Share your catch

Chippewa Flowage Fishing Report

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

The Chip: Wisconsin's wild muskie cathedral, 15,000 flooded acres of islands and stumps where the world record swam and legends still follow.

4/5
Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.
Water temp
~66 F est.
Air / High
80 / 80 F
Wind
NW 6 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.

4/5Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Chippewa Flowage offers the kind of conditions this water was made for. Today brings clear skies, wind NW around 6 mph, falling pressure near 1011 hPa and a high of 80. 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

Smallmouth bassExcellent

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

MuskellungeExcellent

Bucktails and rubber over cabbage and rock bars; moon majors matter here more than anywhere.

WalleyeExcellent

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

Yellow perchGood

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

Tomorrow: Similar at 80 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 temp80 F
High / Low80 / 65 F
WindNW 6-7 mph
Pressure1010.7 hPa, falling
Sky / Rain22% cloud, 29%
Sunrise / Sunset06:30 / 19:38
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 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Fri Sep 4 · Showers, 80/65 F, wind 9 mph, rain 29%

Fair or better. A 9 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

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

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.

Muskellunge illustration

Muskellunge

Best: Sep-Nov

The fish of ten thousand casts. Weed edges, rock bars and big-water structure. Bucktails and rubber over cabbage and rock bars; moon majors matter here more than anywhere.

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.

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 Chippewa Flowage 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
Muskellunge
Walleye
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 Chippewa Flowage today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 86 F, wind to 8 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 85 F, wind to 6 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 85 F, wind to 9 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

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

Regulations

Wisconsin license. Muskie 50-inch minimum on the flowage: check DNR/LCO joint rules.

Access

Resort launches throughout; public ramps at CC/Winter Dam areas: local maps essential.

About this water

15,300 acres, Sawyer County, WI. The world-record muskie water of Hayward legend.

Fishing Chippewa Flowage: the full guide

Hallowed water

The Chippewa Flowage: 'the Chip': flooded 15,300 acres of Sawyer County wilderness in 1923 and became muskie fishing's sacred ground: Louie Spray's 69-pound world record (1949, disputed and defended for decades) came from these stained waters. Two hundred islands, floating bogs and stump fields: the Hayward legend is a real place, and it still produces.

Hunting the Chip

The stained water keeps muskies shallow and ambush-minded: bucktails over the mid-depth bars, topwater across the stump flats at dusk (the Chip's signature: few waters give better surface eats), and fall suckers on the deep weed edges. Fish the wind-blown bog edges and the island points: the flowage rewards water-reading over spot-camping.

The full northwoods menu

Walleye run the flowage's other economy: stained-water fish on the bars and river channels (jigs early, leeches at dusk, cranks after dark): crappie stack the cribs and bogs (a famous spring bite), and smallmouth work the rare rock. The resort culture (family operations generations deep) packages it all: the Chip is a week, not a day trip.

Flowage craft

Navigation is earned: stumps everywhere, bars unmarked, and the bogs actually float (GPS tracks from the resorts save props). Public and tribal waters interleave: the Lac Courte Oreilles band co-manages: respect boundaries and traditions both. November's sucker-soak finale for giants closes the year the way the Chip demands: slowly, patiently, with legends in mind.

Common questions

Was the world-record muskie really caught on the Chip?

Louie Spray's 69-pounder (1949) stands in the record books and Hayward's identity: debates aside, the flowage's genetics and 50-inch minimum keep true giants swimming today.

Why is the Chip's muskie minimum 50 inches?

Trophy management for hallowed water: the flowage is run for giants. Expect follows, earn eats, and release everything like the tradition demands.

Is fishing good at Chippewa Flowage right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Nearby waters

Lac Courte Oreilles7 miNamekagon River14 miBois Brule River47 miTurtle-Flambeau Flowage54 miLake Wissota67 miChippewa River67 mi
Share your catch