Area, state fihing report

Estuary

Look For | Spotted seatrout, red drum, flounder, black drum, sheepshead.

Comments | With one cold front already here and another cold blast on the way this weekend, red drum are grouping up for the winter in local estuaries. “Reds are starting to bunch up – we’ve gotten on a couple of pretty good groups of them today,” Capt. Mark Dickson of Shallow-Minded Inshore Charters in North Myrtle Beach said early Thursday afternoon. “We’re (fishing) way back up in the shallow water creeks.” Most of the fish Dickson produced Thursday were in the 25-to-27 inch range and were landed on 3-inch new penny Gulp shrimp. Dickson also noted trout have taken to the pilings of the new Sunset Beach Bridge. The Little River swing bridge is holding trout, red drum and stripers. Capt. Englis Glover of Tee-to-Sea Fishing reports trout and black drum action is good in the creeks of Murrells Inlet, with red drum available also. “There are a lot of small fish but there are some nice 3-5 pounders, too,” Glover said of the trout fishing. Most of the black drum are under the 14-to-27 inch slot limit. Trout have a 14-inch minimum size limit and red drum a 15-to-24-inch slot limit in South Carolina waters.

Inshore

Look For | Whiting, black drum, bluefish, weakfish, sheepshead, red drum.

Comments | Glover reported that bonito in the 5 to 7 pound range have been caught just outside the breakers between Garden City Beach and Surfside Beach this week. Black drum in the 4-pound range have been landed off the Apache Pier along with decent catches of whiting. Most black drum are under the 14-to-27 inch slot limit. Glover reports catches of whiting and blues in the surf. Black sea bass are easy to find and in good numbers on inshore hard-bottom areas and artificial reefs but cannot be harvested until June 1, 2012. Weakfish can be found on hard-bottom areas near the beach but have a 12-inch minimum size limit and a bag limit of only 1 per person per day. The Apache Pier data station reported an ocean water temperature of 59.32 degrees Thursday morning while the reading at Springmaid Pier was 60 degrees Thursday afternoon.

Offshore

Look For | Wahoo, blackfin tuna, king mackerel, grouper, amberjack, triggerfish.

Comments | Bluefin tuna season is approaching along the Carolina coast. “There are rumors around of bluefin being seen mainly by commercial king fishing guys near the Frying Pan Tower,” said Capt. Brant McMullan of Ocean Isle Fishing Center. “But I don’t know of anybody who has tried to capture one yet.” McMullan noted that catches of king mackerel have been good in the Frying Pan Tower area. Also, action for wahoo and blackfin tuna has been good along the break in 150-300 feet of water. “There’s really been nobody in the ocean – you can’t keep anything,” McMullan said. McMullan was speaking of current closures of staple reef species – vermilion snapper (beeliners) are closed to harvest by recreational anglers through March 31, 2012 and black sea bass are closed until June 1, 2012. In addition, red snapper are off-limits indefinitely and must be released. Bottom-fishing anglers can currently keep grouper, amberjack, grunts, porgy, triggerfish and banded rudderfish among other species.

Freshwater

Look For | Crappie, bream, catfish, bass.

Comments | Crappie continue to be the best bet for anglers on local rivers. Look for crappie hitting minnows 8 to 10 feet below the surface in varying depths in areas such as the Little Pee Dee, Yauhannah, Bucksport and Bucksville reports Jay Booth of Fishermen’s Headquarters in Conway. Craig Parker of Conway landed 13 crappie from the Little Pee Dee including several fish over a pound on Saturday. Bream, including morgans and shellcracker, have moved a bit deeper and are taking worms in 10-12 feet of water on the bottom in the same locations. Booth notes catfish activity has picked up over the last week with fish taking live and cut bait, but especially cut eels. Booth described bass action as “fair at best” on shiners. The water temperature at Yauhannah was 58 degrees on Tuesday.

Gregg Holshouser, For The Sun News

State fishing

Santee Cooper System | Largemouth bass: Good. Captain Jimmie Hair reports that the primary pattern remains similar, but the fishing has improved. Fishing around eel grass with Gambler Super Studs and swimming jigs will catch fish, and in the swamp working square-billed crankbaits around cypress trees is effective. Soft plastics will also catch fish around trees. A number of five pound plus fish have been caught recently, but remember to be careful running the lake with low water levels. In the Cooper River sizes are still small, but when it gets colder bigger fish should be caught on jigs and bucktails. Striped Bass: Fair to good Captain Jim Glenn reports that striped bass are biting well and can be caught at various depths, especially during surface schooling activity. When not seen on the surface most striper are suspended from 35-50 feet deep, and live baits and artificial lures like jigs and spoons will produce fish. Some anglers are also having success trolling deep running plugs. Crappie: Good to very good. Captain Steve English reports that the crappie bite is still strong around offshore brushpiles, but as temperatures drop fish are heading to slightly deeper brush. More fish continue to be caught in the upper lake, but average sizes are better in the lower lake where some 21/2 plus pound fish have been caught. Both jigs and minnows are working. Catfish: Good. Captain Jim Glenn reports that the expected seasonal improvement in Santee Cooper catfishing is about on schedule, as cooler water temperatures have put catfish in a feeding mood. Many anglers have begun to fish the deeper waters of both lakes, and drift fishing is the preferred method for most catfishermen. Anchoring in 10-20 feet is also a viable option in both lakes for anglers who find the right spots. Large numbers of 4-6 pound fish have been caught as well as good numbers of 12-18 pound fish, and occasional 30-50 pound fish have also been reported. Mullet, shad and menhaden are the preferred baits right now.

S.C. DNR