As of lately, the fishing has slowed across the board.  The trout are around but they are small and the redfish can be found in good numbers but they are hard to get to eat.  That is unless you are already catching the menhaden.  And I am.  They arrived a couple of weeks ago but are now here in good enough numbers that you can almost depend on them being in the normal spots.  As long as the wind is not blowing out of the east, the bite should pick up this week after the cool front we are having.  Lets keep our fingers crossed and our rod tips at the ready!

As spring approached and then landed in it's full, pollen filled, yellow clouded force, the fishing was going from great to even better. After a stellar winter of shallow water sight casting to redfish, we are now forced to start exploring other species. This is not a bad thing though. The giant trout will be here this month and stick around for about 6 weeks while spawning. They typically follow the onset of the menhaden migration and will range from 10 inches to over 8 pounds! That's right 30 + inch trout will invade the inlets close to the ocean within the next 30 days. Another spring staple in the lowcountry has made it's annual appearance, the cobia. Tons of fun to catch and even better to eat. These lemonfish, or ling as some call them can be found in the river mouths and harbors but more frequently around nearshore bouys and weed lines. Squid, grunts, crabs, menhaden, pinfish, shrimp, and cut mullet all make great bait but I prefer to throw a fly at them. Big patterns work best. As summer starts up, the giant redfish in the 15-50 pound range will start eating everything in site around the harbor and jetties. Mullet, blue crabs, and menhaden make the best baits for these monsters. As summer burns on, the tarpon will take the spotlight and continue to do so well into September. If you have any saltwater fishing questions or want to book a trip, please don't hesitate to call me. As always, remember you can't catch them sitting on the couch!

Redfish are chomping!

Today was another great day on the water and an even better day for fishing. It was Chris Luthy's birthday and his wife bought him a surprise charter. What a woman! He brought a couple of buddies and we headed up the waterway. The temperature is getting up into the 60's now and last week the redfish started eating the blue crabs. With a box full of nice live crabs, we edged up the intercoastal to a flat that the redfish have been frequenting for a month or so now. It took about thirty minutes of soaking baits to get the first bite but once we did, it was on. We caught 15 big redfish, otherwise known as spottail bass, in about 2 hours. One of which was almost 35 inches. Keep in mind we are "flats fishing" in about 18 inches of water so these fish are making a ton of commotion. It was a great morning of inshore redfishing in Charleston SC to say the least.

Spring 2011

It has been a while since my last blog. Had to figure out this new blogspot URL stuff. This winter and spring has been unbelievably good for inshore fishing in the Carlolinas and especially here in Charleston. The redfish, also known as spot tail bass, have been chomping! Schools of 50- over 1,000 fish have been congregating in the shallows of the bays and sounds. The water has been very clear and the site fishing has been the way to go. January and February were great months to use artificials and the fly rod to catch big numbers of redfish. With the approach of warmer weather, the schools are breaking up a bit and starting to prefer the mullet and crabs. May is "Giant Trout" month and as soon as the menhaden arrive, it will be time to go catch some big breeder trouts near the inlets. The water temperature is hovering around 60 degrees which is the magic number. The Giant redfish should be moving into the harbor and shortly thereafter, the mullet run and the tarpon run will be here. Call me now to book your trout, redfish, or tarpon trips! Please checkout my facebook page and feel free to email me with any tackle or condition questions. Keep the tip up and turn the handle!

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April Update

It's been a great month of fishing. 24 trips down this month and ready for more. The redfish have been biting all year with the exception of the coldest week we've had in over a decade. Luckily, it did not stay cold enough to kill off any trout or redfish. The bite has slowly shifted from large schools of reds eating whole and cut mullet to smaller schools of big and medium sized fish eating blue crabs. The big trout are showing up in droves right behind the menhaden. I still have some days open for the last week in April and first week in May so hurry while they are biting! I am also taking reservations for a limited number of kite fishing trips and tarpon trips! I hope everyone is well and remember, you can't catch em sittin on the couch.

The Cardinal family on a hot redfish bite!

The weather was cold and sunny and we had plenty of bait. The first sitings of the day came from Tim on the bow. He said "look, I can see one swimming in the grass". As I lifted my head to see what he was referring to, I noticed an entire school of 100+ fish wondering slowly through the grass in front of us. We caught three nice ones in a row and then a bottle nosed dolphin showed up for breakfast and as quickly as it all started, it was over. The fish froze up and wouldn't touch a bait.

Redfish Mafia

If your on this site, your either pleasantly lost or you like to fish. Either way, you should check out the latest in FREE and positive info and photo sharing on the net. Best of all, it's all about Redfish! Post photos, ask pros questions, chat with friends and make new friends. There's even going to be weekly tournaments for real cash and prizes. Check it out, join the FAMILY! www.redfish-mafia.com Tell em I sent ya and you might not get whacked!

Where they at?

Cold morning this morning but the wind laid down and the sun came out. Found a bunch of reds in shallow on the low tide but they wouldn't eat. We only threw artificials though. They probably would have eaten the Blue Crabs but we were just scouting for some new schools. Also found a nice school of big trout up on a redfish flat. Never seen trout there before but they were lathargic and they also would not eat. It's going to be going off though real soon if these warm days keep coming. Catch em up

We were covered up in the Redfish all day long yesterday. Maybe not all day. They were tough to find in the morning up the Wando. Went to the same spots I've been fishing for three weeks and there have been over 200 fish in one of them. But yesterday, no dice. Wind was out of the North and it had rained all night so that didn't help. So we switched gears and ran around the point and up the waterway to Capers Inlet where we found a nice school of reds in the 20-30 inch range. Worked hard but finally found some!

