While your kids may be more interested in filling up the candy bucket than the bait bucket this coming weekend, doesn’t mean that they will say no to a couple of hours at your favorite fishing hole! Make the most of the incredible weather we have been having and have a great day of fishing and then big night of Halloween fun. Need tips on fishing with kids? Visit GeorgiaWildlife.com/KidsFishing. Oh, and make sure you work in a few of these Halloween fishing jokes during your day:

NEWS TO KNOW:

• Just getting started? If you are just starting your fishing journey, be sure to visit our Angler Resources page at GeorgiaWildlife.com/fishing/angler-resources for some of the basics, and be sure to get your fishing license at gooutdoorsgeorgia.com/.
• GET BASS SLAMMED: We’re highlighting a different black bass species each month in our new blog series! Follow along to learn about Georgia’s native bass species and for tips to complete your very own Georgia Bass Slam. Read the October post on the Shoal Bass here and keep an eye out for the next bass species post soon: georgiawildlife.blog/2026/10/07/get-bass-slammed-shoal-bass/

SOUTHEAST GEORGIA

(Fishing report courtesy of Regional Supervisor Joel Fleming and Joshua Barber’s Southern Waters Fishing Report)

River Gauges as of October 28th:

Hudson caught this nice bass this weekend from a Wayne County pond.

Marty Higgins and his grandson Hudson caught a catfish from Lake Longleaf. They caught their limit that day.

• Doctortown on the Altamaha – 3.23 feet and falling
• Lumber City on the Ocmulgee – 0.62 feet and falling
• Clyo on the Savannah – 2.97 feet and falling
• Eden on the Ogeechee – 3.30 feet and falling
• Statenville on the Alapaha – 6.30 feet and falling
• Alapaha on the Alapaha – 4.10 feet and falling
• Waycross on the Satilla – 9.72 feet and falling
• Atkinson on the Satilla – 11.65 feet and falling
• Quitman on the Withlacoochee – 3.11 feet and falling
• Macclenny on the Saint Marys – 3.69 feet and falling
• Fargo on the Suwannee – 4.40 feet and falling

Full Moon is on October 26th. To monitor all the Georgia river levels, visit the USGS website waterdata.usgs.gov/ga/nwis/rt. For the latest marine forecast, check out weather.gov/jax/.

RIVER REPORT

Greg Shields fished the flooded Satilla River on Monday and caught a few bass out in the woods off the river. He used a Creek Boat and caught the bass in areas that are normally dry. Greg also fished the Altamaha on Tuesday and caught a total of 13 bass (up to 4 pounds) while using a buzzbait with a gold blade. He lost a bass that probably weighed around 6- 7 lbs. An angler fished the Satilla earlier this month and reported that he caught a nice mess of bass and panfish. DNR Fisheries staff have been conducting annual standardized samples on the Ocmulgee River and have been seeing a really good number of large bluegill and redear sunfish this year, so anglers looking for some panfish action may want to head to the Ocmulgee River.  While sampling on the Savannah, staff have seen striped bass begin to show up in the estuary as they make their Fall migration downriver from upriver summering areas. Before your next trip to the river, stop by Satilla Feed and Outdoors located at 2270 US-84 in Blackshear. They have a variety of rods, reels, and fishing tackle. For their hours, call 912-449-3001.

LAKES AND PONDS

Georgia Public Fishing Areas: Two Waycross area anglers fished at a pond this week and caught 5 bass and a bowfin while using soft plastics. Ken Burke fished at Ocmulgee Public Fishing Area on two mornings and caught 7 bass total. He caught one on each morning that weighed about 5 lbs. Another angler reported catching 5 bass in the 3-4 lbs class one day at Ocmulgee PFA. Dean Barber and his son James had a good day fishing and caught several bass on Lake Trestle at Paradise Public Fishing Area this past Friday. Anglers are reporting strong catch rates of catfish at Evans County Public Fishing Area, especially in evening hours. A few anglers, fishing at Bidd Sands Lake, have reported decent numbers of bass and bluegill, all on live bait.  Anglers have also reported that the fall crappie bite is turning on all of the PFAs in southeast GA. Steve Eddie had two good days in a row at Dodge Public Fishing Area and kept over 10 crappie each day. Steve caught his fish on minnows. Find out more about Georgia Public Fishing Areas at GeorgiaWildlife.com/allpfas.

OKEFENOKEE SWAMP

The bowfin bite has continued to be very steady in the swamp. Ellen and Matthew came down from Atlanta and fished with Captain Bert Deener on Friday on the east side. They caught and released 16 bowfin during the two-hour trip. Matthew landed one that was just shy of 21 inches, and it was long enough to earn him a youth angler award from the Georgia Wildlife Resources Division. All the fish were caught on Dura-Spins. Captain Bert Deener offers guided fishing trips in the Okefenokee. To book a trip with him, visit his website bertsjigsandthings.com. The most recent water level on the east side was 120.45 feet.

SALTWATER

David McMaster fished with Captain Tim Cutting (fishthegeorgiacoast.com) in the Saint Simons area on Monday and Tuesday. On Monday, they kept their limit of redfish and released around 15 nice trout. They also had 8 nice black drum and a couple of sheepshead. On Tuesday, they landed 29 trout, 39 sheepshead, 20 redfish, and 4 nice black drum. The fish ate soft plastic lures and live shrimp. A Blackshear area angler fished out of Crooked River State Park and caught 5 trout. Four of them came on an electric chicken Keitech paddle tail, and the other bit a chartreuse/orange paddle tail. Lee Mayer and Ed Morain came in from Chicago and fished with Don Harrison on Thursday and managed to catch 35 trout and 4 nice redfish. A Laguna Shrimp Sea Shad was the ticket. Anglers should be aware that coastal waters are experiencing extremely high tides this week due to the combination of King tides and persistently strong NE winds.

Before your next fishing trip, stop by Winge’s Bait and Tackle located at 440 Memorial Drive in Waycross. They have all the tackle you need for a successful trip! For their hours, call 912-283-9400.

Did we not cover your part of the state this week? No worries, we have some great resources to help you find a favorite fishing spot and to see what is biting and where: