navigation bar
   
njdep  
  New Jersey Division of Fish & Wildlife New Jersey Division of Fish & Wildlife
 
njdep home f&w home

Delaware River Fishing Reports - 2012

Every year American shad migrate up the Delaware River to spawn. The numbers and timing of the "shad run" vary year to year depending on water temperature and conditions. Having accurate, up-to-date information on the run can greatly impact on angling success and enjoyment. Fortunately, there are resources anglers can use to get this information.

INFORMATION RESOURCES

In addition to occasional postings below from Principal Fisheries Biologist Mark Boriek and others, anglers can utilize the following resources:

  • Shad Hotline - Operated by the Delaware River Shad Fishermen's Association. Call 610-954-0577 or 610-954-0578 for the latest updates.
  • Woo's Shad Fishing Reports - Active bulletin board of reports.
  • Lewis Fishery Reports: Contact Steve Meserve of the Lewis Fishery in Lambertville at LewisFishery@comcast.net to be added to his list.
"The Big D" - 2006 Digest article about the river and its fisheries. (pdf, 165kb)

5/30 Report
5/17 Report
5/18 Report
5/17 Report
5/16 Report
5/14 Report
5/11 Report
5/10 Report
5/9 Report
5/7 Report
5/4 Report
5/3 Report
5/2 Report
4/28-29 Report
4/27 Report
4/26 Report
4/25 Report
4/24 Report
4/23 Report
4/20 Report
4/19 Report
4/17 Report
4/13 Report
4/12 Report
4/10 Report
4/8 Report
4/6 Report
4/5 Report
4/4 Report
4/2 Report
3/30 Report
3/28 Report
3/27 Report
3/26 Report
3/24 Report
3/20 Report
3/19 Report

Lewis Fishery Report, 5/30/12
Well, another year is in the books. We made our last haul Friday night. The river was at 2.43' and 70F. We got 2 bass, 1 catfish and 3 quillback. No American shad. For the year we caught a total of 197 American shad. I think our numbers would have been better if we didn't have the very low water conditions in the first part of the year. We started with the river at .91' and it went down from there. In total there were 18 hauls made below 1' and 7 below 0' I have been keeping river heights since 2007 and in those 5 years we have only fished below 1' 8 times, the lowest being 0.39'. All of those hauls were at the end of the season (4/27 to 5/27).

If you have any questions please feel free to drop me a note. Also, a note of thanks for everyone who came out to lend a hand. We will be starting up again around the middle of March next year (the first Saturday after St. Patrick's Day is what we shoot for). I'll keep you posted.

Lewis Fishery Report, 5/18/12
We took a chance tonight. We took 100 yards off and fished 100 yards. The river was at 3.86' and 64F. Just did what we call a run-around. We got 1 buck and 6 gizzard shad. We'll try again Monday or Tuesday, I'll keep you posted.

Lewis Fishery Report, 5/17/12
As soon as I sent out the e-mail yesterday everything changed. The forecast went to 7.1' for Lambertville, then it droped to 6.8'. It ended up cresting @ 6.58'@ 12 midnight. It's at 5.75' now. It might get low enough to fish tomorrow. I'll keep you posted.

Lewis Fishery Report, 5/16/12
Well we got one in between storms. The river was up to 2.34'. The water temp was 68F. We got two roe shad. We also got 2 bass, 27 catfish, 4 gizzard shad and 2 stripers. While the weather looks better for tonight the river is already up to 3.88' with a crest of 6.8' forecast for tonight. @ 2am. We'll see what happens. I don't think we will make the 6.8', but it will get well over 5' before it is all done. I'll keep you posted.

As always, we are looking for any extra hands to volunteer. If you think you might be interested, come on down and check us out.

Lewis Fishery Report, 5/14/12
A gray misty night on the river. The river was down to 1.58'. The water temp was 64F. There were no American shad. We did get 9 bass, 24 catfish, 27 gizzard shad, 3 stripers and 2 walleye. The weather does not look too good for tonight with thunder storms predicted (I don't really like being the only thing on the river with an 18' pole in my hands with lightning around, funny thing that). We'll see what happens. And the next couple of days have the river forecast to be too high to fish (4.2' Wed @ 8pm and cresting @ 4.9' Thursday).

