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Lake Nockamixon Fishing Report

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

Lake Nockamixon: a 1,450-acre Bucks County state park lake on PFBC's Big Bass Program list, with walleye, muskellunge and striped bass hybrids.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Flow
30 cfs
Air / High
60 / 60 F
Wind
ENE 6 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 01459500, 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.

Lake Nockamixon offers the kind of conditions this water was made for. The release below the dam is running 30 cfs, falling. Today brings clear skies, wind ENE around 6 mph, rising pressure near 1027 hPa and a high of 60. Water sits around 74 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 9:35 AM-11:35 AM and 10:04 PM-12:04 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Striped bassExcellent

Use electronics to find shad schools in open water, and watch for birds working over bait.

MuskellungeExcellent

Main open-water season: cast or troll large bucktails, spoons and plugs along weed edges and other cover where muskies wait in ambush.

Largemouth bassGood

The main feeding season after the spawn: work moving baits along weed edges, points and wood, and follow up with a soft plastic where a fish swirls.

Catfish (blue, channel)Good

Spawning season from late May into summer: Iowa DNR suggests drifting bait under a float along riprap and snags where males guard nests in cavities.

Smallmouth bassGood

Post-spawn and summer feeding: cover rock, wood and current breaks with crankbaits, jigs and tubes, and use live crayfish, minnows or hellgrammites where bait is the plan.

WalleyeGood

Summer pattern: nightcrawlers and leeches on rigs or jigs near bottom, trolled crankbaits to find scattered fish, and the shallows after dark in clear lakes.

Tomorrow: Similar at 59 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made β†’

Before you go

Pennsylvania requires a fishing licence from age 16, from $27.97 for residents. What a Pennsylvania licence costs and where to buy it β†’

Chasing largemouth bass here? Check the size and bag limits with PFBC before you keep anything. The season dates for Pennsylvania, read off the agency, are on the Pennsylvania seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings from Tohickon Creek near Pipersville (below the dam).

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 01459500.

11527944330 cfs09/2310/0310/1310/23

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp60 F
High / Low60 / 42 F
WindENE 6-8 mph
Pressure1026.6 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain3% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset07:20 / 18:09
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~74 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 Lake Nockamixon this week

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

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

Today, Oct 23 β€” Tough

Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Solunar majors
9:35 AM-11:35 AM and 10:04 PM-12:04 AM
Minor period
3:56 AM-4:56 AM
Sun
07:20 to 18:09
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Overcast, 10 mph
Rain chance
0%

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

Species guide

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

Largemouth bass illustration

Largemouth bass

Best: the spring pre-spawn and the fall feed

A warm-water sunfish of lakes, reservoirs, ponds and slow river backwaters that holds tight to cover: weeds, logs, rock ledges and docks. In Texas, TPWD surveys rank it "by far" the freshwater fish anglers most want to catch. The main feeding season after the spawn: work moving baits along weed edges, points and wood, and follow up with a soft plastic where a fish swirls.

Catfish (blue, channel) illustration

Catfish (blue, channel)

Year-round, best at dusk and after dark

Three big catfish share most of the country's rivers and reservoirs: the channel catfish, the most widespread; the blue catfish, the largest; and the flathead, which hunts live fish. All feed mostly on or near the bottom. Spawning season from late May into summer: Iowa DNR suggests drifting bait under a float along riprap and snags where males guard nests in cavities.

Smallmouth bass illustration

Smallmouth bass

Best: spring and fall, when bigger fish come shallow

A bronze-brown black bass of clear, cool streams and rocky lakes, with dark vertical bars instead of a side stripe. Michigan DNR says its southeastern coast, from Port Huron to Lake Erie, is known nationally for both the size and the number of its smallmouth. Post-spawn and summer feeding: cover rock, wood and current breaks with crankbaits, jigs and tubes, and use live crayfish, minnows or hellgrammites where bait is the plan.

Striped bass illustration

Striped bass

Best: spring and fall inland; on the coast, during the seasonal migrations

The largest of the temperate basses, a sea-run fish of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts that now also lives in reservoirs across much of the country after hatchery stocking. Inland, it follows schools of shad and herring through open water. Use electronics to find shad schools in open water, and watch for birds working over bait.

Walleye illustration

Walleye

Best: spring and late fall, around dawn, dusk and night

A cool-water perch of large lakes, reservoirs and rivers whose reflective eyes are built for low light, so it feeds most at night and in murky water. The Missouri Department of Conservation ranks it among the continent's most important freshwater game fish. Summer pattern: nightcrawlers and leeches on rigs or jigs near bottom, trolled crankbaits to find scattered fish, and the shallows after dark in clear lakes.

