Wade72/100
Wading is in play only where your chosen access has clear footing, legal entry, and no forced crossings.
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Fly fishing report · Southwest
Medina River
A Medina River report for anglers planning the Medina-to-Bandera corridor with live flow checks, public park guidance, and practical warmwater fly tactics.
Check flow & weatherToday's fishing decisionMost live data available
82
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Medina River looks fishable right now.
Current USGS flow is 5 cfs. It has risen about 23% over the past 6 hours. Today's flow is below the normal seasonal range, which begins near 26 cfs. This is below normal, so edge depth, temperature, and pressure matter.
Best supported approachBank / edge
Watch nextFlow: Current USGS flow is 5 cfs. It has risen about 23% over the past 6 hours.
Updated Aug 3, 3:21 AM UTCUsually refreshes about every 45 minutes
Best supported approachBank / edge
Compare wading, bank fishing, and floating before choosing how you will fish.
Bank / edge · Best fit77/100
Bank and edge fishing remains a practical low-commitment option if access is legal and footing is safe.
FloatNeed data
This report does not describe this as a primary mode. Verify legal access, depth, launches, and retreat options before planning around it.
Check before you drive
Current flow and weather.
Look at whether the river is rising or falling, then check wind, rain, and storms. These can change both safety and fishing.
Loading current flow and weather.
Before you rely on this report
How current is this report?
Conditions can change quickly. Check these dates before you decide to fish, and open the official source when safety or rules matter.
Priority river · checked more closely for freshness and source changes
- River conditions
- Checked Aug 2, 2026, 11:21 PM
- Fishing guidance
- Reviewed Jun 2, 2026
- Public access
- No reviewed map pin available
- Rules and closures
- Official rule links checked
High confidence in the current score inputs.
9 sources are listed below for you to open.
3 public access records are listed. Private spots are never shown.
Source checked Jul 30, 2026
Plan your access
Know where you can enter.
These are public parking, launch, trail, or recreation areas—not secret fishing spots. We never show an angler's private pins, notes, or photos here.
- 0
- Shown on map
- 3
- No map pin
Location checkedDescription only
01No map pin
Area description
Bandera City Park
The clearest official Bandera entry on this page, with posted fishing access, park rules, and direct water-level and bacteria-monitoring links.
Restrictions and seasonal notes
Use city parks and clearly public crossings only; the upper Medina still runs through long stretches of private property.
Bandera City Park does not allow overnight camping and posts rules around private south-bank trespass, dam safety, and river-entry behavior.
02No map pin
Area description
Moffett Park in Medina
TPWD's upper-river access list starts here, making it a useful upstream public look when you want the clearest small-river water first.
Restrictions and seasonal notes
Use city parks and clearly public crossings only; the upper Medina still runs through long stretches of private property.
Bandera City Park does not allow overnight camping and posts rules around private south-bank trespass, dam safety, and river-entry behavior.
03No map pin
Roadside access
SH 16 and FM 470 crossings near Bandera
TPWD lists these as public roadside or bridge-access points, best treated as quick checks and short sessions rather than assumed all-day water.
Restrictions and seasonal notes
Use city parks and clearly public crossings only; the upper Medina still runs through long stretches of private property.
Bandera City Park does not allow overnight camping and posts rules around private south-bank trespass, dam safety, and river-entry behavior.
How to fish it
Fish the upper Medina as a smaller spring-fed Hill Country river with selective public access, not as a river where every roadside bend becomes fair game.
The Medina above Lake Medina is strongest when RiverReports and USGS 08180700 are stable, the water keeps its clear spring-fed look, and your day stays anchored to Moffett Park, Bandera City Park, or clearly public crossings. This is a short, careful warmwater plan that rewards compact gear and disciplined access choices, and it loses value quickly when summer lows or muddy runoff flatten the current.
- TPWD describes the Medina as a spring-fed Hill Country river with crystal-clear water, bald cypress banks, limestone structure, and the best recreational conditions above Lake Medina.