Lewis Fishery Report, 5/11/12
What a great night to be on the river. The river was down to 2.7'. The water temp was 64F. We kept 7 roes and 6 bucks and returned 5. We also got 7 gizzard shad. We will be taking the day off Saturday to get ready for Mother's day and do some yard work on the island. We will be back out again on Monday.

Lewis Fishery Report, 5/10/12
The river was up to 3.2' last night. The water temp was 62F. We kept 6 roes and one buck and returned one. We also got 1 gizzard shad. We will be trying to go out Friday night (light on crew again).

Lewis Fishery Report, 5/9/12
Didn't fish Monday and Tuesday due to weather/crew issues. Had a nice haul Wednesday night. Kept 6 roes and one buck. We returned 5 shad. The water temp was 62F and the river was up to 1.81'. Still at 200 yards of net. We also got 8 bass, 13 catfish, 1 sucker, 23 gizzard shad, 4 quillback and a turtle. We will be trying to go out Thursday night (light on crew again).

Lewis Fishery Report, 5/7/12
Nice having the night off Friday. Saturday was a typical Saturday. The river was up to 1.5'. Temp was 62F. Still at 200 yards of net. We had 1 buck shad. We also got 4 bass. 14 catfish, 2 quillback and a rainbow trout. We will be trying to go out Monday night (light on crew again).

As always, we are looking for any extra hands to volunteer. If you think you might be interested, come on down and check us out.

Lewis Fishery Report, 5/4/12
Another gray night, but lots of help. The river was up to 1.12'. Temp was 62F. Still at 200 yards of net. We returned 4 shad. We also got 5 bass. 19 catfish, 2 suckers, 2 gizzard shad and 5 quillback (also a turtle, about 10" across). We will be taking tomorrow night (Friday) off and be back at it Saturday.

Lewis Fishery Report, 5/3/12
Gray and misty. The river was down to 0.84'. Temp was 60F. We went to 200 yards of net because we were short on crew and the river is still supposed to go up to 2' by Sunday. We returned 1 shad. We also got 3 bass. 9 catfish, 11 gizzard shad and 2 quillback. We will be out again tonight.

Lewis Fishery Report, 5/2/12
Sunny and nice yesterday. The river was down to 0.87'. Temp was 61F. Still at 300 yards of net. We got 1 roe, 3 buck and returned 6. We also got 6 bass. 69 catfish, 7 suckers, 4 gizzard shad and 1 striped bass. Looks like some rain is on the way. River looks like it will start going up tonight. Maybe a third start to the season?

Lewis Fishery Report, 4/28-29/12
It was Shad Fest Weekend so this will be quick. Typical Saturday morning haul. 200 yards on the side. The river was at 1.51 and 54F. We got 8 bass, 15 catfish, 3 suckers and i quillback. The haul for the fest @ 1:00 we got 1 buck and 1 roe along with a couple catfish, a sucker and a quillback. Today, no shad, a dozen catfish, a bass, a sucker and our first stripper. Temp was up to 58F and the river was down to 1.26'. We did have a couple of shad that we had on ice so the crowd did get to see some shad. We will be back at it tomorrow night.

Lewis Fishery Report, 4/27/12
It's Shad Fest Weekend so this will be quick. Another good night of shad fishing. The river was at +1.75' and 58F. We got 11 catfish, 14 gizzard 2 bass and 5 suckers. We also kept 2 buck and 3 roe shad. We returned 6. If you come to the fest, stop by and see us.

Lewis Fishery Report, 4/26/12
Another great night of shad fishing. The river was at +2.1' and 57F. We got 10 catfish, 7 gizzard and 1 quillback. We also kept 10 buck and 18 roe shad. We returned 11. We got 52 shad all of last year - we have already doubled that number this year. We will be out again tomorrow.

Lewis Fishery Report, 4/25/12
A great night to be on the river. The river was at +2.62' and 58F. We got 1 catfish, 2 gizzard and 1 quillback. We also kept 8 buck and 10 roe shad. We returned 4. We will out again tomorrow.

As always, we are looking for any extra hands to volunteer. If you think you might be interested, come on down and check us out.

If you know anyone who would also like these updates directly contact Steve Meserve of the Lewis Fishery in Lambertville at LewisFishery@comcast.net to be added to his list.

