Howdy, folks! Artificial Lure here with your daily fishing report for Lake of the Ozarks and the surrounding waters—Wednesday, October 22, 2025. It’s that magic time of year when the fish just can’t help themselves and we get some of the best action of the season. Weather’s cooperating, too: crisp autumn mornings, warming up to the low 60s this afternoon, with a light breeze out of the northwest. No rain in sight today, but keep an eye on the clouds late in the week. Sunrise this morning was right at 7:30, sunset’ll roll around about 6:20, so we’ve got plenty of daylight to burn. As for tides, Lake of the Ozarks isn’t tidal, so don’t worry about those charts—just focus on wind direction and water temps for finding the fish.
Let’s talk about what’s biting. Crappie—man, they are absolutely on fire right now. Guys are pulling them in just about everywhere, but especially around brush piles and docks in 12 to 20 feet of water. The cooler nights have those slabs moving up shallower for first light, and then dropping down as the sun climbs. Bass are up on main-lake points and flats, smashing crawbaits, squarebills, and even a few topwater plugs if you hit the water early. According to the Lake of the Ozarks Missouri Daily Fishing Report, the bite’s strong across the board, so this is the time to go.
For numbers: crappie limits are common right now—folks are filling their baskets with 9- to 12-inchers, easy. Black bass are coming in decent sizes, too, with several reports this week of fish in the 3- to 5-pound range. White bass and hybrids are schooling up in the early morning, chasing shad in the backs of creeks. And for you catfish fans, the channels and flatheads are still biting, best at night and early dawn, especially on fresh-cut bait or chicken liver.
Let’s talk lures and bait. For crappie, you can’t go wrong with a 1/16-ounce marabou jig, white or chartreuse tipped with a minnow. Slip bobbers are even better if you want to keep your bait right in their face. For bass, it’s hard to beat a black/blue jig with a craw trailer, a squarebill crankbait in bluegill pattern, and—if you’re up early—a popper or buzzbait. Topwater’s working until about 9:30 a.m., then switch to subsurface presentations. Catfish, as always, want live bait—shad, bluegill, or chicken liver will do the trick.
Now, where should you wet a line? Two hotspots that have been lights out: first, the mouth of the Osage Arm, especially around Indian Creek and Linn Creek Creek, for crappie and bass. Second, the Gravois Arm, with the brush piles and docks in the cove behind the point near the bridge, for limits of slabs. And don’t forget the far reaches of the Niangua, especially around the old bridge pilings and deeper docks—the catfish bite is solid there at first light.
So grab your gear, hit the water, and get after it. The fall bite is on, and this is the time to be on the lake. Thanks for tuning in, and if you want the freshest tips every day, make sure to subscribe and follow us for updates. Until tomorrow—this has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.
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