Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that April is sometimes an unpredictable month, but usually there is some pretty good fishing for trout and redfish as temperatures warm and fish metabolism speeds up.  Fishing live shrimp under a cork will work for both species, and redfish (as well as black drum) will eat fresh cut shrimp around docks.  This month the flounder will also return and by the end of the month there should be decent numbers of legal fish to be caught.  There were already some early keepers by the end of March. 

Inshore: Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that March is typically a strong month on the north end of the Grand Strand, and they have every reason to expect that the black drum fishing will continue to be excellent. They will eat cut or dead shrimp fished around structure. Redfish should also still be schooled up on the flats where they can be caught at low tide on shrimp, and at higher stages of the tide they will be found around structure. Trout fishing should turn on at the jetties as well as inshore, and fish will be caught on both live shrimp and artificial baits like Vudu Shrimp. In late February they were already feeding a little better as water clarity improved. Finally, at the end of February flounder started to return to the Cherry Grove area and that should begin full-scale in the whole region later this month.

Nearshore: Captain Smiley Fishing Charters reports that in March sheepshead will still be stacked up at the nearshore reefs, and black sea bass should still be relatively close to the coast.

Inshore: Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that January typically offers some of the clearest, prettiest water of the year, and as a result it can be an excellent month for sight-fishing on the north end of the Grand Strand.  Redfish will be grouped up in large winter schools that are easy to spot, and it is hard to beat fresh cut shrimp fished on a jighead to entice them to bite.  Black drum can also be caught on shrimp fished around docks and ledges in the Intracoastal Waterway or holes in the creeks.  If water temperatures stay in the upper 40s then trout should continue to bite right through January.  They will be caught on artificial lures such as Vudu Shrimp in the ICW and around the jetties, and at times they will even be mixed in with redfish on the shallow flats.  Storms and dirty water can slow the bite and spread the fish out, but they will usually return to eating once conditions improve.    

Morning surface water temperatures are in the upper 60s inshore in Little River.  Water clarity is improving with a lack of rain.    

It seems a little late in the year, but Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that when they have been able to get off the beaches they have absolutely been wearing out the Spanish mackerel.  They are mixed in with the bait schools in 20-30 feet of water, and it’s not uncommon to see acres of fish on the surface.  Yesterday they caught 40 or 50 Spanish in short order casting spoons to them.   

While the Spanish have kept them occupied at times, the fishing for weakfish has also been pretty incredible.  They are on the nearshore reefs and off the beaches on any sort of structure, and you can catch them a variety of different ways.  Jigging spoons, fishing live mullet or mud minnows, and cut shrimp are all working.  It’s not unusual to catch 40 or 50 even though you can only keep one per person.  

The big red drum fishing is still spotty at best in the inlet and around the jetties.  They are scattered and mixed with the sharks, and the numbers just aren’t great.   

Inshore the redfish bite is still good around the tide cycle, and live finger mullet, cut mullet, Vudu Shrimp and more are all working.  Most of the fish they have been catching are in the slot or over, but there are also still tons of smaller redfish around.  If you fish shrimp or smaller pieces of bait you will catch them.  

More trout are also showing up, and they are picking up some fish in moving water throwing artificials.  The bite will only improve as temperatures drop.   

The flounder are also biting this week, and it seems that there are still decent numbers around.  The best place to look for flounder has still been creek mouths on falling tides.   

Finally, it’s been a really good week for black drum fishing with cut shrimp.  The fish have been around creek mouths, and both the rising and falling tide have been good.    

Morning surface water temperatures have dropped to about 68 degrees inshore in Little River and clarity has improved.   

With some beautiful weather this week they have been able to venture out a little more, and Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that the fishing for weakfish has been pretty incredible.  They are on the nearshore reefs and off the beaches on any sort of structure in 10-20 feet of water, and you can catch them a variety of different ways.  Jigging spoons, fishing live mullet or mud minnows, and cut shrimp are all working.  It’s not unusual to catch 40 or 50 even though you can only keep one per person.   