Lewis Fishery Report, 4/24/12
Tonight the river was at +2.85' and 56F. We got 2 sunfish, 1 bass, a couple of gizzard shad then 10 buck and 18 roe shad. We are still at 200 yards of net. This is the way it should be. Looks like we may even have shad for Shad Fest this weekend. That does not happen all the time. We will out again tomorrow.

Lewis Fishery Report, 4/23/12
The river was at -0.65' Saturday morning so we took another pass in the hope that the rain would change our luck. Boy, did it. Tonight the river was at +2.36' (that's a 3' change) and 56F. We got 2 catfish, 1 quillback, 8 buck and 18 roe shad. We went to 200 yards of net too (for those keeping score). A much happier crew. At the moment it looks like the river is going to stay up for a bit.

Hopefully our luck will stay up with it. We will be out again tomorrow.

Lewis Fishery Report, 4/20/12
The river was at -0.54' and 68F. We got 8 bass, 5 catfish and 1 largemouth bass. We are going to take a night off tonight and do some rain dances. We will try to do a haul Saturday @ 10.

Lewis Fishery Report, 4/13/12
This is getting redundant. Tuesday the river was at -0.43' and 70F. We got bass, catfish, suckers, carp and quillback. Wednesday I tried something different and we got 9 bass, 9 catfish, 84 suckers, 1 gizzard shad, 2 carp, 4 quillback and 1 sunfish. The river is already @ -0.52' @ 12:45pm. We will be out there again tonight. Wish us luck.

Lewis Fishery Report, 4/17/12
Did I forget to turn a page or two on the calendar? Is it May or June already? What happened to April? Anyway, another night of no shad. The river was at -0.41' (a new low) and 68F (I double checked that). We got 13 bass, 8 catfish, 5 suckers, 2 carp and 4 quillback. We will be out there again tonight. Wish us luck.

Lewis Fishery Report, 4/16/12
We were not able to go out Friday or Saturday. We were short on crew and with 350 yards of net you can not be short on crew. Friday the river was at -0.27' and it was at -0.3 on Saturday. It looks like it will be around -0.4 tonight. And Hot! Wish us luck.

Lewis Fishery Report, 4/13/12
A beautiful night on the water. The river was at -0.3' and the temp was 53F. We got a little hung up on a log (again) but managed to get free and make the haul (I'll be making additional adjustments to miss it tonight). We got 15 bass, 27 catfish, 2 suckers, 1 gizzard shad and 1 walleye. The river is up today to -0.18 @7:45am. That's a plus. We will be out again tonight. Wish us luck.

Lewis Fishery Report, 4/12/12
Time to catch up. Tuesday night we were at -0.28' and the temp was 54F. We tried an old school haul. Went almost to 5th pier. Got a little hung up on a log (I think) but managed to get free and make the haul. We got 12 bass, 34 catfish, 1 sucker and 2 quillback. Last night the river was at -0.3 and 54F. The weather didn't look so good (if we were catching shad and the river was a little higher the weather would not have been so bad), so we just loaded up the net for tonight. The river is already at -0.32. Wish us luck.

Lewis Fishery Report for 4/10/12
Every day is a new low. Last night we were at -0.22' and the temp was 54F. We tried a little different haul and only got 3 bass and 2 catfish. I'll be adding on another 50 yards tonight to see if that changes our luck. Right now the forecast is for the river to get down to -0.5' by Friday at 8am. I don't know if we will be able to fish in water that low. Wish us luck.

Lewis Fishery Report for 4/8/12
With only 20-30% chance of rain until Wednesday it looks like we will be in negative river stages starting Monday night (as I write this the river in Lambertville is -0.09'). Friday it was at 0.12' and 57F. We got the same assortment of fish. Saturday the river was at 0.02' and 52F. It was a little too windy so we decided to get the two logs that have been in our way since the first day in towards shore. A big job done there. We will be back at it Monday night.

Lewis Fishery Report for 4/6/12
And the river just gets lower. Last night it was at 0.38' and falling. Temp was 56F. No American shad. We did get 3 bass, 29 catfish, 20 suckers, 3 gizzard shad and 2 quillback. Tonight, yet another new trick. If the river keeps falling I may have to go to 400 yards of net. That will be exciting.

