Early Fall Bite Heating Up on the Red River, Shreveport Anglers

Morning, y’all—Artificial Lure here with your Red River Shreveport angler’s report for Sunday, October 5th, 2025. It’s the heart of early fall, and the bite’s turning up with these cooler mornings and warming afternoons. Here’s everything you need to know before you wet a line today. Sunrise is at 7:15 AM, and sunset comes at 7:29 PM, with those all-important twilight hours falling just before dawn and after dusk—always prime time for a big tug on the end of the line according to FishingReminder. Today’s weather is mostly sunny with highs around 90, light east winds around 5 MPH, and humidity is up, keeping that river haze just thick enough to tempt out the shy ones—based on the latest National Weather Service info for Red River Parish. The Red River’s holding steady clarity, and the North breeze we had earlier in the week has settled things down, making for good color and better ambush points along the banks and inside the bayous. The moon’s waxing gibbous, so daytime activity is solid and your best bet for major feeding times is early: 5:30 to 7:30 AM, lining up right with the sunrise window. Look for another major bite from 6 to 8 PM if you’re staying out late, based on local lunar tables. In the last few days, local anglers have been bringing in stacks of blue catfish, channel cats, and the occasional flathead from deeper river bends—especially where the channel swings close to the bank. Best baits for cats: cut shad, chicken liver, and fresh nightcrawlers. For bass, the largemouth have been crushing shallow-running squarebill crankbaits and chrome Rat-L-Traps fished along riprap and the mouths of feeder creeks. Plastic worms in green pumpkin or junebug on a Texas rig will get bites after the sun is up. In the backwaters, white bass are busting up shad pods near Willow Point and Clark Pocket. Small spoons, inline spinners, and tiny swimjigs are the lures of choice there. If you’re a crappie chaser, try Bobby Garland jigs in blue ice or monkey milk under docks at Cross Lake Dam and corners of the Cross Lake Spillway. Red River regulars know that marshy drains and oxbows just off the main river have been coughing up decent numbers of bream and the odd slab crappie. Small live minnows and red worms under a float can’t be beat. The flounder aren’t thick here, but if you slide downstream towards the brackish tideline near Alligator Bayou, slow-rolling a paddle tail swimbait on the bottom might turn up a surprise. For hot spots today: - Hit the mouth of Johnson’s Arm for bass at first light. - Try the drop-offs at Cross Lake Dam and Spillway for cats and crappie. - The stretch from Long-Allen Bridge downstream to Anderson Island provides steady action for mixed bags, especially during minor bite times. With the Red River Revel festival going on this weekend, expect a bit more river traffic near the downtown stretch, so slip a little upstream or downstream for some elbow room if you want it quiet. To recap the best advice: go early or late, This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.