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Offshore fishingSaltwater Fishing Trends


Little River - Grand Strand - Cape Romain/McClellanville - Charleston - Hilton Head - Beaufort - Tides - S.C. marine recreational fishing regulations (PDF file). Saltwater Fishing License site.

For more recent updates and further information visit www.SCFishingReport.com

Little River

bulletSpottail Bass: Fair. Anglers are catching spottail bass in the ICW using live mud minnows and Berkeley Gulp. Trout: Good. The trout bite is strong and 3 to 5 pound fish are being taken.  Fish in the ICW with grubs and artificial shrimp. Berkeley Gulp baits and DOA shrimp have been particularly effective. Flounder: Fair to good. Flounder fishing is picking up and fishermen in the creeks are doing well fishing live mud minnows. Bottom Fish: Fair. Fronts and strong winds have made getting offshore problematic, but nice catches of black sea bass and grouper have been reported on calm days.
 
bulletCherry Grove Pier: Catches of sharks and skate are common, but whiting fishing is also picking up. Some small black drum are also being caught.

Grand Strand

bulletSurf temperatures are in the low 60s. Spottail Bass: Very good. Fish the creeks using live or cut mullet or dead shrimp, or standard artificial lures. Look for holes that still have several feet of water at low tide.
bulletBlack Drum: Good. The 2 to 5 pound drum are still hanging around and fishermen report nice catches using pieces of dead shrimp.
bulletTrout: Slow to fair. Trout are beginning to get a bit more aggressive and move out of deeper holes. Try Mirrolures or Gulp shrimp and fish deep areas very slowly.
bulletFlounder: Fair to good. Flounder fishing is fast improving and nice catches of fish are being reported, included some larger fish. Drift or troll live mud minnows in Murrells Inlet or other inlets and creeks, and expect fishing to continue to improve as temperatures warm.
 
bulletMyrtle Beach State Park Pier: Whiting are being caught as well as sharks and skate.
 
bulletApache Pier: Whiting, croaker, small bluefish, and small black drum are all being caught, as well as large numbers of skate and sharks.
 
bulletSurfside Pier: Some very nice whiting up to 14 and 15 inches have been caught.
 
bulletGarden City Pier: Whiting, small black drum, and bluefish are all being caught, as well as plenty of sharks and sting rays.
 
bulletBottom Fish: Good. Boats report nice catches of black sea bass, grouper, and snapper from the Parking Lot (25 miles offshore) on out when they can get offshore, but tricky conditions have made offshore fishing difficult.

Cape Romain/ McClellanville

bulletClear water conditions continue to allow sight fishing to be productive although windy weather could change that.
bulletSpottail Bass: Good. Fish are grouped in large to very large schools on the flats but are at times reluctant to feed in the very clear water. Try a variety of lures to get them to bite, ranging from DOA or Gulp shrimp to topwater plugs to gold spoons to flies. Mud minnows or live mullet may also be effective.
bulletTrout: Good. Fish deeper than for the spottail bass and target holes in creeks. Use an Equalizer-type popping cork with a leader underneath and fish a grub on a lead headed jig. Finding the right action on the jig is very important.
 

Charleston

bulletSpottail Bass: Very good. Lots of fish are being caught in the ICW, creeks, and Wando River, and large numbers of baitfish such as finger mullet are beginning to appear. Flats fishermen continue to catch redfish sight fishing, too. The only place spottails have yet to show up is in the surf. A variety of live baits and artificials are productive.
bulletTrout: Good. With the mild winter this should be a very good year for trout. Nice catches are being reported north of Charleston in the creeks around Dewees, Capers, and Bull Island as water temperatures rise. The Wadmalaw Sound is also productive. Try Gulp shrimp on red jigheads or live bait.
bulletFlounder: Fair to good. Large numbers of flounder are migrating inshore, and warmer water temperatures will usher in the full flounder season within the next month. Target flounder using live mud minnows in inlets and creeks. Some nice flounder are still being caught at near shore reefs and wrecks.
bulletSheepshead: Very good. Sheepshead are schooled up at the near shore reefs and are also starting to be caught inshore. The state record sheepshead, a 16.35 pound fish, was caught recently in the Wando River.
 
bulletFolly Beach Pier: Whiting, skate, and sharks are being caught – surf fishing has yet to really pick up.
 
bulletBottom Fish: Black sea bass, grouper, and snapper are all biting very well offshore – 150 fish days are being reported. Black sea bass are biting well in 40-70 feet of water and grouper are biting well from 60-70 feet on out to 150 feet. Anglers continue to struggle to catch keeper-sized bottom fish, although numbers are no problem.
 
bulletOffshore: A few marlin and sailfish are beginning to show up as well as some wahoo and small dolphin. Offshore fishing will continue to improve for the next month.  

Hilton Head

bulletSpottail Bass: Good. Hilton Head guides continue to report nice catches of spottail bass on the flats but this week was tough with high tides and strong winds making for muddy water. Use artificials such as the ever-reliable brown Gulp Swimming Minnow, or mud minnows. Fish the bait under a popping cork, and the artificials can be fished either under a popping cork or jigged on a free line.
bulletTrout: Good. Use the same bait or lures as for the spottails, or live shrimp where they can be gotten, but target drops on the falling tide. Gulp shrimp imitations have been particularly effective. Some large fish have also been taken on mud minnows.
bulletSheepshead: Very good. Sheepshead fishing remains strong but anglers have had a hard time getting offshore with the high winds. When they can get out, guides continue to report nice catches of sheepshead at the near shore reefs. Lots of fish are in the 2-5 pound range but some larger fish up to 9 or 10 pounds are also being taken.
bulletBottom Fish: Good to very good. When boats can get out, snapper are being caught in large numbers around 40 miles out in 110 feet of water but many of the fish are short. Black Sea Bass and some nice flounder are also being caught out at the Betsy Ross. The flounder are up to 7 or 8 pounds. Fisherman going out after black sea bass are having no trouble catching large numbers but are finding that many of the fish are short.

Beaufort

bulletSpottail Bass: Good. Fish are beginning to spread out and feed aggressively on the large mullet schools which are showing up, although many spottails are still congregated in large schools. Target fish on dropping tides in creeks where water is moving out across oysters. Tailing action is beginning and sight-fishing is still productive on the flats.
bulletTrout: Good. Trout are congregated in deep holes and are very hungry. Fish Gulp shrimp imitations, live mud minnows or live shrimp.
bulletSheepshead: Very good. Nice catches of sheepshead are being reported at the near shore reefs and wrecks.
bulletBottom Fish: Fair to very good. While offshore fishing has been strong, windy conditions have made it very difficult to get out and pursue the fish. When anglers can get offshore black sea bass are abundant although catching fish over the legal limit of 12 inches remains difficult. The same is true for red snapper, which have a legal limit of 20 inches. Grouper over the legal limit of 24 inches are being caught but not in huge numbers.

 

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