2026 regulation year

Nevada Fishing Regulations 2026 — License Fees, Seasons, Bag Limits

Last updated May 27, 2026

Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) runs a single-agency regulatory system covering all inland freshwater fisheries — Nevada is a fully landlocked Great Basin + Mojave Desert state operating the country's premier ESA-listed Lahontan cutthroat trout fishery at Pyramid Lake (the historical record-class native cutthroat fishery on the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe Indian Reservation in Washoe County — country's most distinctive native salmonid fishery + a managed jointly by the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe + NDOW + USFWS Lahontan National Fish Hatchery Complex joint conservation program — Pyramid Lake produces 10-20 lb LCT routinely with 20-30+ lb LCT landed annually under the Pilot Peak strain restoration program). NDOW requires a Resident or Non-Resident Fishing License for anglers age 12+ ($40 res annual / $80 NR annual / $30 NR 1-day / $40 NR 3-day) plus a Trout Stamp ($10 res / $10 NR — same-fee — required to harvest or possess trout statewide except where Pyramid Lake Tribal Permit applies) plus a Pyramid Lake Tribal Permit ($24/day + $90/season — separate tribal permit required to fish Pyramid Lake under the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe jurisdiction overlay — NDOW license alone is NOT honored on Pyramid Lake). Nevada is the historical type-locality and present-day stronghold of the Lahontan cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii henshawi — federally Threatened ESA since 1975 + the country's largest cutthroat subspecies + the only cutthroat subspecies historically reaching 60+ lb individual size — the 1925 Pyramid Lake ~41 lb fish is the largest cutthroat trout ever weighed (IGFA all-tackle world record), while the current NV state record (1968-onward) is 24 lb 12 oz Pyramid Lake 2005 — endemic to the Lahontan Basin terminal-lake system in NV + adjacent CA, found nowhere else in the world). Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe + NDOW + USFWS Lahontan NFH Complex (Lahontan NFH at Gardnerville NV + Marble Bluff NFH at Wadsworth NV) joint conservation program reintroduced the historically extirpated Pilot Peak strain (re-discovered in 1977 in Pilot Peak Creek UT) to Pyramid Lake in 2006 — by 2026 Pyramid Lake is producing 10-20 lb Pilot Peak Lahontan cutthroat routinely with 20-30+ lb LCT landed annually, restoring the historical trophy fishery. Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Permit framework — 2 / day with under-19-in slot + 1 / day with 24-in+ Trophy bonus (releases all 19-24 in slot fish mandatory) + barbless single-hook required + artificial-fly-and-lure-only required + no fishing from shore between 5 PM and 5 AM (October 1 – December 31) + closed June 30 – October 1 statewide for spawning protection. Lake Tahoe (191 sq mi natural lake on the CA/NV line — country's 2nd-deepest natural lake at 1,645 ft + country's largest alpine lake by volume + 6th-largest natural lake in the lower 48 by surface area + the only US lake with comparable depth + clarity to Crater Lake OR + Lake Superior) carries the CA/NV joint reciprocal compact (CDFW + NDOW) — NEW reciprocity entry — Mackinaw (lake trout introduced 1888) + kokanee salmon + brown + rainbow + remnant Lahontan cutthroat (extirpated from Tahoe by 1939 after lake trout introduction, no longer naturally reproducing — Pyramid Lake remains the sole stronghold). Lake Tahoe state-record lake trout 37 lb 6 oz Lake Tahoe 1974 (Robert Aronsen) + deep-water downrigger trolling for trophy Mackinaw to 20+ lb. Lake Mead (247-square-mile USBR Hoover Dam 1936 — country's largest reservoir by volume + by surface area when full + country's largest manmade lake by surface area — 110-mile reservoir reach Mohave County AZ + Clark County NV) carries the long-standing AZ/NV joint reciprocal compact administered jointly by AZGFD + NDOW — striped bass no daily limit (unlimited NV-side harvest) + largemouth + smallmouth 6 / day combined + channel + flathead catfish 25 / day combined — Lake Mead is the IGFA all-tackle world-record green sunfish water (3 lb 1 oz Lake Mead 2024). Lake Mohave (28,260-acre USBR Davis Dam 1951 — 67-mile reservoir reach within Lake Mead NRA NPS — Mohave County AZ + Clark County NV) — AZ/NV joint reciprocal compact + Willow Beach below-Hoover-Dam cold-water tailwater the country's southernmost coldwater rainbow trout tailwater (NV state-record rainbow trout 16 lb 8 oz Ruby Lake NWR 2011; the 21 lb 5 oz Willow Beach 1966 fish often cited here is Arizona's record, not Nevada's) + USFWS Willow Beach National Fish Hatchery + AZGFD/NDOW joint stocking program (~500,000 rainbow trout annually). Walker Lake (38,000-acre terminal lake on the Walker River — Mineral County NV — sadly the country's