BirdTroutOpen the map Is the Catawba River good for rainbow trout?
Not in midsummer, and not everywhere. NC DEQ recorded rainbow trout in the Catawba River between 1997 and 2017, at one sampling site on it, but the river's measured July mean of 78.2 °F is above the 75 °F upper limit for this fish, so the water that holds it is the cold tributary mouths and the spring-fed stretches rather than the mainstem in July. Across 7 gauged stretches the July mean runs 59.3–84.5 °F, so the answer changes with where you stand on it. Fish of 7–14 inches are what North Carolina reports as typical.
What the state's records say
- Species
- Rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)
- In North Carolina
- introduced
- Record here
- surveyed present
- Holds in
- 55–65 °F, stops feeding above 75 °F
- Typical
- 7–14 inches
- Spawns
- Spring — March into May — on gravel, which is what separates it from the two autumn spawners above.
Introduced, and now the most widely distributed trout in the western counties — wild in the tumbling gradient water and stocked through the hatchery-supported season.
Is the water cold enough
Measured, not modelled: 7 gauged stretches of this river average 78.2 °F in July (59.3–84.5 °F across them), against the 55–65 °F this fish holds in and the 75 °F it stops feeding at.
| Gauge | Now | July mean |
|---|---|---|
| Catawba R Nr Pleasant Gardens | 63.3 °F | 74.2 °F |
| Catawba R at Sr1223 Bl Lk James Nr Bridgewater | 67.6 °F | 59.3 °F |
| Rhodhiss | 70.2 °F | 76.6 °F |
What you may keep
North Carolina WRC classifies this water as Delayed Harvest Trout Waters, Hatchery Supported Trout Waters, Special Regulation Trout Waters, Wild Trout Waters. The management tier on those reaches is stocked holdover, unknown, wild. This is a designation of the fishery and not the season and creel rules.
NCWRC public mountain trout waters → North Carolina season and creel rules →
What to fish for it
- Little Black Stonefly — January–April, #16–18
- Little Brown Stonefly — February–April, #12–16
- Blue-Winged Olive — March–May and September–November, #16–22
- Quill Gordon — March–April, #12–14
- Blackfly — April–June, #18–22
- Blue Quill — April–May, #16–18
- Cranefly — April–June and September–October, #6–10
- Grannom — April–May, #14–16
The insects recorded from this river's region, earliest first. The full calendar →
More about Catawba River
Catawba River — live water temperature, regulations and access
- Is the Catawba River good for brown trout?
- When to fish the Catawba River, North Carolina
- How to get to the Catawba River, North Carolina
- Catawba River fishing report
- Catawba River fishing regulations