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Chattahoochee River Fishing Report

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

Trout inside the perimeter: cold Buford releases make the Hooch a year-round trout river running straight through metro Atlanta.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Flow
821 cfs
Air / High
93 / 93 F
Wind
ESE 8 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 02335000, 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.

Chattahoochee River is in transition: bait on the move and predators following. The river is running 821 cfs, dropping and clearing. Today brings clear skies, wind ESE around 8 mph, rising pressure near 1014 hPa and a high of 93. Water sits around 54 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: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Rainbow troutGood

Blue-winged olives and midges on soft seams; streamers on overcast days move the better fish.

Brown troutGood

Pre-spawn aggression: this is streamer season for the fish of the year.

Tomorrow: Warmer at 98 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 from Chattahoochee River near Norcross.

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 02335000.

1,1111,8672,623821 cfs08/0508/1508/2509/04

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp93 F
High / Low93 / 72 F
WindESE 8-11 mph
Pressure1014.2 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 1%
Sunrise / Sunset07:12 / 19:58
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~54 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 · Partly cloudy, 93/72 F, wind 8 mph, rain 1%

Fair or better. A 8 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

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

Rainbow trout illustration

Rainbow trout

Best: Apr-Jun, Sep-Oct

The workhorse of western rivers: riffles, seams and dry-fly eats. Blue-winged olives and midges on soft seams; streamers on overcast days move the better fish.

Brown trout illustration

Brown trout

Best: Sep-Nov

Wary, predatory and nocturnal by preference. The big ones eat streamers. Pre-spawn aggression: this is streamer season for the fish of the year.

When to come: the Chattahoochee 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 54 F (estimated, not a reading).

30405060JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~54 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 Chattahoochee River today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at good. High of 94 F, wind to 16 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at good. High of 93 F, wind to 5 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at good. High of 93 F, wind to 5 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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Before you go

License

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

Regulations

Georgia license plus trout license for the trout water. Delayed-harvest and artificial-only rules apply on specific reaches seasonally: check current DNR regulations.

Access

CRNRA units: Bowmans Island, Settles Bridge, Abbotts Bridge, Jones Bridge, Island Ford, Johnson Ferry, Paces Mill.

About this water

A cold tailwater below Buford Dam running 48 miles through metro Atlanta, Forsyth and Fulton counties, Georgia.

Fishing Chattahoochee River: the full guide

A tailwater through a city

Below Buford Dam the Chattahoochee runs 48 miles through the northern Atlanta suburbs to the city itself, and the cold bottom releases from Lake Lanier make it one of the southernmost year-round trout fisheries in America. Rainbow and brown trout hold from the dam down past Roswell, stocked heavily but with a genuine wild brown component in the upper reaches. Below the trout water, the river turns to shoal bass, stripers and catfish: two fisheries in one urban corridor.

Trout in the releases

Generation schedules rule: when Buford releases, the river rises fast and turns into a drift-boat and streamer fishery; when it is off, wading opens up the shoals and the sight-fishing gets technical. Standard trout work applies: midges, sowbugs, small nymphs under an indicator, with a good streamer bite for big browns during generation. The upper reaches from the dam to Highway 20 stay coldest and hold the best fish.

Shoal bass and stripers

Downstream, where the water warms, shoal bass: a Georgia specialty found in few rivers: hold in the fast shoals and rock gardens, eating crayfish patterns, small crankbaits and topwater. Striped bass push up from West Point and the lower river in summer, seeking the cold water below Buford: a legitimate big-fish fishery for anglers throwing large baits in the deep pools during hot months.

Access in the CRNRA

The Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area protects 48 miles in a chain of park units: Bowmans Island, Settles Bridge, Jones Bridge, Island Ford, Vickery Creek and more, each with parking and river access. Generation horns and schedules are published by the Corps: check them before wading, every time, because the rise is fast and dangerous. Atlanta traffic, not fish, is usually the trip’s hardest part.

Common questions

Are there wild trout?

Yes: wild brown trout reproduce in the upper reaches near the dam, alongside heavy stocking that supports the whole river.

How dangerous is generation?

Genuinely: the river can rise several feet quickly. Listen for horns, check the Corps schedule and leave the water when it starts rising.

What is a shoal bass?

A native Georgia black bass built for fast water: it fights like a smallmouth and lives in the shoals below the trout zone.

Is fishing good at Chattahoochee 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

Lake Lanier6 miLake Allatoona28 miLake Oconee36 miCarters Lake46 miToccoa River54 miBlue Ridge Lake54 mi
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