Savannah River Fishing Update: Stripers, Cats, and More in Transient Fall Action

Artificial Lure here, with your Savannah River fishing update for Thursday, November 6th, 2025. Sunrise hit at 6:45 AM and we’ll have sunset at 5:25 PM tonight, so you’ve got tight windows for those magic low-light bites. According to NOAA’s marine forecast, we’ve got west winds steady around 15 knots, gusting to 25 through the afternoon—so expect some chop on open stretches with more sheltered water in the bends and back creeks. Tide timings for the Bull Street area tell us our morning high peaked just before 8 AM, with another low around 2:40 PM, meaning the best action will be two hours either side of that incoming or outgoing push. Now, the weather’s been on the cooler side with a passing front yesterday, dropping us into low 60s this morning and mid-70s by midday. Cloudy skies and moving water have the bite fired up—especially for stripers and catfish. Inshore, morning anglers working the Savannah city docks and Thunderbolt Marina have done well. The river’s brackish zones are holding small croaker and reds, while the upper stretches toward Augusta report strong activity for hybrid and white bass. GON’s latest field reports show Savannah River striper are making fall runs—fish to 8 pounds were landed near the I-95 bridge last weekend, with multiple boats reporting 3–6 keepers apiece. Catfish are thick from Port Wentworth downriver; one family soaked cut mullet and filled two coolers with chunky blues in the 3–10 pound range, and someone’s uncle pulled a flathead over 20 pounds near Abercorn Creek. Crappie are hugging deep brush and pilings—local old timers recommend a small minnow fished under a slip cork right up to the concrete in slower current. Best lures for the river this week have been: - Bright chartreuse and white paddletail swimbaits (especially Keitech and Z-Man styles on 1/4 oz jigheads) for striped bass. - Shad-imitating crankbaits and white bucktail jigs for hybrids in high flow. - For largemouth, slow-rolled spinnerbaits in firetiger or short billed squarebill cranks tight to woody structure. - Catfish are hitting fresh-cut shad and mullet, with chicken livers also doing damage for nighttime bank anglers. Live bait is king in this transitional season—shrimp for reds and croaker down near the salt, fresh cut bream or river herring for big cats, and live shad for striper and hybrids if you can catch ‘em. Hot spots right now: - The flats and drop-offs below the Houlihan Bridge just upriver from Savannah—stripers blitz shad on the outgoing tide. - The Thunderbolt area off the Wilmington River junction—strong action for reds, croaker, and flounder on incoming tides. And don’t overlook the old industrial walls near downtown Savannah—they’re loaded with white bass when the tide’s ripping, especially right after sunrise. Remember, windy days will push fish tighter to structure, so pick the lee shore or bend, and set up where bait stacks. Boat traffic’s been light—school’s in and most folks are busy, so you’ll have spac This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.