"Lake Okeechobee Fishing Report: Largemouth Bass Bite Sizzles with Topwater and Spinnerbaits"

Good morning y’all, this is Artificial Lure bringing you the Lake Okeechobee fishing report for Wednesday, September 10th, 2025, coming at you just after sunrise. If you were out on the water this morning, you caught one of those classic Okeechobee sunrises at 7:08 AM, and sunset’s coming at 7:32 PM, giving us a good stretch of daylight to work the water. Feels like we’ve finally got the edge of fall in the air, a real treat after those steamy summer days. This morning the temps were hanging in the low 70s with a light southeast breeze—comfortable but don’t forget the sunblock. We’ve got partial cloud cover, so the bite has been stretching a bit longer into the morning, especially with that sun ducking in and out behind the clouds. Recent clear-up in the water out front of the grass lines has caused fish to pull tighter to cover, but overall visibility is picking up, making lure presentation matter more than ever. Right now, the lake level’s sitting a bit above crest thanks to late summer rain, but most ramps and trails are open and accessible. Down at the south and west side, the main Rim Canal and the edge of the flat around Tin House Cove are both producing most consistently. Folks working the edges of the grass and into the reeds are seeing fish up shallow early, pulling back into slightly deeper water as the sun climbs. As for the fish, it’s the largemouth bass that are stealing the show, with plenty of three and four pounders coming in and even some bags up to 25 pounds for five fish, according to the word from guides like Captain Robin Clegg. One group ran through seven dozen wild shiners before midmorning, catching 24 bass, a mess of catfish, and even a gar or two—not bad for a couple hours’ work. Shiners are still the ticket if you want fast action, but the artificial bite’s coming in strong. Late summer and early fall means shad, so bass are schooling up and feeding aggressively. Spinnerbaits—especially gold-and-white or chartreuse—are still hot, particularly when worked right through the edges of the reeds. Captain Robin Clegg has been pulling a Ho spinnerbait through the main grass fields with success, but a proper paddle-tail swimbait or even a classic Texas-rigged worm can pay dividends. For artificials, topwater is starting to dominate again, especially walking-style baits and poppers fished parallel to shoreline grass beds and hydrilla. Randy Howell broke down how both plopper-style topwaters and walking baits like a spook do damage this time of year—ploppers along the cover, walkers anywhere you see schooling fish busting shad. Use braided line for those long casts and instant hookups. If the fish get finicky, scale things down with a finesse jig like the Booyah Baby Boo Jig in green pumpkin or a soft plastic craw—YUM CrawBug is a local favorite, either Texas-rigged or as a jig trailer. Work ‘em slow through the thicker grass or flip right into pockets along the mats. White bass, bluegill, and crappie are starting to pe This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.