Shreveport's Fall Bite: Topwater Bass, Crappie, and Cats on the Red River

Artificial Lure here with your October 19, 2025, Red River fishing report, shining a spotlight on Shreveport’s fall bite and local river action. This morning kicked off cool—temps hovered around the low 50s at sunrise and will creep towards the low 70s by early afternoon, perfect for a fall run on the Red River. The sun cracked the horizon at about 7:16 AM, and we’ll see sunset around 6:36 PM. Winds are sitting light, mostly from the northeast. Water clarity is moderate, with a few lightly stained stretches following last week’s scattered showers, but nothing that should stop you from landing fish. Solunar activity shows we’re in a Third Quarter Moon, which means the best bite windows are tight. Major bite times peaked early from 5:14 to 7:14 AM and will hit again this evening between 5:34 and 7:34 PM. Midday minor activity runs from 12:40 to 2:40 PM for those sticking around. If you’re chasing numbers or size, plan to work those two prime periods hard, especially this evening’s twilight rush—fall bass and cats love that cooling dusk. Reports out of Red River and the neighboring bayous have been better than last week. According to yesterday’s Red River Shreveport Daily Fishing Report, folks are landing largemouth bass with topwater plugs early, switching over to deep-diving crankbaits and Texas-rigged soft plastics as the sun climbs. Some anglers fishing the edges of Cross Bayou and the deeper pockets near Anderson Island boated up to six legal bass each in the early bite—most in the 2–3-pound range, with a few near five pounds showing on jigs tipped with craw trailers. Best topwater color, hands down, has been white or bone, but if you bring a buzzbait in black, you’ll be in good shape around riprap and cutbanks. Crappie are staging up on laydowns and deeper brush between Musselshell Bayou and Bickham Bayou, hanging in 10–12 feet of water. Locals with live minnows and chartreuse curly-tail grubs hit double digits yesterday, with some slabs measuring a solid 13–15 inches. Catfish action’s steady—most blue cat and channel cat catches are coming from the main channel bends just off Cottons Pocket; shad guts and chicken livers are outfishing commercial stinkbaits by a mile. Best time for cats looks to be just after sundown, with several boats reporting limits by 8 PM. A handful of white bass are chasing shad near Twelvemile Bayou’s mouths and the confluence at Middle Bayou, stacking up for mid-morning busts. Cast chrome or blue lipless crankbaits in open water if you see birds working bait. Here are today’s hot spots worth checking: - **Cross Bayou:** Best for early topwater bass and late crappie. - **Cottons Pocket:** Timely blue and channel cats in deeper bends. - **Bickham Bayou:** Crappie and a few bonus brim on brush piles late morning. For bait and lure, bring the following: - White/bone walking topwaters or poppers for largemouth bass. - Green pumpkin or red flake soft plastics; Texas or Carolina rig for mid-day. - Chartreuse or blue/w This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.