March 17
Morning inshore surface water temperatures around Little River are up to the low 60s and conditions remain very clear.
Fishing continues to improve at the top of the South Carolina Grand Strand, and Captain Patrick “Smiley” Kelly (843-361-7445) reports that just this week they have caught a mixed bag of trout, black drum, and redfish as well as the first good flounder of the season!
Starting on the outside and working in, before the fishing started to pick up inshore they were heading out to the Caudle Reef when conditions allowed. They were getting good numbers of black drum as well as small black sea bass and bluefish on fresh cut shrimp fished on a heavy split shot rig right over the structure. They would also pick up the occasional sheepshead, but with fiddler crabs you will catch more.
Moving in towards the jetties, the action has been a little slow but Captain Smiley’s boats have been catching redfish drifting live shrimp – available at Perry’s in Murrells Inlet – along the rocks. The most bites have been coming about 20 feet out on a slip bobber, and the key is to adjust the depth until you find the fish. They have also picked up some sporadic fish on a paddletail swimbait.
The best trout catches have come in the Intracoastal Waterway, and off the ledges they are picking up some really nice fish. They are anchoring in 5-6 feet; on one side there is a flat and on the other side it drops off to 13 or so feet, and the key is to always cast into and fish the line of current. Live shrimp under a slip cork has been working very well but Vudu shrimp on the same rig or casting are also catching fish as are paddletail grubs. Be sure to add some Pro-Cure shrimp scent to soft plastics.
Finally, inside in the tidal marshes they have been able to creep up on a few reds and the occasional flounder in deeper holes. The best bite is coming around low tide, either rising or falling. Cut shrimp and mud minnows are working as is Gulp! on a jighead. They are occasionally seeing big schools of reds pushing water, and while they are seeing trout back there they are usually not biting.
There’s more improvement in the action at the Cherry Grove Pier (843-249-1625), and they are starting to catch some nice whiting. There are also an assortment of small bluefish, croaker, sting rays and pufferfish being caught. Off the pier surface temperatures are about 59 degrees.

March 2
Morning inshore surface water temperatures around Little River are in the low to mid-50s and conditions remain very clear.
The fishing is just starting to pick up at the top of the South Carolina Grand Strand, and Captain Patrick “Smiley” Kelly(843-361-7445) reports that with temperatures just a little bit warmer species like redfish are getting more active. They have had some decent days recently sight-casting for fish on the low to rising tides in skinny creeks when the water is just starting to come up. In contrast, docks are fishing very slowly.
They are seeing a ton of trout in the same areas, but it is harder to get them to bite.
There have been some inshore trout caught at the swing bridge, where there is a lot of structure in 6-13 feet for the fish to get around. Anglers are throwing Rapalas, Mirrolures and paddletail grubs and catching a mixed bag including trout, striper, and some reds. The same smorgasbord of species is also available at the Myrtle Beach Yacht Club on the same baits.
There’s some marginal improvement at the Cherry Grove Pier (843-249-1625), where they are now catching some small bluefish, croaker, whiting and pufferfish. Off the pier surface temperatures are about 55 degrees on the top and 54 at the bottom.
Out at the Little River jetties Captain Smiley’s boat has caught some trout with live shrimp fished under a slip cork. Most of the fish are within 20 feet of the rocks. They have been fishing the falling tide, but moving water in either direction is really the key.
They have also caught some black drum and small black sea bass at the Caudle Reef on shrimp. While they have not picked up any sheepshead, if you have fiddler crabs you can catch them.