August 8, 2025 | Beaver Tailwater Fishing Report

After a little reprieve from the heat, we have jumped right back into it. Luckily the river is a great place to get away from scorching stats. Early mornings have come with a little bit of fog and some very comfortable temps and bent rods.

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Beaver Tailwater Levels & Conditions

Above Houseman Access

This past week, the tailwater elevation has been hovering around 916.7 msl when bottomed out after generation. The lake level above the dam is on a slow, but steady downward trajectory and is settling in right at 1125.4. The Corp of Engineers continues to run 1 unit, or 3750-3775 cfs of water, for about 12 hours a day. They have been cranking the water on around 9:00 every morning.  Click here to see the predicted generation schedule.

The wading opportunities are still slim, but if you want to get up early and hit the water before they turn the power on you can absolutely get a few hours of fishing in.

From a boating perspective, the river is still wide open in a jet outboard, and you can get anywhere you want to go. Once the water turns on most boats won't have any trouble...however I'd like to put one warning out. A couple weeks ago there was a ski boat beached at Parker Bottoms, and on Wednesday I had to help out a group in a big pontoon boat that was grinding a bunch of gravel. He had seen me jet right up a shallow spot and assumed he could do the same. Be aware of how much water your boat drafts and always pay attention to what's in front of you.

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What's Working

With more consistent high water, I've been doing a mix of drifting two fly rigs deep and tossing streamers at the banks. I've caught a few fish on hoppers, but nothing firing consistently on the hopper front, yet. The two-fly rig I'm having the most luck on has been with a Y2K as the first fly, and a Purple Haze Sowbug or Sunday Special as the second. I'm running this about 8 feet below an indicator and have been consistently bringing fish to the boat. I've got a blog post and video coming up that explains the high-water rig I use in detail. So keep an eye out for that coming soon!

Y2K  Sunday Special Purple Haze

If you get out early enough to fish in the low water in the mornings,  1/124 oz. and 1/80 oz. micro jigs are great in deeper pools and anytime there is a little chop on the water. In shallower water, about 3 feet and under, midges have been getting it done. I had one morning that they were all about the flash from a Ruby Midge and another that fish were running from flashy flies. On days when they don't want flash, the WD-40 in red or olive was a solid performer. Generally, I tend to fish flashy flies on days that are bright and sunny, and duller flies when the clouds roll in, but you can never tell. It pays to experiment with both.

Microjig Ruby Midge WD-40

The streamer bite was a fun game to play this week. And there were several times that fish were actively chasing and eating smaller streamers. I kept the streamers fairly small, on the 2" - 4" range, as these bright and high sun days aren't always the most conducive for throwing the real big stuff. I caught loads of fish on Wolly Buggers in size 6, and a fun little variation of the bugger with lead eyes and a wool head (coming soon to the website - but shoot me a message if you want to get your hands on some now). Black is always a good color to start with, especially in gin-clear water. Olive and white were also good producers.

Guide Insights

After that little break last week, it's been back to the summer-time grind of trying to stay cool and well hydrated, but the fishing has made it worth it for sure. With summer break coming to an end, take the chance to get out on the water with your kids and make some memories! I've got some openings, so don't hesitate to reach out if you want to get on the water before school starts back!