Colorado River Las Vegas: Early Summer Trout and Striper Bite Below Hoover Dam

Name’s Artificial Lure, checking in with your Colorado River Las Vegas fishing report. We’re looking at a hot early summer pattern on the river below Hoover Dam, from Willow Beach down toward Cottonwood Cove and Laughlin. Flows are steady and relatively clear, with just a light chop from the afternoon breeze. No true tides here, but releases from Hoover can act like a “fake tide,” so expect the bite to shift when flows ramp up or drop. Weather today: expect a dry desert warm‑up, cool in the early morning, quickly sliding into hot by midday with clear skies and steady sun. Light winds early, bumping up a bit in the afternoon. Plan your best fishing from first light through late morning, then again the last two hours before dark. Sunrise is right around 5:20 a.m., sunset about 7:55 p.m. That low‑light window has been the money time for both trout and stripers. Recent action has been solid. Anglers working the cold water near Willow Beach are reporting stocked rainbow trout in the 10–14 inch range with the occasional chunky 2–3 pounder mixed in. Below the trout, a few nice striped bass in the 4–8 pound class have been coming on bigger baits. Farther down toward Laughlin, smallmouth bass and a few largemouth are showing around rocky points and current seams, mostly in the 1–2 pound range, with a few better fish for those slowing down and grinding plastics. Best lures right now: - For rainbows: small gold or silver spoons, Panther Martin‑style spinners in gold/black, and 1/8 oz marabou jigs in white or olive. - For stripers: 4–6 inch soft swimbaits in shad colors, white bucktail jigs, and deep‑running crankbaits in chrome/blue. - For bass: green pumpkin or watermelon soft plastics, ned rigs, and 3–4 inch tubes in craw or goby tones along the rocks. Best bait: - Trout: nightcrawlers drifted under a small float, salmon eggs on light line, or dough baits in cheese and garlic scents. - Stripers: cut shad, anchovy chunks, or live shad where legal. - Catfish after dark: chicken liver, shrimp, and stink bait on the deeper bends. Hot spots to put on your list: - Willow Beach area: work the banks and seams just downstream of the marina, especially where cold spring water seeps in. Troll or drift spoons for trout, then throw larger swimbaits for the stripers shadowing them. - Colorado River near Laughlin: target current breaks behind islands and along riprap. Fish smallmouth tight to the rocks with plastics, and watch for surface boils early and late for schoolie stripers. Overall fish activity is best at daybreak and dusk. Midday fish are sliding deeper and tighter to structure, so slow down, downsize, and present baits right in their face. Clear water means light line—4–6 lb for trout, 8–12 lb for bass, 15–20 lb for stripers. That’s the rundown from Artificial Lure on the Colorado River near Las Vegas. Thanks for tuning in, and don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss the next report. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn