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Sam Rayburn Reservoir Fishing Report

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

The biggest lake wholly inside Texas, and one of the best bass fisheries in America.

3/5
Fair. Fish early or late.Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows.
Lake level
155.04 ft -9.36 vs pool
Air / High
89 / 89 F
Wind
WSW 3 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 08039300, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Tap a marker for today's tip
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.

Sam Rayburn Reservoir serves up more heat: the productive hours are the dim ones. The gauge reads 155.04 ft, 9.36 ft below pool, easing 0.28 over the week. Today brings clear skies, wind WSW around 3 mph, steady pressure near 1014 hPa and a high of 89. 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 86 F with a rain chance. 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 Sam Rayburn Res nr Jasper, TX.

Water level, last 30 days

USGS gauge 08039300. Conservation pool is 164.4 ft.

156.68159.72162.76pool 164.4155.04 ft08/0508/1508/2509/04

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp89 F
High / Low89 / 73 F
WindWSW 3-5 mph
Pressure1013.5 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain3% cloud, 30%
Sunrise / Sunset06:54 / 19:36
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, 89/73 F, wind 9 mph, rain 30%

Fair or better. A 9 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

The species that matter on Sam Rayburn Reservoir: 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 Sam Rayburn Reservoir 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 Sam Rayburn Reservoir 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 87 F, wind to 8 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 82 F, wind to 18 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 92 F, wind to 15 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

Largemouth bass: 14-inch minimum, 5 per day. Crappie: 10-inch minimum, 25 per day. Confirm current rules with TPWD.

Access

Cassels-Boykin, Twin Dikes, Powell Park and Mill Creek parks are the busiest ramps. Umphrey Family Pavilion area has bank access near the dam.

About this water

114,500 acres on the Angelina River, Jasper/Sabine/San Augustine counties. Operated by the Corps of Engineers; impounded 1965.

Fishing Sam Rayburn Reservoir: the full guide

Big Sam, and why it grows giants

Sam Rayburn Reservoir floods 114,000 acres of East Texas piney-woods bottomland on the Angelina River, impounded in 1965. What makes it special is vegetation: hydrilla and pepper grass carpet the flats and creeks, feeding an ecosystem that pumps out eight-pound bass at a pace few lakes can match. Big Sam hosts more major tournaments than almost any lake in the country, and still fishes big: over 550 miles of shoreline mean you can always find unpressured water.

Where the bass live

The pattern here is grass first: work the edges and holes in the hydrilla from 3 to 12 ft with soft plastics, frogs over the mats in summer, and lipless cranks when the grass is young. When the fish pull out, they stack on creek channel edges and man-made brush in 15 to 25 ft. The north end (Black Forest, Harvey Creek) stays stained and shallow-minded; the south end near the dam runs clearer and deeper.

More than bass

Crappie fishing on brush piles and bridge crossings is outstanding, especially fall through spring. White bass run the Angelina in late winter, and the lake carries a strong channel and blue catfish population that most visitors never touch. If the bass bite dies midday, the catfish never do.

Common questions

Why is Sam Rayburn so good for bass?

Grass. Hydrilla and pepper grass cover huge flats, giving bass year-round cover and a conveyor belt of forage. Add 550 miles of shoreline and constant habitat work, and the lake simply produces more quality fish per acre than most.

What is the best time of year to fish Big Sam?

February through May is prime: pre-spawn through post-spawn, when giants push shallow. October is the sleeper month, with schooling fish and empty water.

Where do the tournaments launch?

Most major events run out of Umphrey Family Pavilion at Twin Dikes. Expect heavy ramp traffic on event weekends, especially January through April.

Is fishing good at Sam Rayburn Reservoir 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

Toledo Bend Reservoir36 miLake Nacogdoches50 miNeches River53 miLake Livingston64 miBlack Lake86 miSabine Lake87 mi
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