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Fox River Fishing Report

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

Chicagoland's smallmouth spine: a dam-to-dam river reborn, where bronze thrives between bike paths and the walleye ride the tailraces.

3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Flow
725 cfs
Air / High
66 / 70 F
Wind
SSW 5 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 05550000, 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.

3/5Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Fox River is in transition: bait on the move and predators following. The gauge reads 1.78 ft, holding steady. Today brings clear skies, wind SSW around 5 mph, steady pressure near 1026 hPa and a high of 70. Water sits around 62 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 9:28 AM-11:28 AM and 9:58 PM-11:58 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

MuskellungeExcellent

This band covers the spring spawn, which in Wisconsin runs at 49-60°F; spawning muskies eat little and rarely chase lures, Wisconsin DNR says. After the spawn, and again as fall water cools, work large lures along weed edges and structure.

Smallmouth bassGood

Spring pre-spawn and fall: Iowa DNR notes the larger bass come up to shallow structure, where a shallow-running minnow bait or a spinnerbait just under the surface works.

WalleyeGood

Spring: post-spawn fish scatter and can be slow for a couple of weeks. Fall: one of the best windows, with minnows on jigs and three-way rigs as the water cools toward ice-up.

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 68 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Before you go

Illinois requires a fishing licence, from $15.00 for residents. What a Illinois licence costs and where to buy it →

Chasing smallmouth bass here? Check the size and bag limits with IDNR before you keep anything. The season dates for Illinois, read off the agency, are on the Illinois seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings from Fox River at Algonquin.

Gauge height, last 30 days

USGS gauge 05550000.

1.361.641.911.78 ft09/2310/0310/1310/23

Today’s flow against 94 years of October 23

At 725 cfs, the flow at USGS gauge 05550000 (Fox River at Algonquin) is at the 63rd percentile for the date: normal. In half of the 94 years of approved record the daily mean on October 23 was below 466 cfs; the highest was 2,350 cfs and the lowest 38 cfs.

p10 161median 466p90 1,455

Percentiles of the daily mean flow for this date, from the USGS Water Data Statistics API for gauge 05550000; today’s reading is the latest instantaneous value. Classes follow the ones the USGS used on its WaterWatch maps (retired at the end of 2025): below 10th, much below normal; 10th–24th, below; 25th–75th, normal; 76th–90th, above; over 90th, much above.

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp66 F
High / Low70 / 44 F
WindSSW 5-9 mph
Pressure1025.6 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset07:15 / 17:58
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~62 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 Fox River this week

The best day on Fox River this week looks like Saturday Oct 24, at 4 out of 5, against 3 today.

Best day this week: Saturday, Oct 24 — good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 — Fair

A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Solunar majors
9:28 AM-11:28 AM and 9:58 PM-11:58 PM
Minor period
3:51 AM-4:51 AM
Sun
07:15 to 17:58
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Overcast, 5 mph
Rain chance
0%

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

Species guide

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

Smallmouth bass illustration

Smallmouth bass

Best: spring and fall, when bigger fish come shallow

A bronze-brown black bass of clear, cool streams and rocky lakes, with dark vertical bars instead of a side stripe. Michigan DNR says its southeastern coast, from Port Huron to Lake Erie, is known nationally for both the size and the number of its smallmouth. Spring pre-spawn and fall: Iowa DNR notes the larger bass come up to shallow structure, where a shallow-running minnow bait or a spinnerbait just under the surface works.

Walleye illustration

Walleye

Best: spring and late fall, around dawn, dusk and night

A cool-water perch of large lakes, reservoirs and rivers whose reflective eyes are built for low light, so it feeds most at night and in murky water. The Missouri Department of Conservation ranks it among the continent's most important freshwater game fish. Spring: post-spawn fish scatter and can be slow for a couple of weeks. Fall: one of the best windows, with minnows on jigs and three-way rigs as the water cools toward ice-up.

Muskellunge illustration

Muskellunge

Fished from late spring into late fall where seasons allow

Muskellunge are solitary, fish-eating ambush predators of the pike family, holding in weed beds and other cover in lakes and rivers of the Great Lakes, upper Mississippi and Ohio basins. This band covers the spring spawn, which in Wisconsin runs at 49-60°F; spawning muskies eat little and rarely chase lures, Wisconsin DNR says. After the spawn, and again as fall water cools, work large lures along weed edges and structure.

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 Fox 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
Smallmouth bass
Walleye
Muskellunge
Catfish (blue, channel)
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 62 F (estimated, not a reading).

4050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~62 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 Fox 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. Muskellunge led the card at excellent. High of 72 F, wind to 6 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 70 F, wind to 5 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 69 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

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

Regulations

Illinois license. Smallmouth: catch-and-release zones on stretches: check IDNR. Dam safety zones marked.

Access

Forest-preserve accesses and the Fox River Trail, Algonquin to Yorkville; Dayton dam (lower).

About this water

115 Illinois miles to the Illinois River, Chicagoland's smallmouth spine.

Fishing Fox River: the full guide

The suburban comeback

The Fox threads Chicago's western suburbs dam by dam: a river that cleaned up into one of Illinois' best smallmouth fisheries: bronze in every riffle from Algonquin to Yorkville, walleye stacking the tailwaters, and a bike-path culture that puts a million people within a cast of good water.

Bronze between the dams

The smallmouth program runs the pools: riffle-run pockets (tubes, Neds, topwater in summer's low flows), current seams below every dam, and wading that shirt-sleeve summer evenings were made for. Fish average 12-15 inches with 18s honest: the Yorkville-to-Sheridan lower miles fish biggest and wildest.

Tailrace walleye and the mix

Each dam's tailrace holds walleye and the odd sauger (jigs in spring, dusk stickbaits year-round: Dayton's dam on the lower river is the storied stand), with channel cats everywhere, pike in the slack bends, and white bass runs pulsing spring riffles. The river fishes multi-species by design.

Path-side practicalities

Access is Chicagoland-easy: forest preserve lots and the Fox River Trail ladder the banks: canoe liveries run the pools: and dam safety is absolute (respect the boils and the barriers: they take lives). Our Algonquin gauge reads the river's mood: under 1,000 CFS wades beautifully.

Common questions

Is the Fox River clean enough to fish?

The recovery is real: smallmouth thrive and the river anchors suburban fishing culture. Consumption advisories exist (check IDNR): the catch-and-release bronze game runs guilt-free.

Where should I start on the Fox?

Any dam pool: walleye below, smallmouth in the first riffles down. The Yorkville-to-Sheridan lower river adds size and scenery for float days.

Is fishing good at Fox River right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Nearby waters

Fox Chain O’Lakes17 miFox Lake18 miLake Geneva30 miDelavan Lake35 miLake Michigan (Chicago)40 miShabbona Lake41 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 05550000 — Fox River at Algonquin
Read from the USGS Water Data API (api.waterdata.usgs.gov). Latest value timestamped 2026-10-23 at 16:45 UTC.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 42.1650, -88.2940 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.
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 guide was drafted with AI assistance. Unlike our newer pages, it does not yet list the official pages its facts were checked against: that audit is under way, and anything it cannot verify will be 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.