- TPWD's Medina-to-Bandera waterways section says the river is readily accessible through road crossings and city parks, but it also notes private camps and shallow summer conditions that force a selective access plan.
- Bandera City Park officially offers fishing along the Medina and posts current water-level and bacteria-monitoring links through the Bandera County River Authority and Groundwater District.
- TPWD Medina River records include Guadalupe bass, largemouth bass, spotted-bass crosses, Rio Grande cichlid, sunfish, carp, catfish, and even a small rainbow-trout history, which supports a mixed warmwater fly approach rather than a single-species plan.
Why the score looks this way
FlowUse caution
USGS shows 5 cfs with a rising about 23% over about 6 hours trend. Today's flow is below the normal seasonal range, which begins near 26 cfs. This is below normal, so edge depth, temperature, and pressure matter.
SeasonHelps score
Early summer: Good for dawn poppers and compact streamers before heat and very low water start shrinking the fishable lanes.
WeatherHelps score
The NWS forecast is about 90F with Clear.
Public alertsHelps score
No active NWS alert was returned for this forecast point.
Fishing usefulnessHelps score
Skip when summer water is too low, storm mud is present, water-quality concerns are active, park pressure is heavy, or access is uncertain.
Read the water
What changes the plan.
The best Medina sessions come on clear stable water when the current still pushes through the limestone runs and cypress banks without dropping into a summer trickle. If the gauge is sliding hard, the water turns cloudy, or Bandera access looks crowded, shorten the session and keep a backup river in play.
Clear stable flow
The best Medina window for short precise streamer or popper presentations and for reading the cypress-and-limestone structure cleanly.
Moderate rise with fishable color
Can improve current definition and connect runs, but only if the river still looks clear enough to support sight-feeding bass behavior.
Summer low water
A caution signal because TPWD says the upper Medina can become extremely shallow during dry summer periods.
Dirty storm flow
A skip signal because the small-river advantage disappears fast once clarity and footing margin are gone.
Your trip plan
Know when to go—and when to skip it.
Best flows
Use the Pipe Creek trend with clarity and water-quality context. Stable clear current is the best signal.
When to skip
Skip when summer water is too low, storm mud is present, water-quality concerns are active, park pressure is heavy, or access is uncertain.
Local plan
Start with Pipe Creek flow, then pick Bandera City Park or another verified public crossing before choosing flies.
Backup water
Compare Llano River, Guadalupe River, or Pedernales River when the Medina is too low, muddy, crowded, or access-limited.
Hatches & flies
Bring a flexible box.
TimingWhat to watchUseful flies
March-MaySmall baitfish, crawfish movement, and spring aquatic insectsOlive streamer, black bugger, small craw pattern, rubber-leg bug
Fly family · report suggests “Olive streamer”Trout Streamer PatternsStreamer is a method-and-silhouette family, not a recipe. Size, color, weight, and presentation phrases stay visible, while baitfish, leech, sculpin, Woolly Bugger, and articulated identities link to their more specific destinations when known.See family guide ↗Fly pattern · report suggests “black bugger”Woolly BuggerThe shared pattern language is a marabou tail, chenille or dubbed body, and palmered hackle. Bead heads, dumbbell eyes, flash, rubber tails, colors, and body materials materially change the tied variation and must be labeled.See photos & how to fish it ↗+ 2 more reviewed guides in the Fly Box June-AugustTerrestrials, minnows, and dawn topwater windowsSmall popper, slider, foam bug, ant, baitfish streamer
Fly family · report suggests “Small popper”Bass and Panfish Popper PatternsPoppers may use cupped foam, cork, balsa, deer hair, or pencil-shaped heads. Head face, size, buoyancy, tail, legs, and weed guard determine sound and action; a generic popper label does not identify one fly.See family guide ↗
Fly family · report suggests “slider”Warmwater Slider and Diver PatternsA slider has a tapered, flat, or softly shaped head that glides or pushes a small wake with limited noise. A diver has an angled, collared, folded, or otherwise shaped head that pulls below the surface when stripped and rises on the pause. Frog, baitfish, and large-insect profiles can be tied on either idea, so the exact head action, buoyancy, hook orientation, weed guard, and material must stay named.See family guide ↗+ 3 more reviewed guides in the Fly Box September-NovemberBaitfish and crawfish feeding windows in cooler clearer waterClouser, bugger, crayfish fly, jig streamer