Muskellunge illustration

Muskellunge

Fished from late spring into late fall where seasons allow

Muskellunge are solitary, fish-eating ambush predators of the pike family, holding in weed beds and other cover in lakes and rivers of the Great Lakes, upper Mississippi and Ohio basins. Main open-water season: cast or troll large bucktails, spoons and plugs along weed edges and other cover where muskies wait in ambush.

When to come: the Lake Nockamixon 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
Catfish (blue, channel)
Smallmouth bass
Striped bass
Walleye
Muskellunge
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 74 F (estimated, not a reading).

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~74 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 Lake Nockamixon 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. Largemouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 70 F, wind to 11 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 65 F, wind to 11 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 68 F, wind to 14 mph.

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

License

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

Regulations

Big Bass Program lake (PFBC 2026 Fishing Summary): bass 15-inch minimum and 4 a day (combined species) Jan 1–Apr 10 and Jun 13–Dec 31; catch-and-release only Apr 11–Jun 12. Statewide inland rules: muskellunge 40 in., 1 a day; striped bass and hybrids 20 in., 2 combined; walleye 15 in., 6 a day, closed Mar 15–May 1.

Access

Five public launching areas (including the marina, Tohickon, Three Mile Run and Haycock), open 24 hours; 20 hp motor limit; accessible fishing pier in the Day Use Area; summer boat rentals.

About this water

A 1,450-acre lake in Nockamixon State Park, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, fed by Tohickon Creek, Three Mile Run and Haycock Run.

Fishing Lake Nockamixon: the full guide

A state park lake in upper Bucks County

Tohickon Creek, Three Mile Run and Haycock Run feed the 1,450-acre lake inside the 5,286-acre Nockamixon State Park, five miles east of Quakertown and nine miles north of Doylestown. DCNR calls it a warmwater fishery and lists walleye, muskellunge, pickerel, smallmouth and largemouth bass, striped bass hybrids, channel catfish, carp and various panfish as the common species.

Habitat structures and depth maps

Volunteers, park staff and Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission employees have placed fish habitat structures throughout the lake. DCNR publishes depth maps and a PFBC map of the structures, and paper copies are available at the park office and the marina office.

Motors, launches and no-fishing zones

Motors are limited to 20 hp (15 kW). The lake has five public launching areas, open 24 hours a day: sailors favor the marina and Tohickon ramps, while DCNR says Three Mile Run and Haycock are favored for motorboats, kayaks and inflatables. Fishing is prohibited from docks, launching and mooring areas and within 100 feet of them, in the boat rental area and the marina out to the buoys, from bridges, and below the spillway to the silt dam.

Shore fishing and dam releases

An accessible fishing pier stands at the midpoint of the lake in the Day Use Area, and the park office lends fishing rods to visitors who leave a photo ID. Conditions permitting, DCNR releases water from the dam on the first full weekend of November and the third weekend of March for whitewater boating on Tohickon Creek; the Tohickon Creek gauge near Pipersville shown on this page is below the dam and reflects those releases.

Common questions

Can I use a gas motor on Lake Nockamixon?

Yes, up to 20 horsepower (15 kW). DCNR does not allow larger motors on the lake.

What are the bass rules?

Nockamixon is in PFBC's Big Bass Program: in 2026, bass must be 15 inches and the limit is 4 a day, except from April 11 to June 12, when bass are catch-and-release only.

Where can I fish from shore?

DCNR points shore anglers to the accessible pier in the Day Use Area. Fishing is not allowed from bridges, from docks and launch areas, or within 100 feet of them.

Is fishing good at Lake Nockamixon 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

Musconetcong River17 miSpruce Run Reservoir20 miRound Valley Reservoir23 miBeltzville Lake34 miLehigh River36 miRaritan River36 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 01459500 β€” Tohickon Creek near Pipersville (below the dam)
Read from the USGS Water Data API (api.waterdata.usgs.gov). Latest value timestamped 2026-10-23 at 18:15 UTC.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 40.4600, -75.2300 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.
Pages checked
The facts in the written guide were checked against these pages, from the agencies and operators that manage the water, on October 6, 2026. Anything we could not verify was taken out.
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 text was drafted with AI assistance from the official pages listed above, and its facts were checked against those pages by automated verification on October 6, 2026; anything that could not be verified was 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.