Photo: Daniel Case Opens in a new tab. · 2008-09-20; not current · CC BY-SA 3.0 · JPEG to WebP
Fishable with caution. Check the water temperature.
Fish from the bank. USGS 01413500 is upper-reach flow context at Margaretville. It does not report current continuous water temperature, prove safe wading, confirm legal access, or describe the Pepacton tailwater below the dam.
Check first: Water temperature is unconfirmed. Use a stream thermometer before fishing.
Rating updatedRiver local time:
USGS shows 83 cfs. The flow has been stable over about 6 hours. USGS marks this reading provisional and may revise it. USGS records for this date (1937-2025, 89 readings) show a median near 37 cfs and the upper quartile near 79 cfs; today's flow is high for the date. USGS 01413500 is upper-reach flow context at Margaretville. It does not report current continuous water temperature, prove safe wading, confirm legal access, or describe the Pepacton tailwater below the dam. Fishable water may exist, but do not rate it highly without a safe access, clarity, and wading or boat plan.
NWS air forecast near
This is an air forecast, not a river-temperature reading. Check the water with a stream thermometer before fishing in hot weather.
RiverReports gauge
Showing the available RiverReports chart while the current structured flow series loads. Check the chart on RiverReports Opens in a new tab.
Partly Cloudy
The National Weather Service forecast is temporarily unavailable.
RiverReports gauge: East Branch Delaware River at Margaretville
Seasonal starting points, not a live hatch report. Match what you see on the water.
These four rows are a broad East Branch and Catskills planning menu cross-checked against a river-system hatch chart. They cover the full year without overlap, but they are not live Margaretville hatch observations.
Also try October caddis
Every linked fly has a reviewed photograph or clearly labeled illustration. Choose a pattern only after flow, temperature, and access checks pass.
A Margaretville day needs a stable or falling upper-branch trend, trout-safe water measured onsite, manageable footing, and a confirmed legal bank. A normal-looking flow graph alone cannot clear the trip, and this page does not recommend floating.
Use the trend as context for a short bank or protected-edge session. It is not proof that wading is safe.
Stay on the bank or leave. The upper freestone can change quickly after Catskills rain.
The gauge has no current continuous temperature. Measure the exact reach and choose another water at 70°F or warmer.
Do not treat a bridge, shoulder, gauge, or visible bank as permission. Read the DEP sign and verify the parcel first.
These scores compare the risks of wading, bank fishing, and floating.
Wading is the most sensitive plan today. Use protected edges only, avoid crossings, and downgrade quickly if clarity or current feels wrong.
Bank and edge fishing is the safer default when water is high, pushy, or not fully verified.
This report does not recommend floating this reach.
This report covers the upper East Branch above Pepacton Reservoir near Margaretville. Check the Margaretville flow, measure water temperature in summer, and confirm DEP access before choosing a wade or bank plan.
USGS 01413500 reports not yet confirmed flow and gage height for the upper East Branch at Margaretville, but its current continuous water-temperature record is unavailable. Measure the exact reach in warm weather, confirm DEP access, and treat this as a bank or protected-edge wade plan—not a float.
USGS shows 83 cfs. The flow has been stable over about 6 hours. USGS marks this reading provisional and may revise it. USGS records for this date (1937-2025, 89 readings) show a median near 37 cfs and the upper quartile near 79 cfs; today's flow is high for the date. USGS 01413500 is upper-reach flow context at Margaretville. It does not report current continuous water temperature, prove safe wading, confirm legal access, or describe the Pepacton tailwater below the dam. Fishable water may exist, but do not rate it highly without a safe access, clarity, and wading or boat plan.
USGS 01413500 at Margaretville reports flow but not current continuous water temperature. Measure the exact reach with a stream thermometer. Choose another water at 70°F or warmer.
Bank / edge: Bank and edge fishing is the safer default when water is high, pushy, or not fully verified.
Fall · September through November: Cooling nights can help; the rule changes October 16, and low clear water still calls for careful access and approach.
The current NWS air forecast is about 62F, and the next 24-hour high reaches about 78F. Partly Cloudy.
Use the live not yet confirmed Margaretville trend to judge change. No flow number proves safe wading, current water temperature, or legal access.
Leave at 70°F or warmer, in rising or stained water, when footing is pushy, or when the parcel, parking, or route to the bank is unclear.
Check the Margaretville gauge, measure the exact reach, then fish one signed DEP bank or protected edge instead of chasing roadside pull-offs.
If the upper East Branch is warm, rising, stained, or inaccessible, check the lower East Branch tailwater, West Branch, or Esopus independently.