At the 3-Mile Reef they are also catching bluefish and Spanish mackerel casting at them, which is partially making up for the fact that the big red drum fishing is still spotty at best in the inlet and around the jetties.  They are scattered and mixed with the sharks, and the numbers just aren’t great.   

Inshore the redfish bite is still good around the tide cycle, and live finger mullet, cut mullet, Vudu Shrimp and more are all working.  Most of the fish they have been catching are in the slot or over, but there are also still tons of smaller redfish around.  If you fish shrimp or smaller pieces of bait you will catch them.  

More trout are also showing up, and even though tides have been a little tricky for trout – and they have not really been targeting them – they are picking up some fish in moving water throwing artificials.  They also caught a nice one on a topwater lure yesterday.   

The flounder are also biting this week, and it seems that there are still decent numbers around.  The best place to look for flounder has still been creek mouths on falling tides.   

Finally, it’s been a really good week for black drum fishing with cut shrimp.  The fish have been around creek mouths, and both the rising and falling tide have been good.    

 

Morning surface water temperatures have dropped to about 70 degrees inshore in Little River and the ocean water is dirty.  

Even if the species are a bit re-arranged this week it’s still wide open fishing at the top of South Carolina coast, and Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that it’s hard to find a tide right now when the redfish are not chomping.  He’s catching them on the high fall, the low fall, and throughout the rising tide. They are even catching them on dead low sight-fishing in a foot of water or less when they see fish pushing water. Overall, live finger mullet, cut mullet, Vudu Shrimp and more are all working.   

Most of the fish they have been catching are in the slot or over, but there are also still tons of smaller redfish around.  If you fish shrimp or smaller pieces of bait you will catch them.   

While not the numbers they will be soon, there are also a few nice trout around.  They are catching them in moving water, generally with live mullet on flounder rigs since they aren’t targeting trout as much yet.  

Speaking of flounder, they are catching less fish right now and the bite is bit tricky.  Perhaps some of the finicky bite is because they are having to use big finger mullet that are harder for the fish to swallow.  Support for that is that, while they are catching less fish, what they are catching has been bigger.  The best place to look for flounder has still been creek mouths on falling tides.  

They are also catching black drum on fresh cut shrimp around rock piles, oyster beds, and creek mouths.  Again, the falling tide is better.   

In the Little River inlet the bull red drum fishing is still hit-or-miss, and it seems like you either strike out or catch 6-10 good fish.  It’s unclear why.  

Finally, before yesterday’s rain there were still some Spanish mackerel off the beaches that could be caught trolling in 15-30 feet of water.  They were also catching some casting at schooling fish.  However, this bite can’t last much longer.    

Morning surface water temperatures have dropped into the low 70s inshore in Little River.   

Water temperatures dropped fast at the north end of South Carolina’s coast, and Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that the fishing has really turned on at the same time.  The big red drum run has started, and they are catching them in the inlet around the jetties in 15-30 feet of water with cut bait on the bottom.  They are also picking up some nice bluefish on this pattern, and you should keep an eye open for Spanish mackerel chasing mullet.   

Inside the creeks there is still an abundance of small slot-sized redfish everywhere, as well as a decent number of fish up to 23 inches.  Finger mullet, shrimp, cut mullet, mud minnows and more will all work.  The dropping tide down to low tide when the fish are concentrating has been most productive, particularly around creek mouths, oyster bars and indentations.  They are also picking up black drum on cut shrimp in the same areas.  

There are some nice flounder being caught in both North Carolina and South Carolina, and the best time to fish for them has been from the top of the dropping tide down at creeks mouths and oyster beds as water drains out.  Finger mullet and mud minnows are both working.  

Some random trout are being caught, so they are around, but the numbers aren’t great right now.  

Morning surface water temperatures are around 81 degrees inshore in Little River and the water is dirty.   

There are plenty of flounder to be caught in South Carolina, but with the North Carolina season only open a bit longer Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that it’s hard to stay out of that state if you want to catch keepers.  They are catching them on both mullet and Gulp! baits, and the best tide has been the rising tide in skinny water.   

