Share your catch

Piedmont Lake Fishing Report

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

Ohio’s muskie water: Piedmont holds toothy fish and crappie in a quiet eastern Ohio valley.

3/5
Fair. Fish early or late.Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows.
Water temp
~84 F est.
Air / High
82 / 82 F
Wind
WNW 3 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.

3/5Fair. Fish early or late.Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows.

Piedmont Lake serves up more heat: the productive hours are the dim ones. Today brings cloud cover, wind WNW around 3 mph, rising pressure near 1013 hPa and a high of 82. Water sits around 84 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: plan around them and beat the heat.

The plan, species by species

Catfish (blue, channel)Good

Anchor on 20-30 ft baited holes with punch bait or cut shad. They keep biting through the heat when everything else quits.

Largemouth bassFair

Topwater at first light on points and seawalls, then slide out to 12-25 ft brush and points with a Carolina rig, deep crank or drop shot. The bite is dawn, dusk or deep.

White bassFair

Early schooling action over humps; slabs and small spinners under the birds.

CrappieSlow

Straight down on bridge pilings and deep brush at 15-25 ft. Minnows outfish jigs in hot water; move until the graph shows them stacked.

Tomorrow: Similar at 82 F with likely rain: fish ahead of the front. 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.

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~84 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp82 F
High / Low82 / 66 F
WindWNW 3-7 mph
Pressure1013.3 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain100% cloud, 29%
Sunrise / Sunset06:55 / 19:51
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~84 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 · Overcast, 82/66 F, wind 10 mph, rain 29%

Fair or better. A 10 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

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

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. Topwater at first light on points and seawalls, then slide out to 12-25 ft brush and points with a Carolina rig, deep crank or drop shot. The bite is dawn, dusk or deep.

Crappie illustration

Crappie

Best: Nov-Mar

Brush piles, bridge pilings and standing timber. The fish fry favorite. Straight down on bridge pilings and deep brush at 15-25 ft. Minnows outfish jigs in hot water; move until the graph shows them stacked.

Catfish (blue, channel) illustration

Catfish (blue, channel)

Good year-round

The most reliable bite on most southern waters. Blues run big; channels fill the cooler. Anchor on 20-30 ft baited holes with punch bait or cut shad. They keep biting through the heat when everything else quits.

White bass illustration

White bass

Best: Mar-May run

River-run spawners and open-water schoolers. Fast limits when you find them. Early schooling action over humps; slabs and small spinners under the birds.

When to come: the Piedmont 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
Largemouth bass
Crappie
Catfish (blue, channel)
White bass
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 84 F (estimated, not a reading).

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~84 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 Piedmont Lake today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

3/5 Fair. Fish early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 90 F, wind to 11 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

3/5 Fair. Fish early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 90 F, wind to 9 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

3/5 Fair. Fish early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 83 F, wind to 8 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

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

Regulations

Ohio license. Muskellunge 30-inch minimum statewide; bass, crappie and saugeye limits per current ODNR regulations. Horsepower restrictions apply.

Access

Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District ramps, camping and marina.

About this water

A 2,270-acre conservancy district reservoir on Stillwater Creek, Belmont and Harrison counties, Ohio.

Fishing Piedmont Lake: the full guide

A conservancy district lake

Piedmont Lake covers about 2,270 acres on Stillwater Creek in eastern Ohio, one of the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District lakes built for flood control in the 1930s. Horsepower restrictions keep it quiet, and Ohio manages it as one of the state’s best muskellunge fisheries, with largemouth bass, crappie, bluegill, catfish and saugeye alongside.

Muskie country

The muskie fishery is the draw: fish hold the weed edges, points, timber and the creek channels, taking bucktails, large rubber and glide baits. Fall is the trophy season, with October and November producing the biggest fish. The horsepower limit means less pressure and quieter water than Ohio’s open reservoirs, which the muskie anglers appreciate.

Bass, crappie and saugeye

Largemouth relate to the timber, brush and shoreline wood: jigs, plastics and spinnerbaits. Crappie stack the same cover, best in spring and fall. Ohio stocks saugeye, which hold the points and riprap and bite through the cold months. Channel catfish work the flats and are reliable on cut bait.

Belmont County logistics

The conservancy district manages ramps, camping and a marina, with horsepower restrictions that favor anglers over recreational boaters. Cambridge and Cadiz are the nearby towns, with Interstate 70 to the north. The lake sits in quiet rolling country and sees modest pressure outside the muskie crowd.

Common questions

Is it good for muskie?

One of Ohio’s best: managed for the species, with October and November producing the biggest fish.

Are there horsepower limits?

Yes, which keeps the lake quiet and the fishing pressure lower than on Ohio’s open reservoirs.

What else can I catch?

Largemouth, crappie and stocked saugeye, with catfish reliable through the warm months.

Is fishing good at Piedmont Lake 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 early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows.

Nearby waters

Salt Fork Lake12 miBerlin Lake62 miBuckeye Lake70 miCheat Lake78 miLake Arthur80 miMosquito Lake83 mi
Share your catch