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Spruce Run Reservoir Fishing Report

Updated Mon, Sep 14, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

New Jersey’s pike water: Spruce Run holds northern pike, hybrid stripers and trout in Hunterdon County.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Water temp
~73 F est.
Air / High
71 / 72 F
Wind
NNW 12 mph

Sources: Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Monday
14
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.

Spruce Run Reservoir lines up a genuinely fishable day across the board. Today brings clear skies, wind NNW around 12 mph, rising pressure near 1019 hPa and a high of 72. Water sits around 73 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing crescent, the solunar majors run 1:11 AM-3:11 AM and 1:11 PM-3:11 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Smallmouth bassGood

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

Northern pikeGood

Weedline spinnerbaits, spoons and jerkbaits; bays with fresh green weed hold the active fish.

Rainbow troutGood

Prime dry-fly and hopper season. Match the hatch morning and evening; nymph the seams midday.

Largemouth bassFair

Prime chasing season. Work moving baits on points and pockets: spinnerbaits, chatterbaits and squarebills, with a stick worm behind for followers.

Tomorrow: Similar at 71 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Tue, Sep 15, 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.

4050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~73 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp71 F
High / Low72 / 58 F
WindNNW 12-17 mph
Pressure1018.9 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 3%
Sunrise / Sunset06:39 / 19:10
MoonWaxing Crescent, 8%
Water temp (seasonal)~73 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.

Mon Sep 14 · Overcast, 72/58 F, wind 11 mph, rain 3%

Fair or better. A 11 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

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

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.

Largemouth bass illustration

Largemouth bass

Best: spring and fall

The headline act on most American reservoirs. Relates to cover: docks, brush, grass edges and points. Prime chasing season. Work moving baits on points and pockets: spinnerbaits, chatterbaits and squarebills, with a stick worm behind for followers.

Northern pike illustration

Northern pike

Best: spring, early winter

The ambush predator of weedbeds and cabbage edges. Aggressive, big and always worth a wire leader. Weedline spinnerbaits, spoons and jerkbaits; bays with fresh green weed hold the active fish.

Rainbow trout illustration

Rainbow trout

Best: Apr-Jun, Sep-Oct

The workhorse of western rivers: riffles, seams and dry-fly eats. Prime dry-fly and hopper season. Match the hatch morning and evening; nymph the seams midday.

When to come: the Spruce Run Reservoir 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
Largemouth bass
Northern pike
Rainbow trout
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 73 F (estimated, not a reading).

4050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~73 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 Spruce Run Reservoir today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Sun, Sep 13

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 81 F, wind to 6 mph.

Sat, Sep 12

5/5 Excellent. Go now. Everything lines up: pressure, wind and light are in your favor. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 81 F, wind to 9 mph.

Fri, Sep 11

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 81 F, wind to 7 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 Jersey requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

New Jersey license plus trout stamp for trout. Northern pike, hybrid striper and bass limits per current NJDEP regulations; motor restrictions apply.

Access

Spruce Run Recreation Area boat ramp and shoreline off Route 31 near Clinton.

About this water

A 1,290-acre water-supply reservoir in Hunterdon County, New Jersey.

Fishing Spruce Run Reservoir: the full guide

A reservoir with unusual fish

Spruce Run Reservoir covers about 1,290 acres in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, a water-supply impoundment that is also one of the state’s most distinctive fisheries. It holds northern pike, hybrid striped bass, largemouth and smallmouth bass, trout stocked in the cool months, plus panfish and catfish, a combination found almost nowhere else in the state.

Pike in the shallows

Northern pike were introduced here and grow to genuine size, holding the weed beds, the coves and the shallow flats, taken on large spoons, spinnerbaits, swimbaits and dead bait rigs. Early spring, after ice-out, and again in the fall are the strongest windows. It is New Jersey’s best-known pike water for a reason.

Hybrids, bass and trout

Hybrid striped bass school and chase bait in open water, taken on jigging spoons and casting to surface activity. Largemouth and smallmouth hold the rock, wood and points. Trout are stocked and hold through the cooler months, taken from the bank and by trollers. Wind is a real factor on this open reservoir.

Hunterdon County logistics

Spruce Run Recreation Area provides a boat ramp, camping, swimming and extensive shoreline access, off Route 31 near Clinton. Motor restrictions apply: check current rules before launching. Round Valley Reservoir sits minutes away and offers deep-water lake trout fishing as a complement.

Common questions

Are there really pike?

Yes: introduced northern pike grow large here, making this New Jersey’s best-known pike fishery.

When is pike fishing best?

Early spring after ice-out and again in fall, worked over the weed beds, coves and shallow flats.

What else is nearby?

Round Valley Reservoir is minutes away, offering deep, clear water and lake trout.

Is fishing good at Spruce Run Reservoir 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

Round Valley Reservoir5 miMusconetcong River10 miLake Nockamixon20 miRaritan River21 miLake Hopatcong27 miSwartswood Lake30 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 40.6470, -74.9270 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
Written and reviewed by a person against the sources above. Errors are published in the verification log, not quietly corrected.

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.

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