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Bois Brule River Fishing Report

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

Bois Brule River: 44 spring-fed miles inside the Brule River State Forest, with lake-run steelhead, salmon and browns from Lake Superior.

3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Flow
110 cfs
Air / High
73 / 74 F
Wind
S 10 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 04025500, 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.

Bois Brule River feels the season turning: shorter days, grouping fish. The river is running 110 cfs, dropping and clearing. Today brings clear skies, wind S around 10 mph, steady pressure near 1020 hPa and a high of 74. Water sits around 55 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 9:41 AM-11:41 AM and 10:12 PM-12:12 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Brown troutExcellent

Close to Vermont's 53-66°F optimum, browns feed more freely; in fall, pre-spawn fish move toward tributaries and gravel, so fish streamers and keep off the redds.

Rainbow troutExcellent

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.

SteelheadGood

Main tributary season: fish seams, pool heads and tails and structure with drifted eggs, beads, nymphs or streamers, and plan trips around rising or falling water.

Chinook salmonSlow

Runs enter the rivers: drift roe or sand shrimp through travel lanes, plunk a wrapped plug, or float eggs in eddies and tidewater.

Tomorrow: Similar at 71 F with a rain chance. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Before you go

Wisconsin requires a fishing licence from age 16, from $20.00 for residents. What a Wisconsin licence costs and where to buy it →

Chasing steelhead here? Check the size and bag limits with WI DNR before you keep anything. The season dates for Wisconsin, read off the agency, are on the Wisconsin seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings from Bois Brule River at Brule.

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 04025500.

109114118110 cfs09/2310/0310/1310/23

Today’s flow against 81 years of October 23

At 110 cfs, the flow at USGS gauge 04025500 (Bois Brule River at Brule) is below the 5th percentile for the date: much below normal. In half of the 81 years of approved record the daily mean on October 23 was below 143 cfs; the highest was 247 cfs and the lowest 104 cfs.

p10 122median 143p90 221

Percentiles of the daily mean flow for this date, from the USGS Water Data Statistics API for gauge 04025500; 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 temp73 F
High / Low74 / 42 F
WindS 10-18 mph
Pressure1019.5 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain17% cloud, 14%
Sunrise / Sunset07:35 / 18:05
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~55 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 Bois Brule River this week

The best day on Bois Brule River this week looks like Saturday Oct 24, at 4 out of 5, against 3 today.

Best day this week: Saturday, Oct 24 — good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 — Fair

A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Solunar majors
9:41 AM-11:41 AM and 10:12 PM-12:12 AM
Minor period
4:05 AM-5:05 AM
Sun
07:35 to 18:05
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Showers, 11 mph
Rain chance
14%

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

Species guide

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

Steelhead illustration

Steelhead

Great Lakes tributaries from fall through spring; West Coast rivers have both summer and winter runs

Steelhead are rainbow trout that migrate to the Pacific or the Great Lakes to grow, then return up rivers to spawn; unlike most Pacific salmon they can survive spawning and spawn again. Main tributary season: fish seams, pool heads and tails and structure with drifted eggs, beads, nymphs or streamers, and plan trips around rising or falling water.

Brown trout illustration

Brown trout

Spring along Great Lakes shorelines; low light and overcast days in rivers; fall spawning runs

A European trout first stocked in the US in 1883 and now fished in rivers and lakes nationwide; it tolerates warmer water than other trout, and mature stream fish feed mostly at night. Close to Vermont's 53-66°F optimum, browns feed more freely; in fall, pre-spawn fish move toward tributaries and gravel, so fish streamers and keep off the redds.

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.

Chinook salmon illustration

Chinook salmon

Seasons follow the runs: spring, summer and fall runs on the West Coast, and late summer into fall in Great Lakes rivers

The largest Pacific salmon, caught by trolling and mooching at sea and by drifting and plunking in rivers as adults return to spawn; also stocked in the Great Lakes. Runs enter the rivers: drift roe or sand shrimp through travel lanes, plunk a wrapped plug, or float eggs in eddies and tidewater.

When to come: the Bois Brule River 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
Steelhead
Brown trout
Rainbow trout
Chinook salmon
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 55 F (estimated, not a reading).

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~55 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 Bois Brule River 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. Brown trout led the card at excellent. High of 67 F, wind to 6 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Steelhead led the card at excellent. High of 72 F, wind to 7 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Steelhead led the card at excellent. High of 69 F, wind to 11 mph.

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

License

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

Regulations

Wisconsin fishing license plus an inland trout stamp for trout and salmon on the Brule and its tributaries. Below Hwy 2: daily bag of 5 trout and salmon combined, of which only one may be a rainbow trout, at least 26 inches. County B to County S: 3 fish combined, artificial lures only. Full size limits are on WDNR’s Brule River fishing page.

Access

Brule River State Forest day-use access points on the lower river; Bois Brule and Copper Range campgrounds; forest open 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.; vehicle admission sticker required.

About this water

44-mile spring-fed Lake Superior tributary, entirely within the Brule River State Forest, Douglas County, Wisconsin. Gauge: USGS 04025500, Bois Brule River at Brule.

Fishing Bois Brule River: the full guide

A protected river

The Brule River State Forest contains the entire 44-mile length of the Bois Brule, a spring-fed river that runs cold and clear and drops 420 feet from its source to Lake Superior. WDNR lists five men who served as U.S. president among the river’s famous visitors: Grant, Cleveland, Coolidge, Hoover and Eisenhower.

Lake-run fish

WDNR gives the run timing: spring steelhead from late March through May; fall steelhead from mid-August to late November, most heavily from mid-September to late October; coho from late August to late November, peaking in September; chinook from early July to mid-October; and lake-run brown trout from early July to late October.

Seasons by reach

Below US Highway 2 the season runs from the last Saturday in March through November 15. Upstream, the river from US 2 to County Highway B and above County Highway S opens the first Saturday in May and closes September 30; the special-regulation water between County B and County S keeps the same dates with artificial lures only and a smaller bag.

Getting there

WDNR describes many well-marked day-use access points on the lower river, and two state forest campgrounds, Bois Brule and Copper Range, which also reach canoe landings. A vehicle admission sticker is required in the state forest.

Common questions

Which stamp do I need?

An inland trout stamp, not the Great Lakes stamp, for trout and salmon on the Brule and its tributaries.

When do steelhead run?

Spring fish from late March through May; fall fish from mid-August to late November, heaviest from mid-September to late October.

Which presidents visited the Brule?

WDNR names Ulysses Grant, Grover Cleveland, Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover and Dwight Eisenhower.

Is fishing good at Bois Brule River 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

Namekagon River35 miLac Courte Oreilles46 miChippewa Flowage47 miGrindstone Lake69 miTurtle-Flambeau Flowage75 miLeech Lake93 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 04025500 — Bois Brule River at Brule
Read from the USGS Water Data API (api.waterdata.usgs.gov). Latest value timestamped 2026-10-23 at 18:00 UTC.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 46.5500, -91.5800 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.