Tailwater · Mixed · Maine

Magalloway River

Magalloway River venue image

The Magalloway is remote Maine brook-trout-and-salmon water at its purest — a cold, dam-controlled river spilling out of Aziscohos Dam through big-woods country on the New Hampshire line, with fly-fishing-only reaches that have protected wild brook trout and landlocked salmon for generations.

Prime · Brook Trout
Elk Hair Caddis · 14-18
Primelive now
About as good as it gets
Low and clear — careful approach country. Take your time — read the water before you cast.
90% confidence
What moved it
  • LevelDry recentlyNo gauge reading
  • Water temp10.3°C
  • ClarityClear
Today's fly
Elk Hair Caddis
Elk Hair Caddis14-18
Proven pattern for this period
Conditions on the water
Estimate
Level
Dry recently
No gauge reading
Water temp10.3°C
ClarityClear
Weather13°C
WindSE 6 km/h
Pressure1015 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm
Rain · ahead2.2 mm

No gauge on this water — readings are regional estimates from weather, not a live gauge.

Water temperature for Brook Trout
Ideal
10°C est.ideal 1016°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Brook Trout
When
Nymphing can work through most of the day.
Where
Cover mixed depths.
Method
Start with tight-line nymphs and adjust if fish rise or drift higher.
Kit
9 ft #4 rod, floating line, 12 ft tapered leader to 4–5 lb fluoro tippet.
Why this works
Excellent — water temperature is right today, though insect activity could be better.
Hatch timeline · todayQuiet day

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 3 active hatches hour by hour with Pro.

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Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Top nymph shown — see all 3 guilds with Pro.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey

Hatch predictions

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Evidence
ModelledModerate confidence

Modelled from regional ecology — no survey or occurrence data for this water yet.

Through the year
0–3 scale · July highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
1
SulphurHatch
2
3
2
Trico (Eastern)Hatch
2
3
3
2
Eastern Blue-Winged OliveHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Eastern Summer BWO (Drunella)Hatch
2
3
3
2

Numbers are intensity 0 (none) to 3 (peak) — a guide, not a guarantee.

Ranked for today
Brook Trout fly box
Local fly shops: New England Fly Co.
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Maine general law April 1–Sept 30 with fly-fishing-only / special-law reaches below Aziscohos — verify exact reaches against the Maine 2026 law book
  • DAM-RELEASE: flow set by Aziscohos releases — check Brookfield SafeWaters
  • CONSERVATION: remote native brook trout (a heat-sensitive char) — careful handling, no trophy framing, strong thermal restraint.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 3
Gallery · 1
  1. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

The Magalloway is remote Maine brook-trout-and-salmon water at its purest — a cold, dam-controlled river spilling out of Aziscohos Dam through big-woods country on the New Hampshire line, with fly-fishing-only reaches that have protected wild brook trout and landlocked salmon for generations. It runs on the Aziscohos release, so the flow you wade is what the dam sends down, and the water below the dam stays cold enough to hold real brook trout through the summer when lesser rivers fail their fish. This is conservation country: lightly developed, hard to reach, managed with care, and no place for trophy hero-talk. Walk in, fish stealthily, handle the brook trout — a heat-sensitive char — gently, and protect the autumn spawners. A remote native-brook-trout and salmon reach — as wild as this region gets.

  • Mixed
Water quality · US Clean Water Act
  • Aquatic lifeNot assessed
  • Fish consumptionImpaired
What this classification means

Fish consumption: Consumption advisory (Mercury) — fish for sport, not the table.

EPA ATTAINS assessment unit 'MAGALLOWAY RIVER' (NHRIV400010206-02), 2024 Integrated Report. Aquatic Life use: Insufficient Information. Listed impairment causes: Mercury. This is a Clean Water Act assessment-unit classification (the US analogue of WFD), not a live reading.

Status is for the Clean Water Act assessment unit covering this reach.

EPA ATTAINS (Clean Water Act) · NHRIV400010206-02

The full read · show the working · for Brook Trout · confidence 90%
How the 84 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature100 × 28%28.0
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity95 × 18%17.1
Feeding Time65 × 13%8.5
Pressure75 × 7%5.3
Insect activity62 × 12%7.4
Conditions total= 84
Can you trust it?
Water temperatureair-to-water estimateestimated
Level / flowon-river gaugeobserved
Prey activitymodelled from regional profilemodelled
What would change the calculation
The dawn and dusk windows score higher than the midday lull.
Directions
Seasons & zones
  • Trout1 April30 September
Related guides
Booking & contacts