They are also picking up a lot of black drum, particularly around holes and in creek mouths.  The best time to fish for them is around low tide on the last of the fall and the first of the rise, and with shrimp so abundant they only seem to want live shrimp or very fresh dead ones.   

While there are a few trout around they just aren’t prolific yet, but right now even the trout holes (and everywhere else) is filled with small redfish.  Some of them are 15 inches or just over, and then another fourth or fifth of the reds they are catching are 23-30 inches.  It does appear that fishing pressure is making a difference with so few fish in the slot except for young-of-the-year fish that have just gotten there.  Finger mullet, shrimp, cut mullet, mud minnows and more will all work.   

The mullet schools are running the beaches right now, and Spanish mackerel are right there eating them.  Instead of the smaller Spanish that were so common earlier they are now catching big 4-pounders free-lining mullet around the schools.  You can also catch them throwing spoons or topwater lures when they are thick and fired up, and bluefish are in with them.  There are also a few bull drum in the surf and at the jetties but they haven’t quite arrived in numbers yet.   

 

Morning surface water temperatures have dropped to 79 degrees around Little River and the water is dirty.  Bait is less abundant in the creeks after the storms but still available, while the mullet run is underway in the ocean.    

The storm has blown out the creeks with a ton of freshwater, and Captain Buddy Love with Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that it’s made catching bait harder.  Instead of throwing the net twice and getting all the shrimp you need for a day of fishing you now have to throw it a lot more to get a few dozen decent-sized baits.  Tiny shrimp are still everywhere.   

But despite that the fishing has actually improved in the creeks, and they are now catching a ton of redfish.  Most of them are just under the slot at 13 ½ to 14 inches, but there are also plenty of better fish around as well.  The best time to fish for them is on the last of the fall and the first of the rise, and at higher stages of the tide they go up in the grass and become difficult to locate.  They are catching the most fish on cut shrimp fished around creek mouths, and they are also picking up plenty of black drum that way.  You also have to contend with a lot of smaller bait stealers.   

Trout can be caught on live shrimp under a popping cork, but the most consistent trout fishing has actually come on topwater lures fished early.  For some reason redfish have not been eating the plugs on top.  

They have also picked up a few flounder even without targeting them too frequently, but the best flounder action is in North Carolina.  In South Carolina you generally have to pick through smaller ones, but they did have one big 23-inch fish on a live finger mullet in South Carolina this week.   

A few tarpon have also been around.   

Perhaps the biggest change with the fishing this week is with the Spanish mackerel, which had been so abundant off the beaches.  With the mullet run kicking off they have been slow trolling Hopkins spoons, but they are now catching them free-lining live mullet and throwing topwater plugs at the mouths of the inlets.  The falling tide has been the best time to target them.   

Morning surface water temperatures have dropped a little to 83 degrees around Little River and bait is still abundant.   

It’s hard to give sole credit to the slightly dropping water temperatures when fishing was already picking up last week, but Captain Buddy Love with Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that the slight drop in water temps has certainly coincided with a dramatically improved bite.  In particular they are seeing more black drum this week, including some 22-23 inch fish, which are basically on the same pattern as the redfish.  That is they are biting best on the last of the falling tide and the first of the rise around creek mouths with oysters.  With live shrimp you will catch both types of drum as well as mix of other species, while with finger mullet you are more likely to get redfish.  You will also catch flounder on any live bait, which are generally biting best on the lower stages of the tide as well.   

In South Carolina you have to pick through the flounder to get one over 16 inches, while in North Carolina (closed to harvest) there are tons of big ones around.   

While the bite hasn’t gotten hot they are also picking up a few trout, generally on the last of the rising tide.  They are scattered pretty much everywhere and eating live shrimp.   

The Spanish mackerel are also still around, and twenty-five feet of water is still the magic depth.  You can catch them trolling spoons on #1 or #2 planer boards and there are also still some times when you can cast at them.