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Mooselookmeguntic Lake Fishing Report

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

The big water of the Rangeley chain: Mooselookmeguntic holds salmon, brook trout and enough shoreline to lose the crowd entirely.

4/5
Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.
Water temp
~66 F est.
Air / High
71 / 71 F
Wind
WNW 12 mph

Sources: 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.

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

Mooselookmeguntic Lake lines up a genuinely fishable day across the board. Today brings a mixed sky, wind WNW around 12 mph, rising pressure near 1009 hPa and a high of 71. Water sits around 66 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

Landlocked salmonExcellent

Transition depths: work 15-30 ft along drop-offs and points with trolled smelt imitations, or find them where cold tributaries enter. Early morning is the honest window.

Brook troutExcellent

Prime pocket-water fishing. Work upstream with an attractor dry or a dry-dropper, hitting every seam behind boulders and the head of each plunge pool. Short casts, quiet feet.

Smallmouth bassExcellent

Peak season. Tubes, jerkbaits and swimbaits around gravel points, boulders and current seams.

Lake troutGood

Transition depths: work 40-80 ft structure edges with white tubes and flutter spoons. Early mornings can find fish surprisingly high over deep water chasing bait.

Tomorrow: Cooler at 62 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.

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.

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~66 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp71 F
High / Low71 / 59 F
WindWNW 12-17 mph
Pressure1009.0 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain48% cloud, 9%
Sunrise / Sunset06:08 / 19:14
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~66 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 4 · Showers, 71/59 F, wind 12 mph, rain 9%

Fair or better. A 12 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

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

Landlocked salmon illustration

Landlocked salmon

Best: ice-out through June, and September

Atlantic salmon that never see the sea: smelt-chasing acrobats of Maine and New England lakes, and the reason ice-out is a holiday up north. Transition depths: work 15-30 ft along drop-offs and points with trolled smelt imitations, or find them where cold tributaries enter. Early morning is the honest window.

Brook trout illustration

Brook trout

Best: May-Jun and Sep-Oct

North America’s native char: a small-stream specialist that demands cold, clean water and repays it with the prettiest fish in the woods. Prime pocket-water fishing. Work upstream with an attractor dry or a dry-dropper, hitting every seam behind boulders and the head of each plunge pool. Short casts, quiet feet.

Lake trout illustration

Lake trout

Best: ice-out and fall turnover

The char of the deep: 40-year-old predators patrolling the cold basins of glacial lakes, from the Finger Lakes to the Rockies. Transition depths: work 40-80 ft structure edges with white tubes and flutter spoons. Early mornings can find fish surprisingly high over deep water chasing bait.

Smallmouth bass illustration

Smallmouth bass

Best: May-Oct

Current and rock. Finds gravel flats, boulders and drop-offs, and fights far above its weight. Peak season. Tubes, jerkbaits and swimbaits around gravel points, boulders and current seams.

When to come: the Mooselookmeguntic 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
Landlocked salmon
Brook trout
Lake trout
Smallmouth bass
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 66 F (estimated, not a reading).

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~66 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 Mooselookmeguntic Lake today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

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 67 F, wind to 9 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

5/5 Excellent. Go now. Everything lines up: pressure, wind and light are in your favor. Landlocked salmon led the card at excellent. High of 65 F, wind to 10 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

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 72 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

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

Regulations

Maine license. Special tackle and length regulations apply to salmon and brook trout, with additional rules at Upper Dam: consult the current MDIFW law book for this water.

Access

Haines Landing (Oquossoc), Stephen Phillips Memorial Preserve launch and boat-in campsites, plus carry-in access points.

About this water

A 16,300-acre lake in Franklin and Oxford counties, Maine, the largest in the Rangeley chain, flowing to Richardson Lake at Upper Dam.

Fishing Mooselookmeguntic Lake: the full guide

The chain’s largest lake

Mooselookmeguntic covers 16,300 acres between Rangeley and Oquossoc, the biggest lake in the chain and one of the largest in western Maine. Depths past 130 feet, cold tributaries and a strong smelt population support the same cash fishery as its neighbors: landlocked salmon and brook trout, managed carefully under restrictive rules that keep sizes honest. Much of the shoreline is undeveloped, and the mountain backdrop is the reason people keep photographing this lake instead of fishing it.

Spring on the surface

The season opens with ice-out trolling: tandem streamers and smelt-imitating stickbaits pulled through the top ten feet, concentrating near the Upper Dam area, the Cupsuptic inflow and the shoreline drop-offs where smelt school. Salmon average 16-20 inches with better fish present, and brook trout join the catch in the same water. Fly casters work the tributary mouths and the boulder shorelines at first light.

Summer and the Upper Dam legend

As the lake warms, the fish drop to the thermocline: standard deep-trolling gear covers them at 25-45 feet through summer, best in low light. Upper Dam, where Mooselookmeguntic flows into Richardson Lake, is one of the historic addresses in American fly fishing: Carrie Stevens tied the Grey Ghost here in 1924. The pool below the dam still draws anglers for salmon and brookies under special regulations.

Access around the lake

Public launches at Haines Landing in Oquossoc and the Stephen Phillips Memorial Preserve serve boats, with the preserve adding remote campsites reachable only by water: the classic way to fish this lake. Wind builds fast across a basin this size, and small boats should plan around morning calm. Oquossoc and Rangeley cover supplies, guides and lodging within twenty minutes.

Common questions

Why is Upper Dam famous?

Carrie Stevens tied the Grey Ghost streamer there in 1924, and the pool below the dam has drawn salmon and brook trout anglers ever since.

How does it compare with Rangeley Lake?

Bigger, deeper and less developed, with more remote shoreline and boat-in camping. The species and methods are the same.

Can I camp on the water?

Yes: the Stephen Phillips Memorial Preserve maintains boat-access campsites around the lake, a Maine tradition worth the planning.

Is fishing good at Mooselookmeguntic 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

Rangeley Lake6 miKennebago Lake10 miRapid River14 miAndroscoggin River19 miKennebec River46 miLake Willoughby62 mi
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