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Lewis and Clark Lake Fishing Report

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

The Missouri’s shallow reservoir: Lewis and Clark Lake holds walleye and catfish between two states.

4/5
Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.
Water temp
~55 F est.
Air / High
77 / 79 F
Wind
SSE 16 mph

Sources: 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.

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

Lewis and Clark Lake rewards those who follow the bait as the water cools. Today brings a mixed sky, wind SSE around 16 mph, falling pressure near 1009 hPa and a high of 79. Water sits around 55 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 10:07 AM-12:07 PM and 10:36 PM-12:36 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

WalleyeExcellent

Spring: post-spawn fish scatter and can be slow for a couple of weeks. Fall: one of the best windows, with minnows on jigs and three-way rigs as the water cools toward ice-up.

Northern pikeExcellent

The best band for pike: right after ice-out they move into flooded vegetated shallows to spawn, and they feed actively again as the water cools in fall.

White bassGood

The spring run happens in this band: tributaries, shoals and the upper ends of reservoirs as the water reaches about 55°F.

CrappieGood

Pre-spawn fish move toward shallow coves, and Iowa DNR points to wading as an effective way to reach them in spring; minnows or small jigs under a float.

Tomorrow: Cooler at 65 F with a rain chance. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Before you go

South Dakota requires a fishing licence from age 16, from $41.00 for residents. What a South Dakota licence costs and where to buy it →

Chasing walleye here? Check the size and bag limits with SD GFP before you keep anything. The season dates for South Dakota, read off the agency, are on the South Dakota seasons page.

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.

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~55 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp77 F
High / Low79 / 61 F
WindSSE 16-32 mph
Pressure1009.0 hPa, falling
Sky / Rain34% cloud, 26%
Sunrise / Sunset07:53 / 18:35
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~55 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Which day to fish Lewis and Clark Lake this week

Today is the pick of the week on Lewis and Clark Lake, at 4 out of 5.

Best day this week: today, Oct 23 — good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 — Good

Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Solunar majors
10:07 AM-12:07 PM and 10:36 PM-12:36 AM
Minor period
4:30 AM-5:30 AM
Sun
07:53 to 18:35
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Overcast, 18 mph
Rain chance
26%

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

Species guide

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

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. Spring: post-spawn fish scatter and can be slow for a couple of weeks. Fall: one of the best windows, with minnows on jigs and three-way rigs as the water cools toward ice-up.

White bass illustration

White bass

Best: the spring run up the tributaries, then summer surface schools

A silvery temperate bass of rivers and large reservoirs, also called sand bass, that schools in open water after shad and runs up tributaries to spawn in early spring. The spring run happens in this band: tributaries, shoals and the upper ends of reservoirs as the water reaches about 55°F.

Northern pike illustration

Northern pike

Best: cool water, from ice-out through spring, in fall and under the ice

A long, duck-billed predator of weedy lakes, slow rivers and backwaters that ambushes fish from vegetation. Wisconsin DNR points out that, unlike most of the state's common game fish, pike do their best feeding in cool water. The best band for pike: right after ice-out they move into flooded vegetated shallows to spawn, and they feed actively again as the water cools in fall.

Crappie illustration

Crappie

Best: the spring spawn; summer around docks, brush and the thermocline

Two slab-sided panfish, the white crappie and the black crappie, that gather around submerged timber, brush piles, docks and bridge pilings in lakes, reservoirs and slow river backwaters. Texas Parks and Wildlife counts crappie as the state's most popular panfish. Pre-spawn fish move toward shallow coves, and Iowa DNR points to wading as an effective way to reach them in spring; minnows or small jigs under a float.

When to come: the Lewis and Clark 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
Walleye
White bass
Northern pike
Crappie
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 55 F (estimated, not a reading).

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~55 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 Lewis and Clark Lake today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Walleye led the card at good. High of 78 F, wind to 11 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Walleye led the card at good. High of 73 F, wind to 7 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Walleye led the card at excellent. High of 72 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

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

Regulations

South Dakota or Nebraska license under reciprocal terms for the boundary water: verify current rules. Walleye and sauger limits differ by state.

Access

Ramps and recreation areas on both shores; Yankton at the dam; tailrace access below Gavins Point.

About this water

A 30,000-acre Missouri River reservoir behind Gavins Point Dam between South Dakota and Nebraska.

Fishing Lewis and Clark Lake: the full guide

A reservoir filling with sand

Lewis and Clark Lake spreads about 30,000 acres on the Missouri River behind Gavins Point Dam between South Dakota and Nebraska, the shallowest and most sediment-filled of the mainstem reservoirs. The delta at its upper end has grown enormously as the river drops its load. The fishery is productive: walleye, sauger, smallmouth bass, channel catfish, white bass and crappie.

Walleye and sauger

Walleye and sauger hold the points, flats and the delta area where current still moves: jigs and live-bait rigs in spring, trolled harnesses and crankbaits through summer, and a strong fall bite. The tailrace below Gavins Point Dam is among the most productive stretches on the river, concentrating fish in the current.

Smallmouth and catfish

Smallmouth bass work the rocky shorelines and riprap, an underfished component. Channel catfish are abundant and grow well in the fertile water, taking cut bait on the flats and in the delta. White bass and crappie appear in numbers depending on the year and water conditions.

Yankton logistics

Ramps and recreation areas serve the lake from both states, with Yankton at the dam providing services and the Missouri National Recreational River protecting the free-flowing stretch below. Wind builds chop quickly on shallow, open water. Either South Dakota or Nebraska license covers most of the lake: verify current reciprocity terms.

Common questions

Why is it so shallow?

Sediment: the Missouri drops its load as it enters, and the delta at the upper end has grown enormously over decades.

Is the tailrace productive?

Very: the water below Gavins Point Dam concentrates walleye and sauger and ranks among the river’s best.

Which license do I need?

Either state under reciprocal terms for the boundary water: confirm the current arrangement before fishing.

Is fishing good at Lewis and Clark 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

Big Sioux River76 miLake Francis Case92 miLoup River97 miLake Thompson100 miCalamus Reservoir107 miLake Poinsett121 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 42.8500, -97.6500 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
How this page was made. The daily report is computed by our scoring engine from live readings; nobody types it. The written guide was drafted with AI assistance. Unlike our newer pages, it does not yet list the official pages its facts were checked against: that audit is under way, and anything it cannot verify will be 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.