Colorado River Morning Bite: Early Light Stripers and Bass Around Las Vegas

Good morning, folks—Artificial Lure here with your local fishing rundown for the Colorado River around Las Vegas. I’ll start with the big picture: there’s no tidal influence up here on the river, so tides aren’t part of the play. What matters today is water flow, boat traffic, and the early heat building fast once the sun gets up. Sunrise is about 5:33 a.m., and sunset lands around 7:32 p.m., so that first light window is the best bite of the day. If you can be on the water before dawn and keep fishing through the first two hours of daylight, you’re in the sweet spot. Weather-wise, late May around Las Vegas usually means warm, dry, and getting warmer quick. Expect a bright, high-sun day with light morning winds that can pick up a bit in the afternoon. That means shaded banks, current seams, and deeper pockets will fish better once the sun gets on the water. Recent action in these waters has been a mixed bag, but there’s fish to be had. Anglers around the Colorado River arm near Lake Mead and the lower river stretches have been seeing striped bass, largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, catfish, and the occasional crappie. Stripers have been chasing bait in the early low-light periods, with anglers reporting a handful of fish in the 1 to 3 pound range and the occasional bigger model when they find shad schools. Bass fishing has been more consistent around rock structure and transition water, with smallmouth and largemouth both hitting reaction baits. Catfish are still the steady blue-collar bite after dark and into the evening. Best bait right now? For stripers, fresh cut bait and anchovies are still money when the bite is finicky. For catfish, chicken liver, stink bait, and nightcrawlers are the go-to. If you’re chasing bass, a live shiner when legal and practical, or a soft plastic swimbait that matches local forage, can do real damage. Best lures for this stretch: a 3- to 4-inch paddle-tail swimbait, a white fluke, small crankbaits in baitfish colors, a drop-shot with a worm for finicky bass, and a blade bait or spoon if you’re marking fish deeper. Around rock and riprap, a jig head rigged with a swimbait or tube gets bit. For stripers busting bait, throw something that moves fast and looks like a wounded shad. If I were fishing it today, I’d start early around the Boulder Beach side and the rocky banks near Willow Beach for bass and stripers, then slide into deeper, slower water as the sun climbs. Another hot spot is the river bends and current breaks below the lake influence zones—look for eddies, points, and any place bait can stack up. For catfish, work the slower, darker water after sunset, especially where the bottom drops off. Keep your eye on birds working water, scattered boils, and any bait flickering on the surface. That’s where the fish are telling you they’re home. Thanks for tuning in, and please subscribe for more local fishing reports. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn