Share your catch
US

New River Gorge Fishing Report

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

New River Gorge: 53 miles of the New River inside a national park and preserve, with catch-and-release reaches for black bass and walleye.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Flow
3,360 cfs
Air / High
62 / 63 F
Wind
NNE 4 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 03185400, 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.

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

New River Gorge feels the season turning: shorter days, grouping fish. The river is running 3,360 cfs, dropping and clearing. Today brings clear skies, wind NNE around 4 mph, rising pressure near 1023 hPa and a high of 63. Water sits around 62 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 9:59 AM-11:59 AM and 10:27 PM-12:27 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

MuskellungeExcellent

This band covers the spring spawn, which in Wisconsin runs at 49-60°F; spawning muskies eat little and rarely chase lures, Wisconsin DNR says. After the spawn, and again as fall water cools, work large lures along weed edges and structure.

Smallmouth bassGood

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.

WalleyeGood

Spring: post-spawn fish scatter and can be slow for a couple of weeks. Fall: one of the best windows, with minnows on jigs and three-way rigs as the water cools toward ice-up.

Catfish (blue, channel)Good

In spring after ice-out, Iowa finds channel cats feeding on winter-killed shad on the shallow, warmer mudflats at the upper ends of reservoirs; cut bait on the bottom works there.

Largemouth bassGood

In spring, pre-spawn bass push shallow as the water climbs through the mid-50s; in fall they feed actively until the water cools into the low 50s, then drop back toward deeper structure.

CrappieFair

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.

Tomorrow: Similar at 60 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Before you go

West Virginia requires a fishing licence from age 15, from $24.00 for residents. What a West Virginia licence costs and where to buy it →

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

Water and weather

Live readings from New River at Thurmond.

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 03185400.

5,42611,95518,4843,360 cfs09/2310/0310/1310/23

Today’s flow against 45 years of October 23

At 3,360 cfs, the flow at USGS gauge 03185400 (New River at Thurmond) is at the 63rd percentile for the date: normal. In half of the 45 years of approved record the daily mean on October 23 was below 2,280 cfs; the highest was 26,000 cfs and the lowest 921 cfs.

p10 1,522median 2,280p90 8,748

Percentiles of the daily mean flow for this date, from the USGS Water Data Statistics API for gauge 03185400; 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 temp62 F
High / Low63 / 39 F
WindNNE 4-5 mph
Pressure1023.4 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain1% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset07:40 / 18:35
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (gauge)60 F USGS
Water temp (seasonal)~62 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunset

Which day to fish New River Gorge this week

The best day on New River Gorge this week looks like Tuesday Oct 27, at 4 out of 5, against 2 today.

Best day this week: Tuesday, Oct 27 — good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 — Tough

Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Solunar majors
9:59 AM-11:59 AM and 10:27 PM-12:27 AM
Minor period
4:21 AM-5:21 AM
Sun
07:40 to 18:35
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Clear, 8 mph
Rain chance
0%

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

Species guide

The species that matter on New River Gorge: 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.

Walleye illustration

Walleye

Best: spring and late fall, around dawn, dusk and night

A cool-water perch of large lakes, reservoirs and rivers whose reflective eyes are built for low light, so it feeds most at night and in murky water. The Missouri Department of Conservation ranks it among the continent's most important freshwater game fish. Spring: post-spawn fish scatter and can be slow for a couple of weeks. Fall: one of the best windows, with minnows on jigs and three-way rigs as the water cools toward ice-up.

Muskellunge illustration

Muskellunge

Fished from late spring into late fall where seasons allow

Muskellunge are solitary, fish-eating ambush predators of the pike family, holding in weed beds and other cover in lakes and rivers of the Great Lakes, upper Mississippi and Ohio basins. This band covers the spring spawn, which in Wisconsin runs at 49-60°F; spawning muskies eat little and rarely chase lures, Wisconsin DNR says. After the spawn, and again as fall water cools, work large lures along weed edges and structure.

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. In spring after ice-out, Iowa finds channel cats feeding on winter-killed shad on the shallow, warmer mudflats at the upper ends of reservoirs; cut bait on the bottom works there.

