Where to fish

  • Forecast
  • Catches

Mine

  • Favorites

Where to fish

  • Forecast
  • Catches

Mine

  • Favorites
Forecast
AboutHow the forecast worksWhere fish livePrivacyTerms[email protected]
© 2026·AI-powered bite forecast
0.1.0+2161 · b4069346

We use cookies for analytics and advertising. Cookies necessary for the site to function are always kept. Learn more

United States / Illinois

Illinois — bite forecast

Loading map…
Towns and settlements (15)
AuroraBethaltoBloomingtonChampaignChicagoEast Saint LouisElginJolietNapervillePeoriaQuincyRockfordSpringfieldUrbanaWaukegan
Rivers (226)
Chicago RiverEmbarras RiverFarm CreekFox RiverKaskaskia RiverKent CreekLittle Wabash RiverMississippi RiverNorth Branch Chicago RiverRock RiverSangamon RiverSouth Branch Chicago RiverSugar CreekWaukegan RiverWest Branch DuPage River

211 more — find yours by name.

Water bodies (1675)
Burnham Harbor North BasinBurnham Harbor South BasinCarlyle ReservoirCrystal LakeDuSable HarborMiller Park LakeMonroe HarborPeoria LakeQuarry LakeThe Confluence

1665 more — find yours by name.

Sea areas (4)
Cambria NeckDuck NeckPisgah BaySmith Bay

Best fishing days for the next week

  1. TuesdaySeptember 8weather-based forecast
    58/100medium activity

    Drizzle: 70–79 °F

  2. ThursdaySeptember 3weather-based forecast
    53/100medium activity

    Partly cloudy: 77–100 °F

  3. SundaySeptember 6weather-based forecast
    52/100medium activity

    Cloudy: 64–91 °F

Which fish are caught here

  • Largemouth bass75 catches
  • Walleye11 catches
  • Black crappie7 catches
  • Pike6 catches
  • White crappie5 catches
  • Smallmouth bass4 catches
  • Flathead catfish4 catches
  • Bluegill4 catches
  • Yellow perch4 catches
  • Channel catfish2 catches
  • Rainbow trout1 catch
  • Steelhead1 catch

Catches

Recorded 129 catches here. Most commonly caught: Largemouth bass, Walleye, Black crappie. Peak season: year-round.

  • Bluegill — Heidecke Lake, May 05, 2019
    Bluegill
    Heidecke Lake
    68 °F4 mph
    May 05, 2019
  • Steelhead — Waukegan River, Oct 01, 2018
    2
    Steelhead
    Waukegan River
    Oct 01, 2018
  • Walleye
    Fox River
    39 °F18 mph
    Mar 28, 2021
  • Smallmouth bass
    Illinois, Will County
    41 °F9 mph
    Nov 11, 2020
  • Largemouth bass
    Crab Orchard Lake
    81 °F4 mph
    Jul 01, 2020
  • Smallmouth bass
    Lake of the Woods
    81 °F7 mph
    Jun 06, 2020
  • Black crappie, White crappie
    Crab Orchard Lake
    45 °F7 mph
    Apr 14, 2020
  • White crappie
    Crab Orchard Lake
    79 °F2 mph
    Apr 08, 2020

Illinois — a region with a sea coast plus rivers and lakes. The region has 15 cities, 226 rivers, 1675 water bodies and 4 sea areas. We forecast the bite not only on rivers and lakes, but at sea as well. Species found here: rainbow trout, pike, carp, whitefish, largemouth bass and smallmouth bass. A smart bite calendar — moon phase, atmospheric pressure, and weather combined into an hourly fish-activity forecast for the coming days.

Bite calendar

Aug 31 – Sep 6
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Sun
Bite activity:highmediumlowslow
Based on:weatherseasonal
What is a bite calendar?

Bite on rivers

3 SepThursday, September 3

Tap any fish to open its full forecast — the hours it bites, what it takes, and where it has been caught.

0:0023:00
  • Coho salmon8/10
  • Lake trout7/10
  • Pike7/10
  • Smallmouth bass6/10
  • Steelhead6/10
  • Walleye6/10
  • White bass6/10
  • White crappie6/10
  • Yellow perch6/10
  • Black crappie5/10
  • Muskellunge5/10
  • Rainbow trout5/10
  • Whitefish5/10
  • Blue catfish4/10
  • Bluegill4/10
  • Carp4/10
  • Channel catfish4/10
  • Chinook salmon4/10
  • Flathead catfish4/10
  • Largemouth bass4/10
Bite activity:highmediumlow
How this forecast is calculated
3 SepThursday, September 3
+97°

Partly cloudy · feels like +101°

Low / high
+77°…+100°
Precipitation
0.00 in
Wind
10 mph SW
Cloud cover
20%
Humidity
38%
Pressure
29.96 inHg
00:00+84°—7 mphsouth wind, 7 mph53%0%
01:00+83°—7 mphsouth wind, 7 mph55%0%
02:00+82°—7 mphsouth wind, 7 mph56%0%
03:00+81°—6 mphsouthwest wind, 6 mph57%0%
04:00+79°—5 mphsouthwest wind, 5 mph61%0%
05:00+78°—5 mphsouthwest wind, 5 mph66%0%
06:00+77°—5 mphsouth wind, 5 mph68%0%
07:00+78°—6 mphsouthwest wind, 6 mph66%1%
08:00+83°—9 mphsouthwest wind, 9 mph58%2%
09:00+87°—9 mphsouthwest wind, 9 mph51%3%
10:00+91°—10 mphsouthwest wind, 10 mph46%2%
11:00+95°—10 mphsouthwest wind, 10 mph41%4%
12:00+97°—10 mphsouthwest wind, 10 mph38%20%
13:00+98°—10 mphsouthwest wind, 10 mph35%30%
14:00+99°—10 mphsouthwest wind, 10 mph34%25%
15:00+100°—9 mphsouthwest wind, 9 mph33%20%
16:00+100°—9 mphsouthwest wind, 9 mph32%17%
17:00+97°—9 mphsouth wind, 9 mph32%27%
18:00+96°—7 mphsouth wind, 7 mph39%1%
19:00+90°—5 mphsoutheast wind, 5 mph46%4%
20:00+87°—11 mphsoutheast wind, 11 mph48%5%
21:00+87°—9 mphsoutheast wind, 9 mph46%0%
22:00+84°—9 mphsouth wind, 9 mph49%0%
23:00+83°—8 mphsouth wind, 8 mph50%0%
+100°+89°+77°
Weather throughout the day
0:006:0012:0018:0023:00

Sun and moon

Thursday, September 3
The day: daylight and the hours the moon is above the horizon. Local time0:0012:0024:00
DaylightMoon above the horizon
Sunrise
06:26
Sunset
19:22
Day length
12 h 56 min
Sunshine hours
11 h 39 min
UV index
6
high
Moon
Last quarter
Moonrise
22:53
Moonset
13:40

The day is 2 min shorter than yesterday.

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

Solunar feeding periods

+14% in the windowThursday, September 3
Feeding windows on the day scale, local time0:0012:0024:00
Major periodsMinor periods
  • Major04:48–06:48Moon overhead
  • Minor13:10–14:10Moonset
  • Major17:18–19:18Moon underfoot
  • Minor22:23–23:23Moonrise

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?

Recommendations

Tactics

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

Lures

In clear water, natural colors work best: trolling spoon or spinner.

Gear

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