Grand Strand Fishing Report: Hurricane Isaias’ impact on area anglers should be minimal

Estuary

Look For: Flounder, spotted seatrout, black drum, red drum, Spanish mackerel, bluefish, sheepshead.

Comments: Hurricane Isaias packed quite a punch, especially on the north end of the area from Little River and Cherry Grove through Brunswick County, but some anglers were able to quickly get back out on the water after the storm passed Monday night. Capt. Chris Ossman of Fine Catch Fishing Charters in Little River had three trips on Wednesday and was pleased with the fishing and water conditions. “I was very surprised at how the bite was yesterday, I thought it would be tougher,” said Ossman. “The water’s still dark brown by the (Harbourgate) Marina and near the ocean it’s hazy green. It’s not pretty but it’s not as bad as I’ve seen it in past years.” Ossman found spotted seatrout, red drum and flounder on his Wednesday trips. “I caught a lot of small trout surprisingly inshore in deeper holes and around deeper structure,” said Ossman, who floated live shrimp and finger mullet. “I’ve seen a lot of flounder mostly in North Carolina, a few in South Carolina, and a lot of them short. There’s also a lot of small reds around.” Ossman has also found small black drum in deeper holes around shell bank areas, hitting dead shrimp. Kayak angler extraordinaire Rob Birchmeier hit the south end of Murrells Inlet Wednesday and found trout, reds and black drum receptive. Birchmeier noted the water was murky after the storm, but finger mullet and shrimp are plentiful for bait. “The creeks are loaded with shrimp,” said Birchmeier, who noted reds over the 15-23 inch slot have made their way into the inlet. Capt. Perrin Wood of Southern Saltwater also confirmed, catching a 29-inch red on a floated finger mullet along a shell bank during a Thursday morning trip in Murrells Inlet. Wood noted a water temperature of 83 degrees. Capt. Rayburn Poston reports good catches of flounder from the Murrells Inlet Fishing Charters fleet this week after the storm. Tarpon time is here in local estuaries, especially those from Winyah Bay and points south.

Inshore

Look For: Spanish mackerel, king mackerel, tarpon, spadefish, whiting, pompano, flounder, black drum, red drum, spotted seatrout, weakfish.

Comments: Poston gave it a try on Paradise Reef on 2-3 foot seas Thursday morning between rain storms. He found “dirty” water at the reef, located three miles east of Murrells Inlet, and caught one good Spanish mackerel while slow-trolling a ballyhoo. The trip was cut short by a line of thunderstorms approaching from the west. Ossman noted good catches of flounder continue on the near-shore reefs. Tarpon can also be found near inlet passes and in the surf, feasting on schools of mullet and menhaden. Woods reported he saw a tarpon clear the water while chasing bait Wednesday in the surf zone. Angler Joe Nelligan was fishing from the Pier at Garden City on Thursday morning and noted improving water conditions. “The water finally got clean and we’ve finally got finger mullet coming down the beach,” said Nelligan, who noted small whiting and croaker have been caught from the pier since the storm. Perry Duncan of Cherry Grove Pier reported the water quality is improving on the north end, too. “Normally it takes 3-4 days after the storm for it to clear up,” said Duncan. “It had a brown tint (Wednesday), but it was sandy (Thursday) morning.” Duncan reported whiting, croaker, ribbonfish, blues and a few flounder and spotted seatrout have been caught since the storm.

Offshore

Look For: Wahoo, king mackerel, dolphin, blackfin tuna, sailfish, blue marlin, bonito, grouper, red snapper, amberjack, cobia, vermilion snapper, triggerfish, red porgy, black sea bass.

Comments: Fishing along the break is always unpredictable after a hurricane passes, and it will be interesting what anglers find over the next several days. Traditionally trolling is slow in August, but normally there is an uptick in wahoo activity. Sailfish encounters are commonplace, with a few blue marlin still around. Be on the lookout for floating debris or weedlines, and be ready to load up on dolphin or tripletail hanging around the structure. Bottom fishing typically produces a variety of species including grouper, red snapper, amberjack, vermilion snapper, triggerfish, red porgy, black sea bass and grunts, but after a storm don’t be surprised to find a few more exotic species such as yellowtail snapper or African pompano hanging on the reefs. Red snapper have been commonly caught on bottom spots, especially in depths of 90-120 feet, but are off-limits and must be released in the South Atlantic Region.

Freshwater

Look For: Bream, bass, catfish, crappie.

Comments: Local rivers had finally gotten back to normal levels, and here comes Hurricane Isaias and a bunch of rain. The good news is the rivers aren’t forecast to rise into flood stage following the storm. Both the Waccamaw at Conway and Little Pee Dee at Galivants Ferry have a rise in them but are both forecast to stay just below flood stage. “They’re not showing a lot of rise,” said Logan Estep of Stalvey’s Bait and Tackle in Conway. Estep got a look at the Waccamaw on Tuesday, one day after the storm, during the weekly bass tournament held out of Conway Marina. “We did notice the Waccamaw was unusually muddy but it was still very fishable,” said Estep. Shawn Todd of Conway won the tournament with a 4-pound, 4 ½-ounce bass. “The bite was slow in the tournament,” said Estep, who recommends using Ribbit frogs and Senkos for bass. With a rise in the rivers, work creeks and lakes off the main rivers for bream and fish a little deeper with crickets and worms. Live bream, black salty minnows and cut eel are prime baits for catfish.

This story was originally published August 6, 2020 at 3:08 PM.