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Lake Blackshear Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Sep 4, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

The Flint River wearing a lake costume: Blackshear’s cypress and current grow south Georgia bass, crappie and hybrid stripes.

3/5
Fair. Fish early or late.Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows.
Flow
994 cfs
Air / High
91 / 92 F
Wind
NNE 8 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 02349605, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
4
September 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

3/5Fair. Fish early or late.Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows.

Lake Blackshear serves up more heat: the productive hours are the dim ones. The river is running 994 cfs, dropping and clearing. Today brings a mixed sky, wind NNE around 8 mph, rising pressure near 1013 hPa and a high of 92. Water sits around 84 F for the season (estimated). With the last quarter, the solunar majors run 5:39 AM-7:39 AM and 5:39 PM-7:39 PM: plan around them and beat the heat.

The plan, species by species

Catfish (blue, channel)Good

Anchor on 20-30 ft baited holes with punch bait or cut shad. They keep biting through the heat when everything else quits.

Largemouth bassFair

Topwater at first light on points and seawalls, then slide out to 12-25 ft brush and points with a Carolina rig, deep crank or drop shot. The bite is dawn, dusk or deep.

White bassFair

Early schooling action over humps; slabs and small spinners under the birds.

CrappieSlow

Straight down on bridge pilings and deep brush at 15-25 ft. Minnows outfish jigs in hot water; move until the graph shows them stacked.

Tomorrow: Similar at 92 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Sep 5, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Water and weather

Live readings from Flint River near Montezuma.

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 02349605.

1,1741,5071,840994 cfs08/0508/1508/2509/04

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp91 F
High / Low92 / 75 F
WindNNE 8-9 mph
Pressure1013.0 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain45% cloud, 23%
Sunrise / Sunset07:13 / 19:56
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~84 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Fri Sep 4 · Overcast, 92/75 F, wind 8 mph, rain 23%

Fair or better. A 8 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

The species that matter on Lake Blackshear: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Largemouth bass illustration

Largemouth bass

Best: spring and fall

The headline act on most American reservoirs. Relates to cover: docks, brush, grass edges and points. Topwater at first light on points and seawalls, then slide out to 12-25 ft brush and points with a Carolina rig, deep crank or drop shot. The bite is dawn, dusk or deep.

Crappie illustration

Crappie

Best: Nov-Mar

Brush piles, bridge pilings and standing timber. The fish fry favorite. Straight down on bridge pilings and deep brush at 15-25 ft. Minnows outfish jigs in hot water; move until the graph shows them stacked.

Catfish (blue, channel) illustration

Catfish (blue, channel)

Good year-round

The most reliable bite on most southern waters. Blues run big; channels fill the cooler. Anchor on 20-30 ft baited holes with punch bait or cut shad. They keep biting through the heat when everything else quits.

White bass illustration

White bass

Best: Mar-May run

River-run spawners and open-water schoolers. Fast limits when you find them. Early schooling action over humps; slabs and small spinners under the birds.

When to come: the Lake Blackshear calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Largemouth bass
Crappie
Catfish (blue, channel)
White bass
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 84 F (estimated, not a reading).

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~84 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Lake Blackshear today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

3/5 Fair. Fish early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 94 F, wind to 9 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

3/5 Fair. Fish early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 95 F, wind to 7 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

3/5 Fair. Fish early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 93 F, wind to 7 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
Only used to send you this water's report each week. No spam, ever.

Before you go

License

Georgia requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

Georgia license. Standard state limits for bass and crappie: check GADNR for current rules and any tailrace-specific notices.

Access

Georgia Veterans State Park ramps, Cannonville Landing, Collins Landing and US 280 causeway accesses.

About this water

An 8,515-acre power-generation reservoir on the Flint River between Crisp and Sumter counties, Georgia, dammed in 1930.

Fishing Lake Blackshear: the full guide

A river that pauses

Blackshear stretches the Flint River into 8,500 acres of cypress-lined south Georgia water between Cordele and Americus: shallow, fertile, tannin-tinged and always moving a little, because the Crisp County dam that made it in 1930 still generates power. The current keeps oxygen up and fish honest: largemouth in the cypress and grass, crappie in numbers that fill wintertime docks, hybrids and white bass where the river runs, and catfish everywhere.

Bass among the knees

The bass program is a cypress-tree education: pitch jigs and Texas-rigged creatures to the trunks and knee clusters on the river-side edges, work frogs over the pad fields in the coves, and follow the shad to the creek mouths (Swift, Gum, Collins) in fall. Current breaks matter like on any river: the upstream sides of islands and bars hold feeders when generation moves water. Winter fish pull to the channel ledges: a slow crankbait along 10-14 feet finds them.

Crappie and the river runners

Blackshear crappie made the lake’s name: winter and early spring, long-line jigs or spider-rig minnows over the channel edges and planted brush in 8-15 feet, then work the cypress shade all summer. Hybrids and white bass stack below the US 280 bridge current seams and chase shad schools on the main lake at dawn: keep a spoon rigged. The dam tailrace (fish from Crisp County’s designated areas) turns on when turbines run.

Cordele-country logistics

Georgia Veterans State Park anchors the west shore: ramps, campground, lodge and the safest big-water access. Other launches dot US 280 and the east side (Cannonville, Collins Landing). Summer weekends bring heavy pleasure traffic mid-lake: fish the river arms early or the cypress lines the wake boats avoid. Watch for standing timber off the marked channels: the lake keeps its river bones.

Common questions

What is Blackshear’s best season?

February through April: crappie stacking, bass moving to the cypress to spawn, and hybrids running the river. October is the quiet second peak.

Does the current really matter on a lake?

Yes: generation schedules move bait and position fish on current seams. When water moves, fish the river-side structure first.

Is it family-friendly?

Georgia Veterans State Park makes it one of south Georgia’s easiest fishing weekends: ramp, campground, golf and calm morning water in one gate.

Is fishing good at Lake Blackshear right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Fair. Fish early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows.

Nearby waters

Lake Tobesofkee61 miFlint River65 miLake Harding85 miLake Sinclair94 miLake Seminole95 miWest Point Lake100 mi
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