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Hampton Fishing Report

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

New Hampshire's eighteen miles of coast, condensed: a working harbor, tide-ripped jetties, and party boats sailing to Jeffreys Ledge.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Next tide
Low 12:10 AM
Air / High
79 / 83 F
Wind
ESE 2 mph

Sources: NOAA tides 8429489, 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.

Hampton lines up a genuinely fishable day across the board. Today brings clear skies, wind ESE around 2 mph, rising pressure near 1008 hPa and a high of 83. Tides: high 5:02 AM and 5:20 PM, low 11:19 AM: the moving water either side of each change is when this place feeds. Water sits around 72 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

BluefishExcellent

Follow the bunker and mullet schools: blitzes can erupt anywhere on the beach. Wire or heavy leader always.

Striped bassGood

Surface action windows at dawn; otherwise free-lines and planer boards over long points and humps.

Tomorrow: Cooler at 70 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.

Tides

NOAA station 8429489 (Hampton Harbor). Fish the moving water either side of each change.

Fri
HIGH5:02 AM7.9 ft
LOW11:19 AM0.8 ft
HIGH5:20 PM9.1 ft
Sat
LOW12:10 AM0.3 ft
HIGH6:07 AM7.6 ft
LOW12:21 PM1.0 ft
HIGH6:26 PM9.0 ft

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp79 F
High / Low83 / 64 F
WindESE 2-11 mph
Pressure1007.8 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain1% cloud, 6%
Sunrise / Sunset06:11 / 19:13
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~72 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 · Showers, 83/64 F, wind 8 mph, rain 6%

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 Hampton: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Striped bass illustration

Striped bass

Best: spring and fall

The reservoir heavyweight. Follows shad and herring schools in open water year-round. Surface action windows at dawn; otherwise free-lines and planer boards over long points and humps.

Bluefish illustration

Bluefish

Best: Sep-Oct blitzes

The ocean's most honest fish: when blues blitz bait on the beach, everything with hooks gets bit. Follow the bunker and mullet schools: blitzes can erupt anywhere on the beach. Wire or heavy leader always.

When to come: the Hampton 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
Striped bass
Bluefish
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 72 F (estimated, not a reading).

4050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~72 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 Hampton 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. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 70 F, wind to 6 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

5/5 Excellent. Go now. Everything lines up: pressure, wind and light are in your favor. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 67 F, wind to 12 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 66 F, wind to 9 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
Only used to send you this water's report each week. No spam, ever.

Before you go

License

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

Regulations

NH Recreational Saltwater License (covers coastal fishing; party boats carry blanket licenses). Striped bass slot 28-31 inches (verify current). Groundfish: federal seasons/limits: check GARFO/NH Fish & Game.

Access

Hampton Beach State Pier, harbor jetties and Route 1A bridge, North Beach pull-offs, Seabrook side launches, party boats at Hampton Harbor.

About this water

Beach town on the Hampton-Seabrook estuary, Rockingham County, NH. The Granite State's entire Atlantic frontage, working hard.

Fishing Hampton: the full guide

Small coast, complete fishery

New Hampshire owns the shortest coastline in America and wastes none of it: Hampton Harbor's inlet moves strong tides past fishable jetties, the beaches north and south run stripers all season, and the state pier's fleet sails for haddock, pollock, and mackerel. Everything is within ten minutes: pick the tide, not the drive.

The harbor and jetties

Hampton Harbor Inlet funnels the Hampton and Blackwater rivers' marsh system through one cut: stripers ambush bait on the dropping tide (the jetties and the Route 1A bridge are the stands), mackerel swarm in spring feeding everything, and winter flounder linger in the backwaters. Live mackerel drifted in the current is the local big-bass method: catch bait at dawn, convert it by breakfast.

Beaches and marsh

North Beach and Hampton Beach's groins serve the surf crowd: chunks after dark, metal at first light when bait shows. Behind the boulevard, the Hampton-Seabrook estuary's marsh channels hold schoolies through summer, sight-fishing on big flood tides, and steady flounder in the mud channels: a kayak fishery inside a resort town.

Party-boat tradition

Hampton's head boats run the old Yankee program to Jeffreys Ledge: haddock limits spring through fall, pollock and cusk mixed, redfish on the sharp drops, occasional halibut headlines. Whale watches share the ledge: the groundfish grounds sit inside 20 miles, making Hampton the easiest deep-sea day between Gloucester and Portland.

Common questions

When do stripers arrive in New Hampshire?

Mid-May behind the mackerel and herring, peaking June-July in the harbor currents: fall's southbound push runs September into October. The dropping tide at the inlet is the metronome all season.

What do Hampton party boats catch?

Haddock is the staple (spring through fall), with pollock, cusk, and redfish filling boxes on Jeffreys Ledge: half-day and full-day sailings run daily in season. Family-friendly and license-covered: bring layers, even in July.

Is fishing good at Hampton 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

Plum Island6 miGreat Bay12 miMerrimack River30 miLake Winnipesaukee56 miStillwater River61 miSebago Lake67 mi
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