Waters · United States
St. Joseph River (Niles) fishing report
Updated Tuesday, 25 August 2026 · refreshed automatically through the day
A fish-ladder river: steelhead and kings climb the ladders at Berrien Springs and Niles on a schedule set by water temperature rather than by spate. Smallmouth fill the gaps between the runs.
Today's report: good (76/100)
Smallmouth Bass is the most promising species on St. Joseph River (Niles) today. Water temperature at the gauge is 22.4°C (72°F) and barometric pressure is rising. Gauge ST. JOSEPH RIVER AT NILES, MI shows the water level rising (0 cm/24h).
St. Joseph River (Niles) water temperature and flow
- Water temperature: 22.4°C (72°F)
- Discharge: 54.7 m³/s (1,932 cfs) — up 2% over 24 hours
- Level trend: rising (0 cm/24h)
Measured at gauge ST. JOSEPH RIVER AT NILES, MI · reading 22 min ago. Published by the national hydrological service, not estimated by us.
Best time to fish today
- 11:00–13:00 local time — score 77/100
- 19:00–21:00 local time — score 73/100
- 07:00–09:00 local time — score 72/100
3-day outlook by species
| Species | Tuesday 25 Aug | Wednesday 26 Aug | Thursday 27 Aug |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steelhead | 29 — poor | 23 — poor | 22 — poor |
| Chinook salmon | 55 — fair | 49 — fair | 41 — fair |
| Smallmouth Bass | 76 — good | 75 — good | 79 — good |
Why this score
Cast & Scan uses a deterministic, published scoring model — no black box. The strongest influences on today's St. Joseph River (Niles) rating:
- water temperature: helping (+1)
- light: helping (+1)
- solunar period: helping (+1)
- river flow: helping (+0.96)
- precipitation: helping (+0.9)
- season: helping (+0.85)
Forecast computed Tue, 25 Aug 2026 12:06:42 GMT · data: Open-Meteo + gauge ST. JOSEPH RIVER AT NILES, MI · refreshed automatically through the day · see our published accuracy
Scan your exact spot
This page rates a representative point on St. Joseph River (Niles). 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
- Grand River (Lower) — Michigan, USA (134 km away)
- Root River (Racine) — Wisconsin, USA (181 km away)
- White River (Whitehall) — Michigan, USA (182 km away)
- Muskegon River (Croton) — Michigan, USA (185 km away)