Cross Bayou Fishing Guides
The short, slow channel that carries Cross Lake through the north side of Shreveport to the Red River, with a city gauge reading stage and water level on a bayou that fishes like the lake above it.
Guides on the Cross Bayou
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About the Cross Bayou
Cross Bayou is the outlet of Cross Lake, the reservoir that supplies Shreveport with its drinking water, and it runs only a few miles from the dam through the north side of the city before it reaches the Red River. That short run is the whole character of the water. It is slow, wide in places, narrow and wooded in others, and it behaves far more like an arm of the lake than like a river, because the Red River backs into the lower end whenever the big river runs high.
The gauge at Shreveport reads stage and water level rather than discharge, which is normal for a bayou of this kind and still tells you what you need to know. A steady, low reading means the bayou is clear and the fish are holding on the cypress knees, the bridge pilings and the old timber. A sharp rise after a storm on the Cross Lake watershed, or a rise pushed back up from the Red, means stained water and fish moving to the edges.
The fishing is classic north Louisiana bayou. Largemouth hold tight to wood and to the riprap where the bayou passes under the highways. Crappie stack on brush and bridge structure through the cooler months and are the reason most local boats are here. Catfish work the deeper bends year round, and the gar, bowfin and drum that come with any Red River backwater show up often enough to keep things interesting.
Access is genuinely urban, which is the appeal and the limitation at once. Ramps and banks are minutes from downtown, so a short evening trip is easy, but the corridor is developed and the bayou is never far from a road. Fish it as what it is, a productive city water with lake fish in it, and it rewards the trip.
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Access
Shreveport - the bayou runs through the north side of the city, with ramps, tackle and everything else close at hand.
Cross Lake - the reservoir immediately above, with public ramps and the fish that drop down into the bayou.
Ford Park - a Shreveport city park on the lake with a launch and bank access.
Cross Lake Dam - the head of the bayou and the first structure worth fishing below.
Red River - the big river at the lower end, with developed ramps and a bigger fishery when the bayou is off.
Bossier City - across the Red, with additional services, lodging and guides.
Interstate 20 and Interstate 220 crossings - the bridge pilings that hold crappie and bass through the cold months.
Seasons
Spring: the strongest stretch of the year, with bass on the wood and crappie moving shallow to spawn in the backs of the pockets.
Summer: hot and slow, so fish the shade, the bridges and the deeper bends early and late, and let catfish carry the middle of the day.
Fall: cooling water spreads the fish back out and the bayou fishes well again once the first real front comes through.
Winter: the crappie season locals wait for, with fish tight on brush and bridge structure and the clearest water of the year.
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Questions
What species can you catch on the Cross Bayou?
Anglers target Alligator Gar, Black Crappie, Blue Catfish, Bluegill, Bowfin, Chain Pickerel, Channel Catfish, Common Carp, Flathead Catfish, Freshwater Drum, Largemouth Bass, Longear Sunfish, Longnose Gar, Redear Sunfish, Spotted Bass, Spotted Gar, Warmouth, White Bass, White Crappie, Yellow Bass on the Cross Bayou in Louisiana.
Where can you access the Cross Bayou?
Shreveport - the bayou runs through the north side of the city, with ramps, tackle and everything else close at hand. Cross Lake - the reservoir immediately above, with public ramps and the fish that drop down into the bayou. Ford Park - a Shreveport city park on the lake with a launch and bank access. Cross Lake Dam - the head of the bayou and the first structure worth fishing below. Red River - the big river at the lower end, with developed ramps and a bigger fishery when the bayou is off. Bossier City - across the Red, with additional services, lodging and guides. Interstate 20 and Intersta...
When is the best time to fish the Cross Bayou?
Spring: the strongest stretch of the year, with bass on the wood and crappie moving shallow to spawn in the backs of the pockets. Summer: hot and slow, so fish the shade, the bridges and the deeper bends early and late, and let catfish carry the middle of the day. Fall: cooling water spreads the fish back out and the bayou fishes well again once the first real front comes through. Winter: the crappie season locals wait for, with fish tight on brush and bridge structure and the clearest water of the year.
Where are the fishing regulations for the Cross Bayou?
Regulations change by season and section. Read the current rules on the Louisiana agency site: https://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/page/recreational-freshwater-finfish-and-crawfish