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Belton Lake Fishing Report

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

The Fort Cavazos lake: deep, clear Leon River water with hybrids and smallmouth history.

3/5
Fair. Fish early or late.Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows.
Lake level
593.17 ft -0.83 vs pool
Air / High
94 / 95 F
Wind
SE 10 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 08102000, 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.

Belton Lake serves up more heat: the productive hours are the dim ones. The gauge reads 593.17 ft, 0.83 ft below pool, easing 0.27 over the week. Today brings a mixed sky, wind SE around 10 mph, rising pressure near 1012 hPa and a high of 95. 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

Hybrid striped bassGood

Schooling at first light over main-lake humps and channel edges. Slabs, tail spinners and live shad once you mark bait. It is usually over by mid-morning.

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.

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 95 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 from Belton Lk nr Belton, TX.

Water level, last 30 days

USGS gauge 08102000. Conservation pool is 594 ft.

593.41593.85594.28pool 594593.17 ft08/0508/1508/2509/04

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp94 F
High / Low95 / 78 F
WindSE 10-12 mph
Pressure1011.6 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain32% cloud, 36%
Sunrise / Sunset07:08 / 19:49
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 · Showers, 95/78 F, wind 10 mph, rain 36%

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 Belton 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.

Hybrid striped bass illustration

Hybrid striped bass

Best: Jun-Sep

Stocked white bass x striper cross. Open-water shad chasers; birds and busting bait give them away. Schooling at first light over main-lake humps and channel edges. Slabs, tail spinners and live shad once you mark bait. It is usually over by mid-morning.

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.

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.

When to come: the Belton 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
Hybrid striped bass
Catfish (blue, channel)
Crappie
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 Belton 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. Hybrid striped bass led the card at good. High of 89 F, wind to 15 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Hybrid striped bass led the card at good. High of 100 F, wind to 9 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Hybrid striped bass led the card at good. High of 99 F, wind to 11 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

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

Regulations

Hybrid: 18-inch minimum, 5/day. Smallmouth: 14-inch minimum. Confirm with TPWD.

Access

Corps ramps at Temple Lake Park, Cedar Ridge, Live Oak Ridge; Fort Cavazos manages additional access (check public status).

About this water

12,300 acres on the Leon River, Bell/Coryell counties. Corps of Engineers, impounded 1954.

Fishing Belton Lake: the full guide

Central Texas depth

Belton drops steep and clear along the Leon River: hybrid stripers school over 40-plus feet (downlines and slabs), whites run the river each spring, and a remnant smallmouth population haunts the rocky bluffs. Summer thermocline fishing is the local graduate course.

The deep game

Belton's clear 100-plus-foot basin fishes like a highland lake: summer hybrids suspend over the channel at 30-60 ft (downlines and heavy slabs), and the thermocline sets the depth every August. Winter flips them shallow on wind-blown flats: the jerkbait window locals plan vacations around.

Smallmouth heritage

Belton carried Texas' early smallmouth experiment, and rocky stretches (Cedar Creek bluffs, dam riprap) still surrender bronze surprises among the largemouth. Cold, clear winters keep the niche alive: a Ned rig on steep rock in February finds them.

Hybrid alarm clocks

Belton's hybrid stripers run the state's most reliable dawn patrol: June-September schools crush shad against the dam and Cedar Creek points in the first ninety minutes of light: slabs, swimbaits, live shad if you netted bait. The lake's deep clear canyon sections then hide the schools at 30-50 ft midday for the electronics crowd. Smallmouth on the rocky bluffs are the quiet bonus few Central Texans expect.

Common questions

Where do Belton hybrids go in summer?

Over the old river channel between Cedar Creek and the dam, 30-60 ft down along the thermocline: live shad on downlines at first light is the guide program.

Where are Belton's smallmouth?

The lower lake's limestone bluffs and rock points: an established population from old stockings. Jerkbaits in winter, Neds in summer: a Central Texas surprise most never target.

Is fishing good at Belton 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

Stillhouse Hollow Lake10 miLake Waco34 miGranger Lake35 miLake Whitney50 miLake Aquilla55 miLake Buchanan56 mi
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