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Chickahominy Lake Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Oct 23, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

Cypress and bowfin east of Richmond: Chickahominy Lake holds largemouth, pickerel, crappie and blue catfish above Walkers Dam.

3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Flow
73 cfs
Air / High
65 / 67 F
Wind
NE 8 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 02042500, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
23
October 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.

Chickahominy Lake lines up a genuinely fishable day across the board. The nearest gauge is running 73 cfs, steady over the week. Today brings clear skies, wind NE around 8 mph, steady pressure near 1026 hPa and a high of 67. Water sits around 74 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 9:42 AM-11:42 AM and 10:11 PM-12:11 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Striped bassExcellent

Use electronics to find shad schools in open water, and watch for birds working over bait.

Largemouth bassGood

The main feeding season after the spawn: work moving baits along weed edges, points and wood, and follow up with a soft plastic where a fish swirls.

Catfish (blue, channel)Good

Spawning season from late May into summer: Iowa DNR suggests drifting bait under a float along riprap and snags where males guard nests in cavities.

CrappieFair

Early in this band crappie are spawning in protected coves; afterward they move to docks, brush piles and standing timber near deeper water.

Tomorrow: Similar at 63 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Before you go

Virginia requires a fishing licence from age 16, from $23.00 for residents. What a Virginia licence costs and where to buy it →

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

Water and weather

Live readings from Chickahominy River near Providence Forge.

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 02042500.

5810214673 cfs09/2310/0310/1310/23

Today’s flow against 84 years of October 23

At 73 cfs, the flow at USGS gauge 02042500 (Chickahominy River near Providence Forge) is at the 51st percentile for the date: normal. In half of the 84 years of approved record the daily mean on October 23 was below 69 cfs; the highest was 1,420 cfs and the lowest 2 cfs.

p10 10median 69p90 391

Percentiles of the daily mean flow for this date, from the USGS Water Data Statistics API for gauge 02042500; 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 temp65 F
High / Low67 / 41 F
WindNE 8-12 mph
Pressure1025.8 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain4% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset07:24 / 18:20
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (gauge)56 F USGS
Water temp (seasonal)~74 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 Chickahominy Lake this week

The best day on Chickahominy Lake this week looks like Sunday Oct 25, at 5 out of 5, against 3 today.

Best day this week: Sunday, Oct 25 — excellent at 5/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 — Fair

A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Solunar majors
9:42 AM-11:42 AM and 10:11 PM-12:11 AM
Minor period
4:04 AM-5:04 AM
Sun
07:24 to 18:20
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Overcast, 9 mph
Rain chance
0%

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

Species guide

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

Largemouth bass illustration

Largemouth bass

Best: the spring pre-spawn and the fall feed

A warm-water sunfish of lakes, reservoirs, ponds and slow river backwaters that holds tight to cover: weeds, logs, rock ledges and docks. In Texas, TPWD surveys rank it "by far" the freshwater fish anglers most want to catch. The main feeding season after the spawn: work moving baits along weed edges, points and wood, and follow up with a soft plastic where a fish swirls.

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. Early in this band crappie are spawning in protected coves; afterward they move to docks, brush piles and standing timber near deeper water.

Catfish (blue, channel) illustration

Catfish (blue, channel)

Year-round, best at dusk and after dark

Three big catfish share most of the country's rivers and reservoirs: the channel catfish, the most widespread; the blue catfish, the largest; and the flathead, which hunts live fish. All feed mostly on or near the bottom. Spawning season from late May into summer: Iowa DNR suggests drifting bait under a float along riprap and snags where males guard nests in cavities.

Striped bass illustration

Striped bass

Best: spring and fall inland; on the coast, during the seasonal migrations

The largest of the temperate basses, a sea-run fish of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts that now also lives in reservoirs across much of the country after hatchery stocking. Inland, it follows schools of shad and herring through open water. Use electronics to find shad schools in open water, and watch for birds working over bait.

When to come: the Chickahominy 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
Crappie
Catfish (blue, channel)
Striped bass
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 74 F (estimated, not a reading).

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~74 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 Chickahominy Lake today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 69 F, wind to 8 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 68 F, wind to 9 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 72 F, wind to 8 mph.

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

License

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

Regulations

Virginia fishing license. Within 500 yards below Walkers Dam only rod and reel and hand lines are allowed, snagging at the dam is prohibited, river herring must be released, and striped bass follow VMRC tidal rules. Check DWR for current bass and crappie limits.

Access

Lake: Ed Allen’s Boats and Bait (Route 649) and Eagles Landing (Route 650), both private. Tidal river: Chickahominy Riverfront Park, Chickahominy WMA and Brickyard Landing.

About this water

A 1,230-acre cypress impoundment of the Chickahominy River behind Walkers Dam, on the New Kent–Charles City county line, Virginia.

Fishing Chickahominy Lake: the full guide

A cypress lake at the fall line

Chickahominy Lake covers 1,230 acres on the New Kent–Charles City county line behind Walkers Dam, a low-head dam completed in 1943 at the fall line of the Chickahominy River. DWR describes it as cypress-laden, with water lilies and submerged vegetation, and some creek arms clog with hydrilla in summer. A fish ladder in the dam passes anadromous fish such as striped bass and blueback herring.

Bass, bowfin and pickerel

DWR’s 2019 survey recorded catch rates of 91 largemouth bass and 58 bowfin per hour, and chain pickerel are among the lake’s primary gamefish. Fish the cypress, lily pads and hydrilla edges; weedless lures get through the summer mats where open-water baits foul.

Crappie, bluegill and blue catfish

DWR reports black crappie mostly from 10 to 13 inches and bluegill from 7 to 9 inches, with blue catfish in the 30- to 40-pound range.

Landings and the tidal river

The lake is reached through two private landings off Route 60 between Providence Forge and Lanexa: Ed Allen’s Boats and Bait on Route 649 (Rockahock Road) and Eagles Landing, 3.5 miles east of Providence Forge via Route 650. Below the dam the tidal river has public ramps at Chickahominy Riverfront Park, Chickahominy WMA and Brickyard Landing, with largemouth mostly from 1 to 3 pounds and blue catfish.

Common questions

Is there a public ramp on the lake?

DWR lists access through two private landings, Ed Allen’s Boats and Bait and Eagles Landing. The public ramps are on the tidal river below Walkers Dam.

Are gasoline motors allowed?

Yes. DWR notes that gasoline-powered motors are allowed on the lake with no size limit.

What lives in the lake besides bass?

Bowfin, chain pickerel, black crappie, bluegill and blue catfish, with striped bass and blueback herring passing the fish ladder.

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

Nearby waters

James River29 miYork River39 miLake Anna62 miRappahannock River67 miVirginia Beach71 miTangier Sound74 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 02042500 — Chickahominy River near Providence Forge
Read from the USGS Water Data API (api.waterdata.usgs.gov). Latest value timestamped 2026-10-23 at 20:00 UTC.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 37.4200, -77.0500 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 5, 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 5, 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.