Savannah River Fishing Report: High Tides, Stained Water, and Hungry Fish Await Anglers this Saturday

This is Artificial Lure, your local fishin’ partner, coming in with the Savannah River report for Saturday, September 13, 2025. We’re looking at a solid start to the weekend—pull up your boats, dust off those rods, and listen up for today’s skinny! First off, let’s talk **tides**: we’re working a high at about 2:25 PM, and a low at 8:57 PM. That means your morning bite just after sunrise—right around 7:07 AM—is prime with the water moving up and fish feeding aggressive on the push. Evening anglers, take note: the outgoing tide right before sunset at 7:30 PM will have them on the move as well, setting up a good late bite. All this sits under a last quarter moon, so expect those river fish to be just a touch more finicky but still plenty willing for the right presentation, especially as the barometric pressure is stable and skies should be partly cloudy with temps starting in the mid-70s and ramping to mid-80s as the day warms. Now, the **river’s running a little higher than average**—USGS recorded 7.7 feet and rising at Clyo just two days back, so expect some stain on the water, pushing fish closer to current breaks and up towards creek mouths. According to the Georgia Fishing Report and reports from local guides, the bite’s best in the afternoon as that water rolls out, setting bait in motion and putting stripes and catfish right in the current. **Recent catches** have been solid—anglers pulling in a mixed bag of largemouth and spotted bass, a pile of blue catfish (some up to 30 pounds, especially toward Augusta), and sheepshead down near the estuary. Last weekend, locals found stripers and hybrids busting shad at the beach end around Fort Pulaski and Coffee Bluff, with several in the 3–5 pound class landed. Crappie are still holding deep on timber, but a few slabs have come from oxbows and slower backwaters. **Top baits and lures:** Early morning, there’s no beating a **chrome Spook or walking topwater**, especially near rocky banks and the deeper holes around I-95 and Houlihan Bridge. Once the sun’s up, shift to flukes or small white swimbaits—you’ll keep the schoolers honest. For catfish, fresh cut herring or shad on a slip sinker rig has outfished everything this week, especially right on current seams. Bass are hitting green pumpkin finesse worms on a drop shot or a 3/8 oz jig in brush, but if the water’s muddied up, switch to black and blue. Buzzbaits and spinnerbaits picked up a handful of nice largemouths in the creek mouths feeding into the main river. For those chasing panfish, a **simple crappie jig tipped with minnow** around submerged trees up past Abercorn Creek is your ticket. Big bluegills have been grabbing red worms drifted under a float near structure, mostly late morning after the sun gets up. **A couple of hot spots for you**: - The mouth of Abercorn Creek: with the river high, bass, crappie, and bream have slid into the slower water and can be patterned between the timber and brush. - Old Fig Island Cut: especially This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.