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Kinnickinnic River Fishing Report

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

A spring-fed river through River Falls with 25 miles of Class 1 trout water, which the WDNR ranks among the densest brown trout fisheries in the country.

3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Flow
93 cfs
Air / High
75 / 76 F
Wind
SSE 14 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 05342000, 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.

Kinnickinnic River fishes cold and honest: earn your bites in the deep stuff. The river is running 93 cfs, dropping and clearing. Today brings cloud cover, wind SSE around 14 mph, steady pressure near 1019 hPa and a high of 76. Water sits around 47 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 9:46 AM-11:46 AM and 10:16 PM-12:16 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Brown troutExcellent

Below 50°F, fish slowly through the deeper pools; in early spring on the Great Lakes, Michigan DNR notes browns are often caught inshore before other species start biting.

Brook troutExcellent

Below 50°F is the fall spawning band (40-50°F in Vermont), so stay off spawning gravel. In winter Maine IFW finds pond fish close to shore in 4 to 12 feet of water under the ice.

Tomorrow: Similar at 73 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 brown trout 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 Kinnickinnic River near River Falls.

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 05342000.

919910693 cfs09/2310/0310/1310/23

Today’s flow against 28 years of October 23

At 93 cfs, the flow at USGS gauge 05342000 (Kinnickinnic River near River Falls) is at the 31st percentile for the date: normal. In half of the 28 years of approved record the daily mean on October 23 was below 105 cfs; the highest was 216 cfs and the lowest 56 cfs.

p10 74median 105p90 140

Percentiles of the daily mean flow for this date, from the USGS Water Data Statistics API for gauge 05342000; 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 temp75 F
High / Low76 / 57 F
WindSSE 14-21 mph
Pressure1018.8 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain100% cloud, 11%
Sunrise / Sunset07:36 / 18:12
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~47 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 Kinnickinnic River this week

The best day on Kinnickinnic 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
9:46 AM-11:46 AM and 10:16 PM-12:16 AM
Minor period
4:09 AM-5:09 AM
Sun
07:36 to 18:12
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Overcast, 16 mph
Rain chance
11%

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

Species guide

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

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. Below 50°F, fish slowly through the deeper pools; in early spring on the Great Lakes, Michigan DNR notes browns are often caught inshore before other species start biting.

Brook trout illustration

Brook trout

Spring and fall in ponds and lakes, when fish come shallow; summer in the coldest headwater streams

The brook trout is a char native to eastern North America, a fish of cold, clean streams and ponds, and the state fish of Michigan. Below 50°F is the fall spawning band (40-50°F in Vermont), so stay off spawning gravel. In winter Maine IFW finds pond fish close to shore in 4 to 12 feet of water under the ice.

When to come: the Kinnickinnic 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
Brown trout
Brook trout
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 47 F (estimated, not a reading).

30405060JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~47 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 Kinnickinnic 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 75 F, wind to 9 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Brown trout led the card at excellent. High of 73 F, wind to 10 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Brown trout led the card at excellent. High of 69 F, wind to 12 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; see the WDNR for trout stamp rules. For 2026-27 the WDNR lists a rule for the Kinnickinnic River and tributaries in St. Croix County: five trout in total, only one longer than 12 inches. Check the current trout regulations for the Pierce County reaches.

Access

Kinnickinnic River Fishery Area: 14 parking lots, bridge crossings and wading access (WDNR); Kinnickinnic State Park at the St. Croix confluence.

About this water

A spring-fed trout river with 25 miles of Class 1 water, flowing from central St. Croix County through River Falls and Pierce County to the St. Croix River.

Fishing Kinnickinnic River: the full guide

Spring-fed brown trout water

The Kinnickinnic rises in springs above Interstate 94 in central St. Croix County, flows through River Falls into Pierce County, and joins the St. Croix River south of Hudson inside Kinnickinnic State Park. The WDNR counts 25 miles of Class 1 trout water, lists the river as an Outstanding Resource Water, and says it supports one of the highest-density brown trout fisheries in the country, with a few brook trout in the main stem and tributaries.

Public access

The WDNR's Kinnickinnic River Fishery Area covers 893 acres in St. Croix and Pierce counties, mostly state-owned land plus fishing easements and leases, with 14 parking lots. Fishing is from bridge crossings, the bank or by wading, and the agency calls the river a fly-fishing destination for its brown trout and greater width. Habitat work on the Kinnickinnic, Parker Creek and the South Fork has been under way since the 1950s.

The River Falls dams

Two hydroelectric dams in River Falls, Powell Dam and Junction Falls Dam, hold back Lake George and Lake Louise; the city says the impoundments raised water temperatures, added sediment and reduced aquatic diversity. In April 2026 the Corps of Engineers approved a feasibility study for removing both. The next step, engineering design, depends on a City Council decision and Corps funding.

At the mouth

Kinnickinnic State Park sits where the river meets the St. Croix, with a large sandy delta at the junction and 10 miles of hiking trails.

Common questions

How good is the trout population?

The WDNR says the Kinnickinnic supports one of the highest-density brown trout fisheries in the country.

Are the River Falls dams coming out?

Not yet. The Corps approved a feasibility study for removing both in April 2026; design and funding are the next steps.

How do I get on the water?

Use the fishery area's 14 parking lots and bridge crossings; the WDNR says the river is fished from the bank or by wading.

Is fishing good at Kinnickinnic 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

Lake Pepin36 miSaint Croix River38 miLake Minnetonka47 miLake Waconia56 miLeech Lake59 miChippewa River60 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 05342000 — Kinnickinnic River near River Falls
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 44.8500, -92.6300 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.