most documented Lahontan cutthroat collapse site, salinity rose from ~3 g/L in 1882 to ~21 g/L by 2020 after a century of upstream diversions for Walker River agriculture, Lahontan cutthroat extirpated by 1948 + Tui chub native population collapsed by 2015 + lake itself shrinking — NDOW + USFWS + Walker River Paiute Tribe Walker Basin Restoration Project to reintroduce Lahontan cutthroat as salinity drops below 16 g/L threshold). Wild Horse Reservoir (2,830-acre East Fork Owyhee River reservoir — Elko County NV — Wild Horse State Recreation Area NV — NDOW-distinctive aggressive trout + walleye fishery at 6,300 ft elevation — Northern NV's most popular walleye destination). South Fork Reservoir (1,650-acre South Fork Humboldt River reservoir — Elko County NV — South Fork State Recreation Area NV — NDOW-distinctive trout + smallmouth bass tier). Rye Patch Reservoir (11,000-acre Humboldt River reservoir — Pershing County NV — Rye Patch State Recreation Area NV — Northern NV walleye + wiper + crappie tier — NDOW-distinctive aggressive 10/day walleye bag — one of country's highest walleye limits alongside UT 10/day + NM 10/day Rocky Mountain Quality Management). Lahontan Reservoir (12,000-acre Carson River reservoir — Lyon + Churchill Counties NV — Lahontan State Recreation Area NV — northern NV bass + walleye + wiper tier — NDOW-distinctive aggressive striped bass + wiper introduction). Topaz Lake (1,700-acre CA/NV boundary lake on the Walker River — Mono County CA + Douglas County NV — joint CA/NV reciprocal trout fishery + NDOW-distinctive January 1 spring-stocked trout season opener — country's only January 1 trout opener for a lowland reservoir). NDOW statewide standard: trout 5 / day combined trout (rainbow + brown + brook + cutthroat + lake — but NOT Lahontan cutthroat at Pyramid Lake, governed by separate Tribal Permit rule) + Trout Stamp $10 res / $10 NR required for harvest; Lahontan cutthroat at Pyramid Lake 2 / day under-19-in slot + 1 / day 24-in+ bonus + barbless single-hook + artificial-fly-and-lure-only + no shore fishing 5 PM – 5 AM Oct 1 – Dec 31 + closed June 30 – Oct 1 spawning protection (Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Permit required — NDOW license NOT valid on Pyramid Lake); walleye 10 / day no statewide minimum on listed NDOW Quality Management reservoirs (Rye Patch + Lahontan + Wild Horse + South Fork — NDOW-distinctive aggressive 10 / day bag — one of country's highest walleye limits alongside UT 10/day + NM 10/day Rocky Mountain Quality Management); striped bass no daily limit (NDOW-distinctive unlimited harvest on the Nevada side of Lake Mead + Lake Mohave under the AZ/NV joint compact — the Arizona side carries 25 / day on the same water; NV state-record striped bass 63 lb 0 oz Lake Mohave 2001); largemouth + smallmouth bass 6 / day combined no minimum on Lake Mead + Mohave + Lake Tahoe + listed reservoirs (NDOW-distinctive aggressive harvest under AZ/NV joint compact + CA/NV Lake Tahoe joint compact); channel + flathead catfish 25 / day combined no minimum on Lake Mead + Lake Mohave + listed reservoirs (NDOW-distinctive aggressive harvest under AZ/NV joint compact); kokanee salmon 10 / day with 12 in minimum on Lake Tahoe under the CA/NV joint compact (the state's primary kokanee fishery + the principal forage base for Lake Tahoe's Mackinaw); panfish (sunfish + crappie + bluegill) 15 / day combined no minimum. NDOW stocks ~1.4 million catchable + fingerling trout annually statewide via Lake Mead State Fish Hatchery (Boulder City NV — warm-water + cold-water mixed production) + Mason Valley State Fish Hatchery (Yerington NV — Lahontan cutthroat broodstock + walleye fry) + Spring Creek State Fish Hatchery (Spring Creek NV — Wild Horse + South Fork rainbow stocking) + USFWS Lahontan NFH Complex (Lahontan NFH Gardnerville NV — Pilot Peak strain Lahontan cutthroat broodstock + Marble Bluff NFH Wadsworth NV — Pyramid Lake LCT release facility). NDOW-distinctive Free Fishing Day the second Saturday of June statewide (June 13, 2026) no license required — Nevada follows Idaho's second-Saturday-of-June schedule rather than the first-Saturday Rocky Mountain group (CO + UT + WY + NM), joining the regional Great Basin one-day amnesty. NDOW fees: $40 res annual + $10 res Trout Stamp + $20 res 1-day combo (fishing) + $9 res junior (12-15) reduced + $15 res senior 65+ reduced + $0 res permanently disabled veteran 50%+ + $0 res under 12 + $0 res Native American tribal member on tribal lands; $80 NR annual + $10 NR Trout Stamp + $30 NR 1-day + $40 NR 3-day + $9 NR junior (12-15) reduced + $0 NR under 12 + $0 NR free fishing day. Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Permit (separate from NDOW): $24 res/NR 1-day + $90 res/NR annual + $0 res/NR under 12 (Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe jurisdiction — NDOW license NOT honored on Pyramid Lake).