Grand Strand Fishing Report: Severe drop in water temperature bringing fish near shore
Estuary
Look For: Red drum, spotted seatrout, flounder, black drum, sheepshead, bluefish.
Comments: With a quick drop in water temperature following an early cold snap, the stage is set for the excellent fall fishing area anglers look forward to annually. Spotted seatrout action is starting to pick up and will only get better, and bull red drum in the 30-40 inch range are beginning to show up at their normal spots at area jetties and inlet channels. After over a week of a strong north to northeast wind, conditions finally started to calm down starting Wednesday. Capt. Mike McDonald of Gul-R-Boy Guide Service in Georgetown had an excellent trip on Wednesday in Winyah Bay. McDonald and partner caught 10 spotted seatrout, four juvenile red drum and three weakfish, then switched to bigger tackle and baits to catch nine bull reds, or as McDonald calls them, channel bass. “It was steady all day long,” said McDonald. “The channel bass were 38-41 inches, a bunch of males. The females will come in here before that full moon (in early October).” McDonald used soft plastic grubs to catch the trout, live mullet and cut shrimp for the juvenile reds and big pieces of cut mullet for the channel bass. Action has also been good for Capt. Chris Ossman of Fine Catch Charters, who has found bull reds near the Little River jetties. “We’ve been catching those bull drum on the turns of the tides,” said Ossman. I’ve been using the bigger mullet, from 5-7 inches, on Carolina rigs. The live mullet seem to work better than cut bait for me.” Back in the creeks, Ossman has drifted live shrimp to find trout around structure, including bridges, shell banks, shell flats and around creek mouths. Ossman has also had good catches of flounder in deeper holes and by creek mouths with scattered shell. Ossman says red drum action is also very good using the plentiful finger mullet. “When (conditions stabilize), it’s going to be really, really good fishing,” said Ossman. “Those trout should be ready to fire off.”
Inshore
Look For: Spanish mackerel, king mackerel, bluefish, red drum, black drum, weakfish, black sea bass, whiting, flounder, croaker, pompano, spadefish.
Comments: A variety of fall action is about to get into full swing in the waters from the beach to 10-12 miles offshore. Anglers on the Pier at Garden City have caught a few bull red drum, which means the mature spawners are showing up along the beach and at the near-shore live bottom spots. Another autumn staple, weakfish, have also been caught on the same spots this week, along with black sea bass. Weakfish, also known as summer trout and grey trout, have a one-per-person daily bag limit with a 12-inch minimum size limit. Sizable bluefish to about four pounds have been caught on the same spots and from the surf. Mullet, plus menhaden, are plentiful along the beach and Spanish mackerel are on hand to take advantage. When water clarity improves, look for king mackerel to join the fray near the beach. Look for Spanish and large flounder on the near-shore artificial reefs within about five miles from the beach. “We’ve caught nice flounder on the (Jim Caudle Reef),” said Ossman. “Those fish are still out there using smaller finger mullet in the 4-6 inch range. I also saw Spanish jumping and busting on a pod of mullet at the Caudle Reef. All kinds of different stuff going on, getting into that fall groove.” The ocean water temperature has dropped significantly in one week, from 81 degrees to 74 at Apache Pier, which is good news for pier anglers. Apache Pier is producing numerous bluefish plus flounder, croaker, whiting and just a few spots. Calvin Dickerson of Apache Pier reminds anglers that bluefish have a three-per-person daily bag limit for recreational anglers. “They can be over their limit with one cast (using a multi-hook straw rig),” said Dickerson. “That’s not uncommon.” Dickerson noted the 3rd annual Ashley Turner Memorial King Mackerel Tournament will be held on Apache Pier on Oct. 3. Steve Gann of Cherry Grove Pier reports spadefish, whiting, croaker, flounder and pompano, plus scattered catches of Spanish and blues have been caught this week. “I can count the number of spots I’ve seen on one hand,” said Gann. Anglers fishing in the Fall Pier King Mackerel Tournament last weekend caught Spanish weighing up to five pounds on the Cherry Grove Pier. No kings were caught in the tournament which was hampered by high winds and was held from the Apache, Cherry Grove and Myrtle Beach State Park piers.
Offshore
Look For: Wahoo, blackfin tuna, yellowfin tuna, dolphin, king mackerel, barracuda, grouper, vermilion snapper, red porgy, black sea bass, white grunts, grey triggerfish and amberjack.
Comments: There has been virtually no offshore fishing in the last week thanks to a persistent strong nor’easter. With cooler water temperatures look for bottom fishing to really take off, including a movement of grouper, namely gag and scamp, to shallower water in the 65-90 foot range. Bottom fishing is expected to be excellent for vermilion snapper, red porgy, black sea bass, white grunts, grey triggerfish and amberjack. Red snapper are also plentiful but must be released in the South Atlantic Region. Anglers targeting snapper-grouper species are required to have a descending device on board and readily available for use. Also, the use of non-offset, non-stainless steel circle hooks are required when fishing for snapper-grouper species with hook-and-line gear and natural baits. Look for trolling action to pick up near the break for wahoo, blackfin tuna and possibly dolphin and yellowfin tuna.
Freshwater
Look For: Bream, crappie, bass, catfish.
Comments: The only change on the freshwater scene has been a rise in the water levels thanks to recent rains. While most area rivers are near minor flood stage, they are trending to recede. “The rivers are falling, that’s the upside of things,” said Ronald “Catfish” Stalvey of Stalvey’s Bait and Tackle in Conway. With a significant drop in water temperature from the lower 80s to the lower 70s in the last week, look for crappie action to ramp up. “Crappie will be on the upswing,” said Stalvey. “They’ll be schooling up more.” Otherwise, look for bream hitting crickets in 2-4 feet of water off the banks. Catfish, are hitting live bream and cut eel, plus cut mullet, menhaden or shad will also work. Top-water lures such as frogs and buzz baits, plus Texas-rigged worms fished deep are preferred baits for bass.