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Otter Creek Fishing Report

Updated Mon, Nov 9, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

Otter Creek: Vermont's longest river, with trout in its headwaters and smallmouth and pike lower down toward Lake Champlain.

3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Flow
296 cfs
Air / High
46 / 51 F
Wind
SSE 6 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 04282500, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Monday
9
November 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 the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Otter Creek feels the season turning: shorter days, grouping fish. The river is running 296 cfs, on the rise. Today brings cloud cover, wind SSE around 6 mph, rising pressure near 1004 hPa and a high of 51. Water sits around 51 F for the season (estimated). With the new moon, the solunar majors run 11:17 PM-1:17 AM and 10:53 AM-12:53 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

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.

Northern pikeGood

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.

Yellow perchGood

Spring and fall: perch hold shallower and, by Michigan DNR's account, feed through the day, so shoreline weed edges, flats and the shallows near spawning areas are worth searching.

Rainbow troutGood

This band overlaps Vermont's 54-66°F stream preference: fish feed across riffles, runs and pocket water, and in lakes WDFW says spring and fall bring them near the surface.

Smallmouth bassFair

Spring pre-spawn and fall: Iowa DNR notes the larger bass come up to shallow structure, where a shallow-running minnow bait or a spinnerbait just under the surface works.

Tomorrow: Cooler at 46 F with a rain chance. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Tue, Nov 10, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Before you go

Vermont requires a fishing licence from age 15, from $28.00 for residents. What a Vermont licence costs and where to buy it →

Chasing smallmouth bass here? Check the size and bag limits with VTFW before you keep anything. The season dates for Vermont, read off the agency, are on the Vermont seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings from OTTER CREEK AT MIDDLEBURY, VT.

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 04282500.

327566804296 cfs10/1010/2010/3011/09

Today’s flow against 112 years of November 9

At 296 cfs, the flow at USGS gauge 04282500 (OTTER CREEK AT MIDDLEBURY, VT) is at the 7th percentile for the date: much below normal. In half of the 112 years of approved record the daily mean on November 9 was below 696 cfs; the highest was 3,080 cfs and the lowest 170 cfs.

p10 345median 696p90 1,944

Percentiles of the daily mean flow for this date, from the USGS Water Data Statistics API for gauge 04282500; today’s reading is the latest instantaneous value. Classes follow the ones the USGS used on its WaterWatch maps (retired at the end of 2025): below 10th, much below normal; 10th–24th, below; 25th–75th, normal; 76th–90th, above; over 90th, much above.

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp46 F
High / Low51 / 41 F
WindSSE 6-10 mph
Pressure1003.7 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain100% cloud, 40%
Sunrise / Sunset06:39 / 16:32
MoonNew Moon, 0%
Water temp (seasonal)~51 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 Otter Creek this week

The best day on Otter Creek this week looks like Thursday Nov 12, at 4 out of 5, against 3 today.

Best day this week: Thursday, Nov 12 — good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Nov 9 — Fair

A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Solunar majors
11:17 PM-1:17 AM and 10:53 AM-12:53 PM
Minor period
6:54 AM-7:54 AM
Sun
06:39 to 16:32
Moon
New Moon, 0% lit
Sky and wind
Showers, 13 mph
Rain chance
40%

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

Species guide

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

Smallmouth bass illustration

Smallmouth bass

Best: spring and fall, when bigger fish come shallow

A bronze-brown black bass of clear, cool streams and rocky lakes, with dark vertical bars instead of a side stripe. Michigan DNR says its southeastern coast, from Port Huron to Lake Erie, is known nationally for both the size and the number of its smallmouth. Spring pre-spawn and fall: Iowa DNR notes the larger bass come up to shallow structure, where a shallow-running minnow bait or a spinnerbait just under the surface works.

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.

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.

Yellow perch illustration

Yellow perch

Caught all year, including under the ice through winter

Yellow perch are schooling panfish of the Great Lakes and northern lakes, and Michigan DNR calls them the game fish most often caught in that state. Spring and fall: perch hold shallower and, by Michigan DNR's account, feed through the day, so shoreline weed edges, flats and the shallows near spawning areas are worth searching.

Rainbow trout illustration

Rainbow trout

Spring and fall in most lakes; rivers fish year-round while the water stays cool

A cold-water trout native to Pacific drainages from Alaska to Baja California, now stocked in most states and fished in rivers, tailwaters and lakes. This band overlaps Vermont's 54-66°F stream preference: fish feed across riffles, runs and pocket water, and in lakes WDFW says spring and fall bring them near the surface.

When to come: the Otter Creek 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
Smallmouth bass
Crappie
Northern pike
Yellow perch
Rainbow trout
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 51 F (estimated, not a reading).

4050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovNov, ~51 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 Otter Creek today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Sun, Nov 8

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Crappie led the card at good. High of 51 F, wind to 10 mph.

Sat, Nov 7

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Crappie led the card at good. High of 52 F, wind to 14 mph.

Fri, Nov 6

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Crappie led the card at good. High of 64 F, wind to 7 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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Before you go

License

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

Regulations

Vermont fishing license; seasons and limits for trout, bass and pike differ by species: see Vermont Fish and Wildlife's current fishing regulations.

Access

Otter Creek Streambank Management Area and the wildlife management areas listed by Vermont Fish and Wildlife.

About this water

Otter Creek, just over 100 miles from Dorset to Lake Champlain at Ferrisburgh, Vermont; the gauge on this page is at Middlebury.

Fishing Otter Creek: the full guide

Vermont's longest river

Vermont Fish and Wildlife calls Otter Creek the longest river in Vermont, running just over 100 miles from Dorset north to Lake Champlain at Ferrisburgh. The headwater reaches hold coldwater fisheries for brook, brown and rainbow trout; the lower reaches add warmwater species such as smallmouth bass and northern pike, plus fish like bowfin and crappie that come up from Lake Champlain.

The middle river

Several dams keep the Lake Champlain species out of the middle section, where the department owns the Otter Creek Streambank Management Area to secure angling access. Its target-species list there includes smallmouth bass, brook, brown and rainbow trout, rock bass, yellow perch, fallfish, northern pike and bluegill.

State lands along the river

The department lists Pomainville, Clarendon Gorge, Tinmouth Channel, Brandon Swamp, Cornwall Swamp, Otter Creek and Lower Otter Creek wildlife management areas on Otter Creek or its tributaries. The USGS gauge at Middlebury (04282500) reports flow in real time.

Common questions

Trout or pike?

Both, by reach: Vermont Fish and Wildlife describes coldwater trout fisheries in the headwaters and smallmouth bass and northern pike in the lower reaches.

How long is Otter Creek?

Just over 100 miles, from Dorset to Lake Champlain at Ferrisburgh, according to Vermont Fish and Wildlife.

Where is public access?

The department's Otter Creek Streambank Management Area and several wildlife management areas along the river.

Is fishing good at Otter Creek 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 the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Nearby waters

Lake Bomoseen26 miWinooski River32 miWaterbury Reservoir34 miLake George35 miAusable River38 miLake Champlain41 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 04282500 — OTTER CREEK AT MIDDLEBURY, VT
Read from the USGS Water Data API (api.waterdata.usgs.gov). Latest value timestamped 2026-11-09 at 12:30 UTC.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 44.0131, -73.1680 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.
Pages checked
The facts in the written guide were checked against these pages, from the agencies and operators that manage the water, on October 6, 2026. Anything we could not verify was taken out.
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 text was drafted with AI assistance from the official pages listed above, and its facts were checked against those pages by automated verification on October 6, 2026; anything that could not be verified was 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.