Waters · United States
John Day River (Lower) fishing report
Updated Tuesday, 25 August 2026 · refreshed automatically through the day
The longest undammed tributary of the Columbia: desert canyon water that is smallmouth heaven from May to July, then too warm to fish ethically until the autumn steelhead push.
Today's report: good (69/100)
Smallmouth Bass is the most promising species on John Day River (Lower) today. Water temperature at the gauge is 22.9°C (73°F) and barometric pressure is stable. Gauge JOHN DAY RIVER AT MCDONALD FERRY, OR shows the water level falling (0 cm/24h).
John Day River (Lower) water temperature and flow
- Water temperature: 22.9°C (73°F)
- Discharge: 0.5 m³/s (18 cfs) — down 4% over 24 hours
- Level trend: falling (0 cm/24h)
Measured at gauge JOHN DAY RIVER AT MCDONALD FERRY, OR · reading 79 min ago. Published by the national hydrological service, not estimated by us.
Best time to fish today
- 04:00–06:00 local time — score 60/100
- 07:00–09:00 local time — score 69/100
- 03:00–05:00 local time — score 61/100
3-day outlook by species
| Species | Tuesday 25 Aug | Wednesday 26 Aug | Thursday 27 Aug |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smallmouth Bass | 69 — good | 65 — good | 74 — good |
| Steelhead | 21 — poor | 22 — poor | 22 — poor |
Why this score
Cast & Scan uses a deterministic, published scoring model — no black box. The strongest influences on today's John Day River (Lower) rating:
- water temperature: helping (+1)
- precipitation: helping (+0.9)
- river flow: helping (+0.9)
- season: helping (+0.85)
- pressure trend: helping (+0.8)
- solunar period: helping (+0.7)
Forecast computed Tue, 25 Aug 2026 11:03:44 GMT · data: Open-Meteo + gauge JOHN DAY RIVER AT MCDONALD FERRY, OR · refreshed automatically through the day · see our published accuracy
Scan your exact spot
This page rates a representative point on John Day River (Lower). Bays, river mouths and depth changes can fish very differently — open the scanner, drop a pin on your exact swim and get a spot-specific forecast with tactics. Free, in the browser, no signup.
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Nearby waters
- Deschutes River (Sherars Falls) — Oregon, USA (61 km away)
- Yakima River (Union Gap) — Washington, USA (105 km away)
- Sandy River (Bull Run) — Oregon, USA (144 km away)
- Cowlitz River (Castle Rock) — Washington, USA (208 km away)