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. In spring, pre-spawn bass push shallow as the water climbs through the mid-50s; in fall they feed actively until the water cools into the low 50s, then drop back toward deeper structure.

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.

When to come: the New River Gorge 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
Walleye
Muskellunge
Catfish (blue, channel)
Largemouth bass
Crappie
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 62 F (estimated, not a reading).

4050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~62 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 New River Gorge today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Muskellunge led the card at excellent. High of 63 F, wind to 10 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Muskellunge led the card at excellent. High of 64 F, wind to 9 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Muskellunge led the card at excellent. High of 66 F, wind to 8 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
Only used if we need to ask you about your report. No mailing list, no spam.

Before you go

License

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

Regulations

West Virginia fishing license for everyone fishing in the park. Black bass: catch-and-release from the I-64 bridge at Sandstone to Grandview Sandbar; elsewhere from the Gauley to the Virginia line (excluding Bluestone Lake) 14-22 in. protected slot, 6 a day, one over 22 in. Walleye: catch-and-release from Meadow Creek access to Sandstone Falls; elsewhere 20-30 in. protected, 2 a day, one over 30 in. (2026 WV regulations). Trout stamp required for the stocked tributaries.

Access

NPS access points: Tug Creek Beach, Brooks Falls, Hellems Beach, Sandstone Falls, Meadow Creek, McCreery, Grandview Sandbar, Mill Creek, Glade Creek, Dunglen, Stone Cliff, Cunard and Fayette Station.

About this water

The New River through New River Gorge National Park and Preserve (53 river miles, more than 70,000 acres), Fayette, Raleigh and Summers counties, West Virginia. Flow on this page comes from USGS 03185400, New River at Thurmond.

Fishing New River Gorge: the full guide

The park and the river

New River Gorge National Park and Preserve protects 53 miles of the New River and more than 70,000 acres of the gorge it cut. The Park Service's geology page says the New may be one of the oldest river systems in the world.

What anglers catch

The Park Service lists smallmouth, largemouth, striped and rock bass, walleye, muskellunge, crappie, bluegill, carp, and flathead and channel catfish, and calls smallmouth one of the more abundant species. It rates spring and fall as the best seasons, early morning and late evening as the best hours, and notes that walleye are commonly fished in fall in deeper water.

Special rules in the gorge

West Virginia's 2026 regulations make the 12 miles from the I-64 bridge at Sandstone down to the Grandview Sandbar access catch-and-release for all black bass. From the Gauley River confluence upstream to the Virginia line, outside that section and Bluestone Lake, black bass from 14 to 22 inches must be released and the limit is 6, only one over 22 inches. Walleye are catch-and-release on the 5 miles from the Meadow Creek access upstream to the base of Sandstone Falls; elsewhere on the New, walleye from 20 to 30 inches go back and the limit is 2, only one over 30 inches.

Getting to the water

Park access points include Tug Creek Beach, Brooks Falls, Hellems Beach and Sandstone Falls via River Road at Hinton; Meadow Creek; McCreery, Grandview Sandbar, Mill Creek and Glade Creek off Route 41 near Prince; Dunglen and Stone Cliff near Thurmond; Cunard; and Fayette Station. Crossing private land to reach the river requires the owner's permission.

Common questions

Is any of the river catch-and-release?

Yes. Black bass are catch-and-release for 12 miles from the I-64 bridge at Sandstone to the Grandview Sandbar, and walleye for 5 miles from the Meadow Creek access up to Sandstone Falls.

Where can I reach the river without a boat?

The Park Service lists access at Sandstone Falls, Brooks Falls, Meadow Creek, Grandview Sandbar, Stone Cliff, Cunard and Fayette Station, among others.

Do I need a West Virginia license inside the national park?

Yes. The Park Service requires everyone fishing in the park to hold a West Virginia fishing license, plus a trout stamp when fishing for trout.

Is fishing good at New River Gorge 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

Kanawha River18 miBluestone Lake21 miSummersville Lake24 miGreenbrier River26 miElk River40 miCranberry River44 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 03185400 — New River at Thurmond
Read from the USGS Water Data API (api.waterdata.usgs.gov). Latest value timestamped 2026-10-23 at 18:45 UTC.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 37.9000, -81.0700 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 8, 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 8, 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.