Tenkiller Fishing Report: Topwater Bass, Crappie Slabs, and Tasty Catfish [Saturday, October 11, 2025]

Artificial Lure here with your Lake Tenkiller Oklahoma fishing report for Saturday, October 11th, 2025. Let’s kick things off with the conditions. Sunrise was 7:21 AM and we’ll see sunset at 6:53 PM, giving you plenty of daylight to wet a line. The weather is looking prime for fall fishing: expect sunny skies, highs near 85, and a gentle east wind around 5 mph, which helps keep the water pretty slick for those topwater takes, especially in the morning. No precipitation overnight, and the lake is running about 0.76 feet above normal as of yesterday evening, with water temps slowly cooling but still holding in a productive zone for active fish, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Now, there’s no tide to speak of here in landlocked Oklahoma, but the lake and river flows are solid. The Illinois River, feeding Tenkiller at Gore, is flowing steady with about 572 cubic feet per second—plenty of movement to keep baitfish, and predators, on the move. Let’s talk fish. Bass are hot right now with a classic fall pattern. According to the Lake Tenkiller Oklahoma Daily Fishing Report, the **topwater bite is still going strong the first couple of hours after sunrise**. Whopper Ploppers, Zara Spooks, and Rebel Pop-Rs have been producing solid largemouth and spotted bass numbers over shallow points and in backs of coves. Once the sun's up, anglers are switching to soft plastics—Texas-rigged worms in watermelon red, and shaky heads with green pumpkin finesse worms—especially around deeper brush piles and the marinas. Crappie are starting to **stack up on brush in 15-20 feet of water** along old river channels and docks. A lot of slabs are being pulled in on small hair jigs—chartreuse and white seem to be favorites—or plain minnows on slip cork rigs. Find deeper timber or brush in the lower end, and you’ll see some nice stringers coming in. Catfish remain solid, too, especially on the upper flats and in the river channel. Cut shad and punch bait are top producers—set up where that channel swings in close to a flat and you’ll likely bag a few blues and decent channel cats. Folks are seeing steady action with eater-size fish and a few reports of flatheads, especially for those running live sunfish at night. As for recent catches, local boats have reported limits of crappie in the mornings, with several over a pound, and bass to four pounds with plenty of keepers. Channel cats in the 2- to 5-pound range are being iced down regularly. There’s been a little surface schooling, so keep something tied on for a quick cast near chasing bait. **Best lures and baits:** - Topwater plugs (Whopper Ploppers, walking baits) at dawn - Shaky heads and Texas rigs (green pumpkin, watermelon) by mid-morning - Small hair or marabou jigs and live minnows for crappie - Cut shad, Sonny’s punch bait, and live bluegill for cats Hot spots to check out today: - The Snake Creek arm—start early along rocky banks and the flats for bass and follow the bait into deeper w This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.