Where to fish

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Where to fish

  • Forecast
  • Catches

Mine

  • Favorites
ForecastCatchesFavorites
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© 2026·AI-powered bite forecast
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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
    62/100high activity

    Clear: 61–99 °F

  2. ThursdaySeptember 10weather-based forecast
    56/100medium activity

    Partly cloudy: 63–90 °F

  3. MondaySeptember 7weather-based forecast
    54/100medium activity

    Clear: 59–90 °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.

Recommendations

Tactics

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

Lures

The water's turning murky — go with bright, noisy lures: trolling spoon or spinner.

Gear

It's a hot day — a hat, sunglasses, and plenty of water are a must. Rain is expected — don't forget a rain jacket or a waterproof shell.

Bite calendar

7–Sep 13
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Sun
Bite activity:highmediumlowslow
Based on:weatherseasonal
What is a bite calendar?

Bite on rivers

10 SepThursday, September 10

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 salmon9/10
  • Lake trout8/10
  • Pike8/10
  • Smallmouth bass7/10
  • Steelhead7/10
  • White bass7/10
  • Yellow perch7/10
  • Black crappie6/10
  • Muskellunge6/10
  • Walleye6/10
  • White crappie6/10
  • Whitefish6/10
  • Chinook salmon5/10
  • Largemouth bass5/10
  • Rainbow trout5/10
  • Blue catfish4/10
  • Bluegill4/10
  • Carp4/10
  • Channel catfish4/10
  • Flathead catfish4/10
Bite activity:highmediumlow
How this forecast is calculated
10 SepThursday, September 10
+104°

Partly cloudy · feels like +104°

Low / high
+81°…+111°
Precipitation
0.00 in
Wind
11 mph WNW
Cloud cover
24%
Humidity
24%
Pressure
29.88 inHg
00:00+83°—12 mphsouth wind, 12 mph51%32%
01:00+85°—13 mphsouth wind, 13 mph46%16%
02:00+85°—13 mphsouth wind, 13 mph46%17%
03:00+85°—12 mphsouth wind, 12 mph47%26%
04:00+84°—12 mphsouthwest wind, 12 mph48%34%
05:00+83°—10 mphsouthwest wind, 10 mph49%36%
06:00+81°—9 mphsouthwest wind, 9 mph49%36%
07:00+81°—9 mphsouthwest wind, 9 mph48%38%
08:00+84°0.00 in10 mphwest wind, 10 mph44%45%
09:00+89°0.00 in11 mphwest wind, 11 mph38%53%
10:00+94°0.00 in12 mphwest wind, 12 mph33%55%
11:00+99°—12 mphwest wind, 12 mph28%43%
12:00+104°—11 mphwest wind, 11 mph24%24%
13:00+107°—10 mphwest wind, 10 mph20%10%
14:00+110°—11 mphwest wind, 11 mph17%5%
15:00+111°—13 mphwest wind, 13 mph16%6%
16:00+110°—13 mphwest wind, 13 mph17%11%
17:00+106°—5 mphwest wind, 5 mph22%22%
18:00+100°—6 mphnortheast wind, 6 mph29%37%
19:00+94°—13 mphnortheast wind, 13 mph36%52%
20:00+91°—13 mpheast wind, 13 mph41%65%
21:00+88°—10 mpheast wind, 10 mph46%77%
22:00+86°—9 mpheast wind, 9 mph51%87%
23:00+84°—10 mpheast wind, 10 mph58%96%
+111°+96°+81°
Weather throughout the day
0:006:0012:0018:0023:00

Sun and moon

Thursday, September 10
The day: daylight and the hours the moon is above the horizon. Local time0:0012:0024:00
DaylightMoon above the horizon
Sunrise
06:32
Sunset
19:11
Day length
12 h 39 min
Sunshine hours
12 h 8 min
UV index
6
high
Moon
Waning crescent
Moonrise
05:54
Moonset
18:55

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

+15% in the windowThursday, September 10
Feeding windows on the day scale, local time0:0012:0024:00
Major periodsMinor periods
  • Major00:00–01:07Moon underfoot
  • Minor05:24–06:24Moonrise
  • Major11:30–13:30Moon overhead
  • Minor18:25–19:25Moonset

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?