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Starvation Reservoir Fishing Report

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

The Uinta basin's surprise: Starvation's walleye school where Utah expects trout, with browns and smallmouth crashing the party.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Water temp
~66 F est.
Air / High
83 / 85 F
Wind
SW 12 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.

Starvation Reservoir offers the kind of conditions this water was made for. Today brings clear skies, wind SW around 12 mph, rising pressure near 1006 hPa and a high of 85. Water sits around 66 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: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

WalleyeGood

Jig and minnow on rock reefs and points; the evening bite on wind-blown shores is the one to plan around.

Smallmouth bassGood

Peak season. Tubes, jerkbaits and swimbaits around gravel points, boulders and current seams.

Northern pikeGood

Weedline spinnerbaits, spoons and jerkbaits; bays with fresh green weed hold the active fish.

Yellow perchFair

Drifting flats and weed edges with small jigs tipped with bait.

Tomorrow: Similar at 85 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.

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~66 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp83 F
High / Low85 / 53 F
WindSW 12-19 mph
Pressure1005.9 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 2%
Sunrise / Sunset06:52 / 19:48
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~66 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 · Overcast, 85/53 F, wind 18 mph, rain 2%

Fair or better. A 18 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

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

Walleye illustration

Walleye

Best: May-Jun, Oct

The glass-eyed prize of northern lakes. Low light, wind-blown structure and live bait. Jig and minnow on rock reefs and points; the evening bite on wind-blown shores is the one to plan around.

Smallmouth bass illustration

Smallmouth bass

Best: May-Oct

Current and rock. Finds gravel flats, boulders and drop-offs, and fights far above its weight. Peak season. Tubes, jerkbaits and swimbaits around gravel points, boulders and current seams.

Northern pike illustration

Northern pike

Best: spring, early winter

The ambush predator of weedbeds and cabbage edges. Aggressive, big and always worth a wire leader. Weedline spinnerbaits, spoons and jerkbaits; bays with fresh green weed hold the active fish.

Yellow perch illustration

Yellow perch

Good most of the year

The great lakes and northern panfish staple. Schools tight to bottom; where you catch one there are fifty. Drifting flats and weed edges with small jigs tipped with bait.

When to come: the Starvation 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
Walleye
Smallmouth bass
Northern pike
Yellow perch
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 66 F (estimated, not a reading).

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~66 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 Starvation Reservoir 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. Walleye led the card at good. High of 82 F, wind to 14 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Walleye led the card at good. High of 81 F, wind to 18 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Walleye led the card at excellent. High of 74 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

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

Regulations

Utah license. Walleye limits liberal by cycle: check DWR current. State-park fees.

Access

Starvation SP ramps and beach; Knight Hollow, Rabbit Gulch areas.

About this water

3,495 acres on the Strawberry River, Duchesne County, UT. The basin's walleye anomaly.

Fishing Starvation Reservoir: the full guide

The basin outlier

Starvation pools the Strawberry River near Duchesne: Utah's walleye outlier: the state's best population east of the lake country: schooling the points and flats of a high-desert reservoir that also grows browns to trophy size and smallmouth on every rock.

Walleye in trout country

The program runs plains-style: jigs on the rocky points at ice-out, bottom bouncers over the flats in June, cranks at night along the dam come fall. Utah manages it as the anomaly it is: liberal limits some years to balance the fishery: check current.

Browns and bronze

The Strawberry River's inflow seeds browns that ambush the same points (trolled minnow plugs at dawn: fish past 10 pounds documented), and the smallmouth fishery (2-4-pound rock fish) carries summer's midday when the walleye sulk. Three-species days run routine.

Duchesne practicalities

The state park anchors access (ramps, beach, camping): wind sweeps the basin most afternoons: and winter caps it for a genuine ice season: walleye and perch through the hard water. The Uinta front looms north: Starvation is its unlikely warm-water porch.

Common questions

Does Utah really have good walleye fishing?

Starvation is the proof east of the ranges: schooling fish on classic structure. June's bouncer bite and the night fall troll anchor the year.

How big do Starvation browns get?

Double-digit fish are documented: river-seeded ambushers on the points. Dawn plug-trolling in October hunts them best.

Why is it called Starvation?

Frontier-era hardship stories named the flats before the dam: the reservoir inherited it. The walleye contradict the name nightly: fat fish on a bleak-named water is the basin's joke.

Is fishing good at Starvation Reservoir 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

Strawberry River18 miStrawberry Reservoir35 miScofield Reservoir46 miDeer Creek Reservoir56 miJordanelle Reservoir58 miHuntington Creek64 mi
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