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Lake Austin Fishing Report

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

The Colorado's country-club stretch: dock-lined constant-level water through Austin's hills, where hydrilla cycles mint double-digit bass.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Water temp
~84 F est.
Air / High
95 / 96 F
Wind
SE 9 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.

2/5Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Lake Austin serves up more heat: the productive hours are the dim ones. Today brings clear skies, wind SE around 9 mph, rising pressure near 1012 hPa and a high of 96. 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 98 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.

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 temp95 F
High / Low96 / 78 F
WindSE 9-10 mph
Pressure1012.1 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain10% cloud, 31%
Sunrise / Sunset07:09 / 19:50
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 PMsunrisesunset

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Fri Sep 4 · Showers, 96/78 F, wind 10 mph, rain 31%

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 Lake Austin: 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 Lake Austin 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 Lake Austin today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 99 F, wind to 15 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 99 F, wind to 8 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 99 F, wind to 9 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

Texas license. Bass 14-inch/5 with trophy-release culture: ShareLunker season awareness. Check TPWD.

Access

Walsh Boat Landing, Emma Long Metro Park ramps; limited bank at the parks.

About this water

1,830 constant-level acres of the Colorado through Austin, Travis County, TX. The double-digit ribbon.

Fishing Lake Austin: the full guide

The pass-through trophy

Lake Austin threads the Colorado between Lake Travis and downtown's Lady Bird: constant-level, dock-lined, and deceptively suburban: this narrow 'river lake' has minted more Texas double-digit bass per acre than almost anywhere. When the hydrilla runs thick, Austin's ShareLunker entries stack like commuter traffic.

The grass cycle

Everything keys to vegetation management: hydrilla eras produce the giants (punch the mats, swim big worms through the walls), treatment years shift fish to the docks and bluff ledges (jigs, magnum drop shots). Current from Mansfield Dam's releases positions fish on the points: generation windows out-fish the clock.

Dock water discipline

Hundreds of manicured docks line the lake: skipping jigs and wacky rigs beneath them is the year-round baseline: and the boat traffic (wake boats own summer daylight) enforces the schedule: dawn, night and winter for serious work. Night tournaments in summer are the local culture: big fish eat after the wakes die.

Working the ribbon

Public access concentrates at the city ramps (Walsh, Emma Long): the lake's length fishes in zones: the upper river bends below Mansfield (current fish), the mid-lake grass flats when green, the lower bluffs toward Tom Miller. Winter drawdowns for dock repair expose the skeleton some years: scout them like the pros do.

Common questions

Why does Lake Austin produce so many giant bass?

Constant level + hydrilla + Florida genetics + trout-free forage richness: the recipe compounds in a lake that never gets drawn down. Grass years are giant years: watch the vegetation reports.

When should I fish Lake Austin?

Winter through spring for the trophy window (February's pre-spawn is the peak), nights in summer when wake traffic sleeps. Dawn patrol year-round beats every midday.

Is fishing good at Lake Austin 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

Lady Bird Lake6 miLake Travis18 miLake Bastrop33 miLake Marble Falls33 miLake LBJ37 miGranger Lake38 mi
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