April 17, 2026 | Beaver Tailwater Fishing Report
- Ryan Burks
- Apr 17
- 2 min read
Great temps and some much needed rain has made it a great time to get out on the water. Fish are active and the little increase in water levels has been a welcome change. Read on below for some details on what's happening out there.
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Beaver Tailwater Levels & Conditions
We got about another inch of rain Wednesday, and I'm glad to see it! The lake has been on a slow rise, and currently sits around 1117.75 msl, about a half a foot jump from last week. I expect it to continue to rise into next week, as we are expecting another round of rain over the weekend. Next week is bringing a bit of a cool down, and that should make for some wonderful fishing weather. We still haven't seen any power generation or water released from the dam, and we could absolutely use it to flush the river out a bit. Some water would help us clear out some of the stain we are seeing in the lower end of the river, and to get some of the dreaded "rock snot", or didymo out of the upper end of the river.
I'm seeing more and more folks out catching white bass, and the time is getting right. The lower water conditions seems to have put a bit of a damper on the runs so far this year, but hopefully it will kick off in a big way soon.
If you've ever wanted to get in on the white bass action, now is the time! Click here and get your trip booked!
What's Working
The midge game still seems to be the best thing going right now. You can't go wrong with a Ruby Midge suspended below a light indicator, particularly on sunny days. Match your pattern to the sky - sunny days mean brighter and flashier bugs, but cloudy means more drab flies. On cloudy days I've been having success dropping a much more drab fly, like an Olive WD40 off the back of the Ruby Midge as well. Small streamers and soft hackles have also been very productive at times when stripped around moss beds and other deeper cover. The ubiquitous Micro Jig continues to be a staple and will always put some fish in the net.
As we see more warm days I've started to see a few more noses poking up as we see midges and a few caddis coming off, but no major bug hatches to note right now.
To wrap up last week - steady seems to be the name of the game. We're having very consistent, good fishing. At times we are having to slow down and really pick water apart to find the fish, but they are more than willing to eat when you find them.
Check out the store portion of our website for flies, and if you need something you don't see there...don't hesitate to reach out! I can make it happen.
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