Freestone · Granite · Vosges / Vosges (88) (Moselotte valley), FR

Moselotte

Photo of Moselotte

Vosges mountain river with strict regulations protecting wild trout and grayling.

Today · Closed season
Coch-y-bonddu
New ruleReported 16 Jul 2026

Severe drought restrictions (crise) in force

VigiEau lists this venue's surface-water zone (Moselle amont et Meurthe partie du département 88, dépt 88) at crise, under an official préfectoral drought arrêté. Fishing is not itself banned by it, but water levels are low — go gently on stressed fish.

Arrêté préfectoral n°37290 ↗

Temporary notices from official orders and recent fishery reports — they clear automatically once out of date. Always confirm locally before travelling.

Forecast · Today
Closed season
Out of season. Try elsewhere.
45% projected
Today's fly
Coch-y-bonddu
Coch-y-bonddu
Conditions on the water · Today
Live gauge
Level
Rising
0.14 m
Lifting fast
Water temp17.3°C
ClarityUnfishable
Weather21°C
WindN 14 km/h
Pressure1021 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm
Rain · ahead8.5 mm

The nearest gauge doesn't record temperatures, so we've estimated it — defer to the river keeper's advice.

Water temperature for Brown Trout
Warm — slow
17°C est.ideal 10–16°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Brown Trout
When
Through the open trout season. Spring olives April through May; sedges through summer evenings.
Where
Pool tails and pocket water through the Vosges valley. Cool clear freestone, intimate scale.
Method
Upstream dry to risers; dry-dropper through the riffles. The water reads clear — long leader, fine tippet. Move slowly, cast accurately.
Kit
9 ft #4 — French freestone default. Floating line, 12 ft leader to 4 to 5 lb fluoro. Studded boots.
Likely species
Caddisflies
Hatch timeline · todayPeak at 6pm

12pm(now) — Heather Fly

Stage: Terrestrials on topApproach: Dry flyActivity: 39%
Also:Reed Smut28%Cinnamon Sedge26%
Peak emergence windowWeather boost7 food groups active

Peak activity at 6pm — Evening Sedge (Evening Sedge, Weather boost)

Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 2 as a supporter.

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Evidence
Survey-backed · regionalHigh confidence

Backed by regional invertebrate surveys; no sampling on this exact reach yet.

Through the year
0–3 scale · September highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
1
Grayling seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
1
Freshwater ShrimpHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Large Dark OliveHatch
1
2
2
1
Blue Winged OliveHatch
1
2
2
2
2
1
Autumn OliveHatch
1
2
1

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

Ranked for today
Brown Trout fly box

More balanced than the mountain-river pack. French nymphing still matters, but there is more room for dries, spiders and general searching flies.

Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • AAPPMA permits
  • No-kill and fly-only parcours.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
Domaine de Champs sur l'Eau
17 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout · Char
Vologne
19 km
Brown trout
Lacs du Neuweiher
23 km
Brown trout · Char
Lac des Perches (Sternsee)
23 km
Brown trout · Char
Lac d'Alfeld
23 km
Brown trout · Char
Gallery · 2
  1. Photo of Moselotte
    Moselotte
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

Vosges mountain river with strict regulations protecting wild trout and grayling. Fly-only, no-kill, barbless-hook requirements on designated sections. Granitic freestone with excellent insect populations. Local-strain wild fish are priority. Spring through early autumn. Check Vosges AAPPMA regulations.

Hatches & food

In Vosges granite catchments, trout in cool freestone streams feed on early and spring olives once levels settle after winter, daytime stoneflies over clean, stony runs, a broad band of evening caddis supported by rich bug life in the region, steady small buzzer activity on mild days, and terrestrials strongest where the river is hemmed in by forest.

  • Granite
Water quality (WFD)
  • Ecology: Moderate
  • Chemical: Unknown

WFD classification · FRCR223

The full read · show the working · for Brown Trout · confidence 75%
How the 0 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature86 × 28%24.1
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity95 × 18%17.1
Feeding Time40 × 13%5.2
Pressure80 × 7%5.6
Insect activity58 × 12%7.0
Conditions total= 77
Can you trust it?
Water temperatureair-to-water estimateestimated
Level / flowon-river gaugeobserved
Prey activitysurvey-backed invertebrate datasurvey
What would change the calculation
The dawn and dusk windows score higher than the midday lull.
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout 2nd Saturday of March → 3rd Sunday of September
  • Grayling 3rd Saturday of May → 3rd Sunday of September

    France national rule: grayling opens 3rd Saturday of May in all waters. In 1st category (salmonid) rivers, grayling closes with the trout season on the 3rd Sunday of September. Departmental regulations may impose additional restrictions. Always check the relevant département's 2026 arrêté préfectoral.

Related guides
Grayling Playbookgrayling tacticsPyrenees PlaybookFrench riversEuro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Booking & contacts