Blame it on the rain!

Sitting at the computer watching it rain cats and dogs. 3 cancelled trips so far since Friday. Either cold, rainy, or both. Tomorrow is looking good though and I have a trip at noon. I'll keep you posted.

Fishing has been great the past couple of weeks and continues to get better as the sunny days get longer. I have some prime time openings next week and would love to fill them. Anybody who mentions reading this blog will receive a 50.00 discount or an extra hour of fishing time. I hope everyone is well and remember, you can't catch em sitting on the couch!

Raining today so I guess its time for tackle maintenance. Remember, change out your line if your reels have been sitting all winter and make sure you use a reel grease and not a lube like WD40. If you have any questions on reel repair or maintenance, drop em right here. Let me know.

January at its finest!

Oh man the fish are swarming. Tons of Redfish and Trout up on the flats right now. Schools of 15 - 32 inch fish in moderately sized schools of 10-50 fish. They are eating everything, literally. Good luck and feel free to post some pics, videos, and comments, on my Facebook page!

January Sunshine

Fished today with Capt. Graham Hegermayer and Capt. Tucker Blythe. Found a bunch of reds and threw the fly for a while. It's warming up and there were some tailing fish for a change. Live or dead bait would have crushed them! Got two bites on the Z-man clear shrimp but the rest were looking for crabs. The blue crabs are going to be the bait of choice for the next few months!This weekend should be awesome fishing! I have some spots open if you want to go!

Its been a while.

Its been a while since my last post. Sorry. New one tonight.

I hope this finds everyone well and in full Holiday Spirit. The fishing has been phenomenal this entire year and the past few weeks have been no exception. The trout are really biting now and the redfish have continued to surprise us with every trip. They are both in the harbor and around the waterway, especially closer to the inlets. Contrary to what my not so common since tells me, they have actually been biting in the 51-54 degree water instead of the warmer waters back in the sounds. I think water depth and clarity are a bigger factor right now due to the rain as of recent. The trout are hanging from 4 -10 feet deep in some spots and the reds are all mixed in. Live shrimp and minnows are always a good bet but the new Z-Man clear shrimps have been catching them just fine. On foggy or overcast days, the Red Ripper Spoon Buzzers from Nemire Lures have been destroying the reds and trout! Sheepshead are swarming on slack tides on any under water structure as well as the pilings in the waterway. Even one pole can hold 10-15 fish right now! The key to winter time fishing is less lead, lighter FLOROCARBON leaders and smaller hooks. On your topwater plugs, take the old hooks off amd down size them. if there are three hooks, remove the middle ones. If the bait still has good action, you'll catch more fish!
On another note, I am running a special for Christmas this year. Anyone who buys a 1/2 day inshore trip Gift Certificate before Christmas, gets another one for free, as well as 2 visors and 2 coozies. They make great gifts. Especially if you think the recipient will ask you to go with them. Also, I can give full price receipts for tax deductions. If you think your going to go next year, its worth it! All come with my guarantee also, if we don't catch what we are after, you get to go again for free. Thanks and I hope the holidays are safe and wonderful for all of you!

Update and Gift Certificates

I hope this finds everyone well and in full Holiday Spirit. The fishing has been phenomenal this entire year and the past few weeks have been no exception. The trout are really biting now and the redfish have continued to surprise us with every trip. They are both in the harbor and around the waterway, especially closer to the inlets. Contrary to what my not so common since tells me, they have actually been biting in the 51-54 degree water instead of the warmer waters back in the sounds. I think water depth and clarity are a bigger factor right now due to the rain as of recent. The trout are hanging from 4 -10 feet deep in some spots and the reds are all mixed in. Live shrimp and minnows are always a good bet but the new Z-Man clear shrimps have been catching them just fine. Sheepshead are swarming on slack tides on any under water structure as well as the pilings in the waterway. Even one pole can hold 10-15 fish right now!

On another note, I am running a special for Christmas this year. Anyone who buys a 1/2 day inshore trip Gift Certificate before Christmas, gets another one for free, as well as 2 visors and 2 coozies. They make great gifts. Especially if you think the recipient will ask you to go with them. Also, I can give full price receipts for tax deductions. If you think your going to go next year, its worth it! All come with my guarantee also, if we don't catch what we are after, you get to go again for free. Thanks and I hope the holidays are safe and wonderful for all of you!

July 2nd. The Helms crew.

Another stellar day with Clay Helms, his son Austin. We caught another 22 reds and all on 6 pound tackle. Here are the pictures, enjoy.

July 1. Unbelievable!!!!

On July 1st, I took the Underwoods fishing. Within 5 minutes of getting to the spot, we had 5 big reds on. It didn't stop there either. We caught double and triple headers the whole trip, mullet, cut mullet, shrimp, gulp baits, minnows, it didn't matter. They ate everything we threw at them. 22 big reds and 4 keepers. What a morning.