Fly pattern · report suggests “Clouser”Clouser Deep MinnowThe reviewed chartreuse-and-white form uses sparse layered bucktail with flash around lead barbell eyes. The eyes make the fly sink between strips and ride hook point up; color, eye weight, hook, and saltwater materials must remain labeled.See photos & how to fish it ↗Fly pattern · report suggests “bugger”Woolly BuggerThe shared pattern language is a marabou tail, chenille or dubbed body, and palmered hackle. Bead heads, dumbbell eyes, flash, rubber tails, colors, and body materials materially change the tied variation and must be labeled.See photos & how to fish it ↗+ 2 more reviewed guides in the Fly Box Winter stable daysSparse insect activity with slower forage-driven feedingSmall leech, jig streamer, lightly weighted bugger
Fly family · report suggests “Small leech”Leech PatternsLeech patterns share an elongated moving silhouette, but material, weighting, hook orientation, and retrieve vary. Pine-squirrel, rabbit-strip, balanced, and Woolly Bugger forms remain separately labeled rather than being presented as one recipe.See family guide ↗Fly family · report suggests “jig streamer”Trout Streamer PatternsStreamer is a method-and-silhouette family, not a recipe. Size, color, weight, and presentation phrases stay visible, while baitfish, leech, sculpin, Woolly Bugger, and articulated identities link to their more specific destinations when known.See family guide ↗+ 1 more reviewed guide in the Fly Box 01
Start at one verified public access and fish it thoroughly instead of driving the valley looking for miracle pull-offs.
02
Give the broken current and cypress banks the first part of the morning before easing into slower park water.
03
If summer lows flatten the riffles, shorten the day and target the shadiest deeper slots rather than trying to force the whole corridor.
04
Keep an eye on clarity and the BCRAGD safety notes around Bandera before deciding to stay late.
Rules & closures
Check the official rules before you go.
Open the agency page to confirm the exact river section, species, season, tackle rules, limits, and emergency closures.
Official links checkedRules for this river or sectionNo special rule found
We did not find a special rule for this river.
We checked the state source but did not find a clearly supported exception for this river. Check the official rules for the exact section you plan to fish.
Rules checkedJul 30, 2026
Report a correction ↗Always follow the official rule
This summary helps with trip planning. The linked agency rule is the one you must follow.
Updates from anglers
What anglers are seeing.
Recent observations from general areas of Medina River. We review every update before it appears and never publish exact fishing spots, private access details, or photo locations.
Angler updates are not loading right now.
You can still use the river plan above. Check back later for recent observations from other anglers.
Where this report comes from
Open the sources we checked.
Fishing guidance checked: Jun 2, 2026
Site check: Jul 14, 2026. We regularly test report links, live scores, flow and weather data, and page loading. The content date changes only when the fishing guidance or its sources change.
flowRiverReports Medina RiverflowUSGS 08180700 Medina River near Pipe CreekaccessBandera City ParksafetyBandera County River Authority and Groundwater District water-quality testingaccessTPWD Analysis of Texas Waterways - Medina RiverbackgroundTPWD Medina River water body recordsaccessTPWD River Fishing in TexasregulationTPWD freshwater fishing bag and length limitssafetyNational Weather Service point near the Medina River
Common questions
Before you leave.
What flow should I trust for the Medina River?+
Use the RiverReports chart for quick reads and keep USGS 08180700 open as the official backstop before you commit to the upper Medina corridor.
Where should I start on the Medina River?+
Bandera City Park is the clearest first stop because it openly allows fishing and posts current water-level and bacteria-monitoring links. Moffett Park and public crossings make good backups.
When should I skip the Medina River?+
Skip it when the water turns muddy after storms, when summer lows make the river extremely shallow, or when your access plan depends on guessing where private property starts.