One of the highlights of my winter fishing season, is my annual trip with George Macklin and his daughter Cory. Our excursions together are always chilly but fun. When George called and mentioned that Cory would be visiting in May, we just had to make some time to go fishing.

We met early in the morning and immediately ran to a shallow bank to look for redfish. The wind was calm and the river was mirror smooth. The slick water surface made spotting redfish working along the bank very easy. As quietly as possible, we moved into casting distance of the first fish. Cory (as usual) made a perfect cast to the approaching fish. To my surprise, the large redfish showed little interest in the 1/8 ounce jig tipped with a big mud minnow. It swam right by Cory’s jig. We made several presentations to this fish, but it was just too smart for us. Thankfully, a less enlightened redfish was following a little ways behind the smart one. George cast a couple of feet ahead of the approaching fish and it was game on. While releasing George’s fish, a couple of over slot reds worked their way into casting distance. Before I could point them out to Cory, she saw them and once again made an excellent presentation. Unfortunately, the fish altered direction and were about to miss the jig. Cory gave the rod a slight twitch and a small puff of mud kicked up from the bottom. One of fish darted over and ate the mud minnow. Watching the scene unfold, I thought "that was an angling clinic." Cory has developed into a very accomplished angler.

Over the course of the morning, Cory and George caught and released several more fish. It was great to be on the water with them. Especially since it was warm!

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: Good to very good. Haddrell’s Point reports that redfish have moved into a summertime pattern and can be caught under docks, along rock piles, and along the flats at low tides. A variety of live and artificial baits will catch fish.

Flounder: Good. Haddrell’s Point reports that there have been good reports coming from inlets and around rock piles, and a 6 pound fish was recently weighed in. Mud minnows, finger mullet and live menhaden fished slowly along the bottom will all produce.

Trout: Slow to fair. Haddrell’s Point reports that trout fishing has been bit and miss, and the fish that have been caught have mainly been large females. The cold winter may have killed more fish than originally anticipated.

Surf report: Spanish mackerel and bluefish have moved inshore. Casting silver spoons into schools of feeding Spanish and bluefish is one of the most exciting ways to catch fish.

Folly Beach Pier: A king mackerel was caught off the pier a few days ago, and some Spanish continue to be landed. Whiting, small bluefish and occasional sea trout have also been caught.

Offshore: Haddrell’s Point reports that dolphin fishing is very strong in 300-400 feet of water just offshore of the Edisto Banks and as far north as the Outcrop. Several wahoo have also been caught in 150-300 feet of water near the Southwest banks.