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Kennebec River Fishing Report

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

Maine’s working river reborn: the Kennebec runs landlocked salmon and trout through Bingham, and stripers to the sea below.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Flow
1,650 cfs
Air / High
52 / 52 F
Wind
NNW 11 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 01046500, 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.

Kennebec River rewards those who follow the bait as the water cools. The river is running 1,650 cfs, on the rise. Today brings clear skies, wind NNW around 11 mph, rising pressure near 1027 hPa and a high of 52. Water sits around 55 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 9:12 AM-11:12 AM and 9:42 PM-11:42 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Brook troutExcellent

The best band: Vermont's ideal is 55-60°F. Fish feed in daylight, since Michigan DNR notes they are more diurnal than other trout, and in ponds and lakes Maine IFW says spring and fall bring them near shore and the surface.

Brown troutExcellent

Close to Vermont's 53-66°F optimum, browns feed more freely; in fall, pre-spawn fish move toward tributaries and gravel, so fish streamers and keep off the redds.

Landlocked salmonGood

Spring after ice-out and the fall cool-down are the surface seasons, with fish near shore and at stream mouths feeding on smelt: troll or cast streamers and smelt imitations.

Tomorrow: Warmer at 57 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Before you go

Maine requires a fishing licence from age 16, from $30.00 for residents. What a Maine licence costs and where to buy it →

Chasing landlocked salmon here? Check the size and bag limits with MDIFW before you keep anything. The season dates for Maine, read off the agency, are on the Maine seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings from Kennebec River at Bingham.

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 01046500.

1,5501,7351,9201,650 cfs09/2310/0310/1310/23

Today’s flow against 98 years of October 23

At 1,650 cfs, the flow at USGS gauge 01046500 (Kennebec River at Bingham) is below the 5th percentile for the date: much below normal. In half of the 98 years of approved record the daily mean on October 23 was below 3,190 cfs; the highest was 10,500 cfs and the lowest 890 cfs.

p10 2,197median 3,190p90 5,005

Percentiles of the daily mean flow for this date, from the USGS Water Data Statistics API for gauge 01046500; 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 temp52 F
High / Low52 / 35 F
WindNNW 11-19 mph
Pressure1027.4 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset07:06 / 17:41
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~55 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 Kennebec River this week

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

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

Today, Oct 23 — Tough

Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Solunar majors
9:12 AM-11:12 AM and 9:42 PM-11:42 PM
Minor period
3:34 AM-4:34 AM
Sun
07:06 to 17:41
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Clear, 13 mph
Rain chance
0%

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

Species guide

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

Landlocked salmon illustration

Landlocked salmon

Spring and fall near the surface, deep in summer, and under the ice in winter

Landlocked salmon are Atlantic salmon that complete their whole life in fresh water, feeding mainly on rainbow smelt in cold lakes of Maine and the Northeast. Spring after ice-out and the fall cool-down are the surface seasons, with fish near shore and at stream mouths feeding on smelt: troll or cast streamers and smelt imitations.

Brook trout illustration

Brook trout

Spring and fall in ponds and lakes, when fish come shallow; summer in the coldest headwater streams

The brook trout is a char native to eastern North America, a fish of cold, clean streams and ponds, and the state fish of Michigan. The best band: Vermont's ideal is 55-60°F. Fish feed in daylight, since Michigan DNR notes they are more diurnal than other trout, and in ponds and lakes Maine IFW says spring and fall bring them near shore and the surface.

Brown trout illustration

Brown trout

Spring along Great Lakes shorelines; low light and overcast days in rivers; fall spawning runs

A European trout first stocked in the US in 1883 and now fished in rivers and lakes nationwide; it tolerates warmer water than other trout, and mature stream fish feed mostly at night. Close to Vermont's 53-66°F optimum, browns feed more freely; in fall, pre-spawn fish move toward tributaries and gravel, so fish streamers and keep off the redds.

When to come: the Kennebec 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
Landlocked salmon
Brook trout
Brown trout
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 55 F (estimated, not a reading).

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~55 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 Kennebec River today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Landlocked salmon led the card at excellent. High of 59 F, wind to 14 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Brook trout led the card at excellent. High of 58 F, wind to 7 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Brook trout led the card at excellent. High of 61 F, wind to 11 mph.

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

License

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

Regulations

Maine license. Upper-river trout and salmon sections have specific tackle and length rules; saltwater striper regulations apply on the tidal river: check current MDIFW and DMR rules.

Access

Bingham, Solon and Madison access on the upper river; Augusta, Gardiner and Richmond ramps on the tidal river.

About this water

A 170-mile river from Moosehead Lake to the Atlantic at Bath, Maine: coldwater salmon and trout above, striped bass below.

Fishing Kennebec River: the full guide

A river with two halves

The Kennebec runs 170 miles from Moosehead Lake to the Atlantic at Bath, and dam removal at Edwards in 1999 turned it into one of America’s great river restoration stories. The upper river below Wyman Dam through Bingham and Solon holds landlocked salmon, brook trout and browns in cold tailwater conditions; the lower river below Augusta carries striped bass, shad and sturgeon that returned once the dam came out. Two fisheries, one river, entirely different trips.

The upper tailwater

Cold releases from Wyman Dam sustain salmon and trout through the summer around Bingham, with the stretch down to Solon and Madison offering both wading and drift-boat access. Streamers imitating smelt work spring and fall, with caddis and mayfly hatches carrying the summer. Flows change with generation: check the schedule and the gauge at Bingham, because the river rises quickly when the turbines run.

Whitewater and the gorge

Above Bingham, the Kennebec Gorge below Harris Station is famous whitewater with scheduled rafting releases: the fishing there is opportunistic and conditions-dependent. The Forks, where the Dead River joins, marks the transition and holds salmon in the pools during low-flow windows. This is remote country with basic services and excellent scenery.

The tidal river

From Augusta down, the Kennebec becomes a striped bass fishery each summer: fish follow alewives and menhaden up the tidal river, taking flies, plugs and live bait around the bridges, rips and ledges. It is a legitimately good urban-edge striper fishery and a direct consequence of restoring fish passage. Access is straightforward from Augusta, Gardiner and Richmond boat ramps.

Common questions

Where do I fish for landlocked salmon?

The tailwater below Wyman Dam through Bingham and Solon holds them, best in spring and fall when water temperatures are low.

Are the stripers worth targeting?

Yes: the tidal river from Augusta down produces good summer striper fishing, one of the clearest benefits of the Edwards Dam removal.

Do generation schedules matter?

Significantly: releases raise the upper river quickly. Check the schedule and the Bingham gauge before wading anywhere.

Is fishing good at Kennebec 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

Moosehead Lake38 miRangeley Lake41 miKennebago Lake41 miMooselookmeguntic Lake46 miChina Lake46 miRapid River56 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 01046500 — Kennebec River at Bingham
Read from the USGS Water Data API (api.waterdata.usgs.gov). Latest value timestamped 2026-10-23 at 19:15 UTC.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 45.0600, -69.8800 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.