Delaware River · Trenton, NJ
The Delaware at Trenton. Live flow and water temperature from the USGS gauge, against USGS’s normal for the date. Real numbers or none.
Right now · Trenton
Delaware River at Trenton, NJ
4,810 cfs · 56°F · normal for Oct 23 · gauge read 11:15 PM, Oct 22 ET
The water
The Delaware is a boundary water shared by New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and the line between them generally runs down the middle of the river. Either state’s fishing license works from shore to shore on the main stem, but you follow the rules of the state whose side you’re on.
The card reads the USGS gauge at Trenton, which drains 6,780 square miles of the river above it, so expect big numbers. A gauge reads one spot, so take the number as the river’s mood, not the depth at your boots.
Normal is USGS’s own call: the middle half of the daily flows on record for this date, across every year the gauge has run. You know your water better than a chart does.
The Delaware is also the only water in New Jersey where you can keep American shad.
A big river rises after rain upstream. Check the live number before you wade.
Rules on this water
- American shad. Open all year, 2 a day, no minimum length.
- Striped bass. Above the Calhoun Street Bridge in Trenton, March 1 to December 31. Below it, March 1 to 31 and June 1 to December 31. One fish a day, 28 to 31 inches, and non-offset circle hooks when you fish bait.
- Black bass. In 2026, largemouth and smallmouth, 12 inches, 5 a day combined, except catch and release only from April 18 to June 12.
- Trout. In 2026, trout season runs from April 18 at 8 a.m. to October 15, 5 a day, no minimum length.
Seasons, sizes, and limits are New Jersey Fish & Wildlife’s call, and they change. Check the Delaware River pages of the 2026 Freshwater Fishing Digest (PDF) before you go. On the Pennsylvania side, Pennsylvania’s rules apply.
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Throw five on it
