Waters · United States
St. Joseph River (Niles) fishing report
Updated Saturday, 10 October 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: excellent (88/100)
Smallmouth Bass is the most promising species on St. Joseph River (Niles) today. Water temperature at the gauge is 16.8°C (62°F) and barometric pressure is stable. Gauge ST. JOSEPH RIVER AT NILES, MI shows the water level falling (0 cm/24h).
St. Joseph River (Niles) water temperature and flow
- Water temperature: 16.8°C (62°F)
- Discharge: 82.7 m³/s (2,921 cfs) — down 0% over 24 hours
- Level trend: falling (0 cm/24h)
Measured at gauge ST. JOSEPH RIVER AT NILES, MI · reading 15 min ago. Published by the national hydrological service, not estimated by us.
Best time to fish today
- 09:00–11:00 local time — score 84/100
- 12:00–14:00 local time — score 88/100
- 18:00–20:00 local time — score 82/100
3-day outlook by species
| Species | Saturday 10 Oct | Sunday 11 Oct | Monday 12 Oct |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steelhead | 66 — good | 62 — good | 60 — good |
| Chinook salmon | 77 — good | 79 — good | 74 — good |
| Smallmouth Bass | 88 — excellent | 84 — excellent | 85 — excellent |
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)
- wind: helping (+1)
- season: helping (+0.95)
- precipitation: helping (+0.9)
- river flow: helping (+0.9)
Forecast computed Sat, 10 Oct 2026 05:00:11 GMT · data: Open-Meteo + gauge ST. JOSEPH RIVER AT NILES, MI · refreshed automatically through the day · see our published accuracy
Wondering how this stacks up against the apps you already know? Cast & Scan vs Fishbrain vs BassForecast — an honest comparison, including where they beat us.
Read before you go
- The best time to fish for bass
- How river flow trend changes the bite
- Barometric pressure and fishing, explained
More steelhead waters
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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)
- Milwaukee River (Harbor) — Wisconsin, USA (189 km away)
- Lake Erie (Western Basin) — Ohio, USA (271 km away)