When: April through mid-October harvest season; winter catch-and-release under current statewide rules
DEC’s 2026 plan lists 1,600 browns at 9–10 inches and 140 at 12–15 inches for Middletown in April’s fourth week. Actual timing and numbers may vary. Wild brown trout also reproduce above Pepacton.
The official maps are planning tools, not property surveys. A road bridge, shoulder, gauge, or visible bank does not create public fishing access.
For this upper Margaretville reach, the reviewed default statewide inland-trout rules are April 1 through October 15 with no minimum size and a daily limit of five trout, only two longer than 12 inches. October 16 through March 31 is catch-and-release only with artificial lures only. The Wild-Premier East Branch reach from the Delaware confluence upstream to the Route 206/30 bridge in Downsville is below Pepacton and does not apply here. Carry a valid New York fishing license when required and recheck the exact water, current guide, emergency rules, and signs before fishing.
| River section and season | Fishing rules |
|---|---|
| Upper East Branch above Pepacton near Margaretville | This is the report’s freestone decision reach. Default statewide inland-trout seasons and limits apply unless the exact posted reach says otherwise. Confirm DEP access before entering. Official rule |
| East Branch below Pepacton Dam near Downsville | This is a separate release-controlled tailwater. Its Wild-Premier reach, release, species, and access details do not apply to Margaretville above the reservoir. Official rule |
A listed 59-acre DEP Public Access Area near NY 30, County 41, and Briggs Road upstream of Margaretville. Confirm the current sign and boundary. It is not gauge-adjacent.
Site detailsDEP guidance explains permit-required land, Public Access Areas, posted land, and closures, but it does not map a fishable parcel by itself. Confirm the exact parcel in DECinfo and follow the posted boundary.
Site detailsUse this as a flow, clarity, and weather check only. A bridge, gauge, road shoulder, or visible bank is not blanket permission to enter or fish.
Site detailsOfficial flow, temperature-history, heat, trout-rule, stocking, access, launch, weather, and image sources plus a secondary East Branch hatch chart were checked August 23, 2026. No field visit, measured water temperature, or live hatch observation is claimed.
Check what is allowed, where the rule applies, and whether the river is open.
Check the latest river reading and forecast before you leave.
Check public entry points, land rules, and seasonal access changes.
Use these links for stocking, safety, and other local details.
Check what is allowed, where the rule applies, and whether the river is open.
Open the current rules and check the river section, season, and special limits.
Open the current rules and check the river section, season, and special limits.
Check the latest river reading and forecast before you leave.
Open this page and check the latest safety advice before your trip.
Open this river reading to check the latest level, flow, and update time.
Open this river reading to check the latest level, flow, and update time.
Check public entry points, land rules, and seasonal access changes.
Open the land or access page, then check signs before you park or enter.
Open the land or access page, then check signs before you park or enter.
Open the land or access page, then check signs before you park or enter.
Open the land or access page, then check signs before you park or enter.
Open the land or access page, then check signs before you park or enter.
Use these links for stocking, safety, and other local details.
Open this page for stocking or fish population information.
Open this page and check the latest safety advice before your trip.
Open this page for more river information and check when it was last updated.
Open this page for more river information and check when it was last updated.
What was checked: Official flow, heat, trout-rule, stocking, access, launch, weather, and image sources support this review. BlueStreamFly does not claim a field visit, measured water temperature, or live hatch observation.
Live measurements and forecasts keep their provider timestamps. Rules, access, and trip guidance use the source-review date shown here. BlueStreamFly planning advice is editorial interpretation, not an agency notice.
First-hand experience: BlueStreamFly does not claim a first-hand visit or local field test for this report unless a real contributor is explicitly named and linked.
It covers the upper East Branch above Pepacton Reservoir near Margaretville. It does not use the release, rules, access, or species plan for the tailwater below Pepacton Dam.
No. USGS 01413500 reports current not yet confirmed flow and gage height, but its continuous water-temperature record ended October 1, 2024. Measure the exact reach and stop trout fishing at 70°F or warmer.
This report does not recommend it. The reviewed DEC launch list shows no Margaretville East Branch launch, and this page has no verified launch, takeout, shuttle, or suitable-craft plan. That is a page-specific suitability decision, not a claim that every form of floating is universally illegal.
It depends on the signed parcel. Permit-required recreation land needs the free DEP permit. A designated Public Access Area does not. Posted, closed, and private land remain off-limits.
The reviewed upper reach follows statewide inland-trout rules unless an exact posted reach says otherwise: April 1–October 15 harvest rules, then catch-and-release with artificial lures only from October 16–March 31. The Wild-Premier reach below Pepacton is separate.
