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Merritt Reservoir, NE

Reservoir in Cherry County, Nebraska. A clear, roughly 2,900-acre Sandhills reservoir on the Snake River southwest of Valentine, regarded as one of Nebraska's finest walleye fisheries and a trophy muskellunge water. Anglers also target white bass, largemouth bass, crappie, bluegill, yellow perch, and channel catfish. The deep, cool, clean water of the Sandhills keeps walleye and muskie active, and the dark-sky setting makes it a popular summer destination. May and June are prime for walleye.

56

Overall bite score

Scored 19 min ago · recomputed every 30 minutes

Water tempModeled74
Pressure trendNOAArising60
SolunarComputedmoon 59% lit47
Recent stockingState data50
Time of dayComputed100
WindNOAA10
Cloud coverNOAA35
PrecipitationNOAA50

Each instrument reads 0 to 100. The score is their weighted blend, tuned for lakes and reservoirs. No black box: every reading names its source.

What swims here

8 tracked species in Merritt Reservoir, with the months each fishes best.

Walleyeabundant
Black Crappiecommon
Bluegillcommon
Channel Catfishcommon
Largemouth Basscommon
White Basscommon
Yellow Perchcommon
Muskellungepresent

Water facts

TypeReservoir
CountyCherry
StateNebraska
WaterFreshwater

Concrete ramps within Merritt Reservoir SRA; a Nebraska park entry permit is required. The Snake River above Merritt USGS gauge (06459200) is not reporting live data, so water temperature uses a Sandhills seasonal baseline. Merritt Trading Post on the lake sells bait, tackle, and fuel.

See the full forecast for Merritt Reservoir in the app: best windows, 7-day outlook, what to bring, and offline regulations. The score and essentials are free.

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