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Where to fish

  • Forecast
  • Catches

Mine

  • Favorites
ForecastCatchesFavorites
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© 2026·AI-powered bite forecast
0.1.0+2166 · bee8965a

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United States / Colorado / Colorado River

Bite forecast: Colorado River

  • length 268 mi
Loading map…

Best fishing days for the next week

  1. ThursdaySeptember 10weather-based forecast
    72/100high activity

    Clear: 61–86 °F

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Nearby water bodies

  • ReservoirRock Creek Reservoir2 mi
  • ReservoirTaussig Reservoir Number 13 mi
  • ReservoirMusgrave Reservoir4 mi
  • ReservoirWilliams Fork Reservoir4 mi
  • ReservoirMoore Reservoir5 mi
  • ReservoirScholl Reservoir6 mi
  • ReservoirLangholen Reservoir9 mi
  • ReservoirSylvan Reservoir9 mi
  • ReservoirHuntington Reservoir9 mi

Colorado River (Colorado) — a spot well known among anglers. About 431 km long. Nearest town — Grand Junction. See when the bite is best: hourly fish activity for the days ahead, computed from the weather, pressure, and season.

Fish biting at this waterbody

Choose a fish to see its hourly forecast, catches and BiteGuide.

  • Largemouth bass

Catches

Recorded 27 catches here. Most commonly caught: Largemouth bass. Peak season: March–May.

  • Largemouth bass
    Colorado River
    90 °F2 mph
    Jul 07, 2018
  • Largemouth bass
    Colorado River
    79 °F2 mph
    May 30, 2018
  • Largemouth bass
    Colorado River
    79 °F2 mph
    May 30, 2018
  • Largemouth bass
    Colorado River
    72 °F4 mph
    May 07, 2018
  • Largemouth bass
    Colorado River
    59 °F0 mph
    May 04, 2018
  • Largemouth bass
    Colorado River
    54 °F4 mph
    Apr 05, 2018
  • Largemouth bass
    Colorado River
    54 °F4 mph
    Apr 05, 2018
  • Largemouth bass
    Colorado River
    54 °F4 mph
    Apr 05, 2018
WednesdaySeptember 9weather-based forecast
68/100high activity

Partly cloudy: 59–86 °F

  • SundaySeptember 6weather-based forecast
    65/100high activity

    Clear: 61–88 °F

  • Nearby towns

    • Grand Junction0.8 mi

    Bite calendar

    Friday, September 4

    Aug 31 – Sep 6
    Mon
    Tue
    Wed
    Thu
    Fri
    Sat
    Sun
    Bite activity:highmediumlowslow
    Based on:weatherseasonal
    What is a bite calendar?
    Smallmouth bassWalleyeWhite bassYellow perchBluegillCarpChannel catfishPikeWhitefishBrook troutCutthroat troutLargemouth bassBlack crappieBrown troutLake troutRainbow troutWhite crappie

    Black crappie

    4/10 · Weak

    Hourly activity

    0:006:0012:0018:0023:00
    Bite activity:highmediumlow

    The bite is moderate — fish feed in short bursts. Pressure is dropping — this usually boosts the bite.

    Peak bite hours

    Best time — 06:00–08:00 (dawn bite) and 19:00–21:00 (dusk bite).

    Tactics

    Work the cover — snags, weed edges, hole entrances; retrieve the lure with pauses.

    Lures

    In clear water, natural colors work best: small jig or minnow bait.

    Gear

    It's a hot day — a hat, sunglasses, and plenty of water are a must.

    Summary

    An average day — best chances during peak windows.

    How this forecast is calculated

    Why this forecast

    The computed water temperature is around 71 °F — inside the 57–75 °F comfort range for Black crappie, so baseline activity is high.

    Computed water temperature by month; the green band is the 57–75 °F comfort rangecomfort 57–75 °F71 °F
    JFMAMJJASOND

    Black crappie works the twilight: the peaks are pinned to sunrise and sunset — their times are in the sun-and-moon card above.

    The day: daylight hours and when Black crappie feeds0:0012:0024:00

    Pressure is rising 0.12 inHg over the day — the bite usually settles down after a rise.

    Pressure through the day, 0.12 inHg change
    00:00 · 29.6123:00 · 29.72 inHg

    One more input — the moon's feeding windows: within their hours the score sits higher than across the rest of the day. The window times are in the “Solunar feeding periods” card below.

    Feeding windows on the day scale0:0012:0024:00

    September is an active season for Black crappie here.

    JFMAMJJASOND

    These are the same values the bite curve above was computed from. How the forecast works

    4 SepFriday, September 4
    +84°

    Clear · feels like +83°

    Low / high
    +64°…+88°
    Precipitation
    0.00 in
    Wind
    4 mph SE
    Cloud cover
    0%
    Humidity
    19%
    Pressure
    29.69 inHg
    00:00+70°—6 mphnortheast wind, 6 mph24%0%
    01:00+69°—6 mphnorth wind, 6 mph23%0%
    02:00+68°—4 mphsouth wind, 4 mph22%0%
    03:00+66°—9 mphsoutheast wind, 9 mph26%0%
    04:00+67°—10 mphsoutheast wind, 10 mph25%0%
    05:00+67°—5 mphsouth wind, 5 mph22%0%
    06:00+65°—5 mphwest wind, 5 mph24%0%
    07:00+64°—2 mphwest wind, 2 mph25%0%
    08:00+67°—1 mphwest wind, 1 mph27%0%
    09:00+74°—6 mphsouthwest wind, 6 mph25%0%
    10:00+79°—8 mphsouthwest wind, 8 mph22%0%
    11:00+82°—6 mphsouthwest wind, 6 mph20%0%
    12:00+84°—4 mphsoutheast wind, 4 mph19%0%
    13:00+86°—3 mphnortheast wind, 3 mph18%22%
    14:00+88°—13 mphsouth wind, 13 mph16%59%
    15:00+88°—14 mphsouth wind, 14 mph14%64%
    16:00+87°—7 mphsoutheast wind, 7 mph15%100%
    17:00+87°—10 mphsoutheast wind, 10 mph16%85%
    18:00+83°—9 mphsoutheast wind, 9 mph18%100%
    19:00+78°—9 mphsoutheast wind, 9 mph24%100%
    20:00+77°—8 mphnortheast wind, 8 mph24%100%
    21:00+73°—5 mphnorth wind, 5 mph33%69%
    22:00+69°—12 mphnorth wind, 12 mph42%70%
    23:00+69°—10 mphnorth wind, 10 mph37%100%
    +88°+76°+64°
    Weather throughout the day
    0:006:0012:0018:0023:00

    Sun and moon

    Friday, September 4
    The day: daylight and the hours the moon is above the horizon. Local time0:0012:0024:00
    DaylightMoon above the horizon
    Sunrise
    06:31
    Sunset
    19:25
    Day length
    12 h 54 min
    Sunshine hours
    8 h 56 min
    UV index
    7
    high
    Moon
    Last quarter
    Moonrise
    23:57
    Moonset
    15:05

    The day is 3 min shorter than yesterday.

    Sunshine hours count direct sun only — cloud cover cuts it, so it is shorter than daylight.

    Solunar feeding periods

    +12% in the windowFriday, September 4
    Feeding windows on the day scale, local time0:0012:0024:00
    Major periodsMinor periods
    • Major06:00–08:00Moon overhead
    • Minor14:35–15:35Moonset
    • Major18:32–20:32Moon underfoot
    • Minor23:27–00:00Moonrise

    The windows are set by the moon's transit and rise, and the forecast above already accounts for them: within these hours the bite score sits higher than across the rest of the day, while the day's overall level still comes from the catch-calibrated model.

    What are solunar periods?

    BiteGuide·From anglers’ reports

    What actually worked on this water

    Based on 27 verified catchesPeriod: 2018

    This is a summary of anglers' reports, not a proven cause of the bite: conditions lining up does not mean they drove it.

    By month

    vertical axis — number of catches

    0713
    91341
    MarAprMayJul
    By month
    ValueCatchesShare
    Mar933%
    Apr1348%
    May415%
    Jul14%

    Air temperature, °F

    vertical axis — number of catches

    0612
    9122121
    415059687786
    Air temperature, °F
    ValueCatchesShare
    41–48 °F933%
    50–57 °F1244%
    59–66 °F27%
    68–75 °F14%
    77–84 °F27%
    86–93 °F14%

    Pressure, inHg

    vertical axis — number of catches

    01122
    3222
    24.6124.8025.00
    Pressure, inHg
    ValueCatchesShare
    24.61–24.76 inHg311%
    24.80–24.96 inHg2281%
    25.00–25.16 inHg27%

    Wind direction

    25 catches have this data · vertical axis — number of catches

    0714
    11419
    NNESSW
    Wind direction
    ValueCatchesShare
    N14%
    NE1456%
    S14%
    SW936%

    Wind speed, mph

    vertical axis — number of catches

    01122
    522
    04
    Wind speed, mph
    ValueCatchesShare
    0–2 mph519%
    4–7 mph2281%

    Measured river conditions are available for Colorado River: current gauge height, streamflow, and water temperature when reported by the source.

    Water

    Gauge height
    4.50 ft
    Streamflow
    597 ft³/s
    Water temp · measured
    61 °F
    In the model
    71 °F

    USGS gauge COLORADO RIVER NEAR KREMMLING, CO, 10 mi away · measured 2026-09-04 04:15 · data source · provisional data, subject to revision