026 and for every state, rather than copying a printed almanac. Below are the peak days for the whole country, which depend only on the phase, and a calendar for each state with the local times, which do not travel: they shift about four minutes for every degree of longitude. The moon is one input among many, and weather usually matters more; the method section says exactly how each day is rated.
October 2026
Each day shaded by its moon-phase rating; “Peak” marks the days within a day of the new or full moon. Local times are on each state’s calendar.
November 2026
Peak days in 2026
The days within a day of each new and full moon, month by month. The same dates hold across the country; on your state’s calendar the ones where a solunar period also falls at dawn or dusk are rated best.
| Month | New moon | Full moon |
|---|---|---|
| January | Jan 18–19 | Jan 3–3 |
| February | Feb 17–18 | Feb 1–2 |
| March | Mar 18–19 | Mar 2–3 |
| April | Apr 17–17 | Apr 1–2 |
| May | May 16–17 | May 1–2, May 30–31 |
| June | Jun 14–15 | Jun 29–30 |
| July | Jul 14–14 | Jul 28–30 |
| August | Aug 12–13 | Aug 27–28 |
| September | Sep 10–11 | Sep 26–27 |
| October | Oct 10–11 | Oct 25–26 |
| November | Nov 8–9 | Nov 24–24 |
| December | Dec 8–9 | Dec 23–24 |
Fishing calendar by state
Each state’s calendar has this month and next, every day’s major and minor periods, sunrise and sunset, and the seasons that open or close in the coming weeks. Today’s rating is shown beside each.
How it is worked out
The moon’s phase and position come from the low-precision lunar theory in Jean Meeus’s Astronomical Algorithms, the same one SunCalc uses, and sunrise and sunset from the NOAA solar calculator. Checked against the US Naval Observatory and Open-Meteo, the times land within a few minutes. Each day is rated from 1 to 5: one point to start, three more within a day of the new or full moon (two within two days, one within three and a half), and one more if a major or minor period overlaps the hour around sunrise or sunset. On this national page there is no location, so only the phase counts and the scale tops out at 4. A rating is a statement about the moon, not a forecast of what you will catch.
Questions
What are the best fishing days this month?
By the moon, the days within a day of the new and full moon. This month they are October 10–11 (new moon) and October 25–26 (full moon). Your state's calendar adds the local major and minor times and marks the days when one of them falls at sunrise or sunset.
How is a fishing calendar worked out?
From the position of the moon. Solunar tables put the two major periods at the moon’s upper and lower transit and the two minor periods at moonrise and moonset; the days around the new and full moon are rated best. We compute all of it on this site for each state’s reference city, in local time with daylight saving, rather than copy a printed almanac.
Do moon phases really affect fishing?
The evidence is weak. Some studies find small effects for some species, many find none, and weather, water temperature and light matter more on any given day. We publish the calendar because many anglers plan with it, and we say plainly what it is. Our guide to moon phases and fishing goes through the research.
Why do the times differ between states?
The moon crosses the meridian about four minutes later for every degree of longitude you go west, and each state’s calendar is in its own time zone. The phase and the peak days are the same everywhere; the clock times are not. That is why the times live on the state calendars, each worked out for a named city.
When are the full moons in 2026?
Jan 3, Feb 2, Mar 3, Apr 2, May 2, May 31, Jun 30, Jul 30, Aug 28, Sep 27, Oct 26, Nov 24, Dec 24. These are the days within a day of the full moon, at noon UTC.