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Where to fish

  • Forecast
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United States / North Dakota / Reservoir Lake Sakakawea

Bite forecast: Reservoir Lake Sakakawea

  • 513.7 sq mi
  • depth up to 180 ft
Loading map…

Best fishing days for the next week

  1. ThursdaySeptember 10weather-based forecast
    79/100high activity

    Cloudy: 55–75 °F

Reservoir Lake Sakakawea (North Dakota) — a spot well known among anglers. About 1330.5 km² in area, up to 55 m deep. Nearest town — New Town. See when the bite is best: hourly fish activity for the days ahead, computed from the weather, pressure, and season.

MondaySeptember 7weather-based forecast
65/100high activity

Drizzle: 66–82 °F

  • SaturdaySeptember 5weather-based forecast
    64/100high activity

    Clear: 63–93 °F

  • Nearby towns

    • New Town1 mi
    Loading map…

    Catches

    Recorded 13 catches here. Most commonly caught: Walleye, Burbot, Sauger. Peak season: May–December.

    • Burbot, Sauger
      Missouri River
      34 °F9 mph
      Dec 20, 2018
    • Walleye
      Missouri River

    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?
    PikeYellow perchMuskellungeSmallmouth bassWalleyeWhite bassBluegillCarpChannel catfishLargemouth bassWhitefishBlack crappieChinook salmonLake troutRainbow troutWhite crappieBurbot

    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. Weather is steady, with no sharp swings — fish behave predictably.

    Peak bite hours

    Best time — 06:00–08:00 (dawn bite) and 20:00–21:00 (dusk bite).

    Tactics

    Look for drop-offs and gaps in the weeds, retrieve slowly, lingering over promising spots.

    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 69 °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 °F69 °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 · 29.7723:00 · 29.89 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
    +71°

    Partly cloudy · feels like +75°

    Low / high
    +60°…+79°
    Precipitation
    0.00 in
    Wind
    6 mph NNE
    Cloud cover
    25%
    Humidity
    76%
    Pressure
    29.92 inHg
    00:00+67°—8 mphnorth wind, 8 mph78%2%
    01:00+66°—9 mphnorth wind, 9 mph81%5%
    02:00+64°—6 mphnorthwest wind, 6 mph87%9%
    03:00+63°—5 mphnorth wind, 5 mph92%9%
    04:00+61°—3 mphnorth wind, 3 mph93%6%
    05:00+60°—4 mphnorthwest wind, 4 mph94%13%
    06:00+60°—5 mphnorth wind, 5 mph95%22%
    07:00+61°—3 mphnorth wind, 3 mph98%100%
    08:00+61°—8 mphnortheast wind, 8 mph100%100%
    09:00+62°—9 mphnortheast wind, 9 mph98%100%
    10:00+65°—10 mphnortheast wind, 10 mph89%100%
    11:00+68°—8 mphnortheast wind, 8 mph83%60%
    12:00+71°—6 mphnorth wind, 6 mph76%25%
    13:00+74°—6 mphnorth wind, 6 mph68%9%
    14:00+77°—7 mphnortheast wind, 7 mph63%7%
    15:00+78°—8 mphnortheast wind, 8 mph60%7%
    16:00+79°—8 mphnortheast wind, 8 mph57%5%
    17:00+79°—6 mphnortheast wind, 6 mph57%100%
    18:00+79°—9 mphnortheast wind, 9 mph57%2%
    19:00+77°—8 mphnortheast wind, 8 mph61%0%
    20:00+73°—5 mphnortheast wind, 5 mph70%0%
    21:00+70°—7 mphnortheast wind, 7 mph76%0%
    22:00+69°—6 mphnortheast wind, 6 mph81%0%
    23:00+68°—7 mpheast wind, 7 mph84%0%
    +79°+69°+60°
    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
    06:51
    Sunset
    20:01
    Day length
    13 h 10 min
    Sunshine hours
    8 h 37 min
    UV index
    5
    moderate
    Moon
    Last quarter
    Moonrise
    —
    Moonset
    16:29

    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

    +14% in the windowFriday, September 4
    Feeding windows on the day scale, local time0:0012:0024:00
    Major periodsMinor periods
    • Major06:44–08:44Moon overhead
    • Minor15:59–16:59Moonset
    • Major19:15–21:15Moon underfoot

    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?
    41 °F11 mph
    Nov 28, 2018
  • Walleye
    Missouri River
    41 °F11 mph
    Nov 28, 2018
  • Walleye
    Missouri River
    41 °F11 mph
    Nov 28, 2018
  • Chinook salmon
    Missouri River
    30 °F11 mph
    Nov 18, 2018
  • Walleye
    Lake Sakakawea
    73 °F16 mph
    Jul 21, 2018
  • Walleye
    Missouri River
    77 °F13 mph
    Jul 09, 2018
  • Pike
    Lake Sakakawea
    72 °F7 mph
    Jun 19, 2018
  • BiteGuide·From anglers’ reports

    What actually worked on this water

    Based on 13 verified catchesPeriod: 2017–2018

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

    By fish species

    vertical axis — number of catches

    059
    911111
    WalleyeBurbotChannel catfishChinook salmonPikeSauger
    By fish species
    ValueCatchesShare
    Walleye969%
    Burbot18%
    Channel catfish18%
    Chinook salmon18%
    Pike18%
    Sauger18%

    By month

    vertical axis — number of catches

    024
    133141
    MayJunJulSepNovDec
    By month
    ValueCatchesShare
    May18%
    Jun323%
    Jul323%
    Sep18%
    Nov431%
    Dec18%

    Air temperature, °F

    vertical axis — number of catches

    036
    113161
    233241506877
    Air temperature, °F
    ValueCatchesShare
    23–30 °F18%
    32–39 °F18%
    41–48 °F323%
    50–57 °F18%
    68–75 °F646%
    77–84 °F18%

    Pressure, inHg

    vertical axis — number of catches

    047
    337
    27.5627.9528.15
    Pressure, inHg
    ValueCatchesShare
    27.56–27.72 inHg323%
    27.95–28.11 inHg323%
    28.15–28.31 inHg754%

    Wind direction

    vertical axis — number of catches

    035
    12415
    NEESESW
    Wind direction
    ValueCatchesShare
    NE18%
    E215%
    SE431%
    S18%
    W538%

    Wind speed, mph

    vertical axis — number of catches

    048
    382
    4913
    Wind speed, mph
    ValueCatchesShare
    4–7 mph323%
    9–11 mph862%
    13–16 mph215%