Bear Creek
Fishing, stocking, and current conditions
Stocked monthly March through May in 2026, heaviest in March: trout and rainbow trout, 10 plants in all. The most-stocked water on the Garrett County record for 2026. A USGS gauge reports from this water, so the conditions card on this page is live.
Garrett County · Maryland · see it on the national map
Water temp 50 °F at YOUGHIOGHENY RIVER AT FRIENDSVILLE, MD, 2 km away USGS site 03076500 · read 8:45 pm this evening
The year here
stocked last 7 days announced ahead · tap a tick for details
What swims here
Trout
Rainbow trout
Stocking record 2026
Agency feed checked today.
| Date | Species | Size | Fish | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 1mo | Trout | catchable | 9,110 | stocked |
| Mar 19 | Trout | catchable | 3,040 | completed |
| Mar 20 | Trout | catchable | 500 | completed |
| Mar 26 | Trout | catchable | 6,070 | completed |
| Mar 27 | Trout | catchable | 1,000 | completed |
| Apr 1mo | Trout | catchable | 1,520 | stocked |
| Apr 16 | Trout | catchable | 1,520 | completed |
| May 1mo | Trout | catchable | 1,520 | stocked |
| May 11 | Trout | catchable | 1,520 | completed |
| May 11 | Rainbow trout | catchable | 1,520 | completed |
When to fish Bear Creek
| Major periods (~2 h) | Minor periods (~1 h) | |
|---|---|---|
| Today | 9:55-11:55 am and 10:17 pm-12:17 am | 4:11-5:11 am and 4:27-5:27 pm |
| Tomorrow | 10:41 am-12:41 pm | 5:19-6:19 am and 4:52-5:52 pm |
Moon: waxing gibbous, 92% lit. These are solunar periods, the traditional feeding-time theory: majors around the moon's transit overhead and underfoot, minors around moonrise and moonset. Theory, not a measurement. Times are Eastern Time (EDT).
What the record actually says
- Last stocked May 11
- Water 50 °F at a gauge 2 km away, prime coldwater range
- Flow 318% of the seasonal median
Computed this evening, Oct 23 · Maryland fishing forecast
Gear for this water
It has been a while since the trucks came. The holdovers have spread out and wised up; downsize and fish natural.
For the trout (trout stocked 9 times here in 2026, moving water)
| Inline spinners | 1/16 to 1/8 oz silver or gold; swing them across the current seams |
| Drifted bait | single salmon egg or half a crawler under light split shot, rolled along the bottom |
| Small jerkbaits | floating minnows in the 2 to 3 inch class for the deeper bends |
Suggestions follow from what the state actually stocks here and what kind of water it is, nothing else. No sponsored placements.
Nearby stocked waters
The closest waters with stocking pages of their own, straight-line miles from this one.
| Water | Distance | Most recent |
|---|---|---|
| Youghiogheny River Lake PA | 6.7 mi | 2026 season |
| Whites Creek PA | 9.4 mi | Apr 16 |
| Casselman River PA | 10 mi | Apr 30 |
| Laurel Hill Creek PA | 10 mi | Oct 19 |
| Mcclintock Run PA | 11 mi | Apr 16 |
Follow Garrett County stocking: RSS / Calendar (iCal) / Print the schedule