Fishing is definitely better in the morning
Daniel Island fishing report
Triple digit day time temperatures and high water temperatures are making fishing pretty challenging. So much so, I am abandoning late afternoon trips until things cool off a bit. This week, the most productive trips have been early in the morning with an incoming tide. These conditions make fish and fishing more comfortable. The rising tide brings cooler water into the creeks and the fish seem to bite better in the shallows. Working the same locations where the evening top water bite was nonexistent, trout and ladyfish are putting on a show early in the morning. Light conditions are about the same, but the water temperature is 3 to 5 degrees cooler and the air temperature is 20 degrees cooler!
Fishing is definitely better in the morning. Launching at 5:30 and returning before 10:00 allows you to avoid the summer time heat and crowds. It also has you fishing during the most comfortable and productive period of the day.
If for some reason you want to fish during the heat of the day, look for fish to be holding in deeper water. Docks, ledges and submerged oyster bars in 10 to 15 feet of water are good places to start. A strong incoming tide will improve your chances. Live bait also helps to stack the odds in your favor. Finger mullet and small menhaden fished slowly on a lead head jig are hard for flounder, trout and reds to resist.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at captaingreg@shallowwatercharters.com or (843) 224-0099.
Saltwater fishing report for Charleston
Spottail Bass: Very good. Haddrell’s Point reports that the redfish bite is strong around docks and around creek mouths with oyster rakes. Fish live shrimp or menhaden under corks. Trout: Good. Large trout are being caught on live bait (menhaden, shrimp and finger mullet) fished around shell rakes in 3-6 feet of water. Numbers are still down but the fish being caught are generally large. Flounder: Good. As water temperatures rise the flounder bite continues to get hotter. Fish around the edges of rock piles in the inlets and along the edges of sand flats near creek mouths, and use live minnows or finger mullet on Carolina rigs. As the summer moves along fish will move further back into the creeks.
Folly Beach Pier: A few trout, flounder, sheepshead and spottail bass have been caught but the best fishing continues to be for whiting and black drum.
Offshore: Haddrell’s Point reports that the dolphin bite is red hot and should stay that way for several more weeks. Fish are all over but trolling temperatures breaks in 200-600 feet of water with Sea Witches, small chugger heads and naked ballyhoo is a good bet. Wahoo can also be found around the 180 foot ledge with medium to large ballyhoo behind 9 inch Iland lures or the Zman NeedlerZ.
Freshwater fishing report for the Santee Cooper System
Bream: Very good. Bream fishing is hot and bluegill and shellcrackers are both spawning in shallow water from a foot to 3 or 4 feet deep. The best areas to fish are where scattered lily pads meet cypress trees and there is sand. Crickets and worms will both work. Catfish: Good. Fish are being caught drifting in 10 to 24 feet of water, and some nice fish were caught anchored in 30 feet this week. Cut bait (particularly shad) and nightcrawlers are both working, and night fishing is starting to turn on. Crappie: Fair. The shallow bite is in the past and fish have moved out to brushpiles in 12 to 14 feet of water. Look for fish attractors (marked by white buoys) in both lakes. Largemouth bass: Slow to fair. Perhaps because of fluctuating water levels and perhaps because the fish are so spread out the largemouth bass bite is tough right now, although Captain Inky Davis reports some signs of improvement in the last week. Topwater first thing is one pattern and soft plastics fished around cover may also work.