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Bay Springs Lake Fishing Report

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

The Tenn-Tom’s clear northern pool: Bay Springs hides spotted bass and crappie in a canyon of bluffs and timber.

1/5
Tough. Pick your battles.Post-front sun and slick water make them sulk.
Water temp
~84 F est.
Air / High
100 / 100 F
Wind
ENE 5 mph

Sources: 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.

1/5Tough. Pick your battles.Post-front sun and slick water make them sulk.

Bay Springs Lake serves up more heat: the productive hours are the dim ones. Today brings clear skies, wind ENE around 5 mph, rising pressure near 1013 hPa and a high of 100. 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)Fair

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

Largemouth bassSlow

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 bassSlow

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 104 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.

No live gauge on this water

Conditions here are modeled from weather, season and the nearest stations. Water readings appear when a USGS gauge is available.

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~84 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp100 F
High / Low100 / 74 F
WindENE 5-7 mph
Pressure1013.0 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain17% cloud, 17%
Sunrise / Sunset06:28 / 19:15
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 PMsunrisesunset

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Fri Sep 4 · Partly cloudy, 100/74 F, wind 10 mph, rain 17%

Slow. 100 F: be on the water at dawn and off by mid-morning, or fish after dark.

Species guide

The species that matter on Bay Springs Lake: 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 Bay Springs Lake 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 Bay Springs Lake today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 99 F, wind to 8 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 99 F, wind to 6 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 99 F, wind to 8 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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Before you go

License

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

Regulations

Mississippi license. Bass and crappie limits per current MDWFP regulations.

Access

Corps ramps and campgrounds including Piney Grove; Bay Springs Marina; access near the Jamie Whitten Lock.

About this water

A 6,700-acre Corps reservoir on the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway in Tishomingo and Prentiss counties, Mississippi.

Fishing Bay Springs Lake: the full guide

A canal-system reservoir

Bay Springs Lake sits at the northern end of the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway in northeast Mississippi, 6,700 acres of unusually clear water in a steep, wooded basin. It was built as part of the canal system, and the geometry shows: deep channel, bluff banks, standing timber in the creek arms and clarity rare for Mississippi. Spotted and largemouth bass, crappie and catfish make up the fishery.

Clear-water structure

The clarity favors finesse: drop-shots, shaky heads and small swimbaits on the rocky points and bluff transitions for spotted bass, with largemouth relating to the timber and brush in the creek arms. Spring pushes fish shallow into the pockets; summer sends them to the channel edges and deeper structure at 20-35 feet. Low-light periods produce best in water this clear.

Crappie and the timber

Standing timber in the upper creek arms holds crappie year-round: vertical jigging the trunks in 12-25 feet is the productive method, shallower in spring. Catfish work the channel and the flats near the lock. The lake gets modest pressure compared with Pickwick or Sardis, and weekday visitors often have whole arms to themselves.

Waterway logistics

The Corps operates ramps and campgrounds around the lake, including Piney Grove and Bay Springs Marina areas, with the Jamie Whitten Lock at the north end connecting to the divide cut. Barge traffic uses the main channel: stay clear of the sailing line. Tishomingo and Iuka provide supplies, and nearby Tishomingo State Park adds hiking and camping.

Common questions

Why is the water so clear?

The steep, wooded basin and canal-system design keep sediment low: clarity here is unusual for a Mississippi reservoir.

Where do the crappie hold?

In the standing timber of the upper creek arms: vertical jigging the trunks produces year-round.

Is it crowded?

Rarely: it gets far less pressure than Pickwick or the Delta lakes, and weekdays can feel private.

Is fishing good at Bay Springs Lake right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Tough. Pick your battles. Post-front sun and slick water make them sulk.

Nearby waters

Pickwick Lake29 miCedar Creek Reservoir30 miWilson Lake47 miWheeler Lake73 miLewis Smith Lake76 miSardis Lake85 mi
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