Lewis Fishery Report for 4/5/12
Another beautiful night to be on the river. Still not getting any American shad. The river was at 0.63' and the water was 58F. We did get 8 bass, 35 catfish, 1 sucker, 3 quillback and a nice walleye. We'll try something different tonight. The river continues to be at levels that we would not see until the end of May and we are still looking for the best way to fish it.

As always, we are looking for any extra hands to volunteer. If you think you might be interested, come on down and check us out.

Lewis Fishery Report for 4/4/12
Back in the water and the river was a little higher @ 0.65'. The temp was 56F. All we could manage was 1 buck shad. We also got 18 bass, 43 catfish, 4 suckers, 1 gizzard shad and 2 quilback. We'll fish a little differently tonight and try to better our luck.

Lewis Fishery Report for 4/2/12
Looks like we will be out of the water tonight. I needed to get some net repaired and could not finish over the weekend. I will finish that up tonight and we will be back at it Tuesday. It's looking like we might even have a little more river to fish in by then.

Lewis Fishery Report for 3/30/12
Thursday got to be too windy to go out. Friday we had the 300 yards and got 12 bass and 55 catfish. River was 57F and at 0.27'. Looks like we might have a bit more river by Monday. We can hope.

Lewis Fishery Report for 3/28/12
Went to 300 yards of net. That made all the difference. Four bucks and one roe kept and two returned (both bucks). The water was 55F and at 0.45'. We also got 13 bass, 36 catfish, 11 suckers, 1 gizzard shad and 5 quilback. We'll be back at it tomorrow.

Lewis Fishery Report for 3/27/12
Much less wind and even lower water. The river was at .45' and was 52F. Ge got 1 bass and 14 catfish. We'll be putting on more net and doing a rain dance tonight.

As always, we are looking for any extra hands to volunteer. If you think you might be interested, come on down and check us out.

Lewis Fishery Report for 3/26/12
Could the wind blow any harder? Because of the wind we did not go out last night. Bad enough with a motor on the back of your boat and being out there, rowing would not have been fun at all. Let's hope the wind dies down today (more water in the river would be nice too, but I know that's not happening). The river was at .33 at 6:30 last night.

Lewis Fishery Report for 3/24/12
A typical first day. Lots of catching up with everyone. Lots more to get done then you thought. And a big log where we started out that stopped us dead and we had to get the net back in and start again. The river was at .91 and the temp was 56F. We got 8 smallmouth bass, 9 catfish 1 sunfish, 1 sucker and 1 gizzard shad. Typical of a Saturday, and a gray, cooler one at that. We'll be back out Monday night.

From Biologist Mark Boriek, 3/20/12
Very, very early run this year. Anglers are catching all the way to the Gap, already. Most catches are from boats as the river is way low and the shad are tight to the channel.

Lewis Fishery Report, 3/19/12
Looks like an early year this year. We will be out for our first haul Friday night or Saturday morning. We spent the past two weekends getting the stairs put back on the cabin and the bridge back up (it's been down since the storms in late August/early September). With that all done we can get to work getting the nets out and ready for the season. I will send another update later in the week.

As always, we are looking for any extra hands to volunteer. If you think you might be interested, come on down and check us out:

Steve Meserve
Lewis Fishery
1 Lewis Island
Lambertville, NJ 08530
908-806-3163
908-507-8197

If you would like to receive Lewis Fishery updates directly send your e-mail address and contact info to LewisFishery@comcast.net.

PAST SEASONS REPORTS

2011 Reports
2010 Reports
2009 Reports
2008 Reports
2007 Reports
2006 Reports
2005 Reports
2004 Reports
2003 Reports
2002 Reports
2001 Reports

  Adobe Acrobat Some files on this site require adobe acrobat pdf reader to view. download the free pdf reader  
bottom footer contact dep privacy notice legal statement accessibility statement nj home nj home citizen business government services a to z departments dep home

division of fish & wildlife: home | links | contact f&w
department: njdep home | about dep | index by topic | programs/units | dep online
statewide: njhome | citizen | business | government | services A to Z | departments | search

Copyright © State of New Jersey, 1996-2012
Department of Environmental Protection
P.O. Box 402
Trenton, NJ 08625-0402

Last Updated: May 30, 2012